Lotus 7
Colin Chapman, the genius behind Lotus, had one very strong conviction: he refused to compromise. And there was certainly no compromise about the Seven. Whilst it could probably best be described as the nearest thing to a four-wheel motorcycle you’d ever see, this kit-built sportscar was not a tourer but an out-and-out sportscar.
In its early years the car was mainly sold in kit form to take advantage of a British tax concession which applied at the time, and enabled the car to be sold at a price which appealed to many enthusiasts.
It had two seats, virtually no luggage space and only the barest essentials when it came to weather protection. These comprised a hood, which proved difficult to erect and side screens which, when in place, made it almost impossible to get in and out of and very little else in the way of creature comforts. What it did have, however, was a blistering straight line performance from a great engine with road holding and handling up with the best of them.
The Lotus Seven was constructed with a tubular chassis and a suspension of the type used in many racing cars of that time and over the years it could be supplied with a choice of engines. All up virtually any variant weighed barely 500 kg and with any of the engine options it was capable of doing the 0 to 100 km/h dash in around six seconds. What appealed to many owners was the fact that they got racing car performance for a relatively small outlay in a very individual car.
Everything about the Seven flattered the enthusiastic driver. It had beautifully precise controls, strictly functional instruments and trim – even a laid back driving position which was so exhilaratingly close to the road. Whilst it wasn’t the most beautiful piece of machinery, driving it was apparently a pure joy for its many owners. In the early days engine options grew from small push-rod units, through Formula Ford units to Lotus Twincam units in various stages of tune.
In 1973 British tax concessions on specialist kit cars were removed pushing prices up considerably. Some other specialist cars soon disappeared from the market because of this but the Seven was saved by a long-time Lotus dealer, Caterham Cars, in Surrey. They acquired production rights from Lotus and changed the car’s name to the Caterham 7 in May 1973 and continued producing the car with constant improvements from that time.
At the time of acquisition Lotus had been producing the Series 4 version of the car with a fibreglass body but since customers seemed to prefer the older classic, alloy-panelled body with fibreglass nose Lotus-made Series 3 design, Caterham reverted to that design. In 1982 Caterham even added a long-cockpit option to suit taller drivers but neither that nor the vast array of engine and chassis variations changed the character of the Super Seven in the slightest.
The basic design of the car never changed from its concept in 1957. It was fast as well as being fun to drive, even if it was somewhat impractical! The light-weight body and powerful engine certainly added up to true supercar performance. The sure grip and phenomenal levels of handling was the perfect complement to its blistering performance.
