Caterham Super Seven: new and retro
Remember the good old days? They’re back with this ‘new’ Seven
The first drive is great. This Seven – like all Sevens – is in its element on sunny B-roads, tiny wheel wriggling in your hands, soft-ish suspension breathing with the dips and crests. Normally you’d also be mesmerised by the front wheels turning with your inputs, but on the Super Seven they’re shrouded by long, flowing arches. That’s because it’s styled to recall the original Lotus Super Sevens (so-called because they had a bit more poke than regular Sevens) and the first cars made under Caterham in the early ’70s after it acquired the rights from Lotus.
Caterham’s previous retro-inspired models (the Seven Sprint and cafe racer-style Super Sprint, released in 2017) sold out in a matter of days despite very modern prices. The new old-fashioned Super Seven is not a limited-run model but a full-time addition to the range.
It uses the same 1600cc Ford Sigma engine as entry-level Caterhams, with the Super bit justified by twin throttle bodies. They sound great, bringing a little Joe Cocker gravel. Additional retro touches include an old-style grille, sparewheel carrier, choice of throwback colours and lovely, but pricey, optional leather cockpit trim.
The second drive is harder work. I’m heading home at night. Raindrops smash into the Seven’s upright screen like hailstones. In the murk, the tail-lights of the cars looming over me on the dark dual-carriageway ahead refract into streaming red comets’ tails. The teeny chromed wipers are fighting a losing battle. Coupled with the roaring road and wind noise, the driving experience feels a little like something I’d imagine an astronaut experiences battling back into Earth’s atmosphere on re-entry.
The third drive, though; that’s one to remember. Hood down, doors off, Jenveys gulping in balmy air and the Moto Lita wheel alive in my hands. Bliss. The tall, skinny 14-inch tyres ride sweetly over bumps and cambers, their grip stronger than their waif-like girth suggests is likely. If you’re after a slidey, oversteery kind of Caterham, in its standard set-up the Super isn’t what you’re after. It’s more about neatness and
neutrality, but you could tweak that with the optional Sport or Track suspension packs. It feels quick enough to justify its name when you’re in the zone, the Ford engine pulling with real conviction at the top end of its rev range.
Thing is, you can get similar euphoria from a normal, modern-spec Seven. The Super Seven is around £4500 pricier than a Sigma-engined Seven 310 and around £2000 over a 2.0-litre 360, both minus the retro accoutrements. But then, all Sevens feel a bit like time travel anyway. JAMES TAYLOR
First verdict
Truck-loads of charm to throw away but not as special as the Seven Sprint and pricier than a basic Seven
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Hood down, doors o , Jenveys gulping in balmy air and the Moto Lita wheel alive in my hands