CAFÉ RACER 76

Caterham launches three new Sevens in 2015

The pure driving machine from Dartford (in South East England) continues to evolve. For 2015, the Caterham Seven has been optimised, bringing three new models to the market. The most powerful version delivers 210HP and accelerates faster than a new Porsche 911…

Seven lives

When Caterham founder Graham Nearn acquired the rights to the Lotus Seven in the 1970s, he wouldn’t have believed that, despite the virtually unchanged design, his Caterham Seven would still find buyers four decades later. To keep up with the demands of an ever-changing market, the technology in the lightweight purebred has again been refreshed. Three new Ford-engined models arrive in 2015: the Caterham Seven 270, powered by a 1.6-litre 135HP three-cylinder unit; the Seven 360, with a 2.0-litre 180HP engine; and the Seven 420, which uses the same four-cylinder, but with dry-sump lubrication resulting in 210HP and four-second 0-62mph capabilities. There are also new equipment packages: ‘S’ and ‘R’. The former brings some extra comfort to the driver-focused two-seater; the latter is designed for track use.

Lots of fun for little money

In the UK, the new models cost from £23,000 to £30,000 and are available to order now. If you miss the pure driving experience lost in many of today’s ‘over-comfortable’ sports cars, you should seriously consider the British, back-to-basics roadster.

Photos: Caterham Cars

What the dealers said about Retro Classics 2015

Last Sunday, the gates closed on Stuttgart’s 15th Retro Classics event. Joined by around 87,000 visitors, we spoke with the exhibiting dealers and captured the most beautiful sights on camera…

The 15th edition of the retro show was very well attended by exhibitors: Burkhard Wendt, one of the more specialised dealers, was well received with his mix of Louis Vuitton travel chests, valuable motorcycles and extravagant collectors' items. Wendt was pleased, even if he was unable to sell any of his prized motorcycles. However, for collectables such as his perfectly restored travel chests that cost at least €15,000 to €40,000, it was a real success. "Retro Classics is a popular festival, which is also visited by the locals," Wendt told us. "I sold several of my chests to visitors from further afield."

Strong international flavour

Markus Genghammer of C. F. Mirbach also had a successful exhibition. "We have sold a lot," says Genghammer. The classics on offer were predominantly in the €100,000 price range. Top seller was a Mercedes-Benz 300 S Cabriolet, which found a new owner for €600,000. Due to the strong Swiss franc, there were many people from Switzerland this year, but also many English buyers visited our stand. For years, we’ve come to Stuttgart and each year it is more and more international." Gengehammer also reports rising prices for classic Alfas. "As Ferraris and Maseratis are already expensive, many collectors turn to Alfa Romeo. We sold a 260 Touring Spider and would have been able to sell it to 10 other interested parties." In addition, Alfa Mirbach also sold a rare Giulietta SS Sprint Speciale.

The Mercedes 190 SL was in high demand

For Arthur Bechtel Classic Motors, the show was a great success on home soil. Not only because the dealership was awarded a prize for 15 years of fair trading, but because it was able to successfully launch its ‘classics from the region’ range. Florian Lumma, a new arrival to Retro Classics, said, "In addition to many English-speaking customers, collectors from France and Belgium also visited our stand. The Mercedes 190 SL sold well, but pre-War vehicles in the price range over a half million euros were also in demand. It seems that collectors are quickly stocking up on the 190 SL before the Chinese market opens.”