1997 Caterham 7

With the desirable post-1996 chassis, this Caterham Seven was built to full HPC specification by its first owner. 

Having then been owned by the same lady owner since 2004, it’s now for sale with fewer than 18,300 miles under its wheels, many of which have been completed on a series of epic road trip adventures; this is not a flaky, needy, temperamental sports car. Sure, it’ll show a clean pair of heels to just about anything on the track but it is also reliable enough to cross Europe in a single bound…

The car is currently fitted with a non-standard, four-into-one exhaust and wheels. However, the original items are included in the sale along with an additional rollover kit (full cage extension). The car also comes with its ‘HPC’ private number plate.

The dark green and yellow paint work isn’t perfect, bearing signs of its track and grand touring life. A perfectionist might want to consider a respray but everyone else will be happy to leave it as it is and revel in the glow of driving an ultra-quick car that wears its patina with pride.

The interior has two adjustable leather seats and a Momo steering wheel. If you want anything else then you’re probably looking at the wrong car; may we, with respect, suggest a Skoda Superb might suit you better?

(The winning bidder will also be the proud owner of a full set of wet weather equipment for it, which you’ll never use because the secret to driving a Seven in the rain is to dress as you would when riding a motorbike rather than trying to insulate yourself away from the elements.)

The rolling road printout shows that this car produces 156bhp at the wheels (or circa 175bhp at the flywheel) from its 2-litre 16V Vauxhall engine and twin Weber 45 DCOE carbs. It was also fitted with a fully rebuilt gearbox seven thousand miles ago in 2007.

There are no known mechanical faults, as might be expected with such a low mileage car that has been pampered to this extent. It drives as well as it looks, and is even faster than you might imagine.

The car has been regularly serviced, the most recent of which was only done in September 2016. It comes with a very comprehensive history, with invoices and receipts galore including the original purchase invoice from Caterham Cars which is shown in the history file below.

If you’ve always wanted a Caterham 7 HPC – and why wouldn’t you? – then this might well be the car for you. 

While it isn’t a factory HPC, it is built to HPC spec (less the LSD), which might even work in your favour as it’ll be cheaper than a factory car AND you’re less likely to worry about using it. That it was ordered in possibly the best colour scheme of them all AND then treasured and well-exercised makes this a very rare opportunity to get your hands on one of the most desirable Caterhams of them all.

Viewing is welcome and encouraged and the reserve is set at a very sensible level. It is also, as ever, below the guide price of £12-14k.

The car is based near Abingdon in Oxfordshire, To arrange to view use the 'Contact Seller' button above, or discuss and ask any questions in the comments below.