Caterham, a car maker that has existed for more than 50 years now, is most famous for being the exclusive makers of the legendary Lotus Seven, one of the best track ready cars ever made. And now, in collaboration with Lola Cars, they have created arguably their most ambitious project yet: their first ever foray into the prototype racer class. This is the 2011 Caterham-Lola SP/300R, the first ever prototype racer produced by Caterham Cars.
Performance
This new car made its first appearance in the Autosport International Show held in Birmingham, UK. To be built alongside the Seven, it incorporates some of the hallmark traits that made the Seven a favorite among enthusiasts: most notably being lightweight. This car would also premiere Caterham’s new powerplant: a Ford Duratec engine that they modified in order to extract an output within the 300 horsepower range. This, combined with superior aerodynamics (thanks to the output of Lola) and light weight, promises to give some serious performance potential to this new vehicle.
Leisure & Style
However, true to the mantra of Caterham of producing cars that are affordable and reliable, expect this car to be provide a leisurely ride, but also expect it to be built with the best quality at a competitive price.
Right now, the 2011 Caterham-Lola SP/300R is still under development, fine tuning it for its eventual appearance on the racing circuit by 2012. A one make championship using this car is also being considered, as well as a street legal version. They are bound to be exclusive too, with only 25 copies of this car scheduled to be built next year.