Like a small undernourished golden phoenix (ref photo above) rising from the depths of COVID riddled news, comes our latest incarnation of the beloved Seven:
The New Caterham Seven 170.
Following in the demure footsteps of its predecessor, the Seven 160, and complying with Japan’s world-famous Kei car regulations, the Seven 170 weighs in at as little as 440kg, making it our lightest production Seven of all time!
Not only is it light, it’s also small. With new front and rear wings, it measures just 1470mm in width, (that’s a whopping 105mm narrower than anything else), making it also, our smallest current Seven.
Holding true to the mantra that spawned the original Seven, to “simplify and add lightness”, while remaining as light as possible, we’ve ensured we protect that which has kept the Seven name alive for years- the driving experience!
Thanks in large part to a new addition in our engine line up, a 660cc turbocharged 3-cylinder Suzuki engine, which produces not only 84bhp but also 116nm of torque, the Seven 170 boast an insanely balanced power to weight ratio which exceeds 170bhp-per-tonne, and we’re quite excited to see and hear what you have to say about it.
But what’s power and weight without a little ‘lively-ness’?
Married to this little whippersnapper, are both live rear axle suspension and some uniquely ‘skinny’ Avon ZT7 tyres (a 155-section tyre), which when combined guarantees all those who dare win, through accessible performance regardless of age or driving ability.
Available in the customary S variant and for the first time, in this heady concoction, an R too, the Seven 170 pushes that which was great about the entry-level Seven 160 and then some.
If however, we’ve not done an adequate job of installing the virtues of crazily low weight and powerful engines here, and you still need a little more convincing why not check out our latest product video here.
