Caterham forms a bit of an oddity in the automotive world; sticking to the philosophy of one Colin Chapman of Lotus. They add lightness to all their cars and aim to emulate classic cars. Reducing them to nothing more than a chassis, wheels and an engine Caterham continues what Chapman set out to achieve. Quite literally Caterham reproduces the iconic Lotus Seven.

Void of creature comforts like infotainment, a roof, or massaging seats there's an old-world charm to the company's cars. A Caterham 420 Cup costs around £55,000 or roughly $60,000 and with only 210 horsepower sees the car accelerates to 60mph in a mere 3.6 seconds. This is what Caterhams do, with modest displacements and lightweight they create engaging and accelerating drives.

With two more models added to their range Caterham aim to return to their routes with the classic Seven models, but still embrace the technological improvements they've made to their most notable model.

Caterham made the 21 a competitor to the Lotus Elise, and also partnered with Lola. But neither model achieved great success. The Super Seven 600 takes the Seven 170 and adds classical design elements to the model. The Seven 2000 applies the same logic to the Seven 360.

These new Caterhams return to Lotus' original design and bring classic motoring into the 21st century.

These Are The New Caterham Models

2022 Caterham Super Seven - bourbon
Caterham

There are only two main differences between the Super Seven 600 and Super Seven 2000. The 600 is like the well-loved entry-level Caterham 170, it comes with a Suzuki 660cc engine. Not exactly the first choice for a sports car, but this sees the car hit 60mph in a respectable 6.9 seconds. For £29,990 or roughly $35,000, not all performance-packed hot hatches will outperform this, especially around a corner.

Don't forget this is the reborn Lotus Seven. The Seven 2000 for £10,000 more brings a larger engine, the 2.0 liter Ford Duratec producing a not so mighty 180 horsepower. According to Caterham, a hire-purchase finance package brings the Super Severn 2000 down to only £420 a month which currently sits at around $450. That's half what a similarly performing BMW Z4 would cost you.

The second comes down to chassis size. The Super Seven 2000 can come on the large chassis that Caterham provides. An evolution of the original Lotus Seven saw the car grow slightly.

Paired to a five-speed gearbox, 14-inch rims and the spare tire mounted to the rear, the Super Seven lineup essentially continues a style of motoring that was long lost. The British roadster died a death to the MX-5 and hot hatches. With greater reliability and much better usability, the British roadster from MG, TVR, Lotus, and Bristol no longer made sense.

Caterham has built cars using Lotus Seven's design since 1973 when they acquired the rights to reproduce. Unusable as a car for daily drivers, with a canopy for a roof and almost none existent boot space. The Super Seven presents the perfect vehicle to step into the joys of classic motoring, without grappling with the painful mechanical reality.

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Caterham Super Sevens Embraces Its Heritage

2022 Caterham Super Seven - bourbon - front
Caterham

By simply reproducing the Lotus Seven Caterham embraces British motoring history. Although with modernizations, bold paint jobs, and brightly colored suspension at times the brand may appear to have lost its way. The Super Seven series of cars fix this. Notably, these cars come in 11 different heritage paints.

Caterham's publicity materials are heavily pushing a sort of bourbon and a deep burgundy that you could call Merlot. You can specify Racing Green, Tuscany Red, or Caribbean Blue, if it belonged on a classic like an MG or Austin you can find a similar shade here.

As was the fashion of competitors to the Lotus Seven, Caterham Super Sevens have plenty of chrome bodywork and a pair of beautifully flared arches. With a wooden dashboard and classically styled dials, this car acts as a time portal. Lotus' usual switch gear reminds, however it does not look out of place. With old-fashioned switches and toggles, Caterham hasn't lost its way.

Although according to Caterham "Each car still incorporates the typical Caterham DNA you’ve come to know and love, just there’s a little more focus on grand tours and road trips than track days and race circuits". With plush leather interiors and a more padded steering wheel, these are a different breed of Caterham. Although owners will still forgo the luxuries of a Bentley Continental GT.

RELATED: Here's What Distinguishes A Caterham From A Lotus Seven

Caterham Super Sevens Is Loaded With Optional Features

2022 Caterham super seven- dashboard
Caterham

Without various infotainment and driving safety packages to sell you, it might seem easy for a Caterham Super Seven to not rise much above the asking price. However, Caterham offers plenty of ways to customize this new model. This includes various alloy colors, these dramatically change the car's aesthetic.

There are various options to add to the car's grand touring capabilities, including side screen armrests, a map holder, and lowered floors. Various pieces of trim can change, including adding leather to the gearstick and handbrake as well as a wooden steering wheel.

Source: Caterham