1971 Seven

What do you all think of the Series IV Seven? With 10,000 claimed original miles? Big valve, twin cam engine; supposed original Orange clear coat? Is $17,900 a fair price?

Thanks -- Steve

My opinion - the price is high but not silly money if the car is in very good shape and you gotta have it. The S4 is a unique animal - very unlike the other 7's. Different frame & body. Lotus folk looked down on them back then, don't know about now. There aren't very many of them - Lotus never made more than about 700 S4's.

I think it depends on what you want the car for. Lotus 7's haven't been appreciating (no idea why not) but with luck it'll at least hold its value. I'm presuming that the twincam adds to the value here.

I wouldn't think of buying it without driving it. Such low mileage on a car like this scares me - you need to ask yourself why it wasn't driven more. It should have been.

As someone who is keeping his eye out for the right S7, the S4 would be my last choice. I find the bodywork too boxy and "kit car" looking compared to the eariler models. The S3 is the ideal choice or a Caterham(which are usually modelled after the S3).

Thanks for all your info and opinions. I am continuing my search and will take all the info into consideration. I do like the S3 and earlier better as well. I had a friend in high school whose dad had a 7 and I think it was a Caterham, this was in 1972/73; when did Caterham obtain the rights to the 7 and start producing them for US consumption? If I remember, the car sure looked like a S4.

Thanks -- Steve

[ QUOTE ]
... when did Caterham obtain the rights to the 7 and start producing them for US consumption? If I remember, the car sure looked like a S4...

[/ QUOTE ]

They obtained the rights in 1973 and did make a Series 4 look-alike for a while so it's possible. I don't know when they started sending them to the US but my recollection is that it wasn't long after they started building them.

I have a '73 Seven. The S4 does get the Rodney Dangerfield treatment but I enjoy the car to no end. The S4 seems to enjoy a much better appeal in Europe than in the US. But as I finally came to my decision it was what I could afford. I paid in that neighborhood for my S4 a few years ago but it had just had a lot of work done to it, a rebuild of the Twin Cam and a lot of suspension work, which would have cost me thousands. The Caterham's are great cars and I checked them out also. But I've always been a Lotus fan and wanted the Seven so I went for it. No regrets, the drive is nothing short of fantastic, just wish there were more open roads here in South Florida. A couple of sites to check out are:
Simple Sevens has a lot of seven info and classified section, an article on this site pointed me to the car I bought.
Lotus Seven Club UK has great forums and info, though much of it is Caterham these days.
Sevens Mailing List, USA list is for Caterham and Seven clones like Westfields, Lotus list is strictly for Lotus based Sevens.

Regards,
JohnD

How could I forget, here's my Seven

You've a twin cam Seven and live in Florida?!?!

WHERE are ya, man?!?! "south" Florida covers a LOT of territory.

Welcome to th' forum, BTW.

...and PM me if "publishing" your locale is less than desireable to ya.

Uh-oh... it has a set of those <shudder> dreaded DCOE's on it. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif

WOOHOO!!!!

Hello Dr., sorry for the delayed response, it's a @^%$ having to work for a living. I'm in Boca Raton, FL.

Actually the carbs are a set of Dellorto DHLA 40's.

Regards,
JohnD

Know th' feelin', John. We're just money conduit: Receive from one source then disperse to others. Seems keeping it is against 'the rules' somehow. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif


I didn't expand the photo 'til you posted just now... Now I see the 'towers'. I amend my prior post:

"Uh-oh... it has a set of those <shudder> dreaded DHLA's on it. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif

WOOHOO!!!!"

...there. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif

We're "up-n-over". Brandon.

Interesting, I get up that way from time to time. My in-laws live in Brandon and my younger son is at USF. A bit much of a trip for the 7 though. One of these days I'm getting a trailer so I can get it to more desirable places to drive. It is so congested down here, the only place for a decent drive is along the coast on A1A but you can't open it up anywhere along there.

Regards,
johnd

My in-laws are down near you. We pro'lly pass one-another goin' opposite directions on holiday weekends. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif

Not a lot of good roads around here either. A friend near Naples has driven his Seven from there to here 'n back, but that's half the distance.

Hmmmm, driving a Lotus 7 along alligator alley. Better hope that you can keep moving. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif

heh. Only one bad LBC/Alligator Alley experience: This MGB's fuel pump started packin' up half-way across, back when the Alley was still two lanes. Foresight had us carrying a large granite rock (primarily for a parking brake) which was used to thump the bulkhead every 30 seconds until we made goal. Changed over to a Facet in Miami and that thing is STILL working! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/shocked.gif

I've left the SU in place to teach it a lesson. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smirk.gif