Caterham

British car manufacturer, noted for their continued production of the Lotus Super Seven, made famous in the BBC television series The Prisoner in the late 60s. The Caterham Seven, like the Lotus Super Seven, is available in kit form. It also has incredible performance, owing to its low center of gravity and extremely high power-to-weight ratio. The main impediment to top-speed performance is its poor aerodynamics. Caterham also produces a more modern car, the Caterham 21.

The Seven is essentially an engine in a rectangular metal box, with four wheels poking from the sides and two seats attached to the back. In Superlight R form, the car has no doors, windscreen or hood, and can only be driven practically whilst wearing a motorcycle helmet.

Sevens appeal in many ways - they are relatively cheap, extremely simple, you can buy them in kit form, and they are reliable, in the sense that there isn't much to go wrong, and even if it does, you can fix it because you probably built the car yourself.

Self-assembly supposedly takes around 70 hours, and once complete, you have to arrange for a local garage - or Caterham themselves - to inspect the car for safety and emissions.

Below 100mph the Catherham Seven Superlight R500 is as fast as any roadgoing Ferrari; you would need to be a dedicated driver to exceed 100mph, however.

Sevens are built to race, or drive to racetracks; crash protection takes the form of extremely accurate steering and precise roadholding. Otherwise, the car does not feature ABS, EBD, four-wheel-drive, traction control, airbags, air conditioning, a sound system, leather, a boot, electric windows or vanity mirrors. Apart from direct competitor Westfield, only Morgan approach the same level of single-mindedness.