The Seven is the original British lightweight sports car, or 'race car for the road'. Originally created by Colin Chapman and launched as the Lotus 7 in 1957, it is inherently agile and gives startling performance. It is, quite simply, a motoring icon. Caterham Cars has been selling the Seven since the late 1950's. In 1973 Caterham purchased the rights to manufacture the car from Lotus, and has been building and selling it ever since.
Over the decades Caterham has continued to refine and enhance the design, whilst always respecting the brilliance of the original formula. Although originally designated as 'too fast to race' by the authorities in the 1970's, Caterham pioneered one make racing. Today there are more Sevens racing around the world than almost any other single marque, with over 700 competitors taking part in 11 countries during one season.
Today, more than half of the cars produced at the Dartford factory in Kent are exported around the world, including to Japan, France and Germany. 2005 was the most significant year in the history of Caterham Cars, with both the launch of the revolutionary CSR model and the sale of the company by the Nearn family after 40 years of ownership. Caterham Cars is proud to be one of the few remaining British-owned and British-based car manufacturers, with the majority of parts sourced from within the UK where possible.
In a big departure for Caterham the company recently revealed their exciting new Project V all-electric sports car, due for production by the end of 2025. Caterham currently build a five model range of the Seven, plus their well establised Academy race series.
