2026-08-21

A new generation

 


So I ended up as a gokart dad.


For some years now, my son and I have been busy competing in karts. Or, he has been competing and I've been wrenching. I drove myself in the beginning but when I realized how much faster he is I changed my focus. It has been a lot of fun.


Now he's 20 years old and his new goal in life seems to be beating all my personal bests in the Caterham. He still misses a tenth or two, but it's only a matter of time. My advantage is that they changed the track layouts, so the tracks are a bit slower now than they were ten years ago, but I won't tell him that.

Anyway, this means that my attention has shifted back to my Caterham. Maybe this will lead to more activity here. 

Since last time I wrote here I've done some changes without writing about them. The major ones are:


Updated master cylinder

I bought the uprated (larger) AP master cylinder. I love it. I really recommend this change. The brake pedal is now firm and much easier to modulate. It probably takes a bit more pedal effort, but honestly it doesn't bother me at all.

Hankook Slicks 

I run Radical PR6 slicks from Hankook. 

Hankook F200 (C72) - 180/550R13
Hankook F200 (C72) - 240/570R13

Ferodo brake pads

Ferodo DS3000 all around. They work well.

Demon Tweeks SKU: FERFRP3085R (AP 4-pot) and FERFCP541R (Ford)

Also, my todo list is growing:

Titan LSD renovation 

When I bought my Titan LSD, they made it very clear that the carbon clutch plates require more maintenance than the sintered ones. They were right. The preload is now effectively zero and I'm having trouble getting the power down on corner exit. I'm planning to remove the diff and inspect the LSD internals, and hopefully a rebuild kit is enough.

Half side doors and boot cover

I've never liked the fabric half doors and boot cover. I've ordered fibreglass ones from Wesmo.

Brake fluid reservoir

Today I have a single brake fluid reservoir supplying the clutch and both brake circuits. Its location isn't ideal, and the other day one of the hoses simply snapped off. I'd much rather have three separate reservoirs mounted closer to their respective master cylinders.

Exemption from periodic inspection

I hope I can get the car registered as exempt from periodic roadworthiness inspections.

Intake temperature

This is not new, but hopefully I can improve the intake air temperatures when driving in congested traffic.