this: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/598002.htm or similar and a beater?

I am starting to get itchy feet. Are there any caterfield owners here?

Do they have any daily drivability in the UK or would I be driving my beater for 80% of the year?

 

Buy and race it - Jo did

 

I did exactly that (sold S and got near 200bhp westie and "beater").

Had the westie for 3 or 4 years, loved it. Great fun car.

However, many trackdays later itch was scratched, and the crap summer weather we've had the last couple of years meant I hardly used it.

So sold the Westie and A6 and now back in an S2000.

My advice: Do it, they are sooooo much fun and you really learn what driving is about (if you don't learn, you'll crash and die ). Couple of years down the line if you've had enough then sell and go back to S (or onto something else), no car is forever.

 

I also owned a Westfield for a year, my experience wasn't the best but if it's an itch you have to scratch only your own experience will do.

A few things I wish I had known before buying:

- Think through exactly what you want the car for. The one on the PH add looks very much a road use car, ok for the occasional trackday maybe. There are so many specs, get some advice before you buy, try the WSCC Boardroom.

- Get help with buying from someone who knows these cars well, they can look genuine and be anything but. With self-builds the devil really is in the detail. Also look for track abuse and big offs (track use is otherwise fine).

- You need to be fairly handy with the spanners if you want to keep costs to a minimum. Things can and do go wrong, most simple but some require good mechanical/electrical knowledge.

- Find out which engine/running gear combinations are for you. The Zetec cars are usually good because they are simple - easy to maintain and upgrade. Go more modern with Duratec and you start to find more jobs that need the engine taken out to complete for example.

Finally make sure it is really for you. Driving these cars on road is an acquired taste (I would prefer an S any day for road driving!), track driving is great on a dry day (demands attention and skill in the wet) but if thats only going to be once or twice a year you could just hire a BaTCat.

Enjoy whatever you choose

 

Really doubt you could use it as a daily driver - but willing to be proven wrong!

I was thinking of buying one a while back, but purely as a track toy.