Coolant and Oil Issue Fix
June 20 2025:
With no success fixing the oil or coolant issues (I was pretty sure I had them diagnosed though), I ended up booking my car into Caterham Silverstone for a week so they could investigate further. I think it was clear that the radiator had failed so really that could have been claimed and fixed by me but I decided I'd just take the whole thing in so they could sort it along with the oil pressure issue.
June 25 2025:
They confirmed the issues that I was seeing and approached Caterham for more advice. It took a few days for an outcome to be decided, but in the end Caterham sent out an entire new oil pump with modified pressure relief valve (this is normal for a 420R). They approved this as a warranty claim. It was still yet to be decided on whether or not the labour was to be included in this too. From my side of things, the oil pump is hidden in the engine and you have to remove the sump to get access to it, it is not something that you ever touch when building the car (the engine comes as a pre built part) so really it is not something I should be liable for.
July 03 2025:
It all went quiet for a week, something to do with Caterham racing at Croft which was a little frustrating as I'd lost another week where I didn't have the car. Anyway I got a reply back which said that Caterham were going to pay for the labour and parts for the oil pump, and that they were only willing to pay for the part and NOT labour on the radiator. The dealership have quoted a price of £225 for fit the new radiator which is not really ideal.
Of course, I expected this as I am a kit builder, and normally I'd be more than happy to fit the new rad myself, however given I was told not to drive the car and that I had to get the car to them for the work, I'm now in a sticky situation. I've already paid out £135 for a transporter to get the car there, and I'm now looking at paying the same again to get the car back (and my time away from work aswell) as it won't be driveble due to the rad issue. Given this is a warranty claim because of Caterhams fault (the oil pressure issue that is), I'm still going to be £270 out of pocket. Not only that, this oil pressure issue has been there from the very beginning, and was never picked up even on the PBC where it could have been sorted then.
So with the above in mind I feel like Caterham cars should either provide the transport back for me (as it is not drivable still), reimburse the transporter costs (I still use my time to fetch the car), or the alternative would be to be reasonable and just pay for the radiator to be fixed so I can simply pick the car up and drive back. Personally I don't think any of this is unreasonable given that Caterham have a huge problem with their radiators, this is common knowledge.
July 07 2025:
Start of a new week, I was contacted by the dealership at Silverstone again (Woodcote and Copse). They have basically said that they do not think it is right that the car should be picked up and that the radiator is left unfixed. They also mentioned that I certainly shouldn't be picking the car up again on a transporter. It seems that the dealership are really quite good at fighting my corner on this one, they have let me know that the radiator will be fit alongside the new pump, free of charge, and that I will be able to drive the car home fixed and fully operational.
They have also mentioned that they will be taking it up with Caterham Cars that I have also had to shell out for the cost of transporting the car down there, because in their opinion, due to the nature of the fault and warranty claim, Caterham Cars should be paying for the transport of the car for the internal engine fix as well. In the dealers eyes, this has been a problem from the start and if there was no problem, then I wouldn't have to pay for a transporter to get the car to them. Even if nothing comes of this, Silverstone have said that Caterham Cars need to be aware of the impact it has still had on a customer.
So yet again Woodcote and Copse have come out really good, I'll certainly let people know that they have looked after me. I'll bring another update when I get back from my holidays as I can't get the car until then.
July 25 2025:
And so the day has come, I'm back from holiday and have scheduled in to pick up the Caterham this afternoon. Nothing much to report other than that the car is now in Perfect as new condition again and the gauges are all reading what they should. The radaitor has also been sorted and they have put new coolant and oil into the car. For the record this is what mine are now reading:
So a big shout out to Woodcote and Copse again for helping me get all the issues sorted on the warranty. I'm now back on the road and ready to install a few more upgrades that I've acquired over the last month!
