Owning a 7?

[jansens]

My quick summary (from my limited experience of building a special and briefly owning a bitser Chummy)...

If you like small cars they are great (you can fit more of them in the garage).
If you want something simple and vintage to tinker on they are also great.
If you want something fast they generally aren't. And if they are they are scary!
They are cheap to own and maintain, as far as old cars go.
If you actually drive it about you will get people coming and asking you about it all the time (especially if you start it on the handle).
Specials/replicas others have mentioned above but if you want a 'proper' car I would get one that's as original as possible. With what I know now about them I would personally buy as original a car as possible and minimally restore it preserving as much originality as possible. Generally this seems to be the way the old car movement is going now which will affect resale value later on.
They are great fun to drive and very rewarding if that is your thing. You really need to try driving one to find out!

Simon

[Ian Williams]

I will challenge you on one thing Simon just because a seven is fast it need not be scary......unless of course you are a person of nervous disposition who would not take a modern over 30MPH! I say that as the OP is asking about an Ulster type special which, if not a bag of nails, ought to be quite happy and not in the least bit frightening at 65 to 70mph or more if it is a particularly good one.

[Tony Press]

I will challenge you on one thing Simon just because a seven is fast it need not be scary......unless of course you are a person of nervous disposition who would not take a modern over 30MPH! I say that as the OP is asking about an Ulster type special which, if not a bag of nails, ought to be quite happy and not in the least bit frightening at 65 to 70mph or more if it is a particularly good one.

Wow Ian- 65 to 70 mph !!!

I have had the 1929 Standard Sports up to 60 mph on a freeway for a brief time and that certainly concentrated the mind. 

The chassis is completely standard, much as Floods assembled it so the steering is a bit 'touchy'.

I drive a modern at 110 kph when permitted !

Tony.

[Ray White]

70 m.p.h. in an Austin seven....

[Ian Williams]

Remember guys the OP was asking about an Ulster special, my Nippy with an unmodified original sports engine and std sports suspension is quite happy and stable at 65mph. My special striped of lights and wings in racing trim would see 90mph and 70+ on the motorway easily, it again was on ulster type suspension with slightly improved friction dampers and was completely stable at those speeds. Well that is until I flipped it whilst racing, however in the cars defence oil was dropped in a particularly fast corner and the flag marshals were slow with the oil flags. But thats another story!
Obviously I am not taking about a std saloon or chummy, but neither was the OP when he asked his question, all of which derails the thread slightly which was answered admirably by Martin Prior earlier.

[Erich]

Welcome to the Forum Nick. I bought my Ulster Rep two years ago, after having lusted after one for 5 decades. Why so long? Here in the US, Sevens in general are quite rare and it took a bunch of cars in the interim to get me off my bum to get one. I used to drive a IIA as daily transport. There are certainly similarities to both. As others more experienced than I have commented, they are capable of being driven long distances. Any breakdown is usually easily sorted, much like the Rover. I don't know of anyone driving a Seven with a set of spare axles, so that shouldn't be a concern. As others have said, they are small, so much less room than a Series LR. That said, they are great fun to drive. Braking will be better on the Series 1. Parts are cheaper on the Seven, except for some rare bits. Ulster Reps on the proper short chassis are small and getting in and out is more of an exercise than a LR. In summary, there are a number of similarities, including handling. Full disclosure, I owned a number of cars over the years as well as motorcycles. The Velocette was likely closest to the Seven for me as it was a tinkerers' machine and the LR was a close second. Needing work, but easy work to perform. And much like what one of the other posters said, I find it great therapy to fettle and a great sense of satisfaction when it comes together. And, as others have said, bring someone who knows Sevens, before you buy.

[jansens]

Hi Ian, scary might not be the right word. Exhilarating maybe. Or I like what Tony said with mind concentrating.You certainly can go fast in them (and one good thing is you feel when you are going fast much more than a modern car). But you do need your wits about you, mostly to deal with the reaction of other people around you.

Sure you can do 60 mph+ maybe and even be able to stop under normal circumstances but it won't stop the plonker who just sees old car and thinks I need to be in front of that from pulling out in front of you from a side street. Or people who have to get past so they tailgate, pass, then make a point of cutting right back in front then end up doing the exact same speed you were going anyway!

You always have to drive carefully in an old car, more so at speed, and that can get quite stressful/tiring. I've never ridden a bike but imagine it's similar. I know you have some fast bike history Ian, how do they compare?

Simon

[Bob Culver]

Hi Simon

You are right about bikes. When I whizz down Bollard Avenue on my Raleigh 20 at 50 kph with only an orange jacket for protection I feel fully as exhilarated as I did in the Seven at 50 mph on the open road. Despite the bike having better brakes!

[Ian Williams]

Simon driving a seven well is like riding a motorcycle in as much as you need to anticipate other road uses lack of brains and read the road well. However with a bike you have plenty of acceleration at your disposal whereas in seven you need to maintain speed and momentum due to a lack of acceleration. I think that is why a person who has raced a seven successfully will often be very in fast in bigger classes, out of necessity they have learnt the driving skills to be quick rather than rely on power for speed. You see it in Motorcycle racing, a rider who has honed his skills on a 125cc where they need to keep the thing spinning and carry speed through corners will then be exceptional on big bikes in the open class. On the road I am often held up by moderns, particularly when not on the motorway, today people are far to isolated form the driving experience and are often extremely inattentive.

[Erich]

Well said, Ian. On bikes, riding Britiron that lacked acceleration, but were superior on handling, I had to keep speed up on the corners. I still had the willies at times, which is why I never did very well. But it taught me that there is more to keeping up than acceleration and braking.