---
title: "History | Caterham Cars"
description: "A Caterham is no ordinary car. It represents the peak of driving experience, offering a sophisticated package of handling, road holding and ride."
url: "https://caterhamcars.com/ch/about/history"
date: "2026-07-02T08:46:54+00:00"
language: "de-CH"
---

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#  History

##  Strap in, take a deep breath

 and prepare yourself.

In 1957, the genius moustache wearer that was Colin Chapman built a lively little two-seater sports car. The car was designed to be ‘fit for purpose’ – Chapman wanted owners to be able to experience the joy and pride of building their own car and then take it on track.

To that end, he came up with the mantra “Simplify, then add lightness” and the Seven was born.

Over sixty years on, Caterham – which acquired the rights to build and develop the Seven from Chapman in 1973 – is still adhering to Chapman’s original philosophy and is still turning out variants of the Seven that don’t so much shout ‘fun’ at you, as grab you by the lapels and scream it in your face.

With a line-up of models that range in power from 125bhp to 310bhp, each car weighing just over 500kg, Caterham’s eight Seven variants features something for every taste, every level of driving experience. Production of Caterham’s unique British cars is exclusively from within the UK- from start to finish, with the end goal, still being, to reduce weight and increase power.

But one thing that remains constant–- whether you’re getting behind the wheel of the relatively sedate Seven 270 or the face-meltingly swift Seven 620R – is fun.

At Caterham, we’ve always put the driver experience at the very heart of what we do. Just as Chapman did over 60 years ago, we are committed to reducing weight, increasing power and giving our customers a thrilling drive whether on the road or on the racetrack- as part of our acclaimed series of one-make motor racing championships.

True to our ethos, we’ve created more than 1,000 brand new racing drivers through our Caterham Academy programme, but the Seven has a knack for making you feel like a hero wherever you drive.

###  1957

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/1957.png)Construction of chassis #400 - the first Seven begins.

###  1959

 ![Graham Nearn creates Caterham Cars](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/1959.png)Graham Nearn creates Caterham Cars, located in Caterham Hill, Surrey.

###  1965

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/media/yootheme/cache/f5/image%2038-f58e5fcf.png)Caterham supplied a Seven Series II, registered KAR 120C, for The Prisoner TV series.

###  1973

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/1973.png)Caterham takes over production rights for the Seven from Lotus.

###  1995

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/1995.png)The Caterham Academy lauches in the UK - a new racing series for novices.

###  2000

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/2000.png)Launch of the all new Larger Chassis - wider and longer.

###  2005

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/2005.png)The Nearn family sells Caterham to Corven Ventures.

###  2007

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/2007.png)"50 Years of Seven" celebrations are held at Donington Park.

###  2008

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/2008.png)The Caterham R500 wins Top Gear's "Car of the Year, 2008".

###  2012

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/2012.png)Coven Ventures sells Caterham to Tony Fernandes and Kamarudin Meranun.

###  2012

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/media/yootheme/cache/58/2012-2-58e066cf.png)Caterham enters and competes in the FIA Formula 1 World Championship.

###  2013

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/2013.png)The launch of the fastest ever production Seven, the Seven 620.

###  2016

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/2016.png)Caterham teams up with LEGO to produce a model of the Seven 620R.

###  2017

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/2017.png)Another milestone in the Caterham story as the Seven turns 60

###  2018

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/media/yootheme/cache/57/2018-5755b528.jpg)The limited-edition retro inspired SuperSprint. Limited to just 60 units sold out within days.

###  2020

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/media/yootheme/cache/29/2020-299a5e2c.jpg)Caterham starred in The Grand Tour's "A Massive Hunt", with James May using a 310R with off-road modifications to travel across Madagascar.

###  2021

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/media/yootheme/cache/b1/2021-b1aaa6e3.jpg)In 2021, a Seven 170 was built in less than six hours in the world’s highest car dealership – the top of Brighton’s 450ft British Airways i360 Tower.

###  2021

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/Models/UK/Seven-420-UK/GFW_9292-V2.jpg)In April 2021, Caterham Cars was officially aquired by VT Holdings, one of Japan's largest automotive retailer groups and long-term importer of the Seven.

###  2022

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/media/yootheme/cache/56/2022-569dcc5f.jpg)The 420 Cup was launched, a road legal car built for the track inspired by our top-tier Seven Championship race car.

###  2023

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/media/yootheme/cache/93/Celebrating%2050%20Years%20Standalone_BLK-93e3730f.jpg)In 2023, Caterham will celebrate its 50th Anniversary. What will come next?

###  2023

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/Models/Project%20V/G%20F%20Williams%20%20Day%20Shoot/GFW_5463.jpg)Drive. Electrified. Caterham unviels Project V, a completely new-generation, all-electric sports car, at Goodwood in the UK.

###  2024

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/History/CATERHAM%20FACTORY%20TEASER_V1.00_00_00_17.Still001.png)Following a multi-million-pound investment from owners VT Holdings, 2024 saw on of the biggest changes in Caterham history with the relocation of the factory to a brand new 54,000 sq ft facility.

###  2024

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/Models/EU/Seven-485-CSR-FE-EU/485_F3Q_CREATIVE.jpg)Caterham unveils the Seven 485 and 485 CSR Final Edition (FE), a swan song to the fastest production model for the European market.

###  2025

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/Models/UK/Seven-310-Encore/310-Encore-Blue-Monday-FO---1920.jpg)The final performance. The Seven 310 Encore celebrates the final farewell of the Ford Sigma engine with 25 limited editions.

###  2026

 ![](https://caterhamcars.com/assets/Images/Models/Nurburgring%20edition/gallery/24hNbr26_051612252510244TS_TS%201.jpg)Caterham launches its latest limited-edition model, the Seven Nürburgring Edition, to celebrate 100 years of the most legendary and demanding circuit in the world.

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