Caterham SevenMarch 2009

If you're a car enthusiast - a proper one, who sees driving as an activity to be enjoyed rather than a means of getting somewhere - then please read this road test. If not, click on, because I can tell you now a Caterham Seven is not the car for you.

A modern Caterham - an evolution of the original Lotus Seven from the Fifties - is one of the purist sports cars on the planet. All are basic, equipment is sparse - there's no radio or air conditioning or carpets - but every time you drive one it is an event.

On the right day and on the right road (or track), pedalling a Caterham can etch a lasting memory into your brain, an experience that you'll struggle to find anywhere else this side of a £75k-plus supercar.

Or, on the wrong day, in the rain and stuck in traffic, driving a Caterham can be an uncomfortable nightmare.

Although the wider-bodied Seven SVs are not totally useless for touring (if you travel very light) the Seven is really a weekend car. A toy.

But what a toy a Caterham could be. Even the most basic Seven Roadsport with its modest 125bhp 1.6-litre engine offers driving thrills that will leave you grinning.

There's also a more powerful 150bhp version of the 1.6 Roadsport, plus the 2.0-litre models, which include the range topping 263bhp super-hardcore R500.

The R500 is warp-speed fast; as quick, in fact, as the most 1000cc superbikes, smashi+D47ng 0-60mph in 2.9 seconds.

To some extent, Caterham will tailor a new car and its options around individual customers. Many choose to buy the full kit from the company and build it themselves. Caterham also offers one of the best ways to get into motorsport with a Seven. For £17,995 you can buy the Seven Academy car, which includes one years racing and mechanical support - an enticing proposition for any petrolhead.