Caterham is planning an all-electric two-seater that it will sell alongside the long-standing Seven.
The small British company believes it will be able to build combustion-powered cars until 2034 but that won’t stop it from venturing into the world of EVs with a second model. Unlike the Seven, it is expected to be a closed-body two-seater that could have a fixed roof but speaking about it with Autocar, Caterham chief executive Bob Laishley said it will retain the key characteristics that all Caterham models are known for.
While details about the new model are limited, Laishley says it will be built at a new factory and at greater volumes than the Seven. It will also cost more than the Seven and could be unveiled as soon as 2026.
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“This will definitely not be a Seven,” Laishley said. “But it’ll have all the characteristics today’s Caterham customers know well: lightness, simplicity, agility and performance. Like the Seven, it will have a steel spaceframe (but a different one) because they’re easy to modify in production if you need to. It will have a six-panel enveloping body in aluminum or carbon: two sills, two doors plus clamshell openings front and rear.”
Laishley noted that in an ideal world, the car would be launched without powering steering, ABS, or airbags but noted that it will need these features. Nevertheless, it will as light and simple as possible.
Importantly, there are no firm production plans for the model. Laishley says it remains “just an idea in people’s heads,” but noted that the carmaker’s Japanese owner VT Holdings is eager to bring it into existence.
