GRR Garage: Caterham 310S – commuting in style
Commuting daily in a Caterham – is it something that can really be done? That’s what we set out to find out when our friends in Crawley were kind enough to lend us a 310S for six months.
The first hurdle is the lack of space, of course you have a surprisingly spacious boot (a tale for another day) and there is a passenger seat, but don’t expect to find cupholders, or glovebox, or anywhere that really holds anything in place.
So you must be prepared to jettison any unneeded accessories. Do you really need to bring a bag in every day? You can carry a notepad around by hand, and the laptop can stay at the office surely?
Second is the matter of noise. The Caterham’s wonderful side-mounted exhaust is pleasing in so many ways, but on a 45-minute drive each way that can start to leave the ears ringing. So you are now fine with driving with earplugs in, that exhaust note is so loud that you’ll hear it over your music/podcast/audiobook/mediation/whatever anyway.
Commuting in a Caterham begins with compromises, but every one of them is rewarded each time you set foot inside. You’ve freed yourself of all unnecessary items so now your life is actually a little easier at each end of the journey, and suddenly the drudge of getting yourself out of the house to set off for the office is not a chore, but the beginning of an adventure.
Soon you find yourself taking the slightly longer route – because it’s a bit more fun, and let's be honest, what's 10 minutes extra between friends? You find yourself learning the road like you’re reading braille, each bump becoming familiar, each drive-in becomes a free practice session, gradually finessing each line, each corner until you’re basically Heikki Kovalainen.
Progress is easy too. Stuck in traffic? No problem, you’re basically in a four-wheeled motorbike. Sure you can’t filter through like you could on two wheels, but out here in the countryside each car can be dispatched safely at the twitch of the foot.
Bye bye traffic depression, ta ta crossovers, hello open road!
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