Caterham updates the Seven lineup for 2016

The two new Caterham models make up eight Seven cars for Australia.

If you like car fun that is small, light and extremely rare, you're in luck because now you can buy it cheaper than ever.

Tiny Malaysian-owned English brand Caterham hasn't even affected local sales, but retro-styled roadsters are now available in a wider range of flavors to suit all tastes nonetheless.

Originally known as the Lotus Seven, design rights to the distinctive two-seat cab-back sports car were sold to Caterham in the 1950s, with the cars being sold both as kits and as finished products.

The steel space frame is manufactured with alloy skin and fiberglass nose cone at the company's factory in Dartford, Kent, UK, and suspension parts directly related to the open-wheel racing car adorn each end. Engines range from the 100-litre 1.6kW Ford engine from the Fiesta to the powerful 177-litre 2.0kW Duratec engine borrowed from the Focus.

The Caterham completed the 27km Nürburgring faster than the BMW M2 and Alfa Romeo 4C.

And if the power output doesn't make your tailbone tingle, the fact that the Caterham averages around 700kg, or half that of the Volkswagen Golf GTI, should change your mind.

The base 275 even manages to return 6.2 liters of fuel per 100 km, exempting it from the luxury car tax.

Electronic intervention is barely to be found, aside from the obligatory electronic stability control, and cup holders, glove boxes, and vanity mirrors are nowhere to be found.

If you think the frog eyes and wings of the 1950s are keeping them from entering the temple of cool driving, consider that the Caterham made it through the 27-kilometer Nürburgring faster than the BMW M2 and Alfa Romeo 4C.

Starting at $69,850 for a virtually unpainted, very basic 100kW Seven 275, the new Seven 355 ups the ante with a 127-liter 2.0kW engine for $86,900 (plus travel expenses).

The 127kW Caterham CSR is touted as the brand's most comfortable setup with an adjustable pedal set to suit riders 160cm to 185cm tall. Independent rear suspension also replaces the DeDion rear axle along with inboard front suspension.

The Seven 485 S, meanwhile, is the gateway to lightweight 177kW in a more track-oriented package that includes a 2.0-liter dry-sump engine, adjustable suspension and anti-roll bars, a limited-slip differential, carbon fiber front protection . and upgraded brakes for $114 plus travel expenses.

At the top of the tree is the 485 R, with high-tech dampers, carbon-look leather trim and more, priced at $127,000.

There's no doubt that the Caterham is a throwback to a previous era of automotive engineering when it comes to comfort and convenience, but the driving experience goes back to a time when light weight meant true performance - and there are few cars on the roads today that can claim to that was developed by the founder of Lotus, Colin Chapman.