Who has a dedicated track car?

Bill, that would be a blast! Which model are you looking at?

Probably sr3, but I want to test drive one 1st. My buddy went for a ride and said it was insane!

I want to find out more info before I pull the trigger. I'm not very handy so I'll have to stick with something newer/less hours.

 

Check out Juno race cars, I heard they are comparable to radical.

Lotus 7/ Caterham is another one, I drove a 500 superlight R and that was almost Radical crazy but it was street registered one thing I will say, English know how to do these cars right they have it down packed, now if they could only find someone to teach them what looks good and what doesn't

 

The Mono is nearly there but not quite, most of the others look like the dog's breakfast.

 

Lotus 7 is a death trap.

Lotus 7 is a death trap.

 

No idea about that, the only thing I know it was ridiculously fast.

Did you mean a Mini Cooper?

 

Yeah he bought Mini Cooper John Cooper Works GP edition.

Yeah he bought Mini Cooper John Cooper Works GP edition.

correct, it is a out of the box track ready car with only 500 brought to the US.

the car will have 300hp at 2400lbs when turbo is completed. the car does very well against shelby 500's, m3's, 997's etc.

but GTR's, 458's, 570's, gt3's give me a problem lol

I left a message for Barry @ Radical East. Has anyone successfully registered a Radical for street use in the USA? Maybe as a kit car? I am interested even if it is for track use only, but I enjoy having the freedom to terrorize my neighbors (actually, they would love it)! The V8 looks mental!

 

I appreciate all the feedback! Thanks Everyone!

 

the radical team is supposed to be coming to our facility today actually!

No idea about that, the only thing I know it was ridiculously fast.

 

Fast it is but imagine yourself going head on in a wall in a super 7 and what your likelyhood of survival would be. Aluminum tubs do not do well in crashes so for a track car similar to a super 7, you need to look for CF tub and an extensive roll cage

What about this Caterham? http://www.caterham-spr.com/

 

Competitor to the Radical?

 

 

My friend's street registered Radical

 

God bless the Japanese, everything is possible there !

 

If you are not a racer, I'd just get the SR3 1300cc. It "only" has 230hp, but still let's you pull 2.5G+! Once you're comfortable in that, the car can fairly easily be upgraded to the 1500cc which is about 265hp. That's imo the best of the range. I have the SR8, which is 470hp, but it's a really tricky car to drive fast and imo not as fun. Mostly because the weight balance is iffy at 32/68 or something like that. Very tail happy! But sure is fast.

Oddly enough, I've been looking into a couple of manual transmission cars for a track car thing as well, however as LPDADDY mentioned, it would be one of those that I'd have to drive there and back....and given that I already have an FWD, and AWD, I'm looking for something RWD especially since it's for racing school and later my racing license (which I need a manual car to obtain)....

 

Specifically, I was looking at the Honda S2000 (04-05) as that one seem to fit my price range, from my understanding was much better than the previous ones, and it won't break my bank. I tinkered with the idea of getting something dedicated as a track car, but as the track is far enough that I won't be able to go often but I can still enjoy a small sports car. If I had the time and money, I'd go for a dedicated track car, but as I don't and my budget is lighter and I wanted a car that wouldn't be vicious to maintain, the S2000 seemed like a decent compromise. If I could have, I would have gone for the NSX, but couldn't really justify the double price tag for a car 10 years older than the S2000.

Oddly enough, I've been looking into a couple of manual transmission cars for a track car thing as well, however as LPDADDY mentioned, it would be one of those that I'd have to drive there and back....and given that I already have an FWD, and AWD, I'm looking for something RWD especially since it's for racing school and later my racing license (which I need a manual car to obtain)....

 

Specifically, I was looking at the Honda S2000 (04-05) as that one seem to fit my price range, from my understanding was much better than the previous ones, and it won't break my bank. I tinkered with the idea of getting something dedicated as a track car, but as the track is far enough that I won't be able to go often but I can still enjoy a small sports car. If I had the time and money, I'd go for a dedicated track car, but as I don't and my budget is lighter and I wanted a car that wouldn't be vicious to maintain, the S2000 seemed like a decent compromise. If I could have, I would have gone for the NSX, but couldn't really justify the double price tag for a car 10 years older than the S2000.

 

I own a 2005 S2000 and am the Community Organizer for our local club. Feel free to start a thread or PM me if you want dedicated info on S2K ownership.

 

I love mine!

I own a 2005 S2000 and am the Community Organizer for our local club. Feel free to start a thread or PM me if you want dedicated info on S2K ownership.

 

I love mine!

 

 

Thanks! PM sent.

If you are not a racer, I'd just get the SR3 1300cc. It "only" has 230hp, but still let's you pull 2.5G+! Once you're comfortable in that, the car can fairly easily be upgraded to the 1500cc which is about 265hp. That's imo the best of the range. I have the SR8, which is 470hp, but it's a really tricky car to drive fast and imo not as fun. Mostly because the weight balance is iffy at 32/68 or something like that. Very tail happy! But sure is fast.

 

 

Thank you! That is very useful information!

If you are not a racer, I'd just get the SR3 1300cc. It "only" has 230hp, but still let's you pull 2.5G+! Once you're comfortable in that, the car can fairly easily be upgraded to the 1500cc which is about 265hp. That's imo the best of the range. I have the SR8, which is 470hp, but it's a really tricky car to drive fast and imo not as fun. Mostly because the weight balance is iffy at 32/68 or something like that. Very tail happy! But sure is fast.

so the SR3 1500cc is the car.. do you have a pic of the SR8?

anything else that you reccomend or should we stick with a Radical?

Radical pretty much sits supreme in this market because they're the only manufacturer that has stuck around and built in large enough numbers to be reliable. Radical does something like 200 cars/year. Caterham is hoping to sell 25/year of their new Radical-like car. You'll want to bring your mechanic for that .

 

The SR3 1300cc can go almost 100 hours on the motor w/o a rebuild. The SR8 is rated at 30 hours. I think the 1500cc is rated at 40 hours. Now bear in mind that 30 hours is actually a pretty long time. When you go to most US tracks, you're running in 20-30 minute sessions. You get maybe 4 sessions/day. So you're looking at at least 15 track days before the motor needs a rebuild (~$6-15k). You'll wear out brakes, etc faster than that.

 

The magic of the Radical is that you don't need a team to run the car. It's pretty much the highest level of performance you can get before you start having to need engineers, track-side mechanics, and all the other good stuff. The LMP2 car I run for Le Mans and elsewhere is only 3-5s faster per lap, but it requires a team of 10+ people to run!

 

Anyway, here are a few pictures of my Radicals. The green is my SR8, the yellow is my wife's SR3. They look almost identical except for the dive planes on the SR8.

 

oh man webster, last time we did this i went out and bought a CGT lol

no seriously this is great info. im thinking the SR3 for me (i need something that doesnt require wrenching)

that SR8 is nuts!

if i decide to compete, do they typically have one SR3 class or do they seperate into 1300cc & 1500cc?

thank you for taking the time

oh man webster, last time we did this i went out and bought a CGT lol

no seriously this is great info. im thinking the SR3 for me (i need something that doesnt require wrenching)

that SR8 is nuts!

if i decide to compete, do they typically have one SR3 class or do they seperate into 1300cc & 1500cc?

thank you for taking the time

 

I'm having what you're having. SOFL!

 

Thanks Webster!

In Europe, the competition cars are either 1500cc or the SR8. If you are thinking you want to go racing for sure, then getting the 1500cc is probably not a bad idea. It's just a fair amount of car to be starting with, but not unreasonably so.

 

I think they've been doing some Radical races at that track in Vegas. I've done a couple here in Europe. The car is a phenomenal amount of fun to race. Really is damn near the best bang-of-buck in the racing world in my opinion.

 

Everything you learn driving a Radical you can take with you as well. If you get proper fast in a Radical, you can go on to do IMSA Lights, LMPC, LMP2. That's how I got started with downforce cars

I'll certainly defer to webster or LPDaddy on the relative merits of track cars, but my older son has really enjoyed his Formula Mazda so far. This is after spending 3-4 years tracking various street cars and an E36 M3 racecar. The cost of an FM is even less than a Radical, and they are similarly inexpensive to run with the rotary engine, etc. And I think they are about as fast as a Radical until you get to the V8 version. His car only cost $20k (used) and has been very solid so far. I posted this clip in another thread of him at Barber at a DE (there is a Radical in the video as well), and here's a pic after the SCCA race in St. Louis. Would be very interested in webster's or LPDaddy's thoughts on the open-wheel Mazda's (there is also a ProMazda that is even faster and looks more like an F1 car) as compared to the Radicals.

 

 

I'll certainly defer to webster or LPDaddy on the relative merits of track cars, but my older son has really enjoyed his Formula Mazda so far. This is after spending 3-4 years tracking various street cars and an E36 M3 racecar. The cost of an FM is even less than a Radical, and they are similarly inexpensive to run with the rotary engine, etc. And I think they are about as fast as a Radical until you get to the V8 version. His car only cost $20k (used) and has been very solid so far. I posted this clip in another thread of him at Barber at a DE (there is a Radical in the video as well), and here's a pic after the SCCA race in St. Louis. Would be very interested in webster's or LPDaddy's thoughts on the open-wheel Mazda's (there is also a ProMazda that is even faster and looks more like an F1 car) as compared to the Radicals.

 

 

 

There is no way of eliminating the risk of injury completely once we are on track and the whole idea is to have as much fun as possible with minimal exposure.

The open wheelers and sports racers, although faster than sedans, are also more dangerous. My main criteria in choosing an open wheel car is the tub and how much protection it offers the driver. You want to make sure you don't lose your legs in a front end collision and at the same time, the tub has to be strong enough to withstand a side impact.

The next thing is the roll cage and the design of it.

All the old sports racers and formula cars have aluminum tubs and that just doesn't cut it, that is why I call them death traps. I don't know enough about the FM to comment.

The radical however has a very good safety record and is also very fast and well designed. It would be my first choice for a sports racer, short of a full fledged race car.

I can't speak directly on track Cars, but this year I did pick up a Track Bike and start doing days on it. RUN don't walk to get on the track, its the most fun thing I've done in my life. Will probably be doing my first race in September of this year.

 

Yours truly, day one http://highsidephoto.com/albums/X-ACT_TGPR...30316-1460.html

Well, i'm honored to hear the Hi-esteem some LP members have for the Radicals. They are the "real deal" purpose built race cars and best bang for the buck!!

i invite my LP buddies down to PBIR where we are based and can show you the cars and explain the difference in models and get you out on course to experience why the Radical has become a world wide phenomena.......

Well, i'm honored to hear the Hi-esteem some LP members have for the Radicals. They are the "real deal" purpose built race cars and best bang for the buck!!

i invite my LP buddies down to PBIR where we are based and can show you the cars and explain the difference in models and get you out on course to experience why the Radical has become a world wide phenomena.......

 

What is your affiliation with the company?

RedGTS, I race a Formula Mazda for fun as well. Great little cars. But I really wouldn't want to have a serious impact in one. Most of the cars are very old at this point and various things tend to eventually break. If you're concerned about safety, I think it's much wiser to go with a Radical. ESPECIALLY if you're not a seasoned racer, since you're bound to have a few offs.