SP300 R

[wannabe-racer]

Hi all,

I have been researching a track only car for a while. At present I have an Atom 4 - it's fantastic for the circuit, too fast for the road but I want something that can be used with slicks in wet and dry. The Atom can be used in the wet but I never do for reasons I won't bore you with.

I have loved the idea of a SP300 for years, the fact it has a Ford Duratec engine and not a bike engine as per a Radical should keep the costs down. It seems to have air jacks like Radicals and seems to be designed to be operated by 1 guy at the track.

I have a couple questions. Do Caterham/Lola still make this car? There are a couple for sale around the £60k mark. I read something about the front suspension having issues? anyone know what this is. Is it a good idea to consider such car for track days in any weather, winter, autumn, summer and spring. My Atom is tucked up in bed from Nov to April. Maybe an SR3 would be a more cost effective solution to this, but then I don't want to ask the help of a race team to help me run it.

cheers

[Murph7355]

Neither company seems to list it so I suspect they don't still make it (though one of the advertised cars is a 2019 so who knows).

No idea on the technical side.

Usable all year round? Why don't you use the Atom? I've used my 7 on cold and wet track days...but it depends what you're aiming for.

[mic]

It's no longer made and you would really struggle to run one single handed.

[wannabe-racer]

Murph7355 said:

Neither company seems to list it so I suspect they don't still make it (though one of the advertised cars is a 2019 so who knows).

No idea on the technical side.

Usable all year round? Why don't you use the Atom? I've used my 7 on cold and wet track days...but it depends what you're aiming for.

Yes the one for sale is a 2019 but the car is not listed anywhere and Lola Cars is no longer - they seemed to be defunct in 2012 so not sure how cars were made after this.

Using the Atom in the wet is not something I want to do, it has so much power (367bhp on the rollers) I prefer it in the dry. It's also very exposed so if taking it on a wet circuit will cause all the crap to go everywhere requiring a massive cleaning effort and I am lazy.

[Murph7355]

wannabe-racer said:

Yes the one for sale is a 2019 but the car is not listed anywhere and Lola Cars is no longer - they seemed to be defunct in 2012 so not sure how cars were made after this.

Using the Atom in the wet is not something I want to do, it has so much power (367bhp on the rollers) I prefer it in the dry. It's also very exposed so if taking it on a wet circuit will cause all the crap to go everywhere requiring a massive cleaning effort and I am lazy.

Would a car like the SP300R give you that much of a different experience? Not sure a high downforce car would make for increased enjoyment in the wet either.

I think it depends what you want to get out of it. If trackdays in the wet and cold are really something you want to regularly do, why not get a good quality tin top? Something like a 968CS maybe? Stripped out M3? Megane R26R?

[andy97]

Lola went bust a few years ago, sadly, so getting spares may be an issue in the long term.
The SP300R was related to a Sports 2000 race car chassis that Lola built ISTR, ie it is related to a club level sports prototype.. The “race car for the road” description is therefore very apt and as a result I would expect it to need race car levels of prep, setting up and post track day maintenance/ cleaning etc. Maybe not so suitable for someone self described as “lazy”?
If you want something mid/ rear engined but easier to look after and run than the atom then perhaps an Elise derivative is the answer?

Edited by andy97 on Tuesday 17th November 06:58

[wannabe-racer]

Murph7355 said:

Would a car like the SP300R give you that much of a different experience? Not sure a high downforce car would make for increased enjoyment in the wet either.

I think it depends what you want to get out of it. If track days in the wet and cold are really something you want to regularly do, why not get a good quality tin top? Something like a 968CS maybe? Stripped out M3? Megane R26R?

You raise some interesting points. The SP300R is of a similar car to the Atom albeit with more downforce and will almost certainly be much better in the wet than an Atom. Also the SP300R has a sequential gearbox something I want. I can get this fitted to the Atom but it comes at a large cost.

From what I understood, the SP300R was meant for people to run at a circuit single handed without a motorsport team or mechanic to help. I know you can run a SR3 by yourself, it's easier with someone else but I am normally by myself at track days. That is really all I want to do with it, track days and have some fun.

This year I booked a couple track days well in advance because as everyone knows they were really busy this year. As a result, 2 out of 3 times it was lashing it down so I missed out on them because I don't want to use the Atom in the wet and I don't even have a wet setup either.

So really what I am after is a high-performance car with ridiculous amounts of performance - not really a tin top as they are too heavy for what I want that works in all weather. If it is track only then that is fine I think, but I want a regular "road" engine to make maintenance easier. Feels like their is a little bit of a gap in the market place for such cars. I was looking at a Radical RXC v6 - I know they are on the heavier side, but this could be an option.

[jeremyc]

wannabe-racer said:

So really what I am after is a high-performance car with ridiculous amounts of performance - not really a tin top as they are too heavy for what I want that works in all weather. If it is track only then that is fine I think, but I want a regular "road" engine to make maintenance easier. Feels like their is a little bit of a gap in the market place for such cars. I was looking at a Radical RXC v6 - I know they are on the heavier side, but this could be an option.

Sounds like you need something like the Lotus Exige Sport 410.



369bhp per tonne with a roof over your head.

[wannabe-racer]

jeremyc said:

ounds like you need something like the Lotus Exige Sport 410.



369bhp per tonne with a roof over your head.

Yes I LOVE the Exige. I saw this exact model at the last Goodwood in 2019, I took a load of pictures of it as well. Of course it is quick but it will likely feel slow compared to my Atom that has over 600bhp per tonne, when I say slow this is all relative of course It will be hard to jump into something a lot less quick I think for pure track fun that is. I also want a sequential box not sure you can get one for the Toyota unit in the Exige.

Another option I had considered is a Formula car like a FR2.0, you can get them quite cheap but I have no idea how to run them.

[BertBert]

not many track days for formula cars. Also they run slicks and wets and change setup for wet and dry. And probably wetter that the Atom. I may have missed it. but why doesn't the atom come out to play in the wet?

[wannabe-racer]

BertBert said:

not many track days for formula cars. Also they run slicks and wets and change setup for wet and dry. And probably wetter that the Atom. I may have missed it. but why doesn't the atom come out to play in the wet?

Yeah this is a great point. Open wheeler track days are limited. The Atom (from what I am told) is a lot of fun in the wet it's just it will be a handful and everything is exposed so I would probably spend a week cleaning it and I am really lazy. My Atom is immaculate so I only bring it out in the dry and this is where it excels. Just look at the TG power board recently. The stig took the Atom 4 out in the wet and got a 1m 25s - that is BMW M3 pace in the dry. Then they took it out in the dry recently and got a 1m 16s - a very quick time and this was on a cold day. So the difference between wet and dry times is a lot which means it will be hard to drive in the wet, it just has so much power.

A cheap Radical SR1 could be another option, but I would need to be able to run it myself. I know how the SR3 works in the wet - brilliantly.

[BertBert]

wannabe-racer said:

A cheap Radical SR1 could be another option, but I would need to be able to run it myself. I know how the SR3 works in the wet - brilliantly.

To get the best out of an SR1 in the wet, you'd want to run it on race wets. It's also quite a lot of effort to run and the rear body is a pain to get off and on single handed. Would definitely need cleaning and maintenance between track days and a reasonable level of checking (things like the chain) actually on a track day. Great fun cars though!

[Murph7355]

wannabe-racer said:

Yeah this is a great point. Open wheeler track days are limited. The Atom (from what I am told) is a lot of fun in the wet it's just it will be a handful and everything is exposed so I would probably spend a week cleaning it and I am really lazy. My Atom is immaculate so I only bring it out in the dry and this is where it excels. Just look at the TG power board recently. The stig took the Atom 4 out in the wet and got a 1m 25s - that is BMW M3 pace in the dry. Then they took it out in the dry recently and got a 1m 16s - a very quick time and this was on a cold day. So the difference between wet and dry times is a lot which means it will be hard to drive in the wet, it just has so much power.

A cheap Radical SR1 could be another option, but I would need to be able to run it myself. I know how the SR3 works in the wet - brilliantly.

Any quick car is going to be a handful in the wet. And the issue for me with high downforce cars is a bit like 4WD in the snow...people think 4WD makes them easier/safer. In some respects it does. But when it comes to stopping....

As I see it, a high downforce car in the wet (or a 4WD car in the snow) simply means the accident you have when physics bite is that much bigger

As for cleaning...the self cleaning car doesn't exist. If you're seriously lazy, just don't do track days in miserable conditions.

I guess we're all different thankfully, but you seem to be missing basic logic on this one