R8 replacement help

[gopherboy]

I have a manual v10 coupe R8. I really like it, but don’t love it.
It’s so close to being “the one” but it’s almost too good!
I only use it on the road, local events, weekends away and one trip to Le Mans Classic or similar a year.
Im building a bike engined mini for hill climbing and track day kicks.
The R8 looks great, sounds amazing and is very usable/practical.
However, I miss being able to really thrash a road car. I’m no expert driver but it’s hard to use 500+ bhp and Quattro on the road.
I’ve previously had all sorts: 996 tiptronic (terrible gearbox), Lotus Excel (great fun and very retro), turbo mini clubman (hilarious) etc.
I think I’m going to trade down and put some money into the race car, leaving me with a budget of about £35k.
Considering a very diverse range of options:

TVR, probably T350, maybe a Cerbera. Can you ever thrash one?
Lotus Esprit, prefer the looks of S1/S2. Too slow?
Lotus Exige S. sensible.
Caterham - so many options! R300, CSR 200, Superlight???? Too much for a long trip?
Ferrari Mondial?
Something else classic - E type?

I’m not afraid of running costs or DIY maintenance.
Prefer coupe unless it’s a 7.
6’1” and fairly big build.

Any other advice or suggestions?!

[gopherboy]

A Noble would be my first choice. I very nearly bought one when shopping last time but went for the R8.
Only feasible this time if I increase the budget.

I’m the same about the R35, it’s probably too similar to the R8.

I have considered a hot hatch. I had a 147GTA that I loved. I’m a bit worried that there aren’t any really special enough to be a weekend car at this budget?

Elise /Exige keep coming up in my searches. I don’t know much about them and there are millions of models but I’ll do some searching.

Thanks all

[gopherboy]

[quote=ZX10R NIN]Bang on budget A110:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202405109...

I do like the Alpine but should probably have clarified - manual only.

[gopherboy]

ollyh1988 said:

TVR Tuscan - ideally with the Powers 4.3 engine. I’ve had a couple of Tuscans and a manual R8 (but the V8). I found the R8 massively capable but didn’t have the edge/fear factor I had with the TVRs. If you do fancy one make sure you try a few as they can drive quite differently depending on engine and set up.
Or, save a lot of money and buy an old Boxster. I still rate these as the perfect sports car. Nice amount of power but you can use most/all of it on road, sounds great with a sports exhaust, comfy, convertible, nice manual gearbox etc.
Enjoy the search

Thanks for the TVR tips.

My brother in law is considering his first fun car purchase since having kids and I've been recommending an old Boxster to him!

[gopherboy]

FilH said:

Obviously not the 350k one this thread is based on.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

But some variant of a decent built 400hp upwards Cosworth.

I've previously had a mk2 escort so classic fords aren't completely ruled out. I had assumed Cosworths were out of budget but I'll look.
I did see a Duratec engined mk1 cortina lotus lookalike the other day that was very cool.

[gopherboy]

I guess that’s the point of threads like these, and forums generally though isn’t it?
I’ve owned quite a few cars but have nowhere near the experience of the collective on Pistonheads.

The R8 was my first really expensive car and as far as I can tell, is the true supercar experience. It’s ticked a box for sure.
However, it’s isn’t fully giving me the experience I’m looking for. I’m sure it would be faster and more capable than anything I’m considering in outright terms but what I want is something more hardcore, more raw, more of an experience, a bit more edgy. Dare I say it, more fun.

A GTR just isn’t for me. I’ve never wanted one and I suspect it would be further from what I’m looking for than the R8, albeit probably “faster”.

I guess as I’ve got a bit older I’ve decided it isn’t about the badge, or the stats on paper, it’s about what I enjoy.
So maybe the post is pointless! Maybe I just need to work it out for myself.

[gopherboy]

BertBert said:

I've done the TVR thing in a Tamora, absolutely not a thrash it car. Barge like handling. Ok in a straight line, but dull.

I've done the caterham thing, too, fabulous if you get on with them. Not right from a budget pov, but my best handling and responsive road car was a 996GT3RS. Absolutely sublime!

I think a 996 GT3RS would do what I want and would definitely be on the list if budget was there. But without budget constraint I think I’d be buying an F40
Even though both aren’t much slower than the R8 😂

[gopherboy]

Mrinsignia said:

How about a Jaguar F Type V8? Might be a bit too similar to the R8 though...

Probably not going to be raw enough. Lovely cars though

[gopherboy]

The Cayman R is a pretty good shout, I hadn’t thought of that.