Thinking of buying....

[Andy 111R]

Hello there Noble peeps.

I am considering purchasing a Noble M400.

My main issue at the moment is whether it would stand up to around 10 trackdays a year.

I currently run an Elise 111R (the one with the Toyota engine) which is great fun but I'm looking for the 'next level' of performance on track.

The new supercharged exige I am also considering comes in at around 44k when loaded with the 2 track pack options which is around the same price as a one year old m400.
Thats 220 ish bhp v 420 bhp for the same money, where's the catch?

Your honest opinions would be much appreciated.

Cheers.

[gadgeroonie]

i have an elise too

however the noble is a bit more powerful than you might think

take a test drive - you will be happy

[V6GTO]

That's two this week...about average.

www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=291685&f=26&h=0

www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=292534&f=26&h=0

Martin.

[Andy 111r]

V6GTO said:

That's two this week...about average.

www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.

www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.

Martin."

Thanks for that but I don't see an answer to my question there.

I am trying to gauge if a Noble will be reliable enough for the volume of trackdays that I do.
I don't need convincing that it a great car I'm already sold on that bit.

Cheers.

Edited by Andy 111r on Friday 28th July 08:03

[BrianJ]

To be fair, experiences differ on here - but I found that regular track use (up to 14 p.a. tho' many were short evening sessions) killed my Noble and I went back to an Exige. Noble factory did comment on here that the Noble is not built to be a track car. Maybe occasional use is OK. Owners who don't track them do seem to have less trouble - but what fun is that - most of the time on road you're not even using the turbos at all - so it's just posing.

Also, you would need a much bigger budget for maintenance and e.g. brake pads - heavier, faster car. I find the Exige just as satisfying on track and had enough change from a new Noble for another car too!

[lucozade]

Andy 111R said:

Hello there Noble peeps.

I am considering purchasing a Noble M400.

My main issue at the moment is whether it would stand up to around 10 trackdays a year.

I currently run an Elise 111R (the one with the Toyota engine) which is great fun but I'm looking for the 'next level' of performance on track.

The new supercharged exige I am also considering comes in at around 44k when loaded with the 2 track pack options which is around the same price as a one year old m400.
Thats 220 ish bhp v 420 bhp for the same money, where's the catch?

Your honest opinions would be much appreciated.

Cheers.

If you have the budget then I guess any car is capable of 10 track days per year. However, I wouldn't say the Noble is the cheapest option nor the most reliable in that sense. Having spent the money I have recently on my 3R and looking through my bills over the last two years of ownership I would say it's been a very costly excercise - and I've only managed 2 track days.

I expect others will have different experiences.

[joust]

My M400 has now done over 10 track days in 19 months, none in the last 6 months due to work pressures.

The costs?

3 x services (1000 mile oil, 6k, 12k)
2 x front discs
4 x front pads
1 x rear pads
4 x set of rear tyres
1 x set of front tyres

In addition to those I've had one turbo reconditioned, air-con leak fixed, two replacement horns and a few odd and sods, oh and one Roush exhaust system upgrade

I've not counted the total bills, but excluding the exhaust system @ 3k, it's around £3000 inlcuding the tyres (due to a very nice chap importing some for me).

As anyone that's been out with me, I don't exactly hang around on track, but I am told I have good 'mechanical sympathy'.

Make your mind up if that's the sort of costs you could bear, and remember something could break that could add another £1000 or so to that figure.

J

[robp]

Andy 111r said:

Thanks for that but I don't see an answer to my question there.

I am trying to gauge if a Noble will be reliable enough for the volume of trackdays that I do.
I don't need convincing that it a great car I'm already sold on that bit.

Cheers.

Andy - I've done about 14 track days in just over a year in my M400. Driven to and from circuits and it's never missed a beat.
Oil and plug change and spanner checks at frequent intervals and fanactical adherence to warm-up, cool down and never-stay-on-hot-laps-for-more-than-15-mins is the secret.
On hot laps nothing other than Radicals go past...
Infinitely more reliable than my old S1 Elise which lived up to the Lotus accronym (Loads Of Trouble Usually Serious).

Edited by robp on Friday 28th July 11:28

[washy]

Andy - How far do you live from your nearest Noble dealer or Noble factory? The Noble will need to be looked at regularly. That gets to be a pain if you've got a big trip to make every time.

[Andy 111R]

washy said:

Andy - How far do you live from your nearest Noble dealer or Noble factory? The Noble will need to be looked at regularly. That gets to be a pain if you've got a big trip to make every time.

Good point i'm about 110 miles from the nearest dealer.