If you like extreme, lightweight, fast cars that look more at home on the racetrack than driving through a city center, you'll likely love the Radical brand. This small British company produces stuff that isn't very dissimilar from the likes of the KTM X-Bow and Caterham Seven. Radical is known for truly insane machines that barely pass as road-legal, and now the company has made a new vehicle that weighs less than 1,400 pounds.
In case you didn't know, the SR3 is the company's most popular machine, and after 19 years on sale, it's been evolving and improving constantly. The latest SR3 XX isn't built for Sunday cruising, but with up to 226 horsepower in such a light body, there are other ways to have fun.
The new model saves a lot of weight in wiring, with this model's solid-state Power Distribution Module now 65% lighter as a result. The changes are not limited to updates beneath the skin either, with a redesigned interior boasting an F1-like steering wheel with a built-in LCD screen for various different data readouts, up to four of which can be displayed simultaneously. Powered by Suzuki, the SR3 XX is available with either a 1.3 or a 1.5-liter four-pot, with these producing 195 and 226 horsepower respectively. The smaller engine gets the car from 0-60 mph in just 3.3 seconds while the bigger one is two tenths quicker. That's acceleration that would worry even a McLaren 720S or a Porsche 911 Turbo S.
The Radical SR3 XX isn't just about straight-line speed either, with the company claiming that its latest model can pull 2.3 g in the corners. It also benefits from updates like near rear wing endplates, LED lighting, and the option of additional data sources like tire temperature and pressure. As a track-only car, it's unlikely that you'll ever see one of these on the road, and we suspect it would be very uncomfortable as a daily driver, but with a top speed of 147 mph in a car so completely exposed, this is no surprise. Still, if you want to feel like a pro racer, this is the kind of car that can help you get there.