A Le Mans car for the road. That, in a nutshell, was what Radical set out to create when designing the extraordinary new Radical RXC, and in a nutshell that’s exactly what they have built.
The RXC may look a touch barking when encountered amongst ordinary, everyday traffic – to a point where people stare at it in complete bewilderment when they see it rumbling along the public road.
But beneath its Le Mans prototype-like bodywork, complete with full GT3 specification multi-adjustable rear wing, it’s actually a rather good sports car, albeit one that’s a touch more extreme in its delivery compared with, say, a Volkswagen Golf GTi.
At its heart, just behind its two racing bucket seats, sits a 3.7-litre Ford V6 that produces either 350bhp in standard tune or 380bhp with a bit of tweakery to its throttle system. In both cases it's mated to a seven-speed sequential paddle shift gearbox built specifically for the car by Quaife, who also make the torque-sensing differential that’s fitted to the car.
All up, the RXC weighs just 900kg, which means it isn’t just quick but crackers fast in a straight line. Radical claims a 0-60mph time of just 2.8sec with a top speed limited by the relatively short gearing in seventh to “just” 175mph.
They don’t quote a 0-100mph time just yet, but having spent a day howling around the Yorkshire moors in it I’d guess it could hit three figures in a fair bit less than seven seconds. Which puts it very much in the premier league when it comes to outright acceleration.