Needed: insight/Experise on Radical SR3

[rfairwea]

I am contemplating the purchase of a Radical SR3 for use as a track day car. While I've had the chance to drive several SR3s (and had a blast!), I have to be honest that I don't know a lot about these cars.

If this were a porsche, I'd feel fairly comfortable. On these cars, I have lots of questions.

• What are the key things I should ask potential sellers?
• What are the key things I should examine on a car?
• What are the weak points of these cars?
• Top issues these cars experience?
• Reasonable life of the motor?
• What are the appropriate compression/leak down numbers on these motors?
• What are the key differences between the 2003-2009 model years?
• Top things to require in a per-purchase inspection?

What am I missing? I greatly appreciate you sharing your wisdom on these cars.

Thanks much,

Rick

[rkjz4h]

Rick, i bought my 2006 sr3 about 18 mos ago. It has been gas and go for about 20 hrs. Compared to my van diemen formula car it has been trouble free and been so easy to drive fast. The car is well balanced and a kick to share with others. Even with 20 heat cycle tires the thing just sticks. Things to watch for is the time on the half shafts- are they the hvy duty type, size of motor and resutant hp. Mine is the 1500 and about 250 hp. Nice to have is the 24 v starter system, floating rotors, high downforce rear and front diffuser and gear indicator. The difference from 2003 to 09 is largely cosmetic except for the engine sizes. In 2010 they changed to a high nose and different sides, 1585cc , 260 hp engine, front and rear diffusers. Of course some cars are right hand drive some have lights, some carbon fiber body or and/or wings and paddle shifters. I have been told the engine is good for 40-50 hrs shifting before 10m. The cost is about $6000 thru radical and $3-4m thru others. If you are still considering buying one mine may be for sale. I enjoy the car so much i may be trading up if i can find the right mix of things.

Give me a call or me if you wish to discuss anything.
Robert

[JRMarchand]

Rick, Robert sums it up well. I've maintained SR3/8 since 2003, one of the problems with these cars is that they have not changed much. The chassis and suspension remain the same for the last decade. Radical is a track day car, you might need a passenger to help you remove the bodywork, it is very heavy. The bodywork tends to crack, sag, chip and fade away in the sun.

The brakes are about the only thing to write home about, they do slow these pigs down good(some early cars have Wilwood calipers, some cars cars have HISpec brand which uses a superior Performance Friction pad). The HiSpec caliper is sturdier than the wilwood.

Look at the seat and mounting points(6), these crack overtime, repairing can usually be done with seat in the car. The Pins that hold the nose up sometimes wear out and let the nose sag. The body clips are a constant battle, coming loose, using tape over them etc etc. A customer with the SR8 had me change all the clips to the new style they offer which does the trick and no need to tape them.

The engines are usually wet sump 1300 hayabusa/1500cc dry sump, there are two generations of Busa engines, the second Gen is 2008 1340cc and up. Most newer Sr3 are dry sump. I've seen how much a K8 1500cc engine is from Radical, straight from the UK, try $21,000 dollars, there is no titanium present in the rotating assembly, no CNC porting, everything done by hand. If you ever needed a replacement you could use many of the builders in the states and not have to spend extra and get what you pay for.
Cars are good on tires, Hoosier makes specific tires for the Radical in two compounds, buy Hoosier, my customers like the softer compound and last over 20 heat cycles.
The different aerodynamic packages, some cars have a huge triple deck carbon wing, way overkill, while some other cars have stacked front dive planes. There is an early generation front splitter and rear diffuser combo. The early front splitter was vulnerable as hell and for the most part flexed and would easily break off. The second gen aero added substantial weight to the car , some 40 pounds. The second gen aero is much better in construction and delivers better performance.

Paddle shift vs Stick shift, paddles will help negotiate areas of a track better but the stick on a Radical works really well.
The suspension is sort of limited per design, there are half as many Spherical rod ends in radicals when compared to other purpose built sport racers. There are urethane bushing on all the upper an lower control arms plus the steel sleeve inside needs to be checked, replaced often at times depending on duty. Try to get a car with Koni, penske or Intrax dampners, stay away from Avo shocks, the cars with Intrax have better agility.

Finally, the drivetrain, the quaife diff is robust, it may leak or it may leak a lot. The stock "early"axles are prone to breaking rather easily, there are options to upgrade the axles or update to the big daddy kit which comes with a bulletproof bolt on assembly for little over 2 grand if i remember.

If you need further help, let me know, I'm just north of you at GingerMan Raceway Michigan, also have a dynojet dyno, alignment pad and scales. Good luck finding a good car. regards Marchand Juan

[lph]

I was the Radical North America factory dealer for many years. I found the cars very forgiving to drive. A few things I would add.

1.The engines should be re-built every 25-30 hours to prevent a catastrophic and expensive failure.

2. Very important to check oil levels after each session. Low oil is major cause of failure.

3. The engines, especially 1500 are very susceptible to mechanical over-rev failure.

4. Dry sump is preferable and increases longevity and reliability.

The newer, post 2007 models have significantly more downforce. Fuel bladders tend to fail fairly often, You can replace them with an aluminum cell. We had a terrible problem getting the paddle shift systems to work. I would stay away from earlier paddle shift equipped cars.

I am the original owner of a 2007 PR6. I am in the process of rebuilding the car. Let me know if you interested or have any other questions.

[rkjz4h]

Rick, keep in mind these are fiberglass body cars. Any fiberglass car will cheap when hit by rocks and spider vein when stressed. Unless you keep your car outside they dont fade or sag. I keep mine in the garage when not racing and the gelcoat will outlast you. The clips are a pain but i drilled a hole in the tabs and set a revnut into the bodywork so problem solved with small tab screws. Mine consumes no oil, the drysump holds more than enough oil and my quaife diff doesnt leak and has been great. Unlike my van diemen, nothing rubs, vibrates off and everything fits without out using a prybar or modifying. No chains to stretch, reverse gear, no pitting of gears. it is a great solution. The car is built like a tank so it is too heavy to compete with the 1100 # stohr but good luck getting a passenger in your stohr. If you want absolute speed then the stohr or west is your car. If you want greater safety, dependable, a well balanced and scary fast track car that doesnt need new tires every 4 heat cycles then you will not be dissapointed in buying a well maintained, high downfirce, dry sump model. Check out keith verges running a 2:09 at cota - up there with the stohrs and FAs and dayota prototypes at the moat recent cota events. It is a 300hp small v8 sr8 but these "pigs" will exceed your abilities without taking a team to maintain. Hope this helps.

[supersonicus]

Owned a Radical SR-4. Car was an absolute blast to drive. I had the 1500 with a dry sump system which gave me absolutely zero issues. Owned and raced the car for 1-1/2 seasons and had zero (out of the ordinary) issues. Keep in mind that they are a race car do require TLC; inspection after each session, nut and bolt checks, etc.etc.. For a fast track day car its hard to beat a Radical as far as fun, but you do have to look after it like any true race car.

What would be a must for me:

Fuel injected 1500 with dry sump (the extra power was a must for me)
Dampers with bump and rebound adjustments (so you can tune the chassis easily)
Car with full service records. Listen to your gut.

[JRMarchand]

Other things to look for:

*Rear engine mount cracks over time, weld or replace
*Reverse cable/lever to Quaife freezes up.
*Headers flake off and crack.
*Dash Display flickers temp units or no units
*Dash gear position problematic at times
*SR8 eats starters, from heat build up, just my experience.
*Early bodywork cracks , sags, chips and fades away, my experience.
*Body clips rivets loosen up and wallow out the fiberglass
*Single battery has trouble turning engine hot, might need jumper pack
*On earlier SR3, the MBE ECU is 4 inches from the headers, must relocate.
*Early Dry sump systems had water pump problems, my experience.
*Dry Sump oil pan should be updated to Rilltech pan
*Engine output flange nut could loosen up and its impossible to check on the fly, best loctite here.

If I can think of more I will put it here.

[rfairwea]

Guys,

Thank you very much for the help. I have purchased a 2007 ST3 w/ a 1500 and had my first laps at Palm Beach Raceway yesterday. Have not stopped smiling since that first lap!!! This is going to be a very fun car. I think I'll leave it in Florida for most of the winter and bring it up to Indy to run track days through the summer.

All the best,

Rick

[rkjz4h]

Rick, good to hear you took the plunge. I have taken 200+ laps in mine over the past 2 yrs and I still am wiping the smile off my face when I come in - not to mention the passengers - once they catch their breath. While fresh shoes are always sweet I finally got rid of the 40+ heat cycle tires my car came with. While I am constantly going over the car - changing oil, cleaning, lubing, checking for rubbing/wear, shielding wires, bleeding (aka as getting out of the house and wife's hair) - the car has just been a rock.

if it is in fl - come over to barber with nasa in feb. if you have never been to barber - it is Disney land for race cars. The track is a tad short but it is a roller coaster and one of the best tracks in the US - not to mention a world class museum next door.

be safe.
Robert

[Ravenbk]

Hey Rick,
Congrats on your purchase. Post a pic... we all love to see other rides!
One thing you may want to be aware with Bike engines, IF you spin out, make sure to engage the clutch, if not the starter will want to spin in reverse and essentially turns to dust!
Also I highly recommend a 24v starter system.

Been racing 2 years of SR3 and love it!
jon

[rfairwea]

Hey Rick,
Congrats on your purchase. Post a pic... we all love to see other rides!
One thing you may want to be aware with Bike engines, IF you spin out, make sure to engage the clutch, if not the starter will want to spin in reverse and essentially turns to dust!
Also I highly recommend a 24v starter system.

Been racing 2 years of SR3 and love it!
jon

Jon - thank you for the comments. I had the chance to drive the car at Palm Beach last week...I managed to get through 6 sessions before a spin and made sure I was "2 feet in" the moment I realized I couldn't recover. So, 10 seconds later I was back on track. I do realize I need to carry a spares parter in addition to a number of other items.

The car is pretty dirty & in need of a good cleaning but here's a pic.

Cheers,

Rick

[Ravenbk]

Hi Rick,
Great looking car!
What data system is in he car?

This year we are almost 10 radicals racing in Eastern Canada, should be a great year!

Here is a pic of mine. Anyone else here with Radicals, post some pics! we all love to see em!



Cheers
jon

[Maciej]

Hi Rick,
Great looking car!
What data system is in he car?

This year we are almost 10 radicals racing in Eastern Canada, should be a great year!

Here is a pic of mine. Anyone else here with Radicals, post some pics! we all love to see em!



Cheers
jon

Let me take a moment to say that this is hands down one of the best looking Radicals I have ever seen, and I spent every day for four months surrounded by them this year.

[Ravenbk]

Thanks Mate,
It means alot, i take alot of pride to make the cars look as good as the effort that my mechanic puts into making it run great!

Here are a few more pics for your viewing pleasure!

[rkjz4h]

Jon, what a great looking sr3. That is one of the best looking rads i have seen regardless of yr. Is that a matt wrap? If it is a wrap are the graphics printed or overlayed? Sorry i dont have my sole picture on my tablet but it doesnt hold a candle to yours.

Too bad you guys are so far north. We have a few down here but they dont come out to play very often.

Drive fast be reckless.
Robert

[rkjz4h]

Jon, i just noticed the small side scoops for the radiator inlets. Did you make those or is someone making those for sale? Mine runs hot during the summer and i have tried everything and now need to find something to direct more air over the radiator. Mine is the only one that gets hot down here so it maybe a faulty sensor which i just replaced but scoops maybe a solution. I have the new side pods so the scoops would have to be a slightly different shape. Did you/do you have overheating problems?
Thanks
Robert

[Maciej]

Jon, i just noticed the small side scoops for the radiator inlets. Did you make those or is someone making those for sale? Mine runs hot during the summer and i have tried everything and now need to find something to direct more air over the radiator. Mine is the only one that gets hot down here so it maybe a faulty sensor which i just replaced but scoops maybe a solution. I have the new side pods so the scoops would have to be a slightly different shape. Did you/do you have overheating problems?
Thanks
Robert

Those are the older generation side pods.

Which year is your Radical? A faulty coolant temp sensor is definitely feasible.

[Feffman]

Guys,

Thank you very much for the help. I have purchased a 2007 ST3 w/ a 1500 and had my first laps at Palm Beach Raceway yesterday. Have not stopped smiling since that first lap!!! This is going to be a very fun car. I think I'll leave it in Florida for most of the winter and bring it up to Indy to run track days through the summer.

All the best,

Rick

Rick:

I hope we'll see you at the track with the SR3 in 2014. Have fun.

Feff

[Ravenbk]

Jon, what a great looking sr3. That is one of the best looking rads i have seen regardless of yr. Is that a matt wrap? If it is a wrap are the graphics printed or overlayed? Sorry i dont have my sole picture on my tablet but it doesnt hold a candle to yours.

Too bad you guys are so far north. We have a few down here but they dont come out to play very often.

Drive fast be reckless.
Robert

Hi Robert,
Thanks for the compliments. To accomplish this look, i actually tested with PLASTI DIP. It was an "interesting" process. but the results are amazing. However if someone were to try this, i would recommend getting some vinyl of the same color and create some strips to apply to the areas where body parts rub together. The graphics are then applied overtop as you would normally do on painted cars.
Jon

[Ravenbk]

Jon, i just noticed the small side scoops for the radiator inlets. Did you make those or is someone making those for sale? Mine runs hot during the summer and i have tried everything and now need to find something to direct more air over the radiator. Mine is the only one that gets hot down here so it maybe a faulty sensor which i just replaced but scoops maybe a solution. I have the new side pods so the scoops would have to be a slightly different shape. Did you/do you have overheating problems?
Thanks
Robert

Hi Robert,
Maciej is correct, i have an older style of sidepods (was part of the high downforce kit if i recall well) However without this, you should not have cooling issues. I would investigate the sensor first, also make sure that when you put water in the rads you are "rocking" the car (suspended is best) in order to remove any air bubbles (this could be a cause) also use water wetter! Also make sure there are no obstructions in the pipes and that the rads are treating water properly (faulty or plugged rad could also cause this)... OH... and make sure the water pump is operating properly!
thats all i can think of for now.
cheers mate
jon

[rkjz4h]

I was at COTA earlier this yr and the photographer got some really cool shots. Put COTA on your bucket list. Thankfully my red bull friend let me in front as he was learning the track. I had the first picture printed for my garage wall. It was done by one of the online vinyl billboard printers for about $240. It is 9'X16' and turned out well - a lot better than my posters and flags.

be safe

[Ravenbk]

NIIIIICE!!!!!

[BioBa]

Now that's what I call creative race photography! Very NICE!

[titec2]

I know this thread is old but I was wondering what you did with the early bodywork you replaced with the newer updated bits. The side pods are of particular interest to me.

Jay R.

[titec2]

Okay...I see my error thought the car pictured at COTA was the original posters car. Sorry guys my mistake.

On a side bar if any of you know anyone that has a pair of the older side pods like the ones on the original posters car I would to talk to them about possible purchasing them.

[rkjz4h]

Jay, no help here. I imported the car from England and the previous owner had upgraded the sidepods and installed the high downforce package.

Robert

[rfairwea]

Hi Robert,
Thanks for the compliments. To accomplish this look, i actually tested with PLASTI DIP. It was an "interesting" process. but the results are amazing. However if someone were to try this, i would recommend getting some vinyl of the same color and create some strips to apply to the areas where body parts rub together. The graphics are then applied overtop as you would normally do on painted cars.
Jon

John,

Can you share your perspective on Hooaiers vs Dunlops? Do they work with similar alignment specs as the Dunlops.

Thanks much,

Rick

[Ravenbk]

Hi Rfairwea,

I am using Hoosiers for racing. The difference between them and the Dunlops (slicks) is not that noticeable, however the Hoosiers do feel a little more predictable. Also, they are cheaper.

For RAINS however..... I haven't found anything that beats the Dunlops. So my weekend setup is 2 sets of Hoosier Drys and 1set of Dunlop Rains.

Alignment specs are similar, the only thing that i believe is different is the SAI (dunlops = 0.0 degrees and Hoosiers = -1.5 degrees) However i say this with some reserve and i would need to double check with my mechanic to confirm.

Of course in the rain, we disconnect the nicklink and put max wing

[Shane0]

My new ride

[Ravenbk]

Nice Ride, Congrats!

[CharleyH]

Looks great! My car is the same colors, but with a white body.

Enjoy,
Charley