Best track day cars 2025 – the thrill of driving in its purest form
Some of the world's most visceral, engaging track cars have emerged in recent times – these are our favourites
In theory, you might expect that the remit of a car aiming to be included in our best track cars list, should be simpler. Raw performance, raw thrills and to hell with ride comfort, practicality and refinement. As it happens, the very best track cars have a little more depth, with real attention paid to how that performance is delivered and what the driver needs to put in, in order to get the best out of it.
There’s no specific recipe to uphold – driven wheels, body styles and engine layouts shouldn’t matter here, only a resolute focus on being both fun to drive and resilient enough to handle more than a few laps at high speed. So here’s our list of the best cars to fulfil for your track day desires, be that something designed specifically for the circuit driving job, or a car with a broader remit. Most are road-legal, but for absolute purity and thrills, there are purpose built machines that take things to the next level.
Track day stalwarts from Caterham and Ariel make the cut, but also extreme, single-minded supercars from the likes of Porsche and Aston Martin. So in no particular order, here are the best track day cars you can buy now that’ll make every turn-in, apex and straight a pleasure. And remember, whether you have one of these dedicated track attack machines in your possession or not, we’ll be welcoming you back on circuit for the 2025 evo Trackdays season – tickets are on sale now.
Best track day cars 2025
- Life110 Alpine A110 R
- Caterham Seven
- Ariel Atom 4R
- McLaren Artura Trophy Evo
- Manthey Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RS
- Honda Civic Type R
- Radical SR3 XXR
- Porsche 911 GT3
- Spartan
- Aston Martin Valkyrie
Life110 Alpine A110 R
Price – An A110 R (c/£90k) plus c/£9500
Pros – The A110 R at its full potential
Cons – More harsh than standard on the road
We were left a little disappointed by the A110 R when we first drove it around Jarama circuit in Spain. It felt like Alpine had been too conservative with what should have been the most vivid, intense A110 of them all, but the beauty of the R is that its chassis is highly adjustable, and that ultra keyed-in feel was just waiting to be unlocked. For our 2024 Track Car of the Year test at Cadwell Park, it arrived with a revised setup and shone brightly next to serious, purpose-built machinery, cementing itself as one of our favourite track cars on sale.
> Life110 Alpine A110 R review
Now, Life110 – run by ex-JLR vehicle dynamics engineer David Pook – has devised a series of upgrade packages to take things to the next level. With choice tweaks to the R’s adjustable coilover suspension, engine calibration, gearbox tuning and aero, among other details, the result is a supremely focused A110 with more power (316bhp) and real positivity in the way it handles. In other words, it’s a brilliant car made even better.
‘I love the standard A110 R, but not until you drive Life110’s version do you appreciate how perfectly the modifications are applied to those areas of the base car that needed some amplification. By ramping up the performance and dialling in just enough aggression to the chassis, the R’s on-road demeanour is intensified and its trackday game sharpened to addictive effect.’ – Richard Meaden, evo co-founder and editor-at-large, who tested the Life110 Alpine A110 R on road and track in the UK.
Caterham Seven
Price – from £30,490
Pros – The Thrill of Driving in as granular a form as is possible
Cons – Narrow body can be a squeeze
With every distraction and every ounce of fat carved away, the Caterham Seven distils driving into its core components. The formula has remained fundamentally the same since the Caterham's spiritual predecessor – the Lotus Seven – arrived in the late ’50s, but gradual evolution has seen the Seven become a physical, raw and formidable track car today.
With a range that spans from the dainty, vintage-style Super Seven series and all the way to the crazed, supercharged 620R, speccing the ultimate Seven is somewhat of a minefield, but fear not – evo has done all the work for you. To coincide with the magazine's 25th anniversary and Caterham's 50th, we partnered with the British car maker to produce the Seven evo25 Edition; a unique spec of Caterham that combines our favourite elements from existing models. With a 210bhp Ford Duratec motor, adjustable 420 Cup-derived Bilstein dampers and a selection of track-oriented options, the evo25 is glorious to drive on track but at home on the road too – covering distance in the snug, cosy cockpit with the dampers softened off is no hardship. Unsurprisingly, neither is belting around your favourite circuit.
‘The way the Caterham smears its way through fast corners is hugely satisfying, largely because of the raw speed, but also because of the confidence it gives you and how it communicates its limits. There’s tons of grip, but it’s always malleable, so you can l-e-a-n into the increasing lateral load until the front, rear or, as is more likely, both ends slowly relinquish their hold.’ – Richard Meaden, evo co-founder and editor-at-large, who tested the Caterham Seven ‘evo25’ against the Ariel Atom 4R around Cadwell Park during our 2024 Track Car of the Year test.
Ariel Atom 4R
Price – From £80k
Pros – One of the ultimate four-wheeled thrills
Cons – All the options double that price
The Ariel Atom represents the pinnacle of track day thrills. At the top of the current range is the wild, all-compassing Atom 4R – it's hard to think of another car that's so exquisitely technical yet primal and raw in character. Its Civic Type R-derived turbocharged engine kicks out 400bhp and it weighs less than 700kg, but adjustable traction control and ABS mean that the potential of the 4R doesn't feel hopelessly out of reach. As your trust in the car (and yourself) grows, the Atom takes you into an entirely new realm on a circuit.
If you’re after something a bit different from Ariel, the Nomad 2 is also an absolute blast, its long-travel off-road suspension giving it an endlessly fun roly-poly character. It’s not one for setting lap times, but you’ll probably have as wide a grin as GT3 RS drivers at a track day.
‘The R’s very-best-of-everything philosophy has created an extraordinary driving experience. It’s the most suitable Atom for use on track, of course; but what I didn’t expect was for it to be such a well-rounded experience on the road, too.’ – James Taylor, evo deputy editor, who drove the Atom 4 R on road and track in the UK.
McLaren Artura Trophy Evo
Price – from £250,000
Pros – The full race car experience made accessible
Cons – Full race car means you’ll need a tow rig
You probably won’t climb out of a McLaren Artura wishing it had more performance, but with the track-only Trophy Evo version, McLaren has ramped up the capability of its ‘baby’ mid-engined supercar to a stunning degree. With a dry-sumped 3-litre twin turbo V6, no hybrid system, a full aero package and slick tyres, it’s massively exciting yet accessible to drive – and a gateway into McLaren’s Trophy race series.
> McLaren Artura Trophy Evo review
With 612bhp at your disposal the Evo feels massively quick, but it’s the cornering performance that leaves the biggest impression. Make the most of its high-speed grip and neutral handling and it’ll lap close to GT3 pace. If you’re a (very) wealthy racing fan, there aren’t many better ways to spend a quarter of a million pounds.
‘It’s a truly entertaining, fulfilling experience to drive and – given its remit is for customers to enjoy themselves, as well as potentially progressing further up the GT racing ladder – it nails the dynamic side of its brief comprehensively.’ – James Taylor, evo deputy editor, who tested the Artura Trophy around Silverstone circuit in the UK.
Manthey Racing Porsche 911 GT3 RS
Price – A GT3 RS (c/£190k) plus £99,999 for conversion
Pros – The ultimate track-focused 911
Cons – A big cost for an upgrade kit
Absolutely the Porsche 911 GT3 RS is all the track car most could ever need. This entry is as much an endorsement of the eCoty 2023 winner as it is a mention that, if you want the ultimate road-legal track car, the Manthey Racing GT3 RS takes it a step further still.
The GT3 RS’s immense performance and grip are almost otherworldly when it’s good for 860kg of downforce at 177mph, let alone over 1000kg. If the standard GT3 RS genuinely feels like a 911 Cup car with number plates, the Manthey Racing GT3 RS, certainly in appearance, is something altogether more extreme. Worth noting, it manages that increase in downforce without adding any drag. The aero balance is slightly further forward, which improves the balance at speed – perfect for track work. While the 518bhp 4-litre flat-six is unchanged, there is a lot of fettling that has occurred underneath in terms of how the Manthey GT3 RS is suspended, as you’d hope given the roar upward in potential downforce.
Spring rates are up front and rear by 30 and 15 per cent respectively to handle the increased aero load. Crucially, however, the Manthey RS is still configurable in terms of its damping and diff settings. A custom semi-active damper setup has been developed for the car, which can make adjustments in real time, with the module that controls based on chassis acceleration, steering angle, braking pressure, throttle position, gear selection and vehicle speed data.
Complex, comprehensive – it certainly explains the extensive testing on the Nürburgring prior to the car’s reveal. But the result is a car that’s vastly more capable on track – possibly the ultimate road-legal track car – without compromising its road ability too much. Pricing is sturdy, with the conversion alone costing £99,999.
‘It might look (and go!) even more like a racing car, but it doesn’t sacrifice any more practicality or useability compared with the base car.
‘If you can accept the sharper ride, don’t blanch at the Marvel looks, and buy-in wholeheartedly to Manthey’s approach and status, this RS is a truly extraordinary car. One capable of things no road-legal 911 has ever done before.’ – Richard Meaden, evo co-founder and editor-at-large, who tested the Manthey GT3 RS on the road in the UK.
Honda Civic Type R
Price – from £51,905
Pros – Possibly the most complete hot hatch ever made
Cons – Sturdy pricing still stings
The latest Honda Civic Type R is an example of a manufacturer listening to feedback and delivering in brilliant fashion. We loved the previous FK8-generation car, its communicative, tenacious chassis and engaging powertrain, but there were two snags in the otherwise world-beating formula: its divisive styling and the restrictive drive mode presets that left the Type R with untapped potential. The FL5 model rectifies both of these and brings a host of engineering enhancements in one hit, making it the best hot hatchback money can buy.
In an age of DCT-equipped four-wheel drive mega hatches, the Type R feels almost touring car-like in the surgical, sometimes frantic way it delivers performance. The Honda's communicative controls and instinctive manual gearshift draw you into exploiting all of its potential on track, where even full-blooded sports cars would have a very hard time clinging to its rear wing.
‘The FL5 is astonishingly good. We'd go so far as to say that it sits right up in the pantheon of all-time hot hatchback greats, which is even more remarkable when their future is becoming less than certain. Yes, it's expensive and UK availability is limited, but no other hot hatch quite is as polished and poised as this one.’ – Richard Meaden, evo co-founder and editor-at-large, who tested the Honda Civic Type R on road and track in the UK.
Radical SR3 XXR
Price – from £108,000
Pros – Impossibly friendly to drive for such an extreme car
Cons – Not as configurable as more sophisticated machinery
The Radical SR3 has been around since 2002, but don't let that fool you. In XXR form it's a cutting-edge downforce demon that scrambles your mind with its sheer precision, intensity and cornering ability. You sit reclined in the chassis, LMP-style, with the centre of gravity skimming the ground and a 1500cc RPE racing engine revving to the stratosphere. Despite weighing just 699kg (full of fuel) and putting out 232bhp, it's not the straight line speed that gets you – rather the enormous cornering and braking potential the SR3 manages to generate.
> Radical SR3 XXR v Revolution 500 Evo
In the dry you can lean hard on the Hankook slick tyres, braking impossibly deep and carrying massive speed through every apex. There's real finesse to the driving experience too, and it's possible to place the Radical with pinpoint accuracy and trim your lines to what feels like the nearest millimetre. It's one of the most intensely pure track driving experiences out there.
‘You live in the stratosphere in the SR3: up in the rarefied air of high revs and higher corner speeds. The precision you can operate it with, the sheer stability and confidence it gives you, is quite something. It feels as if the circuit and car are made for one another, so it’s not surprising that an SR3 once held the outright lap record at Cadwell.’ – James Taylor, evo deputy editor, who drove the Radical on track at Cadwell Park during our 2024 Track Car of the Year test.
Porsche 911 GT3
Price – from £157,300
Pros – From the track to the road, the ultimate do-it-all sports/supercar
Cons – Could be the last GT3 as we know it
No car has been as consistently high on every trackday goers wish list as the 911 GT3. And though the threat of emissions regulations and a push towards electrification has called the existence of the GT3 as we know it into question, the latest 992.2 delivers everything we love about the very best GT3s – and then some.
As before, the engine is a masterpiece. It remains a 4-litre naturally-aspirated flat-six that revs to 9000rpm, and despite needing to comply with more stringent emissions regs, still produces over 500bhp. You can pick between manual or PDK, and the 992.2’s chassis and steering have been further honed, taking inspiration from the fabulous S/T. It all comes together in a superbly polished and exciting driving experience, that leaves us wondering how a future hybrid or turbocharged GT3 could ever match it.
‘The defining factors of the GT3’s appeal have always been its sheer responsiveness and its sense of precision. The 992.2 possesses both in spades. It’s hard not to consider the latest evolution of the GT3 a job very well done. It retains the key attributes of its predecessor and furthers its agility; takes on elements of the S/T without stepping on that car’s toes, and allows buyers more customisation than ever.’ – James Taylor, evo Deputy Editor, who tested the 992.2 911 GT3 on road and track on the launch.
Spartan
Prices – From £130k (£165k+ as tested)
Pros – Impossibly capable, yet thrilling and involving
Cons – Industrial engine note, overwhelming at times
The name says it all; the Australian-built Spartan is just about as angry and unhinged as track cars come. Designed with inspiration from 1960s Can-Am cars, its flowing carbonfibre body helps keep weight down to just 745kg (full of fuel), and its supercharged 460bhp Honda engine has the goods to thrill, excite and downright terrify its driver (in the best way possible).
Thankfully, the Spartan combines this furious performance with directness and communication on a circuit. This gives you confidence to really lean on it through corners, at which point you'll find that the balance is neutral and approachable with reassuring high speed stability. Our man Richard Meaden sums it up: 'I can’t think of another road-legal car that places so much in the hands of the driver and delivers such an intense and unfiltered reward.'
‘The Spartan is genuinely mind-altering. After three flat-out timed laps, I feel like I’ve just survived some kind of explosion. It’s a heart-pounding, head-spinning thrill. One laced with the immense satisfaction of knowing you have been responsible for every command and input. I can’t think of another road-legal car that places so much in the hands of the driver and delivers such an intense and unfiltered reward.’ – Richard Meaden, evo co-founder and editor-at-large, who tested the Spartan at Cadwell Park during our 2024 Track Car of the Year test.
Aston Martin Valkyrie
If you want to recalibrate your expectations as to what a road car is capable of, look no further than the Aston Martin Valkyrie. It should come as no surprise that the 1139bhp, Adrian Newey-designed machine is the most technically impressive, physically demanding hypercar of them all, but with a shrink-wrapped body generating a sustained 600kg of downforce at speed, it opens up an entirely new realm of performance.
> Aston Martin Valkyrie review
The Valkyrie takes time, skill and enormous commitment to get near its potential, but when everything comes together, there's no road car quite like it.
'At first everything feels like it's happening too fast, but the trick is to look further and further ahead. It feels unnatural, but it’s all part of the recalibration process. One that you gradually get on top of lap-by-lap, but with less time to relax on the straights and so much compressed into each braking effort, the Valkyrie is a ruthless and relentless test of your focus and mental stamina.' – Richard Meaden, evo co-founder and editor-at-large, who tested the Aston Martin Valkyrie on the Bahrain International GP Circuit.
