This old Formula One car is surprisingly affordable

Obscenely wealthy? Like a trackday? You’ve got choices. You could buy a road-legal track day toy, like a BAC Mono, McLaren 620R, Porsche 911 GT3 RS (all cars we like very much indeed). Or you could forfeit the ability to drive your track car to and from the circuit and just buy a proper racecar.

Think about it. Road-legal trackday toys are inherently compromised on track, because they have to conform to all kinds of rules and regulations so they can wear a set of number plates. And the stiffness and ruthless lightweighting that’s supposed to make them good on a track means they can be a chore to drive on a normal road. Loud, uncomfortable, impractical. Ever tried using a drive-thru while strapped into a five-point harness? Don’t, it’s not pretty.

Proper racecars aren’t actually that expensive. Use the savings to buy yourself a trailer. With a racer you’ll have more fun on track in a more thrilling car, without worrying about not being able to get home if you have an off or chew through a set of tyres, and a more comfortable drive home.

Take this 2002 Jordan Formula One car, which is being auctioned online by The Market and is expected to fetch between £150,000 and £250,000. Yes that’s a lot of money, but no more than you’d pay for a 620R. An AMG GT Black Series is almost £100,000 pricier than the Jordan’s upper estimate.

F1 cars are tricky things to run, requiring an entire team of mechanics just to get the engine running. Not this one, though – it has a Judd V8 and five-speed Lola/Hewland gearbox in place of the highly strung Honda motor and seven-speed transmission it originally deployed, which were removed when the car was sold by Jordan in 2004. It starts on the button, but still makes around 520bhp and peaks at 10,000rpm.

So, wealthy track day enthusiasts of TopGear.com, what’s it to be? A road-legal track toy, or a proper racer?