Elemental RP1 review

This is the risk/reward of owning a small British sports car. You do not have the reassurance of a large company behind you with its dealer network, reputation for reliability etc. Instead you have a genuine ownership experience. You will deal with the men who actually built your car, and I’ll bet they’ll move heaven and earth to make sure its right.

So that’s an upside. The downside is that the Elemental RP1 costs £98,700. This is a vast amount of money for a car that provides the same sort of experience and speed that is available in a supercharged Atom or top-line Caterham for roughly half as much.

It seems as if the BAC Mono (currently around £125,000) has convinced others there’s headroom in their prices. I’m not sure. What sets the Mono aside isn’t just its unique single-seat layout and stunning design, but a quality of fit and finish that is way beyond everyone else. Including, at this moment in time, Elemental.