The Noble M600: Britain's 225mph challenge to Ferrari

The all-new Noble M600 will set you back an entire BMW 5-Series more than a Ferrari 458 or McLaren MP4-12C. That does seem an awful lot for a car that's handbuilt in a small premises on the outskirts of Leicester, says Autocar.

But when you realise that the Noble went faster than a McLaren F1 in almost every in-gear increment from 20 to 160mph, "you might begin to understand what sort of performance the M600 has at its disposal". Suddenly, "£200k no longer seems quite so crazy".

We were very impressed with it, says Ben Pulman in Car. The ride is smooth; less harsh than, say, an Aston DBS in Sport mode. It will "happily pootle along at under 2,000rpm", but when you put your foot flat to the floor, you'll "laugh out loud". There's the briefest of pauses while the two turbos gather themselves, and then you're hurled at the horizon.

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Car's test drive was "conducted on tight and twisty Leicestershire country roads, but it was enough to discover that the M600 has brilliant steering, a beautifully composed ride and the performance to leave everything else on the road behind".

The car looks "gloriously edgy", says Pulman, and the interior is "special". It's awkward to clamber in and out of, but once you're over the wide sill, it's snug and and "immaculately finished" and full of nice touches.