Go low-cost motor racing with MG

Have you ever wanted to go tin-top racing, but been put off by the astronomical costs? Here’s the answer to your dreams…

The MG Car Club has teamed up with MG Motor UK and the SAIC Motor UK Technical Centre to develop a new budget racer based on the MG3 hatchback.

Meet the MG3 racer – a serious hot hatch created by interns at the SAIC Motor UK Technical Centre that could be yours if you can scrape together a budget of £5,000.

The lump sum will pay for all the parts needed to convert a new or used MG3 into a race car capable of competing in the MG Cup championship. All you have to do is to come up with the donor car (for around £3,000) – and either do it yourself, or pay for the labour to create your dream machine.

And with entrants under the age of 25 only paying half the standard entry fee in the MG Cup, a weekend of racing could cost just £300.

The MG3 is stripped out to save weight then the list of modifications includes a full bolt-on roll cage, Scorpion exhaust, Aeroqip brakelines, EBC brake pads, K&N air filter and a 4.0-litre fully plumbed in air filter.

We were invited to the Castle Combe circuit in Wiltshire to experience the MG3 racer for ourselves. Sadly we weren’t allowed behind the wheel (there’s currently only one car in existence), but we were treated to several passenger laps.

Even alongside the driver, it’s clear that the clever interns at the SAIC Motor UK Technical Centre have done a fantastic job.

Not only does the car look great in in its special 95th anniversary MG livery, but it handled well and felt totally planted – despite only running on standard road tyres.

Crucially, even at a boosted 110bhp from the four-cylinder 1.5-litre engine, the MG3 racer is not too powerful and it’s forgiving, so the perfect starter car for a budding Lewis Hamilton.

The MG3 will race in the invitational class of the MG Cup during 2019, providing a first season of testing and development at the UK’s best race circuits before a full points scoring campaign in 2020.

Racing against everything from MG Midgets and Metros to MG ZRs, it’s a great way to get into motor racing on a small budget.

“We are delighted to be involved in bringing the latest iteration of MG cars to race circuits up and down the country,” said Adam Sloman, General Manager of The MG Car Club.

“Motorsport is a huge part of MG and the Club’s heritage, and we are very much invested in bringing new cars, drivers and young competitors to our grids in the future.”