Radical will unveil the SR3 SL road car at the Autosport International show in Birmingham this month (January 2011).

It's one of three new model debuts for the British company as it looks to expand its client base beyond wealthy track obsessed mentalists.

The SR3 SL is, as the name attests, based on the best selling SR3 model, but in a quite literally radical departure the company has eschewed motorcycle-based power in favour of a Ford 2.0-litre turbocharged EcoBoost engine.

It's the very same engine that will power the 2012 Focus ST, except Radical has tuned it from 250- to around 300bhp.

Talking to Car Enthusiast, Radical marketing exec Will Brown said that the SL comes in response to customer demand for a model that's less 'challenging' to drive on the public highway.

Of the 200 cars Radical sold worldwide last year, only 15 were road legal; the company hopes to sell as many as 50 SR3 SLs annually by 2012. It's still track biased, of course, so customers will be able to specify the £67,000 car with all sorts of track-focussed options.

Also debuting is the revised SR3 RS (which features chassis, engine and gearbox improvements) and the 2011 model SR8 RX, featuring a 2.7-litre V8 engine and chassis upgrades.

The Autosport International show opens to the public 15 January at the Birmingham NEC.

Mark Nichol - 6 Jan 2011