ORGANIC CHEMISTRY; Driving Noble's megatomic M400.(Product/service evaluation)

Byline: MAC MORRISON

Formula One legend Ayrton Senna was once disenchanted with F1's state of affairs. The early-'90s trend toward gizmo-laden cars fitted with active suspension, traction control, ABS and semi-automatic gearboxes had, in his view, corrupted the art of driving and leveled the field of driving talent. So when Senna emerged from the cockpit of a Penske CART car devoid of all such "driver aids'' during a one-off test in late 1992, his reaction was pure and predictable. "It's a human's car!'' he enthused.

Remember those words as you lower and fold yourself into the Noble M400: Drop sideways into the thinly padded carbon fiber bucket, swing your legs into the tight, offset pedal box. Try not to feel like a complete tool strapping the car to your back via the four-point Willans racing harness-there is a regular seatbelt, too, but if you don't like the idea of cinching up, perhaps you should carry on to the Jaguar dealer. Otherwise, turn the key and listen to the fuel pump's heavy breathing before awakening the 3.0-liter twin-turbo Ford Duratec V6 with a push of the starter button. Shift your left foot from the nearly pointless metal sliver of a footrest and depress the clutch fully-all two-plus inches of formula car-like travel-and engage first gear through the short-throw shifter. Dial up some revs, say 3000 or so. 3...2...1...

Done. Sold. See ya. The M400's order form might cause you to think that this is some new-era Coyote "kit'' car for '80s die-hards who just can't seem to forget Hardcastle & McCormick. But the ballistic acceleration, which easily lives up to the claimed 3.5-second 0-to-60-mph time, and fine fit-and-finish put an end to any concerns regarding the M400's origin.

Conceived in the U.K. by former racer and engineer Lee Noble, Hi-Tech Automotive assembles the car in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Hi-Tech ships rolling chassis to U.S. distributor 1g Racing in Hamilton, Ohio, at the rate of six per month. From there, you must source an engine and transmission; 1g Racing provides a list of drivetrain distributors.

Noble recommends this Ford V6-developed by AER and mapped by Roush Racing. It is the same engine that powers the Mazda 6 and various other Ford conveyances. But with higher-lift cams, twin turbos, intercooler, forged pistons and connecting rods, it's now good for 425 hp at 6500 rpm and 390 lb-ft at 5000. The shifter, connected to a six-speed Getrag gearbox, is the drivetrain's weak link. It is generally easy to use, though the action balks at times. Finding fifth and sixth gears is sometimes difficult and awkward at best.

An even more important number: 2337, as in pounds, the curb weight after engine installation in the stiff, steel space-frame chassis. The composite plastic body helps keep weight low, as does a conspicuous lack of sound-deadening material. Add it all up and the equation comes to 401 hp per ton, hence the M400 designation. But this is about much more than speed-of-light acceleration runs, though passengers might disagree: You've likely never seen so many wide-eyed, open-mouthed facial contortions, followed usually by a mixture of laughter, screams and expletives (these join a noxious mixture of fuel vapor and exhaust that invades the cockpit). Every so often, a car comes along that so mesmerizes body, mind and spirit that it taints your view of all machines driven previously.