There are some great cars out there now and with the inclusion of brushless motors and LiPo batteries, racing is probably more affordable than ever. You only really need 1 motor (around 8.5 turn to be competitive) a speedo and 1 LiPo battery (ensuring that you use a proper LiPo ready chager). I myself have only recently got back into the sport after a few years out, I couldn't believe how much it has changed over such a short time! Things really have moved on for the better though. Cars are faster, electrics more reliable and you get much more run time using LiPo batteries!
I suppose it comes down to what class you would prefer to race, and as people have mentioned, good spares availability and cost of the car etc... The most common electric class pretty much in most regions is 2wd off road, with lots of different cars available, it may be best to check at your local club to see what people are using (people are usually more than happy to help with spares back up if you need it during a meeting). As well as Hinckley, Coventry is a good club with a number of tracks and race all year round outdoors. Their website is
www.cmcc-online.co.uk
If 2wd seems to take your fancy, I have an RC10B4 for sale as I have recently moved over to Schumacher. The B4 is a great car, spares are available almost anywhere and it is still an extremely competetive car, with many new mid motor conversions available for it. I have my car listed here:
http://www.oople.com/forums/showthread.php?t=101054 It's up for £140 but will do it a little cheaper for cash, I am only based in Coventry as well so not to far away for collection etc. The car is in great working order and comes with a shed load of spares that will keep you going for a long long time!
oOple is a great source of knowledge and has helped me alot as I've recently got back into racing, any questions just post them in the relevant sections and people are more than willing to help where they can! Any questions, feel free to PM me on here as well and I'll help where I can!
Alex