400 whp is not hard to get out of an Evo, you're right, but with a Noble, you don't have to get that power out of it, because it already has it, you don't lose your warranty or any of the other drawbacks of modification.
Secondly, watching that video Clarkson says the ride is terrible (So clearly the ride from the factory standard Evo VIII is terrible going by your logic and it is) and it has absolutely nothing in the way of a turningcircle (Considering the number of tight turns I make a day, that makes the car effectively useless.
The engine for the Noble is not fabricated, the block is that of the Ford Mondeo ST220.
AWD is not impossible to lose control of, there are many who think that though, they're also the types who put thier WRX's, Evo's and GTRs around lamp-poles. Losing control is for n00bs to driving any way...