Travel | Motorsport | Driving | Collectables
“A gleaming read Barchetta from a better, vanished time…” If you were a long haired collage student with RUSH proudly displayed on your bag in the Eighties, you will recognise those words. Back then, as I studied engineering drawing behind a huge A0 drafting board, the words of the Canadian group’s song sounded like a
If you are one of those drivers who doesn’t really ‘get’ the whole Porsche thing, then you must watch these three videos. People who are addicted to the Porsche 911 feel will know exactly what Richard Meaden is talking about. For those who are unconverted, we’ve written elsewhere about how it takes time to get
Air cooled Porsches, black and white analogue photography and a Leica rangefinder. What’s not to like? Bart Kuykens’ project A Flat Six Love Affair is quite probably heaven on so many levels. Watching him in the film opening another roll of Kodak 35mm brings back many happy memories for me. Memories of a time when
The RM Sothebys Ferrari 70th Auction at the home of Ferrari in Modena promises to be a spectacular and glamorous event. Yet in amongst the auction listings of immaculate supercars and collectable memorabilia is a car we never knew existed and for me, is probably the most intriguing of the immensely varied lots for sale.
If you are a racing driver or track enthusiast, you learn an important lesson very early on. Never, ever travel to a track without dropping your kit bag into the boot. Even if you’re not scheduled to drive. That’s the happy lesson that 15 year old Scott McKenna chose to remember when accompanying his father
If you’re heading south into France from the UK this summer and your journey involves Le Mans, Paris, Bordeaux or any part of the southern reaches of France, then we have to share with you our preferred method of crossing that water between the UK and France. And best of all, it doesn’t involve the
I can still vividly remember seeing the original Corolla GT Coupe in British Touring Car Racing. 30 years ago, I was standing at Donington Park, the exit of the hairpin onto the start / finish straight. Each lap, the Corolla exited the hairpin with a touch of oversteer, the high revving 4A engine screaming. Just
This is the movie we would love to have made. Even today, in Sweden, the name Ronnie Petersen is an icon on level with Ingemar Stenmark and Björn Borg. We have great affection for the inspirational racing style of Superswede and have made the pilgrimage to Orebro ourselves to visit the memorial Ronnie. Superswede is
I have to admit, when I visited Los Angeles a while ago, I was rather puzzled. I’d often read of the California air cooled Porsche scene, but driving around the streets of downtown LA, I couldn’t figure out where on earth these owners would go to drive their cars. Even if you escaped the traffic
Sorting through my hard drives this month, I came across these grabbed shots of Malcolm Wilson at Goodwood in 2005. This was the first year they ran the rally stage there and they brought back happy memories I just had to share with you. Attending the press day for a couple of different magazines, I’m
As a life long non-smoker, it comes as a surprise to some that I love JPS Black and Gold. I’ve written before about how, as someone exposed to cigarette advertising from a young age, I should be burning my way through 80 a day, but I’ve never touched a single one. However, I’m really pleased
While we will always love the bark of a Cosworth DFV on startup and the sound of Schumacher’s V12 Ferrari around Monza will be forever in our hearts, there’s no denying we do have affection for electrically powered cars. This may sound utterly at odds with our ethos, but our view is that in today’s
For many, the definitive 1960’s sports racing car was the Lotus 23 and 23B. The elegant lines represented everything that was desirable at the time of booming clubman and sports car racing on road circuits and with more than 100 built, it was a popular seller for Colin Chapman. However, there is a less well
The desire for iconic historic race car ownership has never been stronger. With the ‘continuation’ and ‘recreation’ industry booming, the most desirable, car manufacturer produced models are now commanding six figure prices. While these machines are true works of art and carry the cache of manufacturer endorsement, they are out of the reach of the
Imagine you’re a fly on the wall at the 1988 British Motor Show. On Jaguar’s stand, basking under the flashbulbs of the world’s press is a very low, very long and very wide concept supercar. Jaguar calls it the XJ220, the number relating to its projected top speed. It is to be powered by a
Ever since I was a kid, I’ve had a love for the Avro Lancaster that flies with the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. This love is probably entirely my grandfather’s fault. He was an airframe mechanic in World War Two and in addition to spending several years in North Africa fixing aircraft, he was also
We’ve written before about scarcely believable ‘delivery mileage’ Porsches that have simply been carefully stored by their owners and never driven, sometimes for decades. This Porsche 997 Sport Classic for sale at Hexagan Classics is another such car to reach the markeplace. It’s a noble and far sighted thing to spend significant sums on a
In Porsche collecting circles, right now even a few months seems like an eternity. I originally wrote this article in 2011. In March 2016, I updated it to reflect the changes in attitudes towards the 886 Turbo. Buyers had realised that the engine was indeed pretty bulletproof and the cars were rising. I wrote with
Anyone who has visited the Le Mans Museum right alongside the circuit entrance will be left with a burning desire to go and investigate the Mulsanne Straight. The desire to own a grey Porsche 911, stop half way down and light up a Gitance while resting your backside on the ARMCO is a feeling that
Anyone with even a passing interest in the history of motorsport will be aware of the huge improvements in safety over the last three decades. A sport where deaths each weekend were considered an acceptable risk has developed into one of the safest action sports in comparison with others. Fire is probably the greatest fear
“They just don’t make them like that any more’ “In my day, they were proper cars. Racing cars today are way too easy” Comments you’ll often hear in the paddock or grandstands of any race meeting. Sir Stirling Moss himself is famously quoted as saying that the main reasons why he got into motorsport was
In this digital age of always on internet, Wikipeidia, Porsche owners forums and chat groups, you could be forgiven for thinking that there was little point in buying a book about the Carrera 2.7. After all, any statistics, or information you may need can be found by swiping your iPad around Google for a while.
On 1st July this year, it will be 100 years since the commencement of what became known as the Battle of The Somme. Today, as we enjoy travelling around Europe, we often pass by the roadside memorials to that period of conflict in our history. In any French or Belgian village, there will be a
Looking back, it’s quite remarkable how simply carrying a camera can change the course of things. As I left for Donington Park that day, I wasn’t actually going as a photographer. I was there as a guest of Andy McKenna and Andy Middlehurst. The camera was picked up from force of habit. Canon EOS cameras
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