Hamptons GT Membership
‘If you’re a golfer you join a Golf Club – we don’t like golf’ It was such a succinct analogy, summing up the Hampton Downs GT membership so perfectly that it could have come from the racetrack owner Tony Quinn himself (without the Scottish brogue or the hint of expletives of course). As the membership […]
Mini Countryman Cooper S Review – In the Big Country.
Big Country were a popular Scottish band way back in the 80’s. Their Scottish folk inspired songs brought together strong Celtic rock guitar and drum sounds with bagpipes and fiddle inclination – believe me it sounds much better than what I have just described and tunes like ‘Harvest Home, Fields of Fire or Look Away’ […]
Isuzu showed me around their MUX improved SUV
In a refreshingly relaxed ‘launch’ yesterday, Isuzu NZ’s GM Murray Greenhalgh talked us through their new and improved MU-X (RF20) 7 seat SUV. The MU-X has been a popular part of the Isuzu range for around 3 years (constituting 10% of their sales). Its customer pool comes from existing Isuzu owners, serious 4WD people and […]
Discovering Wellington – Land Rover style
Our capital has a history that dates as far back as 950AD when Polynesian explorer Kupe first discovered it. However ‘colonisation’ began relatively recently (1840) when European settlers arrived on the ship ‘Aurora’ and started to lay down roots; opting for Petone initially, before (due to flooding) moving further south to Wellington’s current and recognised […]
Kia Soul review – a playful Soulmate
There are certain brandished around words that for some inexplicable reason I deem as ‘modern’, and to me ‘Soulmate’ is one of them. It’s an all encompassing term that seems to be widely overused and particularly rife in romantic situations. But apparently the term is not so modern after all. ‘Soul mate’ was first recorded […]
Watch this space – Marek Reichman Interview
Marek Reichman (Aston Martin’s Vice President and Chief Creative Officer): The twelve years Marek has been at Aston Martin have been one of the most prolific periods of new model introductions for the British marque. These have included the DB11, Aston Martin’s latest GT offering, the recently launched Vanquish S and Aston Martin’s track-only Aston […]
A $20 Lifesaver – Ride Forever
As you may or may not know, my learning to ride a motorcycle has been a long and often arduous mission. Being slightly elevated in years has made me cautious and considerate of my brittle bones. That being said, when I have taken the Yamaha out of the garage (sunny days only) I have learned […]
BMW 318 review – When alright is, actually Alright
BMW 318 review New Zealand It was around the turn of the millennium that the BMW 318i badge first rolled off the production line. It sported the good looks and some/most of the drivability of the series and quickly became viewed as the entry point to the BMW range (Series 1 & 2 were possibly […]
My disappointment with the Lexus IS 300h
A short while ago, I attended the launch of Lexus’s new IS range. Located at Bruce McLaren racetrack in Taupo, it was a great event that got me behind the wheel of the new improved IS cars as we conducted various exercises and whizzed around the track with 200t’s and F-Sports. However, I didn’t get […]
Felice 70th Anniversario Ferrari
It was on 12th March 1947 that Enzo Ferrari headed out of his modest factory and onto to the Via Abertone Inferiore in his 125 S. With a smile on his face as wide as the gates he had just driven through; he began testing the car’s V12 around the glorious mountainous roads of Maranello […]