G a l l a rd o I nv i d i a - G T M i rage 7 2 0 - 9 F F - 5 9 9 G TO - R 8 V 1 0 S pyd e r - 4 5 8 I t a l i a - D i a b l o 6 . 0

28 supercar driver magazine

O u r C e l eb ra t i o

www.supercardr iver.com

G a l l a rd o I nv i d i a - G T M i rage 7 2 0 - 9 F F - 5 9 9 G TO - R 8 V 1 0 S pyd e r - 4 5 8 I t a l i a - D i a b l o 6 . 0

celebration of motoring feature 29

words : Pau l Owen, Adam Thorby, Kevin Gib l in

photos : Adam Thorby

O u r C e l eb ra t i o n o f M o t o r i n g

www.supercardr iver.com

30 supercar driver magazine

I t’s a glor ious spr ing morning. As we arr ive on locat ion for our video-shoot , the cars for today’s feature are a l ready l ined up. The im-pressive dr iveway sets the scene and the arc

presented to us , featur ing eight of today’s most fabu-lous Supercars is s imply jaw dropping.

Club GT Events are doing a professional video promo in col laborat ion with Supercar Driver. So whils t we are a l l here , we thought i t would be most journal is t ic of us to max out on experience-points and enjoy some of these cars to the ful l !

Lamborghini gaLLardo invidia (PAul)

The Gal lardo needs no introduct ion. I t has been around s ince 2004 and s t i l l looks both modern and mental with performance that is expected of a raging I ta l ian Bull . This par t icular Gal lardo has i ts dial turned up to e leven, with Amari Design having breathed new l i fe into the performance and s tyl ing of this a l ready quick car. John Greatorex (Service Amari’s chief technician) has brought the car to the par ty today and gives me the low-down on some of the f iner points .

Known as the Invidia , the Gal lardo features a number of s tyl ing modif icat ions which look both balanced and wel l -proport ioned and give the car a more ag-gressive, purposeful s tance. Inside, the carbon-f ibre racing seats have been re- t r immed in Alcantara . I t ’s a neat s tyl ing package and the br ight orange/red paint-work sets the whole thing off beaut i ful ly.

For the mechanicals , the Lamborghini has received a power hike to 540bhp and a new custom exhaust means we can enjoy the tunefulness of that power in a l l i ts glory. Time for some dr iving.

Cl imbing in to the sports-seat in the small Gal lardo cabin, I am reminded that I ta l ians didn’t cater for those of us of a lof t ier disposi t ion. The seats don’t move very much, which leaves me sat with my head wedged against the roof , a long with a contor t ionis t posi t ion in the lumbar of my back, which has my in-ternals screaming at me to get out . Not bloody l ikely – this is a special Lambo, and I’m going to enjoy this specialness even i f i t k i l ls me. My spine informs me that I wil l be reminded of this def iance for the next two days. But for now, i t ’s on with the show. John f i res up the car and bl ips the throt t le . I t sounds good. Very good.

Out on the road, John gives me a demonstrat ion of the power. I t quickly s tar ts to feel l ike the throt t le is a t tached to my face because, with every press of the r ight foot , the noise gets louder and my smile gets bigger. I t ’s very fast , and under load i t i s very loud – and in this car that can only be a good thing. I t ’s an I ta l ian screamer. As the manual gearbox is worked through the h-gate , the noise is intense and sounds exact ly what you’d want in an extreme Supercar. I t feels very quick, with my torso welded in the seat as the accelerat ion f i res us through the gears a t a merry old rate , but a t the same t ime the power feels progres-s ive and smooth.

I t ’s a great thing, this Gal lardo. I l ike the look, the noise , the power, the badge. I t ’s fantast ic . The sus-pension on this par t icular car however is more hard-core and af ter a l ready being wedged into the seat is too uncomfortable for me on these roads. “The sus-pension is set up on this car with t rack days in mind. That’s why i t ’s so s t i ff” , John te l ls me. Comfort as ide, I real ly enjoyed my t ime in this car. I t ’s very rapid, sounds spectacular and looks superb.

Ferrari 458 (PAul)

At the next s top, I get the chance to passenger in the Ferrar i 458. A car in receipt of many accolades al ready and i t easy to see why. The 458 looks won-derful and (on launch at least) l ike nothing else out there . I t i s bl is ter ingly fast too and with the f lappy-paddle gearbox the power is easi ly accessible .

Firs t point to note – there is space in this new Ferrar i . I t ’s roomy and, compared with the Gal lardo, ra ther comfortable . I t ’s a lso a bi t mad in inter ior design, with the air-vents s t icking out in a l l d i rect ions and angles . The f i t -and-f inish of this car appears great too. I ment ion this to Rob, the owner, and he agrees . “They have got the bui ld qual i ty correct now. Inside, i t i s a lmost l ike a German car with the way i t feels put together” . He isn’t wrong. Ambling at the low speeds for a while whils t the camera men get that “perfect shot” , i t i s a re laxing car to be in . I t could even be a dai ly dr iver (perhaps) – a lbei t an expensive one. Ferrar i has thought about this too i t seems as this 458 came with a four year warranty and a mighty seven year service package. That’s no servicing to pay for seven years on a Ferrar i ! Very impressive.

Rob is a ser ia l car buyer, but the 458 has c lear ly s t ruck a chord. “I’ l l keep this for a year a t least I reckon”, he says. “I real ly l ike this car” . He has even put a Capris to exhaust on i t . Great news, because we l ike noise . So does Rob. Put t ing the boot down and the power is instantaneous and huge. The Capris to is the ic ing on the cake and sounds del ightful! I love this car!

The only downside? On ful l accelerat ion the car changes gear with absolute precis ion but as a pedes-t r ian you can’t get away from the obvious auto-gear change sound. But that’s a small pr ice to pay for what is otherwise absolute perfect ion.

Porsche 9FF (PAul)

I ’m a Porsche fanboy. I t was never the poster on my wall as a teenager ( that was the Ferrar i F40) , but af ter being introduced to the brand or iginal ly via the Boxster, I ’ve been hugely impressed with the way that Porsches can offer ser ious power and prest ige, yet are useable as every day cars . Over the years I ’ve grown rather a t tached to the brand so this , the f i rs t 9ff I have seen, generates a natural cur iosi ty.

Based on the 997 Turbo S (Mk 2) , the or iginal car develops 530bhp. The 9ff modif icat ions move the power up to whopping 650bhp for this PDK edi t ion. A manual 9ff car would hi t a mind-boggl ing 700bhp!

celebration of motoring feature 31

Super ca r Rear s !

Diabl o s t i l l ha s tha t d i f in i t i v e supe r ca r

shape

An awesome s i gh t on th e r oads !

32 supercar driver magazine

celebration of motoring feature 33

34 supercar driver magazine

Inside, the car is business as usual for the 997 Porsche. No extreme modif icat ions in here , a l l i s kept pret ty s tan-dard. Most of the work for 9ff is done under the bonnet – barr ing the bonkers paintwork, but that was owner Ade’s choice! The 9ff modif icat ion l is t is pret ty extensive and included bigger turbos, upgraded intercoolers , ECUs and suspension.

This car is the f i rs t Gen2 Turbo that 9ff completed and Ade is very happy with i t . Today Ade is dr iving the Ford, so I’m out in the car with his brother, Steve. “I t ’s a mad car” he says “I a lways laugh in disbel ief whenever I dr ive i t . The power del ivery is insane”. I ask for a demonstrat ion and the loud pedal is pressed. The turbo’s spool up, the car hunkers down and off we go l ike a rocket . All of the cars here are , obviously, very fast but nothing can match the 9ff for i ts out and out speed. The custom exhaust extracts every las t decibel f rom the f la t -6 Porsche engine and the s t r iking paintwork helps to keep the car as not iceable as i ts peers out on the roads today.

What I par t icular ly l ike about the 9ff is the accessibi l i ty of i ts power. There is no drama, no manual gate or high-concentrat ion required. You can amble through town as an every-day car, but when you want to real ly move – ei ther in the twist ies (Turbo’s are 4WD) or on the t rack, with a hard r ight foot you can turn this into one of the fastest cars in the world. Exhi larat ing!

Ford gT mirage 720 (ADAM)

One of only three cars in exis tence this is one very rare Ford, i t even makes a s tandard Ford GT feel a l i t t le tame. The lary pear lescent orange paint job with black detai l ing, 740 RWHP (200bhp over a s tandard GT), no t ract ion control and lef t hand dr ive, i t i s a combinat ion

which s tands this car apar t f rom al l the others present today. The rest are your typical modern day supercars , boast ing a whole host of complex electronics keeping them on the road, compare them to the Mirage, and you are more focused on keeping the car in a s t ra ight l ine, ra ther than defying physics . The Mirage is one of the very few cars today that you have to dr ive with upmost respect , as i t could ki l l you at a throw of a hat .

The dr iving experience on the whole is far removed from any Supercar I have experienced before . I t i s a very relaxed dr ive, i t ’s not l ike modern day supercars where al l you have to do is plant the throt t le and hold on for the r ide, t ry that in the Mirage and you wil l be in the nearest f ie ld . Now this on i ts own is enough to give you huge admirat ion for the car, but a lso you don’t feel the urge to dr ive i t a t 10/10ths a l l the t ime as the power isn’t as accessible as the modern ki t . I t i s ent i re ly content cruis-ing at a s teady speed, a mighty rubble f rom that fabulous supercharged 5.4 l i t re V8 lump that is s i t t ing behind your head, turnaround and can even see the supercharger pul ley through the glass . Yes, when you open her up the car comes al ive and sucks up the tarmac ahead l ike a s team train and I have no doubt i t could reach the 220 mph top speed, but ul t imately i t depends on how much you dare to squeeze the throt t le . . . This in i tself makes the dr ive far more enter ta ining and involving than most of the other cars here today.

As we know, modern day supercars sound fantast ic , but i t i s a known fact that i t i s the car behind you that gets the maximum enjoyment of the noise . Not the Mirage, that mighty V8 echoes al l around the cabin. At one point the dr iver knocked i t in to neutral squeezed the throt t le as we were snaking through a s leepy vi l lage in the Peak Distr ic t , nothing can prepare you for that unsi lenced V8 noise , i t was l ike someone had woken Thor!

celebration of motoring feature 35

I t is a lso a fabulous place to be. Open those iconic doors and you can l i teral ly walk s t ra ight into the passenger seat . Once seated, you are careful not to skim the top off your scalp off when closing them. Once inside, the inte-r ior is pret ty much unchanged over the s tandard car. I t i s very comfortable and the r ide is surpr is ingly smooth, and there is plenty of space inside the cabin. The road presence is s imilar to that of a Veyron, i t a t t racts enor-mous at tent ion and posi t ive react ions, and encourages lots of smiles and waves. What was amusing was look on a few people’s faces when they not iced the FORD badge on the bonnet!!

In summary i t i s a very chal-lenging yet rewarding car to dr ive, and af ter spending a day with i t I can cer ta inly see the at t ract ion. The Mirage is one of only a few old school supercars around today, i t i s raw and un-predictable , l ike that of an F40. Swallow a brave pi l l before you turn the key and pick your ful l throt t le moments care-ful ly. . . . A bold s ta tement I know, but in my opinion this is the only t rue Supercar here today and for this reason I think i t c l inches f i rs t place, for me anyway!

aUdi r8 v10 sPyder (Kevin)

Standing in the dr iveway whils t we take some pictures and get ready to head out , i t i s easy to overlook the Audi as i t nest les between Maranel lo’s f inest , a 458 and a 599 GTO. In fact , anything would s t ruggle to makes i ts presence fel t in this company. I t a lso doesn’t help that we are joined by one of only three Ford GT Avro Mirages rumoured to have over 740bhp under the hood, a s tunning one-off Gal lardo, one of the great a l l - t ime su-percar heroes , the Diablo 6.0l VT as wel l as the s l ight ly deranged 650bhp 9ff Turbo S.

However, I know what a t reat I am in for being at the helm of the R8 V10 Spyder. I was lucky enough to spend a week dr iving one through The Dolomites las t summer and as the sun is high in the sky, I know that with the roof down, today is going to be a good day.

The Audi R8 has a lways been a misnomer. Could Audi real ly make a supercar to take the f ight to the estab-l ished big boys of modern supercar product ion, Ferrar i , Lamborghini and Porsche? All RSs to date have been great cars a l though the s teer ing has a lways come in for cr i t ic ism. Not so the R8. I t b lew away the doubters and even had Top Gear ’s longest res ident saying in V10 Coupe form, i t was the best car produced in the world, per iod.

For my reckoning there is a lmost no bet ter seat to be in today. The sun is shining, I have over 500 bhp under my r ight foot , a glor ious V10 behind my ears to bounce

of the wal ls that seem to surround most of the roads in this beaut i ful par t of the country and oh, ra ther a few loud companions to make the experience even more enjoyable .

I t doesn’t take long to recal l just how rapid this V10 real ly is . A f lex of the r ight ankle and the rear

is squirming under the power as I give chase to Rob in his 458. I t real ly is supercar quick and the Quat t ro system is a t ruly welcome partner. I t a l lows the car to deploy al l of i ts power effect ively (something which a few of the other cars s t ruggle to do today) and i t le ts you shake the rear loose when pushed, with a safety net there to re ign you in should i t be required.

As we dr ive through the vi l lages , everyone s tops and s tares a t the convoy they are presented with - most of them smil ing - and the Audi seems to be equal ly appreci-ated as much as the other cars in this group. But i t i s when we come out of the vi l lages and the hammers go down, that the Audi ups i ts game even more. The sound of this car above 6000 rpm is glor ious and my passenger, who had not experienced one before , could not bel ieve how quick i t real ly is .

I ’d l ike to say a huge thanks to Steve for br inging his car a long and le t t ing me spend the day at the helm. Agreed, he had 650bhp to contend with and that looked l ike a lot of fun, but I was happy as could be pi lot ing his dai ly dr iver around The Peaks with a ra ther sat isf ied smile on my face.

Decap i ta t i on doo r s, r i gh t th e r e .

“As we dr ive through the v i l lages, everyone

s tops and s tares”