Opinion

What’s the worst car you’ve ever owned? Maybe it was your first car; something bought for next to no money and maintained with crossed fingers and fresh air. Maybe it’s the car you have now, but that’s a fairly depressing thing to think about so try not to dwell on it for too long. Mine was a 1992 Audi Coupé 2.0E, bought in Leeds, in the rain, and in the dark.

Cover up the Chevrolet bow-tie logo and anyone beyond the membership of the Society of Korean Saloon Apologists would struggle to name the manufacturer. It smacks of a car designed by committee to appeal to a global audience. As inoffensive as a local radio station playlist, although arguably more tuneful if you opt for the Porsche-engineered, transversely mounted, straight-six engine.

The PDK double-clutch automatic gearbox is so good, the decision between manual or automatic can be quite a dilemma for 911s from 997.2 onwards. But where does that leave models that have the previous incarnation of automatic technology, the Tiptronic models? Are they tougher to sell, and take up valuable forecourt space? “In short, no,” says Philip Raby, of Philip Raby Specialist Cars. “We had two in lately, both 996; a Cab and a Coupe. Both sold within 24 hours,” he says.

From early days in school, I have been fascinated by the Abarth marque. Abarth was the first entry in my Observer’s Book of Automobiles and I was drawn to it almost hypnotically. The mother of my best friend at school had a Fiat-Abarth 595, and I remember thinking what a special little car that was. Whenever possible, I would persuade my father to stop for petrol at Anthony Crook’s Hersham Garage, which had the concession for Abarth, Bristol and Zagato-bodied cars in the late 1950s and ’60s.

There’s no denying that it has never been so expensive to fill up. The mainstream media do not appear to be interviewing taxi drivers and hauliers, who must be spending a colossal amount of extra money on fuel. My average fill-up costs me an extra £20-£30 in some cases, especially with the introduction of E10 in standard unleaded petrol, so I’ve had to switch to the more expensive E5-rated super unleaded. The price at the pump as I write for standard unleaded petrol is 147.28p and diesel 150.

My sister is a responsible adult, who looks after her stuff regardless of the cost. When she buys a car, she keeps it clean, has it serviced regularly and gets things fixed as soon as they break. I, on the other hand, have spent a lifetime not doing any of these things; a fact which adds a thick layer of insult to the injuries I inflicted on the Mini I bought from her back in the early 1990s.

The Mk1 Nissan Leaf was the first mass-market electric vehicle to be sold in the UK, designed to bring zero emissions motoring to a wider audience. Today, the first examples are more than a decade old, and often appear as the most affordable electric models in used car searches. So should you rush out and buy one, or would that be as sensible as throwing money onto a bonfire? Is buying a 2010 Nissan Leaf a good idea?

Living with supercars such as the McLaren F1 need not be as expensive as people make it out to be. I’m constantly amazed at the huge bills a lot of people seem to rack up, some justified, some not. I recently watched a video on YouTube of a man who had bought an F1 a while back. He seemed like a nice enough fellow, but his problem, at least in my opinion, stemmed more from his lack ofknowledge than from the car itself.

The last front-engined Porsche until the Cayenne and the brand’s last four-cylinder until the current Boxster, the 968 was the last gasp of a line which had begun with the 924. Words: Richard Gooding. Photography Matt Woods. THE FINAL FLING Facts, figures and history on the ultimate evolution of the Porsche 924. The 944 enjoyed success as blistering as its sills. After the release of the S2 in 1989, factory bosses made plans to develop the model even further.

As I write, it is the weekend after the unveiling of new James Bond film No Time To Die, and less than 24 hours ago I was sitting in my local Showcase De Luxe cinema enjoying what, for my money, is Daniel Craig’s best outing as the famous MI6 agent. I’m not going to issue any major spoilers in this column, so don’t be scared of reading on if you haven’t watched it yet. But its attitude toward Bond cars has somewhat bewildered me.

Our recently acquired AMG is being brought up to scratch This generation of C63 has long been my dream car, and as you may have read in our ‘Living the Dream’ feature two issues ago, after recently spotting a well-optioned 2010 estate for sale I finally took the plunge. A 480bhp rear-wheel-drive AMG will struggle to disappoint even the most seasoned drivers, but, with this technically being my very first car, it’s safe to say that I’m rather pleased with my purchase.

Over the past 18 months, I haven’t been able to go out that much, I haven’t had the three foreign holidays that my wife and I treat ourselves to, and even Christmas was a muted affair due to the restrictions on movement. So as a result, my bank account is looking considerably healthier than it would normally do. After some discussion with my wife, we’ve decided to change both of our cars, which is something we usually only do once every five or six years.

Do you remember your first car ride? Of course not, you were an infant who couldn’t even support your own head. But I bet your parents have told you about it” The glint of the cherry red Camaro caught my eye, luring me in for a closer look. It was a minter, my untrained eye guessing a ’68 model, its paint, chrome splashes and gleaming glass clearly the work of an owner that cared. A lot. But it wasn’t until I leaned in to peer through the glass that I spotted the best part.

Evans debates the merits of keeping your classic in factory condition or adding upgrades to make it more suitable for today’s roads In the world of classic cars and, I’ll wager, particularly on this side of the pond, the age old argument of factory stock versus modified continues. Most of us, no doubt, are drawn to classic cars and trucks due to the way they look, both their exterior styling and interior features.

Calculating the hours spent – no, not wasted – clicking and flicking through the classifieds is a number no one needs to know anything about other than it was all time very well spent. Dreaming, fantasising, scheming and then borrowing someone’s fag packet to work the man maths out on is a pastime far more productive than, say, watching Extreme E wreak havoc across some of the most fragile landscapes on Earth in order to raise awareness of just how fragile these landscapes are.