Ford V8 Capri a drive with Car Chase Heroes

My last drive of the day would see me drive this. A Mk I Ford Capri. Although, not all is as is seems.

Under the hood is a 4.6 litre rover V8 with an Edelbrock Carburettor. As you can also see from the interior, the changes keep on coming, there is a panel of switches that relate to starting the car and a roll cage has been fitted. This car is also fitted with a custom stainless steel exhaust system to give the engine a beautiful noise. 

In order to start this car you have to turn on the kills switch, switch the ignition on, turn on the fuel pump and press the start button. The V8 then growls into life. Put the car into first and you are away. Given the wet track, rear wheel drive with lot's of power, this could be an interesting drive.    

Given this is a Ford Capri, I was hoping to drive through some empty boxes like they used to do in the 70's TV Police series but sadly this did not happen. 

This car is rapid to accelerate with plenty of low end torque and the suspension is stiff. The ride is comfortable and the gearbox is easy to operate. 

In the corners there were moments when the back end would twitch, a quick correction with the steering is all that was needed but you need to keep your wits about you in the wet. 

Back o the power and up through the gearbox on the straights.

All too soon my time in this car was up and it was time to return to the paddock. This is another car I would love to drive in the dry at a proper track as it was great fun to drive. It would be easy to imagine this car taking on all types in historic motorsport.  

Below are two video links, the video did not merge properly so you get to see the drive from two different perspectives.

https://youtu.be/xkkFAuQkDOg Outside

https://youtu.be/7LRaeWru1-g Inside

I would recommend this car to anyone who enjoys driving, it will leave you smiling as it's a drivers car.

For further information on Car Chase Heroes and their fleet, please visit   

https://www.carchaseheroes.com/index

 

Toyota Supra Drive with Car Chase Heroes.

This is a replica of the Mk IV Toyota Supra seen in The Fast and The Furious driven by the late Paul Walker and this would be the next car I strapped into.

This car comes equipped with a 3 litre straight six 2JZ twin turbo engine that produced 326 BHP, a 0-60 in 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 155mph. The Supra comes with a 6 speed Getrag Manual Gearbox. This car does not have Nitrous Oxide. Good job really as the track was wet.

It does however come with a huge rear wing for to help keep the car on the track.

Outside looks great but for me the interior is amazing.

Very clean and crisp and looks great. 

Getting into this car is very easy. The seat is comfortable as

and after some seat adjustment the driving position is perfect. Whoever drove before me had the seat quite a way back, I prefer to be upright when I drive.

Turn the key and the engine comes to life nicely.  

Making my way around the track it becomes apparent quickly how good this car is, it's quick, the gearbox is easy to use, the clutch is light and it handles very well in the corners in the wet. The car feels like it's on rails.

When it was time to head back to the paddock I had enjoyed my time in this car and it surprised me how good in the wet it was. I was overtaken by a few cars during my time in this but it's a great car to drive. I would love to give this car a drive in dry conditions around Castle Combe to give it a proper go. It's easy to see why this would have been a choice car for Brian in the Fast and The Furious.

https://youtu.be/GCVAwjif2S4

For further information about Car Chase Heroes, please visit 

https://www.carchaseheroes.com/

 

Mercedes AMG GT Drive with Car Chase Heroes

Time to add another GT heavyweight to the list of cars to drive. This time was the turn of the Mercedes AMG GT. Any of you that follow any of the GT motorsport championships will know that these cars are always at the sharp end of the field and winning races. This car is distinctive and looks fantastic. It comes armed with a 4.0 litre twin turbo V8 engine that produces 523 horsepower and a top speed of 202mph. The gearbox is a  7 speed dual-clutch automatic. All of this power on a wet track could prove to be interesting.  

Since arriving at the track I had seen this car being taken out by an instructor for a few laps and then taking to a maintenance area for inspection, this happened a few times. I was then called to jump in the Mercedes.

Getting in the Mercedes was snug and the seat felt comfortable. The display was clear and easy to understand. I asked the instructor what was going on with it and he explained that last time out the Merc blew a piston through the rest of the engine and had been withdrawn from that event. It had a new engine fitted and this was the first time out with a new engine.

The instructor said, this engine is 30 laps old, lets enjoy it.

With my foot on the break, I press the start button and the engine growls into life. I pull the right up lever into first, foot off the break and make my way onto the track.

I slowly increase my way up the gearbox as the track is very wet.

Making my way around the track you can understand why these cars have racked up a stack of victories in the GT3 and GT4 classes. This car has huge acceleration and the engine sounds fabulous. Along with this, the gearbox feels seamless changing up and down when you want to and the handling on a wet track was great. I was nervous to begin with but after a a few corners I knew there was nothing to worry about.

Going offline to overtake other vehicles was effortless and with the power on the straights made it easy.

All too soon it was time to head back t the paddock and hand the car back, This is one I would love to take around a dry track to see what it can really do.

For further information about Car Chase Heroes including their fleet of cars and locations you can drive them, please visit

https://www.carchaseheroes.com/

 

Lotus Evora Drive with Car Chase Heroes

Lotus is another brand of car I have not driven before so I booked a drive to change that.

This is the Lotus Evora and as you can see it's very compact and for whatever reason I think it's a very bland looking car.

This Lotus comes equipped with a 3.5 litre V6 engine from Toyota that produces 276 bhp giving a 0-60 in 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 160mph.

Getting in the car was not the easiest thing to do as I'm not a small person but once in it's very snug. The dash layout is easy to understand and read but I notice the gearstick has a logo on where most others tell you where the gears are. The pedals are close together and are small, I have size 13 feet. This could be fun.

This is a simple make sure the gearbox is in neutral and turn the key to start and the V6 barks into life.

I make my way of of the pit lane and onto the track and the first thing I notice is how quite inside the cabin is, the instructor is easy to hear. The car is not the quickest to accelerate and the steering is razor sharp. The engine makes a quiet noise at high revs but would sound better from the outside. The clutch and the gearstick however require maximum effort and it does not take long to feel like you are having a workout going up and down the gears and the gearbox itself felt clunky. The fun in this car is to be had through the corners, even in the wet it felt like it was on rails.

Overall it's nice to have driven the Evora but I'm not it's biggest fan. I can't fault the handling of this car, it is fantastic. I don't like how it looks on the outside and I found the whole gearbox and clutch system far too heavy and clunky. It made a change to have a quiet sports car but a big part of the draw for me is the noise of the engine. This car was built to compete with the Porsche 911, having driven an older 911 I can safely say I would much rather drive that rather than this Lotus. The 911 was more fun to drive.

I have driven cars that I would like to go in again one example of this is the 2021 Aston Martin Vantage, this one however will not make that list. 

Please feel free to comment with your thoughts on this.

For further information, please visit

https://www.carchaseheroes.com/

 

Corvette C7 Drive with Car Chase Heroes

Having never driven a Corvette, I felt it was time to address this as I've been lucky enough to drive some of Americas finest cars.

The C7 is the 7th generation of sports car produced by Chevrolet, as you can see from the photo's it is rather sleek and it looks like they have taken some styling lessons from Italy.

The C7 comes with a 6.2 litre V8 that sends 455bhp to the rear wheels via the 8L90 8 speed paddle shift gearbox. This gives a 0-60 of 4.2 seconds and a top speed of 175mph.

It also has an active fuel management system that deactivates 4 cylinders when cruising.

Getting in is easy and the seat is comfortable, the interior in this car is grey plastic although the dash is nicely lit and easy to read. To start the engine, put your foot on the clutch and press the start engine button and the V8 barks into life. Pull the gearstick back to D and accelerate and you are underway. 

 

Track footage and photo's, the footage is in glorious silence so feel free to make up your own commentary. 

https://youtu.be/8yLFHoRIE4Q

Driving this car is great fun but in the rain has the feel that if you put too much power on the car would spin. Having said that the car did feel good in the corners and handled well when I did have to go off the racing line a couple of times to overtake other cars. The engine sounds great and the acceleration feels quick when you put your foot down, the brakes also feel sharp when they are needed.

The view over the bonnet has good visibility so you know where to position the car with ease.

So all on all, my first introduction to driving a Corvette was a good one and left me smiling due to the car's performance. One day I will try a C8 hopefully in the dry.

For further information about this and the other cars and locations that Car Chase Heroes operate, please visit:

https://www.carchaseheroes.com/

 

1966 Batmobile Replica Drive with Car Chase Heroes

It's that time of year again where I have my annual track day with Car Chase Heroes.

All was ready and booked but as you will see, the weather did not get the memo and it was to be a hugely wet day. The last time I was at Abingdon Airfield, I drove the Dodge Hellcat on the wet so at least my luck and the weather has been consistent.

After arrival and booking in it was straight into the sighting laps, these are usually conducted in a BMW or an SUV, but today as I'd booked in at the start of the day, some of the fleet cars were used for sighting laps, so I jumped straight into the passenger seat of the Ferrari 458, once these were done, it was into something much different.......

This, a replica of the George Barris built 1966 Batmobile.

I first laid eyes on this watching reruns of the Batman T.V. series starring Adam West and Burt Ward during the 1980's. 

While a lot of people enjoyed the fight scenes and the Bat Fight Words such as BAM, SPLATT and POW, the star of the show for me was the Dynamic Duo's car.

 Like one of the T.V. cars this is steel bodied weighing nearly 3 tonnes with a 6.2 litre (368 CU) V8 that produces 250bhp, linked with an automatic gearbox. The basis of this car originally was the 1955 Lincoln Futura Concept car that Barris bought from Ford for $1. 

As I was in the waiting area, an instructor in a hat approached and called out "Bruce Wayne" I nodded and called back "Dick Grayson". I smiled and followed him to the Batmobile.

I took a few photos while he sorted out a couple of things and then got in.

I love the interior of this car, there are some nice details but most of you will notice it's not identical to the series car but it's fun. The Batphone gets used a lot.

Once ready, it was time to head out onto the track.

This car is keyless and the engine was already running when I got in.

There is a button you press on the front of the gearstick and pull back into drive and ease on the accelerator and you are away.

Track Photos

Driving this around the track you soon learn a few things about this car. Because the car is open cockpit, the rain get you from above, due to the shape of the windscreen, the rain flies off it and onto from every angle. 

Before we left the Pit Lane, the instructor said that "the steering rack in this car is held together with chewing gum". Once underway, it's easy to understand his opinion. There is also a fair amount of body roll on the corners.

Because of the weight of the steel body and underpowered engine, it goes nowhere very quickly. If Batman were indeed to chase the Joker in this, the Joker and his gang would leave Batman in their shadows.

Holy Aston Martins Batman, James Bond is catching us.

Get lost Bond, this is our crime to solve.

Driving this car around the track is very sedate but the good part is it's like being in a moving motor show where everyone else is quicker, overtakes you and waves as they go by. 

The engine makes a great noise when you put your foot down and it's very comfortable to drive.

This car though is one that leaves you smiling for the simple reason you are driving a Batmobile, how many times in your life will you get to do this unless you are Batman? It's also makes the people around you smile for the same reasons. It brings back memories of youth, a T.V, series and it's a great looking car.

For further information about Car Chase Heroes, please visit

https://www.carchaseheroes.com/