Andy Jaye tells us how he got to drive the race-ready Porsche GT4 ahead of his talkRADIO show
Andy Jaye gives us a sneak preview of what will be on his upcoming talkRADIO Motor Show - and it is worth it
MY mate and fellow car journalist ANDY JAYE has been busy the last few weeks with an interesting experiment – and I persuaded him to give us a sneak preview ahead of his Talk Radio Motor Show.
He says . . .
A multi-championship racing driver once told me that anyone who had driven in the fast lane of a motorway was capable of being a racing driver.
This got me thinking. Like many, when I was younger I wanted to be a professional footballer.
But, despite my enthusiasm, I lacked the key ingredient the top players have in abundance — natural talent.
It’s the one thing you can’t teach. But was it different with racing?
Typically, elite-level sports all involve a natural skill possessed by the few. But is racing really something you can learn?
As a man in my late thirties, with a family to provide for, and with a speeding ban in my reasonably recent history, I’m very much your typical bloke.
I’ve enjoyed motorsports for as long as I can remember and have presented it for almost a decade now for ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5. However, I have never held any desire to race.
As part of my radio show, I’m lucky enough to test-drive some of the most expensive and exotic cars on the planet.
I enjoy driving. I love cars. I’m a petrolhead, a fan of electrification — yes, it is possible to be both. I’m also a racing nut — as a spectator. But race myself? Nope. Never been something I wanted to do.
However, we like to try new things for my radio show, and I thought it was worth finding out if someone well past his prime for any other sport could have a shot at doing the business on the race track.
So I called Porsche. Linking up with the team at the Porsche Experience Centre at Silverstone Race Track, I was put through my paces by the chief driving consultant Gordon Robertson and his team of coaches.
My fitness and reactions were tested, my starting driving skill level was assessed and a programme was created to give me the best chance of setting a competitive time in a fully tuned race car.
I spent several hours under the watchful eyes of coaches Barry Horne and Ben McLoughlin — both brilliant racers themselves — and was able to try out the full complement of stunning Porsches, from Panameras to Caymans to 911s.
It was a fascinating experience and one I loved. But was I any good?
On my radio show you can hear about my journey and the tests I underwent with the Porsche team.
And, of course, find out how I fared on judgment day when they let me loose on the full Silverstone grand-prix circuit in one of the most exciting cars ever built — the race-ready Porsche GT4.
Bonneville delivers the goods
IT is the sort of bike that will have traditionalists, custom enthusiasts and the new wave of café racer Instagram luvvies bristling with rage.
Reader's car of the week
CHECK out this tidy 15-year-old Merc, sent in by Tony Foad from Grimsby, Lincs.
Tony says: “This is my CLK240 with only 90,000 on the clock.
“It still runs beautifully and has that famous Mercedes six-cylinder sound.”
If you want to see your pride and joy here send me a pic and brief description to features@the-sun.co.uk
Qash is on the money
IT’S said you are never more than 10ft away from a rat when in London.
Well, I reckon you are never more than 10ft away from a Nissan Qashqai when using Britain’s roads.
With 2.3million sold since its launch in 2007, the car is one that only the likes of the Ford Fiesta can look down on in terms of sales. Yet it starts at £20K – much pricier than a supermini.
Sometimes the stats really do tell the story: It’s a market powerhouse because it’s damn good.
Over a decade, it’s had a few updates and tweaks but Nissan’s thought process has always been: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” And the Qashqai doesn’t just sell in volume – it keeps customers coming back and boasts legions of loyal fans.
If you are one of them, you won’t feel let down by this latest version. Unless you hate the sound of your passengers’ voices, that is.
The product experts explained that “speech intelligibility during in-car conversation has been improved by five per cent.” Ride refinement has been taken to whisper-quiet levels by clever new contouring, which has reduced the drag coefficient to the lowest in its class.
Added to that, the spring rate has been reduced by eight per cent, making our pothole-scarred roads less of a frightening assault course.
To negate any loss in handling sharpness, a stiffer anti-roll bar has been fitted on the front wheels.
The area which has probably improved the most, though, is its looks.
When launched, the Qashqai more or less stood alone as the only decent prospect in the C-SUV segment.
But today, competition is fierce.
To keep ahead of the pack, this version looks more aggressive and “premium”, with cheap and ugly plastic replaced by body-coloured panels, and a new V-shaped grille, also on the latest X-Trail.
The new LEDs follow the contours of the bonnet, with integrated indicators, delivering a sportier image.
There are many reasons to buy the Qashqai and few reasons not to. Best of all, it’s built in Sunderland, making it the current best-selling British-built motor.
Of the 2.3million sold, 450,000 went to homes in the UK, so it’s a huge export for this country.
In these unstable times it’s good to know that British engineering is still world class.
New BMW M5
ON Monday BMW will take the wraps off the long awaited new M5.
The German bruiser is rumoured to have well over 600bhp, making it more than a match for the Mercedes-AMG E63.
Producing that thunderous power is a 4.4-litre twin turbo V8, capable of doing 0-62mph in litte more than three seconds. It’s also going to come with AWD for the first time – just as well with an engine that powerful.
As a long time fan of the M5 I’ll be keeping a keen eye on Munich Monday.