Features
Back to Library >
Ask Goodwin
4 years ago
Race now, fly later
Dear Colin,
Can you simply just ring up Ferrari and borrow a car to test? Peter Bullard
Dear Peter,
No. Certainly not Ferrari. It all comes down to what outlets a journalist has, or put more simply, who he or she is writing about the car for. My most regular gig is writing for several of the UK’s tabloid newspapers so I have quite a large audience. So yes, I can call up Porsche, Bentley and most other makers and borrow a car. I’ll only get to drive a new Ferrari if I’m commissioned to do so by a magazine like Evo. In fact the last one I drove was an F12 tdf and that was for Evo. We are so lucky to do this job – it’s a quite remarkable way to earn a living.
Dear Colin,
When do you think the trend towards bigger, heavier and more powerful cars will end? Surely with 1000bhp and 2000kg electric saloons, and roads that aren’t getting any wider, we’re nearing the end of this cul-de-sac? Alex Wagner
Dear Alex,
I have no idea. I find that the disconnect between what an enthusiast (really committed enthusiasts like us) wants from a motor car, and what those who merely have them for transport or as an ego massaging tool, is getting wider and wider. I actually find it a bit depressing. God forbid more legislation, but I think the only way this madness is going to stop is if cars are taxed on weight as well as emissions.
Chris Harris once dared me to do something in a Ford Focus and, having initially accused me of losing my bottle, lived to regret suggesting the stunt
Dear Colin,
What is the most beautiful car, bike and aeroplane in your opinion? Siobhan Briggs
Dear Siobhan,
This has required a lot of sucking on the end of the pencil. The car is a Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace. No, just kidding. It’s a Figoni et Falaschi bodied Delahaye 135. I’ve only seen one once and I nearly started crying it was so beautiful. The bike is a Seventies Ducati 900SS. The aeroplane is the DeHavilland DH88 Comet: a twin-engined machine built for racing in the Thirties. I like sailing, too, so I’d like to add my pal Billy’s 1897 Bermudan Staysail Schooner that I’ve just started sailing with him. It’s called Greylag. Look it up on Google, it is quite wonderful.
Dear Colin,
Do you enjoy writing or is it the only downside of the job? Tim Hill1961
Dear Tim,
I have a rather love-hate relationship with writing. Actually doing it is misery but the feeling I get when it’s finished is close to euphoric. I have never lost the buzz of seeing my name in print and I get as excited today as I did in April 1988 when I first saw my name at the top of a race report in Autosport.
Dear Colin,
Are you a good passenger and what do you think people think about being your passenger? Kim350Z
Dear Kim,
I prefer driving the car myself but don’t mind being driven. I’m lucky that so many of my friends are excellent drivers. Fellow journalists like Frankel, Dickie Meaden, Steve Sutcliffe and John Barker (among many others) are extremely quick but I always feel totally safe being driven by them. I’m also lucky that my wife and daughter are both really good drivers. As for the second part of the question, that’s really for others to answer. Chris Harris would give you a good answer. He once dared me to do something in a Ford Focus and, having initially accused me of losing my bottle, lived to regret suggesting the stunt.
Dear Colin,
What’s the best car that you’ve ever hired? Dave Ritter
Dear Dave,
Very poor showing on that front I’m afraid. Probably a Ford Mustang, but I’m ashamed to say that it was only a V6. That said, I’m a lover of small and simple cars so hiring a Fiat Panda or Hyundai i10 is actually a rather pleasant break from having to drive overweight and oversized behemoths like BMW X7s and the like.
