Died and gone to heaven ;) Pic heavy!

[Yellow_Festiva]

So a few weeks ago it was my birthday... yay... thought the gifts were done and dusted.

Apparently not.....

Yesterday I got to drive some very nice cars..... I'll let the pictures do the talking:

Turn up to a gated lot on Victoria rd, Drummoyne, Sydney with the wife.....







Plus a few Porsches, a Ferrari F430 and a Nissan GTR... She had booked me a 'drive day' God bless her soul.... After the morning briefing we got given our roster and away we went.....

First up.... 2010 Lotus Elise Club Racer:


Game ON!


And in the review mirror.......


I liked the simple design of the Lotus. Get in, turn the key and away you go. Reminded me of my Bugeye Sprite. Light body, no-frills interior, low and a small but willing engine.


First change over.... The smiles on these guys faces were priceless....


The Lambo got lost on the way. When it finally pulled up the police did the same 3 minutes after. Pointing to the car. We were all thinking it was the first car to be confiscated but they were just curious to have a look in the end.....


Next up..... 2011 Porsche 911 997 Carrera Cabriolet

254kw / 4.9 seconds 0-100 and 7 speed triptronic on both the stick and the wheel.

Wooo hooooo


Felt very fast yet comfortable to drive.... It was my wife’s favourite car (anything would have been after the Elise I think).

Next changeover:


The best wife a guy could ask for:


Next up, Porsche Boxter 987:

180kw / 6.1 0-100 and triptronic auto only on the wheel however.

I had no chance in keeping up........


Next stop, Lunch


And then the Ferrari F430 Just got to open the... ummm 'boot' to put the bags in.


Good thing we travel light!










4.3l V8, 6sp F1 box, 360kw and an open stretch of road make an evil mix

The sound dropping back 2 cogs and flooring it... Oh man

The Ferrari was easy to drive actually. Gear changes had a bit of a blimp that needed to be eliminated with the throttle but not as harsh as I imagined it to be. One could easily take it down the shops to buy some bread and milk perhaps.


The heart of the beast:


Next change over, Nissan GTR!


480HP of naughtiness.....

Very easy to drive, made a nice sound a split second before each down change. EASILY the fastest car on the day. The torque was something scary and the car just seemed to have an endless amount of oooomph in any gear.

[Yellow_Festiva]

Next change over, Martin. Aston Martin Vantage V8 Roadster


I didn't like the dash layout at all. Bland (or perhaps 'understated') and the 'key' and gear selectors are all push buttons high in the dash (under central air vents).




420Hp V8 with 6 speed sequential auto made for a nice drivers car. The exhaust note was superb and it had the same blimp in the revs as the GTR a fraction of a second before a down change.


Final change over, Lamborghini Gallardo


The dash layout was interesting:


I didn't like the box at all to be honest. Harsh, temperamental and to a new driver a very 'hit and miss' affair.

Although, getting to the ton in the reported 3.9 seconds wouldn't be that hard... would only need to change from first to second lol



5L V10 with 500HP.

It was very hard to drive, heavy clutch, harsh suspension and a gearbox I wasn't a fan of. After the drive in this I was physically drained.

The dash had the readout of 180ml on the screen. When we got back it was down to 165. I forgot to ask what it meant??


Hmmmmmm elo elo.... what have we here?????




Anyone from here????





Nice blokes, gave each other the thumbs up and we were on our way.

Fun is almost over.....

Filled up the cars at the end of the run. The guzzler of the pack was the Lambo closely followed by the Ferrari. The miser on the trip was the Lotus, it used less than half the fuel that the Ferrari used (bout the same as a Corolla... go figure)......

Parked back in the lot ready for the next outing.


My thoughts on the day?? How easy these cars are to drive!! Only the Lambo and the Lotus had a clutch, the rest could have just been put into auto mode and driven like a regular car.

I liked the Lotus the most, light and easy to fling around and probably light on the pocket to run and repair. The car I disliked the most was the Lambo. A true sports car best suited to the track. The rest, surprisingly enough were well placed on the road.

Whatever my wife paid, it was worth it. For anyone in Sydney (or those willing to travel) I cannot recommend this enough.

http://www.sportscarrentals.com.au/

Any girls on here lost for an idea on what to get their guy??? THIS!!!!!

Hot tip: My wife booked on 'Red Balloon' and apparently got a very good discount.

These guys also do track days ;)

Hope you liked the pics and my write up, Cheers!

Jason

[XRGhia]

Hell yes!!!

The life every man want's to live!

[TheInterceptor]

Very nice!
I did the same drive yesterday in the Courier It would have been better in that Lotus!

Youre a lucky man to have such a wife!

[93EB_SXR6]

Give me your wife now!

[Jim Goose]

I have just one word to say.... oops.... ok I cant say it.... lol

Great gal you have there! very thoughtful indeed

[InfernoSR]

Lucky!!

[Fireblade]

Absolutely awesome mate, great mix of cars to drive too, would have been a hoot Kudos to your wife

Jealousy creeping in, damn where is the number for these guys

[Giant Cranium]

what a wife!
wanna swap?
but out of all of those the only car i showed my old man next to me was the ho

[bafel]

That would be unreal!

The interior in the porsche looks woeful, looks 20 years old.

[Ben73]

Awesome. I would love to do that one day.

[b2tf]

What a great idea. Love the Aston.

[Kryton]

Best Birthday present EVER!!!
Will be hard to top that one next year.

[Matty4]

How hard were you allowed to go?
Do they have a lead ca and a tail-end charlie as well to keep you all in check?

[AWD Chaser]

http://www.redballoon.com.au/driving...plus-passenger


Price in link...

Guidelines:

Participants must be at least 25 years old and have a full license. Driver must be able to drive a manual well. A security Bond of $2,000 applies - Credit Cards ONLY. This will be refunded upon return of the vehicle. Insurance is included - there is an excess of $10,000 in the event of an accident.
Numbers:

This voucher is valid for 1 driver and 1 passenger. There is a minimum of 8 drivers on the day and a maximum of 16 drivers.
Weather:

This experience is not affected by the weather.
Other Info:

A credit car bond of $2,000 is required and will be fully refunded at the end of the day.

I know whats on my birthday wish list now....

[Riksta]

If only I had a mrs to buy me stuff like that!

Awesome pics, would have been a great day!

[V8kado]

Yes great day for you and the missus! And to get so many great pics is supurb!

[casabonka]

My birthday is coming up next month. Asked the question, boss said no!
The 10k excess scares me a bit!

Looks like it was a great day!

[Road_Warrior]

Hate you

So errm, any hints as to how quick you got that Lambo?

[Fled74]

You'd better get your wife something VERY special when her birthday comes round!

[Falc'man]

Very nice gift indeed.

I might do the same for my wife; knowing how much she doesn't give a rat's about cars I may have to do all the driving I guess. What a shame.

How flexible are they if you accidently stretched your right leg on purpose?

[GUTLES]

That would of been the best day of your life I bet!

My boss won a drive day in a set of Ferrari's in Sydney last year, I missed out by 1 year so he took someone else :(

He had a 10k excess too.

[flappist]

Jeez Jason, saying the datto was the pack leader will get you drop from several Xmas lists.

Other than that, what a good one.........

[Skotty]

slightly more power than a yellow festiva

[Fev]

Awesome, lucky man! I saw that Lambo in a car yard on Friday near Birkin Head Pt, some luxury place

[MITCHAY]

I got to get in on something like this one day. Wow $10k excess. I suppose it's a life experience though but better do it while I still have disposable income :

[Iggypoppin']

so 2k refundable deposit, 10k excess is only if you prang, what about the actual cost of the day??
it wouldnt be out of the reach of everyone, im guessing a few K but still worth it!! id be very keen to do this, once i am 25 and have some disposable income.

[dave351cid]

wow, what a special lady. look after her.

great photos and story too.

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by Matty4

How hard were you allowed to go?
Do they have a lead ca and a tail-end charlie as well to keep you all in check?

You go as hard or as softly as you like.... If you get done by the fuzz it is your problem.

There is a lead car, a black Cooper S. The rules are pretty simple. Don't overtake it unless you have to and if you do, slow down to allow it to get in the lead again. All cars, as well as the lead car has a 2 way radio, so we get warnings of all the speed cameras, as well as any sus cars along the side of the road.

No one at the rear.

BTW wife is not goin anywhere, she is a keeper ;)

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by casabonka

My birthday is coming up next month. Asked the question, boss said no!
The 10k excess scares me a bit!

Looks like it was a great day!

Funnily enough, they have very few incidents. They take your credit card and swipe the 2K off it. On the day the transaction is 'pending' and today the 2K is back there, ie no evidence of the transaction at all.

The 10 grand is only if you are at fault. The guy running the day has been with the company for 6 months and has not had 1 accident on his watch.

Apparently last year they had a smashed Ferrari in the windy bit of the National Park. Driver at fault of course.