2006, london and goodwood - part two

Also close by was the supercar paddock where some of the latest and greatest supercars and even concept cars were being held. One that stood out was the Peugeot 907 – kudos to Peugeot for letting this amazing concept car go out on the track. Ditto to Saab with their Aero X concept. I spent quite a while here both pawing over the cars and trying to talk to Jock Freemantle of the Hulme F1 company. The MD at my previous workplace had suggested that I ask Jock if he had any contacts in the automotive engineering industry to whom he could introduce me. Of course he was more interested in trying to get investment in his car, so he asked me to send him an email. I did soon after, but never got a reply. When I left the enclosure (arena?) with my mind swimming with Zondas, Koenigseggs, Murcielagos etc, Victoria was waiting for me and we had a quick mosey around the rest of the show. We were pretty tired by this point, so we headed home for the evening before the bulk of the crowds left and thankfully found a parking spot not far from Cate’s flat.

Jock posing proudly with his progeny: the Hulme F1

On Saturday we woke to a particularly grey morning, and not soon after we left the house there were spots of rain on the windscreen. Even though we had left early, the roads were already bursting at the seams, and it seemed like everyone was headed to Goodwood. In comparison to Friday, it was a long and dreary drive. By the time we arrived in the carpark, the rain was pouring down, so we took the opportunity to catch up on some sleep. We woke an hour later to a clearing sky so we weaved our way through the parked cars to the circuit. It rained on and off for most of the day, which took a little of the lustre off the experience, not least because the cars were taking it easy on their way up the hill. That didn't stop the driver of the first Ferrari 599 in the UK from trying a bit too hard and snotting it into the haybales!

One thing that unexpectedly caught my eye at Goodwood was the Zonda, not the car as a whole, but in true engineering nerd fashion, the exposed carbon fibre on the cockpit and various bits of trim. It looks like a 3-harness satin, and was beautifully executed. I found myself wondering how many they had to throw away before they got one that looked just right. Of course, it's just a cosmetic layer, so I wonder what's beneath it, and whether they actually took it into account in the structural design.

Pagani Zonda roof rail and b-pillar in naked 3-harness satin-weave carbon fibre goodness

After a leisurely lunch of a delicious roast pork roll we returned to the car show part of the event. One stand-out here was the company offering to convert your type 964 Porsche 911 to look like a 1970’s model. It sounds like a recipe for disaster, but the results were brilliant! The earlier 911s had a much cleaner look, and these cars captured that perfectly, just with a little more muscle I tried to have a chat with the chap from McRae motorsport about their new bespoke competition car, but he wasn’t interested either; possibly because my first words were “I work for a company that sells composite materials…” His face went blank as soon as I said the word “sell”. Not the best networking skills there. We felt we had seen enough at that point and left, deciding to spend a while exploring the surrounding region. We headed south to Southampton, which we found to be a pleasant place. Interesting medieval walls running through the centre of the town. We stopped at a mall to check out cellphones and did a bit of window shopping. Then back with all the traffic to London again to return the car.

The Civic had been a great little car to drive. The new R-series 1.8 was refined and spun cleanly to the redline, delivering plenty of power across the range. The 6-speed box was a joy to use, sharp and precise with well-matched ratios. The handling was hard to fault, but a little more communication from the front wheels would have been nice. The amount of space the Civic provided came as a surprise, and the ride was comfortable enough for me, even with the 17 inch wheels. On the down side, some parts did have the distinct aroma of accountant, like the very light and plastic-feeling door handles with their sharp edges.

It was a brilliant weekend all round, and I’d love to go back again one day.