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Americana at Beaulieu: how this rally drove forth during COVID-19

America is known for its love of excess. Everything is larger than life and the performance cars it produces are no exception – they have enormous engines, obnoxious exhaust notes and extravagant movie star styling. While the rest of the world focuses on building economical, sensible, practical vehicles, the US is busy doing burnouts and drag racing.

Due to this, these monstrous motors haven’t just developed an immense following in their home country, but throughout the world. American cars, both old and new, continue to charm enthusiasts everywhere, prompting various car shows celebrating them.

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Inside Ford’s heritage garage: the greatest hits

Within Ford’s Dagenham plant in Essex, the famed car maker stores a collection of cult classics. From the Model T to the Mustang, iconic names are plentiful and for fans of the Blue Oval – or simply cars for that matter – this place is paradise.

Though hidden from public view, last summer I was fortunate enough to be allowed access to the heritage garage in order to poke around some very special machines…

Continue reading “Inside Ford’s heritage garage: the greatest hits”

Top 5 used hyper hatches under £25,000

Hot hatchbacks are a fantastically fun and practical car class. They’re those special vehicles which combine fun-filled driving thrills with day-to-day usability, reasonable running costs and family-friendliness. It’s a beloved segment filled with entries from the fairly fast to the insanely quick, aka the hyper hatches.

McLaren Artura revealed: top three features

McLaren’s new hybrid supercar has made its debut. Named the Artura, the 205mph model represents a significant step towards electrification for the British brand, following on from the famous P1 hypercar.

It’s a futuristic take on the traditional McLaren formula. The £182,500 Artura may utilise twin-turbo V6 grunt and plug-in electric power, but light weight and rapid performance are still factors the manufacturer has truly obsessed over.

For more detail, here are three key features you need to know about…

Top 5 junior hot hatches on sale today

Hot hatches are brilliant. The formula is simple, yet effective: take an economical small run-around and inject some performance, improved handling and driver engagement. This can all result in a fantastically fun car which is also usable every day.

However, these amazing machines can still be out of reach for many people, whether it be a high price tag, annoying insurance costs, etc. Are there cheaper alternatives that still pack a sporty personality and entertaining drive?

Petrolheads is now on Instagram!

Petrolheads now has its own official Instagram account, where you can find cool car pics, updates on blog posts and more.

Top 5 most anticipated cars of 2021

Happy new year, petrolheads! That’s right, 2020 is finally over – thankfully – and 2021 is here, bringing with it plenty of new cars to talk about.

However, with a lot on its way, it can be hard to digest every model hitting showroom floors in the new year. As an enthusiast, surely there are certain cars bound to peak interest more than others?

Christmas cars: top 5 autos fit to replace Santa’s sleigh

Christmas is now very much just around the corner. Santa Claus will soon be hopping in his sleigh to deliver presents all around the globe – in a socially distanced, COVID-secure manner of course.

However, what if Saint Nick’s sleigh suddenly became out of action? What if he only had time to visit a car dealership to obtain a replacement? What make and model should he get?

How McLaren ignited my interest in its supercars

First of all, let’s get one thing straight: I’m not much of a supercar superfan. This is mainly due to the unattainability that comes with the class – the excess performance unusable on UK roads slightly puts me off too. Don’t get me wrong, I certainly admire a fair few supercars, but as a petrolhead I don’t put them on a pedestal unlike some. Recently however, I must admit I’ve been down a particularly McLaren-centric rabbit hole and, well, it’s not the first time.

I’ve not always had such an infatuation for McLaren though. For quite some time I was rather the opposite and really had little to no interest in the British brand whatsoever. So, what turned it around: how and why did my interest for McLaren somewhat skyrocket?

Four fierce rivals the new Nissan Z Proto faces

The Z Proto is a near-production glimpse at Nissan’s replacement for outgoing 370Z. It’s eventual road-going counterpart will usher in a seventh-generation model for its ‘Z’ range of sports cars which date back to 1969.

On paper, it ticks a lot of boxes for enthusiasts, offering a six-speed manual transmission, a two-seat, rear-wheel drive layout and a turbocharged V6 under the bonnet. How this all comes together out on the road of course is yet to be tried and tested.

Top 5 coolest modern convertibles

Here in England, summer has seemingly arrived – over a month late that is. For us, it’s been getting quite hot recently and this weather is currently forecast to continue for the time being. This means, with the sun out, it’s prime time for drop-tops to be out and about.

However, you don’t want just any convertible to soak up the sun. In that case, you might as well just cut the roof off of an old Peugeot hatchback and call it a day. No, the ideal modern convertible cruiser is something cool, interesting, sleek, suave and definitely quick.

Here are five cars that best fit that description… Continue reading “Top 5 coolest modern convertibles”