Yes, as the title of this article reads, I am in fact running a car group for Scotland & the Borders, now unfortunately this isn’t a whole new group but in essence a division group of an already existing car group called Retro + Post Millennia Motor Club 365 (RPM 365 for short), originally based in Stoke, it wasn’t easy for northern members like myself to get to one f their weekly meets, that was until now.

 

First of all, a little introduction to RPM 365:

The group got started by a couple of guys, one of which goes by the name of Daily Driver (No Joke) and is as mentioned above largely based in Stoke On Trent, England, the group has been going for around about 2 years now at a push and is absolutely wonderful to be a part of, all the members are really helpful, there is little to no bullying and regardless of what you’re into, you are always welcomed regardless of anything really. Plus with quizzes, challenges and all other fun things being brought in, it makes for a brilliant group to be a part of and unlike any other Classic Car group out there, what makes the group ever so slightly different to other Classic Car groups is vehicle age range, now a majority of classic car groups only let a car in from say pre ’95 etc. however with RPM365, they allow anything 15+ years old which means people like myself who either can’t afford a classic, can’t find a decent classic or even can’t have a Classic due to living situations can now finally have their cars allowed in.

 

So where do I come into this exactly?:

Well I joined last year and have been an active member ever since posting about the C70’s progress, finding car videos, pictures, sharing events amongst many other things and it’s been the only classic car group I’ve been in which has welcomed both myself and the C70 in without an issue (most of the others i’m in don’t allow the C70 due to it’s age). The only issue however was that because the main group was based in S-O-T & I stay in Scotland, I was never able to make it to a meet or a get together to show the fellow members the progress on the Volvo which was a shame as pictures only tell/show half the story, However I persevered and bided my time until where I am now and this is how it all happened.

 

How Did The New Group Start?

Well, I got wind that there wasn’t any Scottish divisions for RPM365 going so I decided to get in contact with Daily to see if it was possible to run a division group to run alongside and he agreed nigh on straight away and is even helping me run the group and get it started and up and running so it becomes a group to hopefully run alongside RPM365, I was happy to help as there is quite a large Classic car Community in Scotland which needs showing off to the rest of the world and as I’m talking to you now, not even 24hrs into the group being set up and ran, it already has a steady flow of members joining & posting, ranging from Subaru owners to Ford people & even BMW owners, regardless of cars or favourite manufacture, they are slowly but surely joining and getting involved which is always good!

 

What’s the name of the new group & where can it be found?

The new group is called Retro, Pre + Post Millennia 365 Motor Club “AKA” RPPM 365 Scotland/Borders and it can be found by either clicking the link above or by searching the name into Facebook’s Search bar, it’s only a small group at the moment with just over 22 members already joined but that number is going up bit by bit as mentioned above, Also, due to being one of the Admin/founding Member of the new group, I’ll involve the group into some of my already existing content on here and will hopefully try and set up some meets when I get the chance to, any events that I go to outside of meets I’ll be posting onto the group as long as it’s relevant etc. I seriously Can’t wait to get this off the ground and to be able to meet new people along the way who share the same passion will just be brilliant.

 

What’s the rules for the new Group?

Well the rules are pretty simple, behave yourself like you would in real life, don’t put anyone down for their choice of car or choice of modifications and don’t be spamming the page with modern cars out of the age restrictions, as long as the vehicles in question are 15+ years old they’re allowed, so regardless of what you own whether it be a motorcycle, a car, a Bus or even Heavy Machinery like a Tractor or HGV they are all allowed in, this makes the group more involving as different people like different things so it attracts more of a welcome audience which is what both RPM365 & RPPM365 are all about.

 

In Conclusion:

If you are interested in joining the group and you live in Scotland or Northern England (or even Outside those areas) and you have a car over 15+ years old, come check out both RPPM 365 & RPM 365 as you’ll be welcomed with open arms, as mentioned above, I can’t wait to get it up and running properly as a group to the point where meets can be setup & People can be met and cars can be shown off as intended. I would like to especially thank Daily Driver for letting me set it up and for letting me branch out his truly wonderful group into Scotland & North England and to the people who are already joining and spreading the word! without them, the group would be down before it even got started. As mentioned, if you wanna join, either click the link above or search for the name in the FB Search Bar and you’ll find it.

 

Hope You Enjoy!

Alex Jebson

 

Ever since I saw the release of the new Volvo V60 Wagon way back in February of this year, I’ve been pining to see one ever since and with thanks to Volvo UK’s VIP Launch Event last night, I finally got to see one up close!

The V60 is Volvo’s medium size estate to rival the likes of Audi’s A4 Avant, BMW’s 3 Series Estate & Mercedes Benz’ C Class Estate for those who don’t know. The previous generation of V60 (2010-2018) was a rather good looking car but lacked in drivability, bad resale values & was rather poor on interior space which is not very Volvo like at all, that was until the new V60 came onto the scene, in terms of size, think of this as a shrunken V90 and you get an idea of it’s proportions, it shares it’s platform with the new S/V90 as well as the new XC60 and will probably have the same chassis as the newly released S60 saloon which means drivability should be improved significantly over the previous generation model, interior space is also improved throughout with excellent rear legroom, decent shoulder room & plenty of headroom throughout – This is now a Swede which can take on the Germans!

 

Lets talk engines shall we?!, now for the last few years, Volvo have chose to stick with 2.0 litre 4 cylinder engines with different BHP & Torque ratings to differentiate between engine levels (D4 being diesel, T6 being a Petrol etc.) and the same is here in the new V60, from Launch there is three engines you can pick from, a low power D3 Diesel, a higher powered 190 bhp D4 Diesel and a petrol 250bhp T5 model, as of yet there is no T8 or T6 models being launched in the UK as I can see which is unfortunate as they deliver stonking performance while also delivering decent fuel economy as well, also unfortunately while there is Polestar add ons available for it as well as other Volvo models, there is no V60 Polestar available as of yet which is a crying shame as it was very reminiscent of the old fast Volvo wagons like the 850 T5-R, 850R & V70R’s, hopefully they do something to bring some petrolheads into Volvo ownership but time will tell.

 

Next up is Trim Levels, in the new V60 there is 6 trim levels and they go thusly; Momentum which is base trim, Momentum Pro which adds a few options, Inscription which is the Luxury trim, a Pro variant of that too and also finally last but not least, the R-Design which is the sporty trim, if that’s not sporty enough however, there is as guessed a Pro variant of that too! really easy to get to know once you figure it all out, Pro variants also get certain goodies that the normal variants don’t get like Pilot Assist, upgraded 19″ alloy wheels, electric tailgate and much much more. on display at the Launch event I went to was a D4 190bhp V60 Momentum finished in Fusion Red with the optional 19″ Alloy wheels, rear tints, Electric tailgate and much much more, in fact on first glance it looked like an Inscription, it was only until I asked what trim it was that I then actually found out, inside it had black leather all over it and really went well with the red exterior, it truly was gorgeous!

 

Prices for it start from £31K to just under £53K for a top spec model, now £53k does sound quite a tad expensive for a Volvo, especially considering there is optional extra’s to add into the mix as well but as far as mid size estates go, it is far better built than any new BMW, Mercedes or Audi and is far better equipped straight out the box compared to the 3 Germans, also, while the Germans look similar to one another in their designs, the Volvo truly a breath of fresh air, the exterior is just stunning and the interior is a wonderful place to be and is just so comfortable to sit in and get the perfect driving position.

 

Inside the new V60 is a rather plush place to be, even in Momentum trim, with Inscription models coming in as well, they’ll raise the bar in terms of luxury & equipment compared to it’s rivals, in the centre of the dash is a centre touch screen which is also shared with many other Volvo’s and it is really easy to use and very smooth to use as well, it’s not too fast but yet not too slow, it’s also not too difficult to reach neither, it is rather spot on for a centre screen and with the Bowers & Wilkins stereo upgrade which is a £2000 optional extra you can also mimic the speakers to make it sound as if you’re in a Gothenburg Orchestral theatre which is a very cool touch, if you don’t want to use the screen, you also have controls on the steering wheel to go through the different options too, while on the subjects of different options, there is also a a drive mode selector as well just below the gear knob near the handbrake which changes the suspension settings & gearbox changes to make it either more sportier or more relaxed depending on mood, moving into the back seats there is plenty of room as mentioned earlier and with the leather seats it’s really comfortable too, in the centre seat is a fold down armrest and also a 12v socket at the back of the centre console, one thing i’d consider however is a light coloured interior as it can become quite dark in the back, especially if the boot is full of stuff like the Launch car was. Boot space is remarkable with it easily being allowed to fit 4 large suitcases in with ease, with the seats folded flat, you could possibly fit an Ikea store in the boot which makes it perfect for families and the likes – Finally a Volvo Wagon which lives up to it’s reputation as a load lugger!

 

Lastly, We’ll talk about Options, for the new V60, options are plentiful, you get items like the brilliant Bowers & Wilkins Stereo System, rear tints, Upgraded 19″ Wheels wrapped in Continental Premium Contact 6 Tyres, electric boot release, air suspension is also an option on higher trim levels like Inscription models, Pilot Assist, Electric Memory seats, xenon lights, parking sensors etc. etc., the list goes on & on, you can easily make the new V60 personal to you and like none on the road with the options on offer, also, you can either have the new V60 with FWD or AWD too which also makes it a good buy, especially if like me, you live in the countryside and need a safe comfortable AWD vehicle to go through years of wintery abuse.

 

In Summary, the new V60 has plentiful of options, a decent amount of Engine choices, a wonderful interior full of equipment, plentiful of interior space as well as a massive boot, add in the gorgeous exterior and this is a Swede which won’t just be able to take on the Germans but also possibly steal some German Rivals Customers from right under their noses, now of course there are some issues & niggles like the lack of T6, T8 or Polestar engine options available, the high buying prices with higher trimmed models like Inscription & R-Design & Pro Models & Availability issues starting to already come into question, regardless of all those though, it’s a brilliant car and when they are finally available I can see them selling really well and being a very good alternative to the German Rivals.

 

A special thanks goes out to Volvo Parks Ayr, Parks Motor Group, all the staff their & of course Volvo Cars UK for launching yet another fantastic event! Every time I go to one the atmosphere is brilliant and i’m always made felt welcome even though I’m not there to buy a car.

 

Hope You Enjoy!

Alex Jebson

 

 

 

Now as an Automotive Journalist, one of the things I have never done is go to a Press Event, now of course I’ve went and set up events to see cars before – like the time with the DB2/4 but I’ve never ever went to a Launch Event – that had to change!!

 

For my first Press Event, I didn’t want to go too big as I would certainly both look out of place & be way over my head, so what I decided to do was to head over to the Volvo XC40 UK Launch Event, the reason why I Picked Volvo was because of a few reasons, First of all, I’d never really been up on the XC40 so wanted to get some info on it, second of all, I had been informed by a close friend of mine that it was happening all over the UK and all I had to do was sign up for it and everything else would be sorted out (so really simple to sign up for), on top of that, being a Volvo owner myself, I would have a better idea of what was going on, how they’d evolved as a company and wouldn’t look too out of place.

So lets get onto the car shall we, this event was to basically launch the recently released Volvo XC40 into the UK Market, the particular XC40 on show was an XC40 2.0 D4 First Edition AWD Auto, with a 190bhp Diesel engine, it is the only Diesel engine available as of launch to be available to the XC40, you can of course go for a Petrol and that would be the 2.0 T5 Petrol with a stonking 247bhp, Trim Levels are plentiful on the XC40 too with Momentum (Base Model), Inscription (Luxury Model) & R-Design (Sporty model), on top of that their is both Pro version models of all the above, but the top model by far as of now is the First Edition, this is essentially a R-Design Pro but with nearly every single option ticked, these include a Leather interior, a lovely set of 20″ 5 double spoke Alloy Wheels with a mix of Diamond Cut & Matte Black added in for good measure, R-Design Bodykit, Full LED Active High Beam headlamps, Pilot Assist, an iPad like infotainment system and an optional boot divider which normally comes in the Convenience Pack amongst many others.

Interior wise, it was actually rather smart for a small SUV, it had more than enough space, plenty of comfort and everything was so easy to use and so intuitive, when inside you could tell straight away the quality of all the materials used was up there with it’s big brothers the XC60 & XC90, In fact, it uses a lot of tech with it’s bigger brothers as well meaning that it feels like a Volvo should, In terms of cubby space and equipment, there was pilot assist, a removal bin in the centre console, a mobile phone charging system, electric memory seats, heated seats all round, Start/Stop technology, keyless entry, push button start, a gorgeously wrapped leather steering wheel with multi functions for both the infotainment system and pilot assist functions.

In the rear It had a rather smart set of air vents which both felt great to use and also looked nice as well and underneath them, slightly hidden away was a set of heated seat switches and a output for charging what looked like either a phone or iPad, our press car had the half leather, half alcantara seats which were really comfortable, In between the two outer seats there was an arm rest imbedded into the middle seat, In the boot was the divider I mentioned earlier which had hooks you could hang stuff on, it had electrically operated rear seats, simply push the two buttons and the seats fold down, it also had a 12v socket for the likes of a cool-box and a electric tailgate with a lockable option once closed.

Price wise, the XC40 starts at just under £28,000 and goes up to around about £40,000+ for a fully specced T5 First Edition, in the coming weeks and months their will be more engines available with rumours of a 3 cylinder unit coming in soon enough as well as more diesels.

The Atmosphere at the Showroom was very good, all the staff were very welcoming and down to chat and to talk through the car, and even though most people their were potentially there to buy a car, as soon as I pointed out my C70 which was outside, I got a rewarding smile back which made me feel welcome, overall the dealership knocked it out the park!

A Special Thank you goes to Volvo Parks Ayr for their fantastic hospitality, Volvo Cars & Volvo Cars UK for putting on the Launch nationwide and to Callum Laird – the legend who let me know it was happening in the first place, without him, I’d never of been able to go.  Hopefully this isn’t the only press event I get to go to as I’d like to do more, for my first however, I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it!

 

 

Hope You Enjoy!

By Alex Jebson

In the World of Supercars, for many years the Ferrari 458 Speciale has dominated all, it has been raved about for having the most pure driving experience of any car,  on top of that, with a brilliant chassis, handling was absolutely sublime, the only issue with the 458 these days however is it’s age, it’s nearly 5 years old and with the new age of Supercars coming out, it is slowly but surely losing the crown of the best driving supercar so Ferrari have decided to up the anté by releasing the 488 Pista.

Introduction:

The 488 Pista is the latest lightweight track focused Ferrari carrying on from the 458 Speciale, the F430 Scuderia & the 360 Challenge Stradale.

Ferrari states that the Pista takes a significant step forward over it’s predecessors & just like the car it replaces, there is tons of motorsport derived technology which is implemented into it, even it’s name is Italian for Track – in case you never knew!

It’s the first Lightweight Ferrari to be Turbocharged instead of naturally aspirated with the Engine straight from the normal 488 of course, that means it’s a 3,9 TT V8 which powers it, on top of the engine being re-done with brand new performance parts, the Pista is 90kg lighter than the normal 488 which means it has a kerb weight of 1,280kg before fluids which should make it an absolute hoot around the twists or a racetrack.

Performance:

As mentioned above, it shares the same 3.9 TT V8 engine as the normal 488 but instead of 661 bhp, power has been increased to a whopping 711bhp which is a power hike of nearly 50bhp, may not sound like much but if you compare it to the old 458 Speciale, it has a power hike of 114bhp, to get the power increase, many new improvements have been made which includes a new Inconel exhaust system which is the same material Jag use in the F-Type SVR which means it should sound as good as it looks as well as making the car lighter, on top of that, many handling upgrades have been made too.

Many of the Aerodynamics have also been tweaked too to make it more slippery in the air – many of which have been incorporated from the 488 GTE race car, these include similarly borrowed designed front & rear diffusers which gives a 20% hike in downforce which means it can do without a huge rear wing like the 911 GT3 RS which makes it easier on the eye as well as being just as capable on track

Ferrari’s Side-Slip Angle Control system also is incorporated into the new Pista with it being in it’s sixth generation – what is that you may ask? well in it’s simplest form, it allows you to manage and maintain perfect oversteer, essentially turning you into a perfect drifter, it is already in the 488 GTB so should be even better in the Pista.

0-60 comes up in 2.85 seconds while 0-124mph comes up in 7.6 seconds and with a top speed of more than 211 mph it’s certainly not hanging around at all.

Styling:

Now of course, being the lightweight track version of the already existing 488 GTB, the styling has been changed drastically, just like the transformation from the normal 458 to the Speciale, the Pista has squared off angles, subtle but noticeable aggression and of course optional racing stripes, the Pista is finished off with a beautiful set of 20in Carbon wheels which is a first for Ferrari, all these lovely little extras make it a lovely car on the eye, unlike the 458 Speciale which personally looked like a bulldog chewing a wasp from the front, the new car is a whole lot sleeker but still as aggressive, personally, I prefer it over the Speciale but that’s my opinion.

Inside you’ll find an interior just like the old Speciale, it has 4 point racing harness set onto a beautiful set of Alcantara bucket seats with a red stripe running through the middle & red stitching, exposed Carbon Fibre, Yellow Dials with a TFT Display, an alcantara & Carbon Fibre dashboard with a red stripe running along the whole length of it and a 488 Pista badge imbedded just above the glovebox, in the centre console you have the buttons for the chassis settings & active exhaust and last but not least a rather lovely flat bottomed steering wheel with matching red stitching, however to keep weight down there is no Mats to speak of, now of course you can make it a little bit more luxurious but that’s kinda missing the point of a lightweight track focused Ferrari

Expect Prices and full specs to be revealed later this year at the Geneva Motor Show where both this and the new 911 GT3 RS 991.2 will be released, Ferrari are unfortunately keeping Prices & specs quiet for the time being but I expect it to be near £300k at best. It’s either a Pista or a 911 GT3 RS, Saying that both are released at the same show, it’d be good to see which one is better.

 

Hope You Enjoy!

By Alex Jebson

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now as a lot of you may know, a few months ago we decided to swap our 2006 Subaru Legacy 2.0 R Wagon Auto for a 2007 (57) Saab 9-5 Hot Aero Wagon Auto, this was a big step for us as we’d never owned a Saab before and we had never had a performance car before so it was a huge risk, well 3 months on from ownership and I’m glad to announce it has been absolutely wonderful.

 

First of all, a bit of a back story!

We used to own a 2006 Subaru Legacy Wagon which on the most part was a brilliant car, but after maybe a few months it started to run into running problems which were later found to be really expensive to fix and because normal code readers couldn’t really tell us the problem we had no choice but to go to Subaru themselves to get it fixed, due to our limited budget however we could never get it fixed up to the way we’d like so after just over a year of ownership, we decided to jump ship from Subaru ownership and plunge into Saab ownership.

Reason being was that not just could they picked up for second hand Fiesta or Corsa money, there was ten a penny & for what you could get in the price it looked as if you could get a good deal one without digging through the classifieds, add on to the fact most of them in that budget were GM based it meant that overall parts & labour prices were surprisingly cheap for what is technically classed as an executive car.

After looking online at different websites I found what was eventually going to be our new replacement on AutoTrader, a black 2007 Saab 9-5 HOT Aero Auto Wagon with 118k on the clock in immaculate condition for a measly £1500, that’s right – an immaculate condition 260bhp Performance Wagon for Corsa money, however there was only one issue – the car was in Luton!

Both me & my mum decided to go down and check this car out to make sure it was everything we’d been looking for and on the most part it was perfect – of course it’s impossible to get a perfect car for such little coin but this wasn’t far off.

After spending a weekend down in England getting the car we bought it back home and instantly fell in love with it, not just was it uber comfortable but it was stonking when the right pedal was prodded – a serious wolf in sheep clothing!

 

What Happened Next?

After getting it home and getting everything sorted paperwork wise it was time to get involved with a Saab specialist to fix it’s little issues, and to both my parents surprise it cost the same to fix the whole car than it was to fix one bit on the Subaru which made them really happy – the most expensive was an alternator replacement and the only reason for that was because of access & how much of a fiddle it was to get right.

 

In those last 3 months, it’s had brand new tyres all round, brand new brake pads, a handful of rubber bushings, a new battery, an engine mount, a new tensioner and a new cam belt fitted as well as the alternator and since then it’s not went wrong once, for all that to be done it’s cost a third of what Subaru would charge for the Legacy!

Since ownership it has been used day in day out in all weathers and it’s been perfect, it has to be the only car we have had for ages which hasn’t cost an absolute fortune to run or maintain, if driven sensibly its easy to be doing 35mpg overall and unlike other performance cars with similar performance it doesn’t have a habit of drinking oil or chewing through it’s tyres which means that as a family wagon it doesn’t cost the earth to run.

 

What’s It Like to Live With?

Now with any performance car, they can be expensive to look after, have to have the best of everything and as an owner you always have to be careful of big bills but in the Saab it is fine, a Service including labour, codes checked, a full valet & a road test comes in at £300 – £400 all in by Saab themselves, when you consider that Subaru charge over a £600 for a Service for a Legacy and Volvo charge £300 odds just for the parts for the C70, it’s unbelievable value for money!

Also, there is plenty of Saab Dealers still around the UK which means finding one isn’t too difficult and all the workers have been there for years and know exactly what they’re doing which makes ownership a breeze.

On the inside there is plenty of kit on offer with Heated seats, A/C, Dual Zone Climate Control, Electric Drivers seat, Electric mirrors, Electric Windows all round, a CD Player with built in AUX, Alarm, Immobiliser, Central Locking & a multi functioning steering wheel to name a few,

if found there can be some Aero’s with Memory seats, heated seats all round, Folding mirrors, built in Nav, multichanger in the boot & a Sunroof too which means that if found you really are spoiled for choice.

Onto interior fit & finish now, and this is where it’s not as good, don’t get me wrong, everything works & it is laid out really well – with the driver getting a very jet fighter esque vibe!, but unfortunately it’s not as plush as first expected which is a shame really as you get all the creature comforts of an executive express but the dash & interior quality of another GM Product like a Vauxhall or Opel, it’s not bad but yet it’s not great – if you want a quality feeling interior then I’d possibly go for something like a Mercedes or BMW for that.

however, with every bad part there is a good bit, practicality is very good, top class in fact!, the boot is massive with movable anchor points & multiple cubbies, the seats fold down two ways, Either top half down or you can lift the seat base up and then fold down the top half, the roof is reasonably square which means it can hold more than enough goods for any family, Leg room & headroom is also very good due to big floor space and that boxy roof, cubby spaces are plentiful and where they should be, in the back you get an arm rest with two cup holders, a cigarette lighter and if a top spec motor you also get heated seats in the back too, in the back of the front seats are huge pockets where you can hide tons of different things too which makes it a brilliant road tripper, the journey back from Luton to Scotland was superb, it swallowed everything we had with us with ease!

 

What’s it Like to Drive?

Now this is where it starts to really come into it’s stride, now with a lot of powerful performance FWD cars of the time you can easily get tons of Torque Steer or Wheelspin due to the high power on tap but with the Saab, it handles it’s power really well, ours has TC and while it is relatively basic in the way it works it is able to keep it’s power under control which can’t be said for many FWD performance cars these days.

Here is the best bit however, Being the HOT Aero model (HOT being short for High Output Turbo), it is of course the cream of the crop for outright performance, with Turbocharged cars there is always going to be turbo lag present but with the Saab the turbo is like a switch – either it’s on or it’s off, there is hardly any lag present and once on boost it turns into an absolute animal!, 0-60 comes up in 8.4 seconds (6s if a manual) and the way it just picks up it unreal, it can go from a sedate comfortable cruiser into a Autobahn stormer in a matter of milliseconds which makes it a perfect family sleeper.

Now if 260bhp & 350NM Torque just isn’t enough for you, there is a lot of tuning companies who can easily get you into the 300bhp club & over without doing too much work getting done to them, both Abbott Racing & Hirsch are the top guys to go for if you want more out of an Aero.

 

What is it like in the winter weather?

Now surely with our 9-5 being an Aero and it also being FWD you’d expect it to be an absolute handful in the snow and the winter weather compared to the Legacy and to be honest you’d be right but it’s not as bad as first expected.

Now of course it is never going to compare to the Subaru when it comes to Snow, the Subaru would eat that for breakfast, lunch & dinner if given the chance, with it’s famous AWD system there is no way the Saab could compete with it but you’d be surprised.

Even though the Saab is FWD and it has all that power under the right pedal ready to go, in the snow it is surprisingly good in it, now of course it is going to struggle if driven out with it’s limits but if driven with care it is just like the Legacy and there is a few reasons for this.

 

1.

Unlike the Subaru, the Saab has both Traction Control and a low range gear in the gearbox and as long as the TC is on & it’s in Low Range and you drive with care it’ll be able to outperform a lot of small SUV’s and other cars, where some cars & SUV’s were getting stuck, our little Saab was still running errands like it was a normal day.

 

2.

Just like the other well known Swedish car Company, the Saab is of course Swedish which means that just like Volvo they are more than capable with the UK’s snow and wintery weather, in fact the Swedes when testing new cars put more testing into Winter driving than any other car company due to the sever weather they get over their, this makes for a normal family estate like a 9-5 a pretty capable car in the snow.

 

Now I am not going to say that the Saab trumps the Leggy when it comes to the snow, it’s now where near as good but apart from the lack of AWD it certainly is as capable as long as it’s driven to the conditions. 

 

 

Decision time!, should you buy one or not?

So, you’ve decided to get one for yourself, should you really plunge into Aero ownership or go for something else with maybe AWD?

Now, yes there are a lot of better cars out their if you look hard enough, some will be cheaper to run, some will be more powerful and others will be a better all rounder but if you are looking for a good looking car with dollops of performance with a great badge and an even better community behind it, it’d make sense to go for a 9-5 Aero but be warned, the car isn’t perfect.

Tax yearly is £520, Tyres for it aren’t the cheapest and if driven quickly the fuel consumption will go from about 35mpg to early twenties at best, also because this isn’t entirely Vauxhall based you won’t be able to just swap Vauxhall parts over for cheapness of parts, also early models do tend to suffer from Oil starvation issues (this was fixed in the facelifted ‘Dame’ Model), if you go for a pre facelift version you can get kits to stop that from happening but unfortunately it’s not permanent so be careful when looking around.

All in all, the 9-5 Aero is a very good car for the price and is definitely a left field option than any of it’s rivals, if a good one is found, you won’t really need to spend too much to get it up to scratch to the way it should be, if you want to mod them then as posted above there’s plenty of places around to do that for you if needed which makes it one of the better cars to get into performance motoring on a shoe string

 

 

So, in conclusion, if you want an all round Performance car with enough room for a family, a dog and a boot full of shopping while being insanely quick but yet capable in any types of weather, the Saab 9-5 Aero is definitely for you, take it from me, go and check one out – you won’t be disappointed!

 

 

Hope You Enjoy!

By Alex Jebson

 

So for those of you who like me live in the UK, you may of heard of the Classic Car Motor Show at the NEC in Birmingham, for those who don’t know, it is a huge annual motor show in the UK which hosts a lot of classic cars and classic car memorabilia amongst other things.

Now every year Silverstone Auctions auction off cars at the show, for the last few years they have became synonymous with having bids well into the hundreds of thousands on cars which have never really hit those targets before, this year is no different.

I’ll  start off with this rather lovely fully restored 1968 Jensen Interceptor MKI which was owned by none other than the late great Eric Morecambe from Morecambe & Wise

It went under the hammer for a staggering £95,625 earlier on today (11/11/17), for the money, the new owner has got themselves into a beautifully kept Interceptor, it is absolutely immaculate and a great addition to any collection!

 

Next up on the list is a Restored 1982 Land Rover Sandringham 6×6 Defender, it is one of 12 in the world and it sold for a pretty reasonable £14,625 which isn’t actually too bad for a Defender these days, especially considering the rarity of this one!

Next up is where things go a little bit crazy and why Silverstone Auctions have got a name for themselves regarding crazy prices – yes that’s right, it’s time for some Fast Fords to go under the hammer.

 

I’ll start off with this 1983 Fiesta MK1 XR2, it’s possibly one of the cleanest XR2’s on the market both inside & out with not a single blemish in the paintwork or anything

 

It eventually went under the hammer for £22,500 – that’s nearly the same price as a modern day Fiesta ST200!

 

Up next is this immaculte 1980 MK2 Escort RS2000 which was reading a measly 900 miles from new, this is where the Fast Ford Prices go crazy!

It went for an eye watering £97,875 which was £17K over lower estimate, an absolutely crazy price for a MK2 Escort.

 

The madness doesn’t stop there however as a 1996 ‘P’ Escort RS Cosworth takes centre stage, just like the Escort above, this is also reading a measly 837 miles on the clock – and just like the Escort above, this one goes for a gobsmacking £91,125 proving that Fast Fords are still the kings of the Classic Car Scene!

When you think it’s about to settle down and get reasonable again, a white 1988 Sierra Cosworth RS500 comes up for auction, now in the past, these are the cars which have made Silverstone Auctions an absolute ton of publicity and this one doesn’t disappoint whatsoever as it sells for a truly unbelievable £112,500 – That’s Audi R8 V10 Plus money right there!

Now here is where things get a little awkward and weird, alongside the Escorts and the Sierra was a 2011 MK2 Focus RS which read just 18 miles on the clock, now this is still a relatively newish car with hardly no racing history whatsoever and with no Historical presence neither it looked bleak for the little RS, however it somehow sold for a biblical £43,875 which is not just double of what you’d normally pay for a MK2 RS but is on par with the brand new Focus RS, a car which will run rings around it’s predecessor.

Also you could easily go out and buy a Volvo C30 T5 (which is essentially the same chassis as the RS), spend some money on modifying it and you could be able to get a car which is just as capable for a 4th of the price of the RS.

 

Personally, I don’t think the prices are gonna die down any time soon due to the Fast Ford Movement which in the UK is absolutely huge!. If the prices are like this now, what will the prices be like in the near future?

 

Hope You Enjoy!

By Alex Jebson

 

As some people may know, I haven’t been to a Tartan Tarmac meet in absolutely ages, that was unfortunately due to the C70 being off the road due to the engine clean & also the alternator failing on me, thankfully the C70 is now working rather well so I decided to return to Tartan Tarmac with the C70 after a 3 month break to see what I’d missed – I was definitely in for a surprise!

 

Now I’ve been to a Tartan Tarmac breakfast meet before, on average there is normally about 400 cars there and about 500+ people there with all different cars & bikes, this time however, I’d never seen it so busy before, there must’ve been about 600+ cars and over a 1000 people there, it was so packed that all three car parks in Motherwell College were packed to the brim – something I’d never seen at a Tartan Tarmac meet or even while I was at the college studying.

The cars which were on show were as always out of this world, anything from the latest Supercars & Exotics to an 80’s Mercedes 190E Evo II – That’s right, a DTM legend was in a College Car Park as part of TT, there was so many cool cars there that all the photographers (including myself) didn’t know where to start, it had to of been the craziest TT meet to date!

I decided to take the C70 as it hadn’t been to a meet since May and it had had some work done to it since back then, It was so good to be back with the C70 after both being absent for a good amount of months away – I was finally able to show off the engine bay properly since ownership thanks to the clean it’d had a few months back, also with the new alternator fitted, she was running perfectly too!

 

For next months meet, I’d like to see if we can bring up the Saab so we can show that off a lil bit as it’s not been to a car meet of yet, also it makes a change from bringing the Volvo every time too, also with most of the Saab’s little niggles fixed up, it’s definitely show ready – all we have to do is prize the keys out of my parents hands!

Overall, this had to be the craziest TT meet to date, the cars were as brilliant as ever, the weather stayed put, there was tons of variety, there was tons of like minded enthusiasts to talk to & meet plus as per usual, a great hosting place too!, this had to be the best TT meet I’ve been to as of yet.

 

Hope You Enjoy!

By Alex Jebson

So for those who may have noticed, it has become quite apparent that I have a love affair for Swedish Cars, Now, Before we start, I do love every single car from all different manufacturers & I don’t intentionally hate on cars unless I have experienced them in the past. Now as of late I have been showing quite a bit of love for Sweden and their cars, Here below is why I prefer Swedish cars over anything else.

Now as you may know, with the recent purchase of our wonderful little Saab 9-5 Wagon, along with the C70, we are now a two Swedish car family again. Even though they are two completely different manufacturers who both have had different ways of building their cars, they have both made some absolutely brilliant models in the past.

For a start, Swedish cars in general offer a brilliant package for the price, For instance, a 2007 Subaru Legacy 3.0 H6 Wagon with similar performance & options to Wasaabi are nearly double the price and for what you get as a package in the Subaru, it just isn’t worth spending the extra money. The Volvo is also the same, for a low mileage, well specced, well looked after C70 T5 Coupe with every option ticked similar to mine, you’d be paying significantly more for a similar BMW 3 Series Coupe or Mercedes CLK of the same age with the same equipment.

Next on the list is overall cost of parts, Now don’t get me wrong, Both Volvo’s & Saab’s can be fairly expensive to fix up and look after but in comparison to their rivals they actually make a lot of sense, for every part you buy for a Saab or Volvo, their rivals are charging over double for something similar, this makes both manufacturers easy to get into without breaking the bank.

Also they’re very well built, you get the feeling that both cars are gonna last the length of time with nothing more than simple servicing, add in the price of the parts and as long as you’ve got a well looked after example, you’ll rarely be going to the garage to get them sorted out – Sweden really do know how to build a car properly!

Safety is also very high on both their lists, both manufacturers have always made 5 star cars throughout the years while also creating some breakthrough safety kit too!, Volvo for instance bought us the 3 point seatbelt while Saab bought us multiple airbags in all of their cars.

Tuning is also very much possible on both Volvo’s & Saabs with many seeing well over 300bhp without doing too much to them, It may seem strange to modify either a Saab or Volvo but it is possible. A simple look online will surprise you in how well they can be modified, on top of that, not many people have modified Volvo’s or Saabs so seeing one out in the wild is rather rare.

This brings me onto my next point, If you ever find a Modified Volvo or Saab at a car show, go and talk to the owner about it and you’ll find out that they are so down to earth it’s unreal, you can tell straight away that they love their cars and love talking to people about them, they never turn up their noses to anybody and are generally great people to talk to, The Swedish Car Culture is a brilliant camp to be in. I’ve been able to meet some members of Volvo Groups I’m involved in and straight away I’ve been accepted into the group with my C70 without any of them turning their noses up because it’s not to their taste.

Now If you aren’t really into Volvo’s or Saabs that much, Remember, Koenigsegg have your back, with their engineering going above anything any other manufacturer can come up with, they are serious contenders in the Hypercar Segment – Not bad for a company which is relatively small and has been around for about 20 years or so!

So just remember, If you ever see either a Volvo or Saab on the road, Don’t turn away because it’s not what your into, You might own one one day and fall head over heels like many people have done before – Don’t mock before you try one, it might surprise you!

 

Hope You Enjoy!

By Alex Jebson

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now in the world of hyper cars, Performance is key! Manufacturers from all over the world try to take the crown for the 0 – 400kmh – 0 time. Bugatti have only held that title recently with their Chiron – well now, the ever so slightly deranged Swedish Engineers at Koenigsegg have stolen Bugatti’s crown in spectacular fashion!

The Swedish Car Manufacturers used a customers Agera RS which had 1,360bhp & 1,011 Ib – ft Torque from it’s 5.0 Twin Turbo V8, to make sure it was safe in case of an accident, the engineers fitted a removable roll cage just in case things went turtle.

The Track itself was in Vandel in Scandinavia and while it wasn’t the best track to run on (full of uneven ruts & potholes & only 2.8 km long), the almighty Swede seemed to just take it into it’s stride, both the car and the driver were prepped, To make sure everything was done properly, the RS used was brand new and only been driven at 186 mph prior to the run, after a few practise attempts, the test driver Niklas Lilja lined the RS for it’s record run.

 

It hit 249mph (400kmh) in 26.88 seconds covering a distance of 1.9km which is mind blowing, braking from 400 kmh to 0 was done in an astonishing 9.56 seconds covering a measly 483m in the process – to add insult to injury, the Chiron done the 0 – 400kmh run in 32.6 seconds and it covered a larger distance of 2.6km, braking for the Chiron was done in an equally impressive 9.3 seconds over a 491m distance – close but no cigar!

 

Now for those who can’t work out the maths, the Mighty Swede beat the Bugatti by over 5 seconds, in terms of Hyper Car talk, that’s one whole week! The Koenigsegg was able to do all that while struggling for grip in the first 3 gears, thankfully the Traction Control was able to sort it out and alongside the driver, they were able to propel it into the history books.

Another Thing to remember is that Koenigsegg is a relatively small company compared to Bugatti, so for them to be able to beat them is a huge feat – its the vehicle equivalent to David Vs Goliath!

So how is this going to go forward?, well it’d have to take some top class engineers to beat Koenigseggs time and if I’m honest, I don’t think we’ll see one for quite a while but to whoever decides to take them on, they would have to have guts of steel and quite a car on their hands to beat their time!

 

Hope You Enjoy!

By Alex Jebson

 

 

So here we have it, now we are both Volvo & Saab owners now, it is time for the obligitary Head to Head Discussion – Which Swede is Best Swede?

 

Now on the surface of things, Volvo & Saab may seem very similar to each other, their cars were both rivals to one another and their Trucks are also very much rivals to each other, also their headquarters are based about 50 miles away from each other – Volvo in Gothenburg, Saab in Trollhattan and essentially they both had their similar ways of building cars but as a matter of fact, they couldn’t be that different to each other. 

 We’ll start off with Saab first, The company started off as Aeroplane manufacturers in 1937 before eventually in 1947 they started moving onto making cars and commercial vehicles, Saab Automobiles ran from 1947 to 1995 and in that time, just like Volvo they made some truly good cars which were dependable, reliable and very well built as well as being sporty, Unlike Volvo however they were known in there early days for using small two & three cylinder engines which were 2 cycle engines – essentially meant you had to add oil to the fuel tank like you would with a two stroke lawnmower.

 In the 70’s & especially the 80’s they were known for going absolutely crazy with their cars and made a very good reputation for themselves by making turbocharged cars affordable with both the 99 Turbo and the 900 Turbo, now Saab were not the pioneers of turbocharging but they were the first to add it to one of their ordinary models and made it affordable to regular customers, this meant that their cars sold like hotcakes and everyone wanted one, they were safer than their competition, more reliable, better built and now in many ways quicker with the Turbocharger added.

 

By the early to Mid-Nineties, GM took over and bought Saab more upmarket, just before GM took over, Saab released the 9000, this was an executive saloon which was based on the Lancia Thema, the Fiat Croma and the Alfa 164, again, compared to both it’s rivals and even it’s sister cars it was better built and tons safer as well as bringing in a certain touch of Swedish class.

In GM Ownership however things took a bit of a downward turn, while there cars were as daft as ever, they were more subdued in terms of styling, The Turbo models weren’t as brash and worst of all, most of the parts were from GM’s parts bin which essentially meant that the UK Cars were based on Vauxhalls, now while some people may like Vauxhalls, they were not as well built as old Saabs which meant that the dependability and overall reliability of them weren’t as good as Saabs of old. The only exception to this were the Aero models which were truly a cut above the rest! 

However, Saab weren’t that stupid however, If they didn’t like what GM were giving to them, they’d simply either upgrade it or even make their own better version, while this worked out in terms of build quality, Saab were spending money which they could unfortunately never make back, and eventually in 2011, Saab Automobiles filed for bankruptcy and were filed to the history books.

 

Now in that time Saabs were very quirky cars, for instance, the keys were slotted into the centre console instead of the steering column – Why? Because Saab!, also in the 99 Turbo and the 900 Turbo, the engines were laid Longitudinally instead of transversely which made for an interesting driving experience, Also we can’t forget Saabs infamous Night Panel feature which essentially dimmed all the lights apart from the speedometer, These features made Saabs some of the quirkiest cars on the market.

Now Finally onto Volvo! – Volvo essentially started off as a ball bearing company before eventually just like Saab started to move into vehicle manufacturing, Volvo started in 1927 which meant that right off the bat, Volvo were already 20 years ahead in terms of car building, during their ninety year run, they have been renown for their outstanding safety ratings and have been a real pioneer in safety.

Just like Saab, Volvo have also made some quick models too which have included 242 Turbo’s, numerous T5’s, their R cars and now their Polestar lineup, now unlike Saab, Volvo are well known to use their 5 Cylinder engines to power their fast models which have made them some brilliant little sleepers as Volvo’s are normally festooned with Leather seats and all the comfort anyone would ever need.

Nowadays, Volvo are owned by the Geely Group and these days Volvo’s make some of the best premium cars out there, they have been able to bring in some really stylish cars into their line up which can now bring in some potential BMW owners & Mercedes owners into a Volvo Dealership instead.

The reason why Volvo have been able to stay afloat throughout these years is because they have been able to hide most of their shared parts very well indeed when owned by Ford, for instance, If you just so happen to own an mid noughts Aston Martin, you’ll find that the both the Key Fob & the Sat Nav system is actually a Volvo Unit, this means that on first glance, they didn’t share a lot in common with the other manufacturers Ford owned in that time. Volvo’s were still on the whole Volvo’s and Aston Martins still felt like Aston Martins. If Ford done the same with Volvo as what GM did with Saab, it’s highly likely that Volvo would end up the same as Saab.

 

So, where does this wind up for us petrolhead who can’t work out which Swedish car to go for? Well simply put, if you want a sporty Swedish car with crazy looks and added quirkiness, definitely go for a Saab, If you want to get there Quickly but in acres of comfort, go & buy a Volvo. Just remember, you’ll pay double for a decent 9-5 Manual compared to a decent V70 T5 Manual for instance!

 

Hope You Enjoy!

By Alex Jebson