Modern Classics Magazine January 2020

The original Gran Turismo game fuelled my burgeoning love of cars like a shot of nitrous. Something changed forever on 12 May 1998 when I plugged in my 13th birthday present – a Sony Playstation – and first heard that Chemical Brothers remix of Everything Must Go by the Manic Street Preachers. My experience of cars from Japan to that point had been limited to a few goes on Sega Rally and my dad's Nissan Sunny 1.6LX... It might be two decades since I first got my thumbs on an analogue stick but I can still remember every apex of Trial Mountain. So swapping that fictional circuit for Blyton Park this month made for one of the best days at work ever. It also revealed what the console never could: the pure, visceral…

JOHN-JOE VOLLANS EDITOR Love affair with the Toyota Celica continues (he might be doing some trialling in it). Cabin light did drain the battery though. NATHAN CHADWICK ASSISTANT EDITOR Tried to counter Ghibli Cup obsession by reading buying guides. Cup-specific turbos are £5k to replace. Each. Put off? Nope. SIMON RUSSELL ART EDITOR Loves his X-Type, but now wants a dad-wagon estate. Spent most of the month scouring the ‘net. Overly fussy he’ll be looking for ages. JETHRO BOVINGDON COLUMNIST Despite his best efforts, he couldn’t get his Citroen DS to drift round Blyton. What DID he drift? See more on the next month page. TIFF NEEDELL COLUMNIST Twitter conversation led to fond memories of wrestling a Saab 900 Turbo around Donington Park decades ago. LEWIS KINGSTON MARKETS EXPERT Found he needed a winter hack, so did the decent thing and bought a MkI Ford Focus. It…

Not quite Miami, is it? Sadly we couldn’t quite stretch the budget this month for a trip to the US, so Norfolk had to do. If you squint, it’s exactly the same. Only we’d rather have Cuban food than fish and chips... Good with his hands Nathan is aware of the existance of tools but to date they’ve been something other people use. This month, with the help of Sealey and JJ, he managed to remove the 147’s undertray. Showtime We enjoyed our time at the Lancaster Insurance NEC Classic Motor Show with Discovery, and our stand was very popular. Thanks to Lewis, Izzy and Abbi for their help manning the stand. Squeezy does it Driving a rally-prepared Toyota Celica requires one or two sacrifices, but even a freshly slimline JJ struggled with the scaffolding. Spent the…

KAZUNORI YAMAUCHI GRAN TURISMO CREATOR We speak to the visionary behind the world’s most popular racing game about its formation – and what the future holds for the next-generation version. JANN MARDENBOROUGH RACING DRIVER GT Academy racing driver and all-round good egg Jann explains how he turned his bedroom gaming prowess into a real-life motorsports career. JAMES AGGER CERBERA OWNER James brought along the Cerbera. Saw the funny side when Nathan chose the last run to bypass Blyton’s back straight chicane – without warning him. TREVOR SHELDRAKE SKYLINE OWNER Trevor’s Skyline wears very expensive wheels, so Nathan was careful on Blyton’s kerbs. Trevor told JJ to take over and ‘give it some’. Top man.…

It may have been going for 35 years but the Classic Motor Show always brings out the best gems, whether hypercars or bargain projects. This year was no different, with a Peugeot 505 Turbo Injection providing grimy glory, which contrasted with a gleaming Maserati GranSport 90th Anniversary, one of just 90 built, 14 in RHD. Elsewhere, the BMW Car Club GB celebrated the E31 8 Series's birthday with a lineup of models, from 840CI to thundering 850CSI, while Porsche Classic brought along some freshly restored gems. Some more intriguing classics could be found on the smaller club stands. We particularly liked the mint 'Top Gear' Toyota Celica GT-Four and the area dedicated to early 90s Japanese GTs – glorious examples of the Toyota Supra, Mitsubishi 3000GT and Nissan 300ZX in close proximity. A…

The last Breakfast Club of 2019 ended up being one of Goodwood's most popular out-of-season gatherings – further demonstrating the UK's love for 80s youngtimers. 660 modern classics made the trip to West Sussex for free entry and a moderately-priced fry up, bringing 7500 enthusiasts with them. The pitlane straight and paddock was packed out with cars up to and including those built before a 1991 cut-off. Interest from the crowds was ferocious;. This was the first 80s Sunday at Breakfast Club, and we doubt it'll be the last.…