CHRISTMAS MOTORING GIFT GUIDE
We’ve got the festive giving season all wrapped up, whatever your budget
Most of us know a car fanatic or two with a dream garage list as long as their arm. Unless you’re made of money you won’t be helping them fulfil that dream of a new Ferrari so we’ve come up with some alternatives.
Whatever your budget there’s a gift out there to suit the petrolhead in your life. Here’s our handy guide to some of the best.
UP TO £10
● Pistonheads motoring mug, £9.99 Online clothing and accessories site Shot Dead in the Head has a sleigh-full of motoring related goodies, from stickers to hoodies. But everyone loves a cuppa so why not got for one of the hundreds of motoring mugs? If this Walter Rohrl one doesn’t appeal there are designs covering everything from specific models to cars of the silver screen. (www.Shotdeadinthehead.com)
● Dashboard grip strip, £6.99 A neat alternative to a clunky plastic mount, this specially formulated sticky pad will stick anything from phones to sunglasses to your dash. Peelable, washable and working without any extra adhesive it’s ideal for car lovers who hate clutter. (www.firebox.com)
● Top Trumps sports cars, £3.99 A childhood favourite still going strong. Top Trumps is the ultimate card game for stat fans and the sports car edition will let car fanatics compare top speeds, engine size and more of everything from Aston Martins to Zondas. (www.winningmoves.co.uk)
UP TO £25
● Halfords Advanced modular tray set, £25 Halfords has just launched a new range of its Advanced tool sets. Prices range from £20 to £45 and cover everything from screwdrivers to socket sets. Among them is this four-piece plier set featuring a pair of linesman pliers, a diagonal cutter, longnose pliers and a set of curved jaw locking pliers. All the tools are made with chrome vanadium and come with a no-quibble lifetime guarantee. (Halfords.com)
● Muc-off car care, £19 Muc-off have been a huge name in the mountain biking world since the 1990s, helping riders get their bikes clean after a day on the trails. In recent years they’ve branched out into other markets, including car care. For those fastidious car owners the Muc-off 4 Step Car Care Kit packs in wheel cleaner, car s hampoo, speed wax, glass cleaner and a microcell sponge. I t’s all preented s in a handy cary r bag to help keep it tidy. (www.Halfords.com)
● VW campervan fairy lights, £24.99 Officially licensed by VW themselves, these will brighten up the decorations of any Dub nut. Battery-powered so they can be used anywhere, the three-metre string features 20 1/60th-scale camper vans in four colours. (www.autoregalia.co.uk)
UP TO £50
● Nextbase 112 Dash Cam, £35 An increasingly popular addition to people’s dashboards, incar cameras can help prove fault if you’re involved in an incident on the road. The Nextbase 112 is a lowcost option which features a wide-angle lens and 720p HD recording. Its click and go mount means it can easily be removed and used to take still images as well and SOS data protection ensures footage of any impact/incident cannot be deleted. (Halfords.com)
● Haynes Build Your Own V8 engine kit, £39.99 If you can’t own a V8-powered muscle car this is perhaps the next best thing. The 300-piece set allows a carmad loved one to construct their own model V8 engine, complete with light-up spark plugs and realistic engine sound. Helping them piece it together is a Haynes-style instruction manual. (smythstoys.com)
● RAC Advanced breakdown kit, £31.99 Nobody wants to break down but if you do find yourself stuck at the roadside it’s best to be properly equipped. Motoring experts the RAC offer three different levels of breakdown kits. The mid-level Advanced set features a warning triangle, foil blanket, high visibility vest, wind-up torch, tow rope, wheel wrench and foot pump to help deal with any incidents. The £55.99 Ultimate kit adds a fire extinguisher, first aid kit and jump leads. (www. racshop.co.uk)
£50 AND BEYOND
● Tomtom Bandit action camera, £239.99 Ideal for anyone with a passion for track days or even a more serious interest in motorsport. The Bandit is a dinky little white cylinder packing some serious camera hardware. It can shoot in up to 4K or full HD at 60fps and offers stills and timelapse too. Picture quality is fantastic for such a simple-looking device and editing is a doddle thanks to the shake-to-edit function. Doing away with the hours of laborious editing that can come with shoot-action ing footage, this uses GPS, accelerometer and gyroscopes to pick “highlights” as you film. Then with a shake of your smartphone the dedicated app will edit these together into a seamless reel of your greatest moments.
The Bandit comes with ultra-slimline fixed mounts and there’s an ingenious 360-degree tilt and swivel mount perfect for fixing it to a car. There are also mounts for helmets, handlebars, and wristbands for other adventurous pursuits. (Tomtom.com)
● Garmin Driveassist £279.99 A combined sat nav and dashcam the Driveassist looks to mimic many of the features built in to high-spec modern cars.
The satnav features garmin’s proven European mapping with free updates for life. It also includes live traffic information and will offer to reroute you around delays, as well as being able to highlight petrol stations, restaurants etc along your route.
The Driveassist’s built-in camera acts as a dashcam that will automatically save footage in the case of an impact. It also offers driver aids such as lane-keeping warnings, collision alert, traffic sign recognition. (www.garmin.com)
● Driving experience, from £129 What better thrill for a motor-mad family member than the chance to take to the track for a day?
Fife’s Knockhill Racing Circuit offers a whole host of different driving experiences so there’s bound to be one to suit your loved one. Speed freaks can go for a passenger ride in a Ferrari F430 or get behind the wheel of one of the circuit’s new Honda Civic Type Rs or even a classic Jaguar E-type. For those more interested in off-road pursuits there are rally and 4x4 driving experiences on the circuit’s purpose-built courses. Even younger petrolheads are catered for with Teen Drive and karting sessions for those not yet old enough to hold a licence. (www. Knockhill.com)