CAR’S CURVEBALLS
6 questions only we would ask
Tell us about your irst car?
‘My irst car was a 1982 Toyota Corolla. It was front-wheel drive and it was actually a car that my girlfriend at the time gave me. It was the car I learned how to drive in. Back then I would do things like go into intersections as fast as I could until the car understeered, or try locking the brakes deliberately... I really learned about cars in that car.’
What achievement makes you most proud?
‘Gran Turismo’s status is now so much more than a video game.’
What’s the best thing you’ve ever done in a car?
‘The 2011 Nürburgring 24-hour race. That was very memorable for me because I was racing the SP8T class in a Nissan GTR. It was the irst time I experienced a class victory in a race, which was very satisfying. The conditions on the track were constantly changing but I really felt at one with the machine.’
Tell us when you screwed up?
‘The R32 GTR I crashed. I still feel bad about that to this day.’
Supercar or classic?
‘Through things like Pebble Beach and the Mille Miglia I’ve just started to discover how great classic cars are; they’re fantastic. In the Mille Miglia I drove the Mercedes 300SL, for four days, 16 hours a day, at pretty much full speed. That was tougher than 24 hours of the Nürburgring but also fun to do.’
Company curveball… What was unusual about the Suzuki Escudo?
‘That was a memorable car for a lot of people. I remember that car well – I’m actually friends with the guy who created that car, and built it. There was a bug in the game where you could drive along the wall in the Escudo and get up to 1000km/h or something!’