Mir's Garage - Supercars, old cars, and wagons

That will be my second port of call when John gets back to me tomorrow - provided he cannot insure it. Have anything on a fleet policy so it's just neater this way, I'm ste with paperwork and that so the less the better. The way it works at the moment is the easiest thing in the world, any changes and whatnot are sorted with a single WhatsApp.

Thank you! Yes, the triple black thing is quite overplayed now, I've just realised it's been circa 12 years since I've owned a daily that wasn't black, and even that was dark blue - but at least I've had some silver bits here and there!

Hahahaha! The three (actual) rascals in question.



Annnnnd this is why they need to go in the boot..

How did your insurance quote go?

Righto, they've called to say problem solved. Collection set up for Weds, so time to clear out the Panamera!

Thanks for sharing, really good to hear how you're enjoying it

Afternoon all - hope we're enjoying the sun a little.

Small update on the RR and the Pista -

RR continues to be fab. I've installed a dog cage from a company called Guardsman, the dogs are very comfortable back there so OH is happy. I did a run down to central London in the car and I must say, I completely understand why city-slickers go in for these cars. Normally a trip into central London is unpleasant at best, between the aggressive drivers and the confusing roads, a simple man living in Devon is oft liable to get a little shell shocked. In the RR though, awesome - high up, loads of visibility lets you carry a bit of confidence - the car is super smooth and cossetting at the usual 10-20mph drawl through London. All in, I've never felt better getting in and out of the capital. Parked up in Belgravia and there were at least 4 that I could count, although all fitted with steering wheel locks. Thankfully I was only in and out in 20 minutes, although I must admit I was a little anxious about the car getting nicked. Oh well, it's insured I guess.



Does look shockingly at home out there. But, anyway, back to mud and fields for it before it's dreams of city life could go too far. Not for me, big cities.

Anyway, the Pista then.

Prepping for the trip up to Spain the Monday after next. Getting really excited about it now. Car went up to Carrs for a health check pre-trip, annoyingly I already have a chip in the windscreen, but opted to just secure it instead of sorting a new windscreen now, given I expect a few others up in the mountains. Only other thing to note is that the battery health itself is not very good, it's at 54% health, so due for a replacement after the driving season ends, towards winter, I suppose. Que some slight resentment from me toward the last owner for not using the car enough I guess! However, the upside is the techs came out to say they're happy there's some solid mileage being put on the car. Had it 2 months now, it's just ticked over 5000 miles - delivered with under 2000. Not bad going, but I reckon come July after both trips it's gonna be sat north of 10,000 - or so I hope.

I also got my first "proper" camera, mostly because of all these trips I'm taking - but also because I've always sort of wanted one, but never had the time to go through the motions of using the whole thing properly, so it'd have been a waste. Picked up a Sony A7 IV with the standard kit lens a couple of days ago, and that night I couldn't quite fall asleep, so I took the Pista out to a petrol station to test the thing out.

A bit of playing in Lightroom later, I got a few shots I think I'm happy with. I'm not sure if it's "good", but I'm having fun at least!









Finally, both the SLS and 911 are now up for sale.

Once both cars are gone, the search for something to replace will commence. Time for a change!

The shots definitely bring out the paint nicely. I could imagine them being a Shell advertisement

New set of Sport Cup 2s whacked back on the car, aligned and balanced. I must say, you can tell the difference through the wheel when mid corner. And a little bit on corner entry. Car is a bit nippier and a bit livlier. Glad I did it, weather forecast in Spain looks superb over the next week.

Babies first YouTube starter kit also ordered, no dreams of being a YouTuber, but definitely do want to record some of the roads with a GoPro. Should get here tomorrow. I'll head out in the car with a GoPro attached to check out the best angles on Saturday, if I feel well enough. Small hypoglycemic episode has me on my ass at the moment.

Right, nice big fat update then. Big road trip, things left the garage, things added to the garage, cars on order. Many many things. I'm in bed having caught something on the ferry on the way home, but thankfully it didn't kick in until I got home - now it has kicked in though it's knocked me on my arse.

First off, road trip. Massive 2300 miles covered in the Pista in 10 days - an absolutely spectacular trip and very pleased the car got driven hard. Some truly incredible roads and vistas. I did not take a lot of pictures because we didn't stop much, the driving was addictive and the fellas weren't hanging about - but when we did, I whipped the big camera out for some shots. Got a couple of GoPro videos of some truly spectacular roads as well which I may upload here later.



First thing I learned - leave the car unlocked on a Ferry. Helps with it not dying when you get to the other side. 22 hours of rough waters WILL constantly set off the alarm, and thankfully I did not succumb to this issue, but a few cars further back did. Deck access is completely locked off once you've set off, so not much to worry about. As you can see, some great company - including the real surprise of the trip, the 911 Dakar, which I think most of us had fallen a little in love with by the time we got back. Helps it was being driven very well. The image of a Dakar, sideways, with a big lean going on is forever seared into my memory. Absolutely epic.

Anyway, our route took us from Plymouth to Santander on board the Pont Aven. The crossing took circa 22 hours, which feels like an absolute lifetime when you're chomping at the bit to just get driving. Annoyingly, around an hour from disembarking - we were told over the tannoy about an "engine issue" which has slowed us to half speed, meaning it would be an extra 30 minutes before touching down in Santander. Agony!

The route would then take us from Santander, skirting some passes on the northern side of the Picos, then through to Oviedo, our night stop. We would then leave the Picos via some absolutely incredible motorways and head onward to Vidago Palace, where we'd stay 2 nights. The route to the second hotel was awesome, with a short scenic motorway blast, followed by dropping down onto some great roads around the Mirador Lancara de Luna before stopping for lunch.



After lunch we left the lakes and cut through some slate mines on our way to the first summit of the tour - the Alto Fuente de la Cueva. Otherwise known as dusty mountain. The Pista was rather lively here thanks to all the dust on the road surface killing any hopes of traction, but it was all entertaining nonetheless.





The summit was lovely as expected, we just sat there for a little while taking in the views.



Anyway, we also summited Alto del Carbajal after this, before shooting off down the motorway and into Portugal. Our hotel for the next two evenings was rather special. It was, quite literally, a palace.



The Vidago Palace hotel. Absolutely exceptional, fantastic food, nice pool, can't complain really. Had a phenomenal 3 course meal in the evening, and waking up in the morning we set off to do a loop around northern Portugal on some of the outstanding roads in the region. A particular highlight was a 30km stretch which serves as a development route for Porsche. Needless to say, with the Pista properly opened up here, I had an asbolute ball.

The next day we left for what was my personal highlight of the tour, the Serra da Estrela. Very famous by now, I'm sure - but continental Portugal's highest point - and some truly sublime driving roads. To get there, we followed the Duoro River east on the N-222.

Before getting to the SdE, we had a lunch stop at the most fantastic restaurant, with the following view! I was quite relieved to actually get to this restaurant because it had started raining and the Cup 2s were starting to get a little... uncooperative.



Food was top too. Casa de Sao Lourenco for anyone wanting to add to their route in the future. It's a beautiful little hotel.

Now.. The Serra da Estrella. Quite possibly the best road I've driven in my life. Beautifully surfaced, tight hairpins, big sweepers, nice and wide - and usually deserted, and some breathtaking scenery. Pista was incredibly at home here.



If you're wondering why the fog light was on in that one, well, the summit looked like this.



Barely visible in the background is the dome of the old radar station, located on the "Torre". The entire summit was engulfed in fog and cloud!

Anyway, climbing back down again - we parked up at the base and had a lovely dinner at the hotel, followed by some much needed sleep.

We had planned to wake up extra early the next day to catch the sunrise back at the summit, but sadly the weather did NOT cooperate and it was rather miserable, so we all opted to get some extra sleep. I will be back just for that one experience, I've promised myself.

We then dipped into Porto for a couple of nights, again using some awesome roads - before heading back along that lovely Porsche test route in the opposite direction (it's better backwards!), and finally right into the heart of the Picos.



Up in the Picos, it was actively snowing, and very empty. It was quite a bit of fun with the slippery damp surface, lower speeds, and hairpins. I'm guessing we all have a very good idea what happened next.

We stopped for some absolutely stunning scenery.





We checked in to a hotel at the base of the Picos, after some really tight and technical roads on the way back down - and then finally we made a start back for the Pont Aven, waiting faithfully in Santander to take us back over to Plymouth.

On the way back, we hit a few more beautiful roads as a final goodbye, along with soaking in the last of the epic views.



And then finally, we boarded the boat - grabbed some beers, and watched the sun set as we steamed back to ol' blighty.



This trip was something out of a dream for me. I've spent most of my life working my way to doing something like this, and using the fantasy of it to keep myself going in tougher times. I can still scarcely believe that I've done it, and I feel incredibly blessed to be able to do something like this. Even more surreal, I'll be doing another in just 7 weeks, because frankly I simply could not get enough.

About the Pista. Well, I learned so much about it on this trip. I've never driven it nearly has hard over this sort of distance. The immediate takeaway for me is that it is a remarkable vehicle. The next takeaway is that it gets more competent with heat. Heat in the tyres, heat in the brakes, and heat on the road surface. At circa 20-30 degrees tyre temperature it will still kick about like an angry mule and you have to quite stay on top of it. At 40-50 degree tyre temperature it's completely unflappable. The front end does not quit, no matter how hard or fast you try to turn it into a corner, and then on the way out the back end throws down all 700+hp and sends you down a road in a manner befitting a g-suit. The damping remained incredibly impressive, composed and controlled at all times. Steering and chassis are both, again, absolutely stunning when pushing on - very precise, and very communicative. Once you're in tune with the car, it definitely telegraphs what it's about to do through the wheel and your arse.

When it's wet, or colder, it becomes a bit wilder, but in a fun way. The only time I found understeer was in the wet, which was not too scary because we weren't pushing on quite so hard or fast, so the front end could be tucked back into compliance by just letting off the throttle a touch. The rear end is very easy to rotate under throttle in the wet, you don't really even need to try before you feel the car twisting itself around you, rear first. If you know what to look out for, you can start having a bit of fun with it. The only really scary moment this trip was under braking in the wet, when I'd slightly misjudged a corner that tightned. Upon realising I'd like the car to be a bit slower mid entry, I gently increased brake pressure ever so slightly, which caused a big buck from the rear as it attempted to come around under braking. A snap of oversteer and back to turn in quelled it, but it was a bit of a hairy one!

The car itself is now well used, and I'm quite satisfied by my work. It was delivered to me at the end of Jan with 1800mi. It now sits, around 3 months later, with 7110mi.



Ferrari know how to build some damn fine cars. I'm smitten. So smitten, I feel the need to sample a different sort of vehicle from them. Which brings me to my next section.

I came home and bought an 812. Not taken delivery yet, but I'm quite keen on the spec. TDF blue, tan comfort seats with black detailing. Sadly, to facilitate, the SLS and the 911 have both gone. Great cars, but I'd stopped driving them since getting the Pista. I'm starting to find what I like out of my cars. The character I find myself aligned to. Or maybe I'm just drunk on the Ferrari kool-aid. I have no idea, but I'm enjoying myself and have always wanted the legendary V12. It had to be a touring car, because I already have a mid-engined track special. 812 it was. Will update when the car comes in, probably end of the week coming, or perhaps the week after - I'm not in a rush though, I'm still on the come-down from this trip and I like to spread the good things in life out a little.

And one last "good thing", I've got an order in for the very polarising Dodici Cilindri. I think it's absolutely gorgeous, and 9500rpm out of an N/A V12 is just sublime. Before you ask - no, I did not need to buy the 812 to get the new car. I've had my order in from before I bought the 812, and slightly before the public announcement. I did not see the car early, though - but I'm quite relieved I personally enjoy the look. Before I start thinking of spec, though, I want to see it myself. Helpfully, I'm attending the factory launch at the end of the month, so I will get to get my grubby little hands on it and then we'll go from there.

Anyway, cheers all if you've sat through this entire bloody thing!

What an update, what a fantastic trip - sounds unreal.

Love the moody shot of the Pista with the snow-capped mountains as a back drop - another one for the wall of the garage.

Thanks! The Cup 2s are a bit of an interesting one - they were perfect for 70% of the driving on there, once you can get some temperature in them they're fantastic. Circa > 30C and they start performing quite decently, and I was up to 60 degrees in the tyres at some points! Usually after a single pass the tyres stay at 40-45 degrees, until we either go quicker or it gets hotter. Once it gets damp, it's still OK if the tyre has a bit of heat in them. Of course, once it gets into "wet" they become utterly useless, and given there were a few of those sections, it is a weigh-off. Most guys were running Cup 2s on their GT3s, GT4s, and RS stuff - so it is definitely the right tyre for the job, just gotta take it a little easier when the car's been sitting for a little while and the temps have come off, or when it starts raining.

I had to let some pressure out of the tyres given the heat and all - dropped them to around 1.9 bar cold - then they heated to circa 2.3-2.4 bar. They were at 2.7-2.8 bar hot when we rolled off the boat, and the thing was quite nervous, especially the front end. Felt much better with some pressure out.

Thank you, definitely something ticked off my bucket list!!

Yes, for sure! I'll share as much as I can - I remember reading stuff like this, posted by other guys, before I could even dream of having a supercar - I spent far too much time on forums reading ownership threads for various exotic things - I'm very glad to have my own.