CT Garage Kudos: Sebhaque's Enviable Car Collection

Since pushing the big red button on the all-new Car Throttle website, one of the features you’ve loved most has been the CT Garage. You’ve already uploaded hundreds of your rides for all to admire, and some of you guys have taken great pride to tell us all about your pride and joy.

One such user is sebhaque, who has uploaded 11 cars including a BMW M3, a VTEC-engined Mini and Porsche 911, with a detailed description of each. To reward his fine work, we’re featuring five of our favourite cars from his awesome collection.

If you think your CT Garage is worthy of the front page, email teamct@carthrottle.com and we’ll feature our favourites. For now, however, kudos to you Sebhaque!

2010 Nissan 370Z GT

This replaced an M6, which came to the surprise of a lot of people. I wanted something I could use day-to-day but would still make me happy driving it. I also let myself run free with the modifications as, well my CarThrottle garage has rather a high turnover for someone who’s been driving for six years. And I haven’t included some of my old sheds.

I’ve strapped a few bolt-on bits to the Nissan - a new exhaust, high-flow cats, new intakes. The standard 370Z sounds far too quiet so it’s got a bit of flavour to it now. Cleverly quiet at warm idle but makes a racket at WOT north of 5000rpm - and a little too loud for 6am weekday cold starts. Sorry neighbours.

I’ve also had the wheels done black as I think it offsets the white quite well. I don’t want to lower it or slap bodykits on it etc - cosmetically I think the car looks fine as it is. Maybe I’ll black up the door handles.

To live with, the car’s fairly easy-going. Fuel consumption isn’t that bad, all-round visibility’s good, it’s comfortable and the boot is big enough for a suitcase. Just the one though, so if you’re travelling with a missus you’ll have to settle for a carrier bag of clothes next to her suitcase. It’s a capable car on the corners although the traction control has plainly come off a Micra or something as it’s incredibly restrictive and fires off at even the slightest hint of wheel slip - even pulling out of a junction at a normal speed. Quite a fun way of seeing how smooth you can drive without aggravating the tc, though. Acceleration-wise, the 370Z is also quick enough to outpace E46 M3s (just!) and generally gives drivers a headache as most people seem to expect it to be a lot slower than it is.

Overall, a decent bit of kit. Nothing to show off to the world, but something to be proud of owning.

2005 Subaru Impreza WRX STi

I loved this car. The Impreza is a car that is definitely worth owning at some point - it’s one of my favourite cars (still) and a friend of mine, who’s driven McLaren P1s and Bugatti Veyrons still remembers his time behind the wheel of my Subaru fondly. It handles everything you can throw at it, it’s reliable, and the lovely uneven-header rumble is gorgeous. My car history isn’t exactly sparse, but #1 on the re-buy list is a Subaru Impreza STI.

2004 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo FQ-360

How can a rival to the Impreza be so bad? I hated my Evo. While there’s no denying it was faster than the Subaru, it was also very hard to live with. Servicing intervals of 4500 miles (compared to 12500 miles), a ridiculously poor turning circle, 5 gears (compared to 6) and a resultant mpg of almost half of the Impreza - I really struggled to like the Evo. It makes sense if you trailer it around the country and attack a track in it. It doesn’t make sense if you want to use it to actually move around the country.

Maybe I’m the wrong type of buyer. The car was intended to take out on the backroads over the weekends, maybe use for a few longer journeys where I needed some power (e.g. motorways) and then drive to/from a track day to have some fun. It failed on all but the first. I like to think I’m quite au-fait with most cars but I really didn’t like the Evo.

2005 BMW M6

When you’re feeling a bit down, a bit stressed or even a bit tired, simply taking the M6 for a drive and reminding yourself you have FIVE HUNDRED HORSEPOWAHH under your right foot is a pretty good way to solve most problems and make yourself feel better.

This car is the epitome of Grand Tourer. It’s a big ol’ beast with four comfortable chairs and soft enough suspension that you won’t be crashing around all day. Strapping a monstrous 5-litre V10 to said GT car doesn’t change much until you hit that little nondescript M button on the wheel - the HUD changing to the rev counter is symbolic of what’s to come - flapping down a fear gears and burying the throttle results in the equivalent of a small bungalow being shot forwards at lightning speed. The M6 is fast. Very fast. Almost too fast, if such a thing were to exist. Plant your foot and within a few seconds you’d be breaking every speed limit in the country.

“The M6 is so powerful that taking it on a twisty road is like pouring a cuppa using a fire hose.”

Fuel consumption… well, put it this way. In my ownership of the car there were more journeys in the car that involved a trip to the petrol station, than journeys that didn’t involve one. I think the car was returning ~5-10mpg in traffic and a frugal 18-21mpg on a gentle motorway run. Consequently the car was swallowing up £80-odd of fuel every 220 miles. Definitely a car to be run on a champagne lifestyle.

Why did I get rid? Well, the summary of the two paragraphs above. There’s not really anywhere aside from a motorway that you can let the M6 stretch it’s legs as taking it on a twisty road is like pouring a cuppa using a fire hose. I also couldn’t justify to myself having such a brilliant car sat there not doing much, costing me loads in fuel just to take to work and back to give it a run once in a while.

The M6 feels almost designed for the American market. Cars are bigger over there, the roads are long, straight, and wide, and fuel is cheap. If ever I move to the US I would quite like to revisit an M6.

2004 Vauxhall VX220 Turbo

A few modifications really transform the VXT from feeling like a Vauxhall, to something better than its sister Lotus. In a good set of hands, it’s quick enough around the corners to make most people start to feel sick (note: track day corners), and it’s very adept at getting some speed on south of 100mph. My breathed-on VXT was able to crack the 0-60 run in under 4 seconds - 4.2 on a gentle launch. For those who want performance on a budget, look no further. Cheap servicing, tiny tyres, 40mpg on a run and normally more capable than the driver - that’s the VX. Highly recommended.

Don’t forget to upload your ride to the Garage, and leave a detailed description. You could be on the front page soon!