Andrew Lloyd

Hertz Car Hire to offer sports car rental

Leading car hire provider, Hertz, have announced their plans to offer supercar rental services following a partnership with Premiere Velocity.

The full range of the state of the art vehicles will be available to view online via Hertz’s website with a 5% discount being offered to customers who book through the site. Drivers wishing to hire one of the vehicles from the elite hire range must be aged 25 years and over and have no more than 6 points on their driving licence. If the client wishes to take their hired supercar out of the country in which they’re collecting and arranging the hire, this can be accommodated at an additional cost.

The fleet of supercars available to hire through Hertz includes some of the most sought after vehicles in the world including the stunning Rolls Royce Phantom, Range Rover Evoque, Mercedes Roadster, Audi R8, Bentley Continental, Aston Martin DB9, Lamborghini models and also the Ferrari Italia and Porsche Carrera Cabriolet to name just a handful of the stand out vehicles available for hire through Hertz.

Prices for supercar hire start at £150 although rates are calculated depending upon length of hire period and also the car model. A meet and greet service is also available whereby your hired sports car of 4 x 4 will be delivered to you at a pre-arranged location such as an office, airport, hotel or your home. For more information on the brand new sports car hire service offered by Hertz, please see the company website.

The Cars for Stars finalists for the Transport Broker Awards 2011/12 are announced

The waiting is over and the Cars for Stars finalists for this year’s annual Transport Broker Awards ceremony due to take place on January 7^th 2012 at the Celtic Manor Resort and Spa, South Wales, have been named.

As with every year, the awards are split into regional and national categories, with the finalists for Agent of the Year in each region for companies working under the Cars for Stars banner revealed as the following –

Agent of the Year – Scotland

Pink Limo Co and LA Limos

Agent of the Year – North East

Elite Limos and Millennium

Agent of the Year – North West

Star Limos, Melrose, Lady Jayne

Agent of the Year – Midlands

Manns Limos, SV Limos, Midlands

Agent of the Year – South West and London

Limo World, Finishing Touch Cars, City Chauffeur Services

Agent of the Year – South East and London

Wild Stretch, Essex Limos, Absolute Style

Agent of the Year – Wales and West Country

Swansea Limos, All Stretched Out, Just Exclusive

There are seven national awards in total which will see Limo Broker agents and Cars for Stars agents and Coach Broker agents battle it out head to head for these coveted trophies. The finalists for the national awards for Best Fleet, Best Customer Services, Best Wedding Car Company, Best Limousine, Best Wedding Car, Best Coach and Agent of the Year will all be revealed on the night along with the winners.

For a full rundown of all of the transport providers nominated across all three companies which make up the Transport Broker Group, namely Limo Broker, Cars for Stars and Coach Broker, please see the main Transport Broker Awards website.

Is this the most expensive sports car crash ever?

A car accident in Japan on Sunday saw a fleet of gleaming Ferraris collide with a Lamborghini and three Mercedes Benz sports cars and two other vehicles is what many are describing as the most expensive car pileup in history.

Eight Ferraris were reported to have been involved in the smash that happened on the southern prefecture of Yamaguchi on Sunday morning. It’s thought the driver of one of the Ferraris tried to change lanes but ended up hitting the middle barrier, after which the other Ferraris piled into the sports car as it spun 180 degrees in the highway, causing the rest of the cars following to crash also.

It is believed the luxury cars were all being drive in convoy to Hiroshima by members of an automobile enthusiasts club. One eyewitness described the vehicles as travelling between 85-100mph.

10 people were reported to have sustained minor injuries as a result of the pileup, although no one was seriously hurt. The highway was closed for 6 hours after the crash as the emergency authorities attempted to clear the debris and luxury sports cars from the road.

It’s been estimated that the cost of the accident could run to £2.46 million with many of the Ferraris involved in the accident said to completely written off as a result of the smash.

100 year old state limousine expected to fetch £100k at auction

A classic Lanchester limousine dating back almost 100 years is expected to fetch a massive £100,000 when it goes under the hammer on today. The 38 horsepower car was especially made for an Indian Maharaja in 1912 and later returned to the UK in the 1960’s where it was restored to full working order.

The vintage state limo is one of only three 38 horsepower known Lanchester models and the earliest version of all three too making it especially rare. Despite being one of the earliest models, the Lanchester was believed to have boasted a top speed of 60mph.

The Maharaja was so fond of the car that he later ordered a 40 horsepower version to succeed his first Lanchester. Although he employed a chauffeur, the Maharaja would choose to drive the car himself and even had a special area in the passenger foot well for his chauffeur to sit on the floor while he drove the car.

The engine for the car is situated between the driver and the passenger and the vehicle even features a steering wheel known as a “fat man’s steering wheel” as it collapses to make it easier for larger drivers to get in. The Lanchester has a fan in the roof run off the battery, although the roof also comes off so it can be driven as a convertible tourer model.

The Lanchester was custom made for Maharaja Rewa who would have paid £1,200 for the vehicle which would have been the equivalent value to a whole row of houses at the time; now, almost 100 years on, the collector’s item is estimated to sell for 100 times that amount.

Chauffeur driven Mercedes vans the transportation of choice for New York’s super rich

A new trend is emerging amongst the super wealthy in New York for chauffeur driven customised Mercedes Sprinter Vans. From the outside, the sleek long base vans look unassuming enough, but take a look inside and you’ll find a spacious interior decked out with wall-to-wall state of the art luxury features.

It seems the humble chauffeur driven limousine may have a serious competitor in the new customised Mercedes vans being offered for sale to transport busy executives. These luxury vans are proving popular among business types in the Big Apple, with many kitting their new Mercedes Sprinters out as mobile offices, while others see them more as a party bus, or somewhere to go and get some peace and quiet.

As all of the Mercedes Vans can be customised to suit the requirements of the specific client, there’s no end to the amazing onboard features some of these wealthy owners bestow on their new toys. Many have been decked out with leather sofas and Persian rugs, while others have reclining massage chairs and couches that turn into beds, while most have onboard bars and several plasma screens, Wi-Fi, gold plated buttons and even children’s entertainment areas.

Mercedes decided to start offering customised vans after they noted an increase in the number of clients employing designers to kit out their van interiors. Now by offering the service in-house, Mercedes are attracting a number of new customers with 8,000 of their $41,315 vans being sold in the first year or being offered, and 13,000 so far this year.

Classic cars could be excused from getting an MOT

There could be good news for classic car owners as the government is currently reviewing the system of MOT certificates for pre-1960 vehicles to see if there could be cost savings made to both the government and the owners by scrapping the MOT service for older vehicles.

The EU rules make allowances for governments to set their own standards for vehicles which can be deemed of historical interest. It is under these rules that the new proposals are being considered.

Transport Minister Mike Penning has initiated consultations on the subject of exempting classic cars from MOT servicing. According to the transport minister, classic cars are well maintained by their owners as a matter of principle and they don’t need to be told to look after their cars with regular servicing.

Recent statistics also show that classic cars are less likely to be involved in accidents with just 0.03% of incidents which have resulted in injury being recorded with classic cars, while these vintage vehicles only make up a very small proportion of cars on UK roads, estimated to stand at 0.6% of the 35.2 million cars on British roads.

Three consultations are being carried out to review whether pre-1920 cars, pre-1945 and pre-1960 cars should be made exempt from the current MOT regulations. The consultations are scheduled to run until January 2012.

If the proposals are accepted following the consultation, then the scrapping of MOT’s for classic cars could lead to savings for both the government and the owners of the vehicles.

McLaren’s new sports car manufacturing plant opened by PM

The new McLaren manufacturing plant in Surrey was opened this week by the Prime Minister, David Cameron, signalling good news for the manufacturing industry in the UK with the creation of 700 jobs which is likely to rise to 1,000 in the coming years.

The £50 million state of the art factory based on the outskirts of Woking, Surrey, will provide the platform for the Formula One car makers to start creating road cars on a large scale, putting them in direct competition with the likes of Lamborghini and Ferrari.

McLaren have already produced 100 of their MP4-12C sports car models which have a minimum starting price of £168,000 a piece. The initial run of 100 of the luxury MP4 sports cars have already been shipped to customers across the world, including Japan, America and Germany, although the plant has plans to produce 4,000 of these vehicle by 2015.

As well as setting themselves a high target of 4,000 MP4-12C sports cars to be produced in the next four years, McLaren also revealed that they hope to create a new model every year from the new Woking factory.

McLaren’s Chairman, Ron Dennis, revealed that Formula One will continue to play an important role in the existence of McLaren, although it will represent a smaller percentage of their overall business in years to come as the luxury car makers plans to concentrate its efforts in manufacturing road cars as well as racing vehicles.

Brits vote for their favourite movie car of all time

British film and car lovers have voted and the decision is official, the 1963 Aston Martin DB5 as seen in the James Bond movie, Goldfinger, is officially the best movie car of all time.

The online poll was carried out by Auto Express with thousands of fans logging on to have their say on their favourite movie car. There was plenty of choice as well with 50 vehicles shortlisted for the prize and open to voters including the Lexus as driven by Tom Cruise in Minority Report and even the flying Anglia which Ron Weasley is seen driving in the Harry Potter films.

However coming out head and shoulders above the rest had to be one of the coolest sports cars in the world; the stunning Aston Martin DB5 was driven by Sean Connery who was starring as the international spy 007 in the classic James Bond movie, Goldfinger. The speedy sports car, which boasts 282bhp, retains its wow factor as it was sold for a massive £2.6 million at auction last year – no wonder it’s been voted the best movie car of all time.

Coming in second place was the 1981 Delorean as seen in the Back to the Future movies, one of the three surviving models of which is expected to fetch in excess of $1 million when it goes under the hammer next month. The third placed car is the iconic Mini Cooper featured in the Michael Caine movie, the Italian Job.

Lamborghini crosses finish line while on fire

A daring rally driver from Tasmania has earned the nickname of the Tasmanian Devil after he continued to race his Lamborghini sports car across the finish line to win the rally despite the fact his vehicle had caught on fire.

The jaw-dropping incident occurred as the driver, Jason White, was nearing the finishing stages of the Targa High Mountain Rally. The brand new Lamborghini Gallardo Super Trofeo Stradle suddenly caught alight with flames coming out of the rear of the luxury car as it neared the last few bends of the rally.

While most rally drivers would have immediately pulled over and doused the flames in an attempt to salvage their precious sports car, Jason White only had victory on his mind, and instead hit the accelerator, powering through to the finishing line to clinch first place and 10 second ahead of the second place driver.

The rally driver’s daring antics meant he succeeded in passing reigning rally champion, Tony Quinn who was behind the wheel of a Nissan GT-R, despite being four seconds behind coming into the finishing stages.

Luckily for the plucky rally driver, the finishing line was opposite a fire station, with the fire brigade quickly coming to the aid of the Lamborghini, putting the fire out in a matter of minutes.

With the fire extinguished, the £385,000 Lamborghini was then free to go and make its victory lap of honour at the winner’s circle, much to the delight of the onlookers.

Virgin Australia revamps chauffeur driven limo service for business passengers

Virgin Australia are offering a revamped and improved chauffeur driven limo hire service to transport those flying business class with the airline carrier, providing these passengers with a cost effective and hassle free transfer to the airport.

The availability of the private hire service is being extended through to December 25^th, offering Virgin business class passengers travelling on any of the coast to coast flights between Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth a complimentary chauffeured airport transfer. The service is free of charge as long as the passenger’s pick up or drop off point is within 60km of the airport they’re flying from, anything over the 60km will be charged extra.

Virgin Australia stipulates that all business class passengers will be transported in a “luxury sedan” driven by a professional chauffeur and that the service is available on both outbound and inbound journeys.

The air carrier recommends that passengers wishing to make use of the complimentary chauffeur service book their car as soon as they book their flight to ensure they reserve a time which suits their needs, however the chauffeur service can be booked up to 24 hours prior to the flight.

Virgin Australia have been capitalising on the recent airline strikes being experienced by rival airline, Qantas, with Virgin reporting a boom in business as Qantas passengers turn to them for the flights during the strike periods. Virgin are hoping to tempt Qantas passengers into staying with them for the future through their improved complimentary chauffeur service for airport transfers in Australia.

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