Chauffeur News | Cars for Stars News

Lady Gaga’s quirky gift for her UK chauffeur

Lady Gaga has gifted her British chauffeur with a year’s supply of nappies and also handed over the services of her personal interior design team to deck out the her driver’s spare room into a nursery after learning that he’s about to become a father for the very first time.

True to style, the Bad Romance singer didn’t want to give a traditional present to her chauffeur after learning about the happy news, but instead opted for a typically unusual present to celebrate her chauffeur’s special event.

While her choice of gifts are not your typical run-of-the-mill present, they are very practical and generous nonetheless. A source close to the star said Gaga is always generous towards those who look after her, and the chauffeur in question has been driving the singer since she started performing in the UK several years ago and has always taken good care of the wacky songstress.

However the lucky chauffeur will have to wait until after the festive period for his gifts to be delivered by Lady Gaga as the US pop star is planning celebrate Christmas in New York with her family. Gaga’s new boyfriend, Vampire Diaries actor Taylor Kinney, will also reportedly be joining the singer and her family on Boxing Day.

Emirates open “limo lounge” where passengers wait for their chauffeur car at Heathrow

Emirates airline have opened a brand new “limo lounge” facility at Heathrow’s Terminal 3 where business class and first class incoming passengers travelling with the airline can make a pit stop before being collected in their chauffeur driven limo.

The new mini arrivals lounge is situated just 15 metres from the area where the Emirates chauffeured cars are parked which means passengers only need walk a very short distance to be whisked away by their personal chauffeur.

Emirates say the new lounge at Terminal 3 is not an arrivals lounge, but more a rest area where passengers can stop for a break between leaving the plane and being collected in their car. The mini lounge is still kitted out with comfortable seating for up to 30 people, plus there are tea and coffee and refreshment facilities, and also a business area with free Wi-Fi and also PCs. An on-call porter service is also supplied to assist with luggage.

The airline anticipates that 200 passengers flying business class or first class with Emirates will make use of the new facility daily. Emirates say they anticipate the new rest area will ensure passengers enjoy a “seamless journey” with a designated lounge a few steps from the plane where passengers can wait in comfort for their limo to chauffeur them to their final destination.

Former chauffeur to Heather Mills in court over photocopied disabled badge

A former chauffeur to Heather Mills was in court this week after he was caught using a photocopy of the 43-year-old celebrity’s disabled parking badge on a recent shopping trip.

65-year-old chauffeur Stewart Simonson claimed he had photocopied the Blue Badge belonging to Heather Mills with her knowledge as she often forgot to carry the parking badge with her, and so he had a copy for the purposes of convenience.

However on the day in question, Mr Simonson had displayed the Blue Badge on his own car while parked on a yellow line. When Traffic Wardens inspected the badge, the recognised the image on the back as someone famous, which was later identified as Heather Mills, the ex-wife of Beetle Sir Paul McCartney.

The chauffeur admitted that the blue badge was a copy of the original held by Heather Mills. Ms Mills is eligible to have a disabled parking badge as she lost a leg in a road traffic accident in 1993, however there was no suggestion that the mother-of-one was aware that her former chauffeur was using the photocopy of her Blue Badge.

The 65-year-old private hire driver revealed that he suffered with severe arthritis which resulted in him having to retire 6 months ago, Mr Simonson added that he had also applied for his own Blue Badge due to his condition.

In court this week Mr Simonson pleaded guilty to using the Blue badge illegally 6 months after leaving the employment of Heather Mills. He was ordered to pay £650 in fines and costs as a result.

George Harrison’s Aston Martin sports car to go under the hammer in London

A 1960’s classic Aston Martin DB5 sports car originally owned by Beetle’s legend George Harrison will be sold at auction in London this week and is expected to fetch in the region of £225,000- £260,000 when it goes under the hammer.

The extra special vintage sports car is being sold along with 60 other lots at the True Greats London auction due to take place this week in the capital. The 1964 Aston Martin was delivered to George Harrison on January 1^st 1965 and was custom made to order especially for the music star.

As well as boasting a top speed of 148mph and 0-60mph of just 7.1 seconds, the Beetle also requested a number of special features on his new DB5 including chrome wire wheels, 3 ear hub caps, FIAM horns, and a detachable passenger headrest to name just a handful of the extra features included on the classic car. The Aston Martin has been maintained in pristine condition having spent much of its life on show at a Tokyo museum and currently has just over 22,000 miles on the clock.

As well as the classic Aston Martin DB5 with its famous previous owner, other vehicles of note that are due to go under the hammer at the True Greats auction include a 1937 Mercedes Benz Cabriolet A which is estimated to fetch between £500,000 – £600,000 and a Cord 810 Phaeton which once belonged to Led Zepplin’s Jimmy Page.

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.

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.

Birmingham NEC hosts the Classic Motor Show

This weekend saw Birmingham NEC play host to one of the biggest car exhibitions in the UK, with over 1,650 vintage cars and bikes displayed at the arena as part of the hugely popular Footman James Classic Motor show.

The organisers of this year’s classic motor show promised a broad range of vehicles on display as part of the annual event in Birmingham’s NEC covering a whole host of different style vehicles spanning across the centuries from pre-war models, right through to modern classics.

Vehicles from renowned car clubs went on display, as well as stunning European sports models and American vintage cars, and a number of classic British sports cars including the 1911 Renault type CB12/16hp which recently shot to fame in the hit ITV period drama, Downton Abbey.

As well as the hundreds of vintage cars on display, the motor show also hosted over 300 trade stalls selling a range of memorabilia and car accessories, and featured bike club displays as well as appearances from World superbike champion, Carl Fogarthy and former World Superbike and GP rider, Pierfrancesco Chili. For enthusiastic or wannabe car restorers, there was a specially created restoration theatre where a team of professionals demonstrated the intricate art of car restoration.

This year’s motor show also benefitted from a larger exhibiting area from usual, and also a new show layout which enabled the 45,000 strong visitors to appreciate the stunning range of classic rides on show.

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.

Cars for Stars provides limos for children attending the Brave Heart Awards North East

Cars for Stars this week joined forces with fellow national luxury transport hire operator, Limo Broker, to provide 11 chauffeur driven limousines to transport 33 youngsters receiving a medal at the Brave Hearts Awards North East which was held at St James Park in Newcastle on Tuesday.

The leading chauffeur car and luxury limo hire provider rolled out its very best hummer limousines and Chrysler limos to transport the VIP youngsters who were all in line to receive awards after they each faced life threatening illnesses this year. The annual awards ceremony, Brave Heart Awards, seeks to recognise the courageous children living in the North East who’ve displayed exceptional bravery and character in the face of serious illness.

When Cars for Stars were approached by the organisers of the charity event, they jumped at the chance to offer their expert services to the 33 children and their families by chauffeuring them all to the awards ceremony in the lap of luxury.

Only the very finest limos with state of the art onboard features including plasma screens, DVD players, karaoke systems and light up disco dance floors were used to transport the youngsters to the Newcastle awards party so they could enjoy a taste of the high life.

Cars for Stars were delighted to be asked to be involved in this very worthy event and look forward to transporting next year’s medal winners to the Brave Heart Awards.