Wednesday 9th March
£100K Garage: Martijn van Zwolle
Six-cylinder sports saloon, eight-cylinder Ferrari and 10-cylinder pick up (!) for Martijn's £100K Garage
Name : Martijn van Zwolle (Draexin)
Previously owned : Fiat Barchetta
Currently owned : Lotus Elise S2 111S
On the shortlist : "Having recently bought an Elise, that scratches one itch without the need to break into the £100K budget.
: "Having recently bought an Elise, that scratches one itch without the need to break into the £100K budget. It's a brilliant car but I wouldn't want to use it every day. Fortunately, the office is only a five-minute bike ride from where I live. Pedalling isn't very PH-worthy, but it's actually faster than taking the car.
"So, onto the £100K shortlist; containing many of my dream cars, they (well, most of them) fortunately don't cost an arm and a leg, but pull my heartstrings in some way or other. It's not all stupidly fast two-seater fun though, because I'm getting fed up with having to borrow relative's cars for the annual trip to a certain Swedish furniture retailer. But it is pretty annoying trying to find the family saloon amidst the sea of bore-mobiles that is a shopping centre car park; hence the slightly brash final choice."
Ferrari F355 BerlinettaCost : £54,995
Balance : £45,005
Why I chose it : "Growing up playing with my brother's toy Ferraris (F40, GTO and so on) and rooting for Maranello's F1 team on TV, I've been brainwashed into loving the brand. That's why my absolute first purchase with my non-existent £100K has to be a Ferrari of some sorts. Unfortunately F40s and GTOs aren't anywhere near £100K, so I'll have to make do (!) with an F355.
"I used to love the 360 but having seen one in the metal dampened my enthusiasm somewhat. The headlights are just too big and it looks slightly bloated. Its older brother, the F355, didn't have these issues, making it much more contemporary than the 360. It has to be a manual and the child in me feels all Ferraris are supposed be be painted Rosso Corsa. Which brings me to this example. It's a LHD model, which is a good thing since I live in The Netherlands. An Italian supercar with a V8; what could go wrong?"
Datsun 260Z
Cost : £15,995
Balance : £29,010
Why I chose it : "Another dream car is the Datsun Fairlady Z. This one's a California import and rust free, a must when buying 70s Japanese metal! Though the paintwork looks nice and tidy, with the look I'm going for, it has to be resprayed Midnight Blue. After I add a front air-dam, wheelarch kit, rear spoiler, wing mounted mirrors and classic Rota wheels, the Devil Z look should be complete. Engine wise, it should be replaced with the later L28 engine out of a 280Z, with a stroker kit bringing it up to 3.1 litres. Finally, adding twin turbochargers would give it the power of the comic book version ... I do feel like such a geek sometimes!"
Alfa Romeo 156 GTA
Cost : £5,500
Balance : £23,510
Why I chose it : "Besides the fun cars, I also need something sensible and slightly economical for long distance trips with family and friends. That's where the 156 comes in. Alfas and V6s go hand-in-hand and someone once said you can't be a true petrolhead without having owned an Alfa.
"This one looks the business in black, not standing out too much when driving on the motorway. It's fast, Italian and stealthy. Perfect. Judging by the history and pictures, it looks pretty well cared for. Besides, these cars were made to do long journeys so I'm sure it's good for at least 100,000 additional miles. And if it doesn't, at just over £5,000 it's not exactly going to ruin me financially."
Dodge Ram SRT-10Cost : £22,900
Balance : £610
Why I chose it : "So with the Alfa purchased, that's the sensible motoring choice dealt with. Time to go all out!
"When a Hummer is too low key, get a massive Yank truck with a Viper engine and matching paint job. What's not to love?
"I saw one a couple of years ago parked near the beach. Being over six foot I'm not what you'd call short but I could barely peer over the bonnet. It looks like and probably is horribly impractical on European roads, but who cares?
"This one has the obligatory Viper stripes and still has the original wheels. It appears to be in good health and the interior looks tidy. Oh, and did I mention it has an 8.4 litre V10 out of a Viper? It does."
"That leaves £610 for fuel, which judging by the above choices won't last me very long..."