What do you think 'fuelled' your passion for cars.

[stooH]

I'd say I like cars but don't love them like most on here but I do want to love them, I think kids, time and money prevent that at the moment and suspect (hope) my love will blossom more as I get a bit older and the kids grow up and the house gets fully decorated. Then i'll have more time and money

Unfortunately I never really had anyone when I was younger that drove around in great cars (they were all sh!t heaps) and no one in my family ever had any interest in motorsport. I think the one or two overriding memories were posters I had of a Testarossa and an F40 when Ferrari were still a bit special.

I'm trying to ensure that my kids have a bit more of an influence and an interest in things from me which I never got from my dad (parents divorced when I was young and my dad never took me to any kind of sporting events at all), both kids seem to like cars and are already asking about how and when they can learn to drive, son (8) is looking at it sensibly saying he needs something cheap to own and insure so his first car will be a Smart car (!) daughter (6) on the other hand has said she wants to find and buy the GTI that I traded in in September. That contrast in approaches really tells you all you need to know about their different personalities

I think i'm going to try and take the whole family to Goodwood Festival of Speed this year as they all seem keen on going. Going to be fecking expensive though!

[bazza_g]

Go & do your ARDS test, then

You make a very good point sir

[M8CKN]

daughter (6) on the other hand has said she wants to find and buy the GTI that I traded in in September

My 6 year old son is currently saving his pocket money to buy a Veyron, as it is the fastest car down the Mulsanne straight on Forza on his brothers Xbox!

[Luke]

My 7 year old was watching the Malaysin GP with me the other day. He loves Sebastian Vettel! Will hopefully be taking him and his younger brother to Silverstone in a couple of weeks. Trying to balance his love of footy with Motorsport.

Wonder if in a few years time he'll be asking about his influences on a forum?

[Arch]

Dad loved his cars, as did his parents and my Uncles as well. I grew up more or less on Grandparents farm, both Uncles very mechanically minded (it didn't rub off...), so cars, bits of cars, vans, tractors, engines etc everywhere. Uncle had his own workshop in the barn, dug his own inspection pit and built himself a scissor jack for it and loads more cool stuff. Dad seemed to chang cars on such a regular basis that I could nearly go to school in one and get picked up in another. The hotel company he (and me later in life) worked for also owned a Ford dealership and the bosses were into their cars too, all the hot Fords at the time were on the fleet so if I got lucky, I'd have a 4x4 Sierra Cossie or a 2.9i Scorpio with twin turbo conversion home for the night.

Motorsport didn't really interest me much in my youth, Dad loved the Sunday GP but i thought that was dull. My mates all trouped off to Silverstone and I didn't bother, very much regret that now. Once we all started driving my passion for cars just grew, I bought and chopped and changed when I could afford to (or just about afford to..) as did my best mate. He peaked with his immaculate S1 RS Turbos, at the time I went totally random and bought a 2.0 MG EFi Maestro as one of my mates Dads one and had :roflmao:"done 135 in it". That got killed by a hit & run pensioner leaving a golf course (the irony) and I bought my first RS Turbo. Loved it. Was nicked in 6 weeks. Bought another on the rebound - total dog, nickeed after two years.

I lost interest a little then, bought some crap but knew I'd have something hot and hatchy once again. I'm kind of still stuck there, in the mid nineties.... although now, a midlife crisis V8 is calling me.....

[Woppum]

Tyres! Big fat tyres! Used to love them as a kid, would climb under any Porsche or Ferrari that got in my way. Loved em!

[Luke]

I remember seeing a white Lambo Countach in the West End once. It was an amazing sight, crowds of people following it down the road. It looked mental and sounded like thunder. Never forgotten it.

[Scotty]

I think i'm going to try and take the whole family to Goodwood Festival of Speed this year as they all seem keen on going. Going to be fecking expensive though!

I don't know their ages but kids go free although they do need a ticket

[Luke]

Silverstone WEC is free for kids

[stooH]

I don't know their ages but kids go free although they do need a ticket

Ooh, i'll look into that, ta

[Chick]

I grew up being taken to watch bike races all over the UK and the TT every year, even when there were three of us my mum and dad bought a VW campervan so we could all still go to Silverstone. My Dad had always had bikes, my favourite being his '74 Rob North Triumph which spent (seemed like every) winter in bits on our kitchen table , as it was the year I was born I always dreamt I would have a big enough house to have it in a glass case in my dining room - I always loved the noise of it, the feel of how fast it went holding on to my Dad .... bike was sold to my mum's cousin a few years back and he is now racing it, mostly in Ireland but he comes to the UK for some races so I still see it. Have grown up a bit now and don't like the "helmet" hair but still love the noise and smell! My Dad had several bikes too, another fave being the red moto guzzi, a black BSA plus several others, his best friend had a Laverda, in fact most of my parents friends used to turn up on bikes at weekends and have BBQ's at ours. Can just about remember being at Silverstone watching Barry Sheene and was thrilled to meet him the year before he passed at Goodwood, even got him to sign my programme. Both my younger brothers had dirt bikes for their teenage birthdays but know I was just too dangerous on two wheels .... nearly nearly had a very bad accident which scared me enough not to bother using the bikes again. Bank holidays as we got older were always spent at some racetrack watching either cars or bikes, I've got my Dad's current bike in my garage for the "winter" at the moment, but to be honest there are so many idiots on the road nowadays bikes are just too scary a place to be, my Dad lost his best friend 12 years ago being knocked off his motorbike and it kind of ruined the memories somewhat so don't think I will ever get back onto a bike. My Dad also "blew up" every car he ever owned as we were growing up in his quest for more speed, or, as we all suspect more likely by his tinkering! One of my funniest memories of him behind the the wheel of my mum's 2CV as it was being towed and watching him coast pass the car that was towing him down a hill ... think the car was killed off by the crash to stop it lol. Betty Beetle died too, can't remember what my Dad did to her but she was later sold on and became a beach buggy, my Mum was not happy as think the beetle was replaced by a semi-auto Honda Accord but we all loved it as whoever sat in the front was allowed to change the gears to 2,3 and 4!

My first car was the Ford Escort XR3i, a red ragtop which I thought was the bees knees, as I was only a teenager/early 20's so wore the matching red lipstick, ha ha!! As I got older and had a thirst for speed had the chance to buy a "second" car which was the ugly ol' TVR S3, cheap, fast enough for me and smelt of petrol/oil, closest thing to a bike but safely on 4 wheels, hard work with no power steering etc that I was used too in my "mummy car" A4 and this was followed by a Griffith (still my fave) and a work colleague bought herself a Tuscan so had a a few years of monthly TVR meets in Dunton Green at a great pub, something about the engine noise rumble, the speed of hoons and the smell when we all pulled up to eat. Di has moved on and got herself an Aston Martin now, I think my other girlfriend of the TVR years still has her wedge - her roof never went up all year round, snow, rain or sunshine (tho' I now suspect it is probably broken rather than her choice, haha!).

Have got so many memories of car/bike stories over the years, mostly from my Dad and I bet I only know half of them ... little things like he had a very big back operation when I was around 5, I was even allowed out of school early so my mum could take me up to London to visit him - we were always told it was from a slipped disc due to being a brickie (or shark attack if you asked what the scar was and age-dependant, my friends thought he was very cool) but not so many years ago he admitted to being in a big bundle on the ferry back from the TT and had somehow ended up being underneath a lot of fighting men ...... he was also banned for speeding on the Isle of Man!!

Guess you could say I am a bit of a tomboy when I was growing up, some would say I still am. I still feel the need for speed :D

[Luke]

Great post AC. Some lovely memories.

I'd love to get a bike again but I'm too scared now. My middle brother rides one of these at the moment

[ATTACH]48244[/ATTACH]

Unbelievable bike and so light and fast.

I'd like something like an Enduro but I'm dreaming really.

Looking forward to taking my boys to race weekends and seeing if they catch the bug. Mmmm, a VW Camper would be nice idea.

[Chick]

I like a man in matching leathers to his bike too

[Luke]

Has Biscuit got a bike yet? Or just the leathers....