Recent Editorial Work – Volkswagen Jetta VR6
Client: Speedhunters Intent: Editorial Date: November 2015 Location: Waterford, Ireland. Original Feature: http://www.speedhunters.com
Recent PR Work – 2015 Volkswagen Polo GT
Client: Volkswagen Ireland Intent: PR & Social Media Date: March 2015 Location: Tipperary, Ireland. Further Information: http://www.volkswagen.ie
Recent PR Work – Swift Ultravox & Verge Sport Clothing
Client: Lucca Sports Ireland Intent: PR Date: March 2015 Location: Tipperary, Ireland. Further Information: http://www.luccasports.com
Front Drive Is The Right Drive – Opel Astra OPC
Client: General Motors Ireland Ltd. Intent: PR Date: January 2015 Location: West Waterford & South Tipperary, Ireland Further Information: www.opel.ie For many years, the horsepower war in the hot hatch sector was arguably an unnecessary one. FWD cars with ~250HP which struggled to put their power down left a sour taste with enthusiasts. It was often to the detriment of the car that manufacturers concentrated on increasing power figures, rather than figuring out how to best transfer the power to the road. Time has been good to the hot hatch though, and the latest generation are enjoying the results of years – and a few euros in investment – of the advances in differential and chassis evolution. Opel’s latest venture into this sector, comes in the shape of the new Astra OPC (or VXR in the UK market). With 280PS and 400Nm, some will still approach the car hesitantly, but their preconceptions and fears will be wiped away after their first spirited drive. With a mechanical limited slip differential and HiPerStrut front suspension, you would be forgiven if you first thought that the Astra shares the same 4WD platform as its larger Insignia OPC brethren. It’s certainly a car that needs a race track to exploit its full potential. To even attempt so on the road, will see the driver run out of talent – or courage – long before the car does. What further enhances the appeal of the OPC, for me at least, is the exquisite selection of parts attached to the car. With brakes by Brembo and the superb OPC branded seats have been created with the help of Recaro, it just adds to the experience of the Astra OPC. And what an experience it is…
S For Sublime – The 2014 Audi S3 Saloon
For years, it always pained me to read Irish road tests of cars on UK or non-Irish number plates. Often, the cars presented would be of different specification or even left hand drive. It’s a small thing but something that a plethora of manufacturers here are coming around to. One of those is Audi Ireland. Along with investing €80 million into its Irish dealer network, by introducing another Irish registered press car into its fleet for exclusive use by Irish press, it’s just a small token that shows how they are invested in this country and that they care about their customer base here. Ireland might only make up a minute percentage of Audi’s worldwide sales but they still treat the market with huge respect. Kudos to them and the other manufacturers too. Some weeks ago, Audi booked me to shoot their new S3 saloon once it arrived onto their press fleet. Little sleep was had in the weeks subsequent to this booking. 300hp from a two litre TFSI motor and the famous quattro four wheel drive with an S tronic dual-clutch gearbox. What more could you ask for? Well, besides an RS6 that is… I shot the car over the course of a weekend earlier this month. Whilst trying to limit the amount of mileage put up on the car, I chose a couple of spots local to me that I hadn’t previously had the chance to explore. With good weather forecast, I set off early on the Friday morning for the Vee in county Tipperary. With the Audi’s impressive MMI navigation leading the way, it was only an hour or so before I arrived at the first location. Whilst it was more than adequate, I wanted something that little bit better. I took this opportunity to quick detail the car and […]