An invitation from Lamborghini is hard to refuse, particularly when it’s to join them at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. As such, Dee and the Signature team were lucky enough to experience this iconic festival alongside the luxury of Lamborghini’s wonderful hospitality.
Signature’s Founder & CEO, Dee Bhatia commented, “It was a perfect day for a petrol head like me, and to have been extended a personal invitation by Lamborghini was a real privilege, I’d like to thank them and all their staff for a very enjoyable day!”
While we were with the famous Italian marque we were able to examine some of their newer cars at close range, and were particularly struck by the new Pirelli edition. It was also very exciting to see the new SV (Super Veloce) in the flesh, making us even more impatient to see our own version,which should be with us in Autumn.
As ever, Goodwood was superb. There was a massive amount on offer, and something for everyone: not just cars but motorbikes too, early turn-of-the century land speed record machines, pre-war Grand Prix racers, rally cars, Le Mans-type sports cars, off-road trucks, dragsters, driftcars…even the major Formula one teams were in attendance to present their latest championship cars.
Mercedes were out in force showcasing their latest and greatest AMG models, not to mention the presence of seven 300 SLR sports racers from the ‘50s commemorating the 60th anniversary of Sir Stirling Moss’s heroic 1955 Mille Miglia victory.
The event organisers deserve every credit for the ticket allocation, which kept the crowds to an enjoyable level, and gave the whole event a more relaxed feel compared to other motor shows that tend to be overcrowded and exhausting!
We were also hugely lucky with the weather, which was perfect for an outdoor event – and perfect for drivers tearing up Lord March’s driveway on the ‘hill climb’!
Signature’s Fleet Manager pictured here commented “Overall it was a phenomenal day, a massive amount on offer, something for everyone. For me the cars that had to be seen were the Aston Martin Vulcan and Vantage GT12, the Ferrari 488GTV, Mclaren P1 GTR, Ferrari LaFerrari FXXK and the New Audi R8.”
Motor racing has been suitably sanitised by safety over the years for obvious reasons, so chances are at a normal event you will be well set back from the track with any number of safety barriers and fencing in the way. Goodwood on the other hand is different: in sections of the hill climb you’re set just behind hay bales close to the action, meaning you not only get great views of the cars, but you can also feel and smell them! This is one of the many reasons why Goodwood is growing year on year, it dares to be different and gives the spectators what they truly want.
It was a day full of motoring memories, not to mention Andy Green in Jaguar’s £300,000 XJR ‘bloodhound’ going all out attacking the hill climb – resulting in a crash on a notorious bend into the hay, sending straw in all directions! He wasn’t hurt and walked away with only battered pride.. and a lesson on how braking just one second too late makes all the difference! It was certainly living up to this year’s festival theme of ‘Flat out and Fearless: Racing on the edge’! So was stuntman Terry Grant, who set a new world record for the fastest mile travelled in a car on two wheels, completing it in just over two minutes and 10 seconds in the Nissan Juke Nismo RS, breaking the record he himself set 4 years ago. He had six attempts at travelling up the famous hillclimb, and he broke the record on the first go! Well played sir, well played!
As always the dramatic centre piece sculpture next to Goodwood house looked amazing, crowned by a Mazda 787B and the LM55 Vision Gran Turismo, a collaboration between long running designer Gerry Judah and sponsor Mazda, inspired by the company’s tag line ‘soul in motion’.
Although it was hard to pick, we finally agreed that our car of the show was the Lamborghini Pirelli edition. The white, black and red combination worked to perfection, fuelling our excitement for the arrival of our SV which will be in the same colour combination.