Minimal

Well, this weekend’s been one long car-ogling marathon. With helmet in hand (clean your mind, filthy child!), and with Grant and James in tow, I set off to check out a load of cars on my possibles list. As a result, the following are now officially casualties of my far-from-excessive height:

• Lotus Elise
• Lotus Exige
• Vauxhall VX220
• Mazda RX-8
• Mazda MX-5 (I was getting desperate, ok?)

I strongly suspect that the Racing Puma, which had crept onto the list after some rose-tinted reminiscences, can also be discounted. After all, apart from a few flared arches and a little performance boost, it’s essentially the same car as my old Puma 1.7 and there was no way I could wear a helmet in that.

On the up-side, however, the following cars are now officially contenders:

• Nissan 350Z
• Porsche Boxster (fairly unlikely, given the price and styling combo)
• Audi TT (highly unlikely, given I’ve turned it down before)
• Honda S2000

Although I didn’t get to try out a Clio V6, M Coupé, Impreza, or Evo, I reckon it’s looking like a slugfest between the Honda and the Nissan. Right now, the Nissan’s gearchange, tin-top and all-round slickness are keeping it ahead, but the Honda’s coming up hard on the rails. This could get interesting. :)