And now a closer look at some the most memorable drives from 2014 at crankandpiston.com:
Ferrari 458 Speciale (November)
Words: James Gent Images: Arun M. Nair
“The opening salvo of corners is done almost before I notice, leading us to the mouth of a tunnel carving its way through the mountain. It’s here that the truly biblical soundtrack can be heard in all its glorious, high-revving mania. Though blood is not yet running from my nose, I’m convinced the BRRRRRRWWWWWAAAAA emanating at multi-decibels behind my right ear has left me partially deaf.”
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McLaren 650S Spider (September)
Words: James Gent Images: Arun M. Nair
“To expect anything other than brilliance from McLaren would be ridiculous, and such proves to be the case as we begin winding our way up 10km of mountain road. What surprises at first is the almost sedate way in which the 650S gets up to speed: you’d be forgiven for thinking the 650S would rupture your spleen under even the daintiest of throttle inputs. Wrong.”
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Lamborghini Huracán (November)
Words: James Gent Images: Arun M. Nair
“Whereas in the Ferrari 458 Speciale, every nut, bolt, prancing horse sticker and meticulously weaved seatbelt has put on a strict diet for optimum performance, the Lamborghini has not, leaving enough civility for day-to-day driving for days when the right foot doesn’t feel quite as heavy. Acceleration though in the Huracán is neck-snapping in first gear, and – quite remarkably – even more so when you select reverse.”
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Aston Martin Vantage V12 S (March)
Words: James Gent Images: James Davison
“In an effort to showcase the ‘most extreme Vantage to date’, Aston Martin has clearly pulled no punches, sacrificing no little amount of elegance in the process. Which is to say, they’ve gone raving mad. Q branch has added luminescent yellow atop the roof, across the Piano Black dash, the bootlid, around the front grille and upholstery stitching, and have still found room to throw in gold detailing.”
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Jaguar F-TYPE Coupe (April)
Words and images: Phil McGovern
“Forget the facts, figures and nitpicking. What the world has been waiting for, or at least expecting, is a car with stunning looks, capacity and the skills to take the game to Porsche. And finally it’s here. Monopolies are boring affairs and the 911 has had the segment stitched up for way long time. I find myself wondering if that monopoly is about to topple.”
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Jaguar XFR-S (June)
Words: James Gent Images: Arun M. Nair
“After a suitably ‘relaxing’ day at the crankandpiston oval office, we begin loading the Jaguar XFR-S wit all manner of camera equipment for what could be the most ambitious photoset we’ve undertaken yet. Whilst this is not our first night shoot, a photographer’s perpetual search for the right light is made yet more difficult when there is none at all. We are already wondering whether we’ve been a bit too ambitious…”
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Ford Mustang (September)
Words: Phill Tromans
“Analysing the Mustang is slightly tricky, because to an extent it sits in its own little niche alongside the other muscle cars of the moment, namely the Dodge Challenger and the Chevrolet Camaro. Against this competition, the Mustang is technically the best: it has more space inside, better quality materials and considerably better road handling. Of these three though, it’s probably the one that’s the least ‘muscly’…”
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Clio Renaultsport 200 Turbo (December)
Words: James Gent Images: Harisanker S
“It’s 5am, the crankandpiston.com team is a stone’s throw from Jebel Hafeet’s oft-visited stretch of winding, mountainous tarmac, and the air is alive with the sound of a 1969 Alpine A110 1600S’ four-cylinder, a ’69 R8 Gordini and an ’06 Clio II V6, and now – just to keep things nice and contemporary – a ‘12 Nissan GT-R. It’s the tip of a very funky French iceberg.”
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Porsche Cayman GTS Boxster GTS (May)
Words and images: James Davison
“The perfect poise of these mid-ship runabouts encourages a confidence to lean on them hard. Even lifting (a little) when in oversteery situations will tuck the rear end back in which is normally a recipe for facing oncoming traffic in many a mid-engined machine. Therefore, stating that the Porsche Boxster GTS and Cayman GTS have a nicely balanced chassis is like saying the same thing about Jessica Alba: it’s obviously an understatement.”
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Audi RS4 Avant: ‘Splash’ Photography v.2 (July)
Words: Siddharth Pandey Images: Arun M. Nair
“Here at crankandpiston we like colours. So when a Java Green 2014 Audi RS4 Avant turned up in our garage, we were left scratching our heads with a dilemma: how to shoot the car? Cue Dubai’s infamous summer heat and humidity and the only thing on our minds was water. Eureka!”
