Introducing our newest addition to our lifestyle partner programme. With over 25% of our members having an interest in yacht charter, it was only a matter of time before we formalised a partnership in this area. Therefore, we’re pleased to be enjoying a slower and more peaceful way of life today as we introduce our newest partner, Moravia Yachting, one of the world’s oldest yachting brands reinvented for the modern world.
The Moravia name dates back over 150 years, but the company opened its first office in Monaco in 1962 before playing a key role in the construction of the first-ever superyachts. Today, Moravia acquire and sell yachts on their clientele's behalf with an emphasis on discretion and excellent service, also specialising in once-in-a-lifetime yacht chartering experiences.
Kurt Fraser from Moravia said “Moravia Yachting is excited to have formed a partnership with Supercar Driver. Our extensive experience, discretion and efficiency sees us well placed to serve the needs of Supercar Driver members – whether it’s introducing those new to yachting to the exciting world of superyacht charter or offering yachting enthusiasts access to some of the most iconic yachts available," says Kurt Fraser, Chief Commercial Officer of Moravia Yachting and Hill Robinson.
Moravia takes a highly personalised approach to charter from Arctic adventure to tropical sun, with each expedition distilling individual demands, whether they be for security and serenity, culture and cuisine or an unforgettable celebration aboard the world’s largest and most luxurious yachts.
Adam Thorby from SCD said “Moravia only associate with the very best brands, so for SCD to be one of those, we are all immensely proud. I am delighted to be offering SCD members a direct introduction to the very best name in Yacht charter. Kurt Fraser and his team have exceptional knowledge of the industry, the whereabouts of the very best vessels and the finest destinations to set sail to. SCD members will be in safe hands.”
We are focused on continually adding value to your membership so you will be seeing plenty more of Moravia yachting this year, especially if you will be on European tours with us!
We’re pleased to welcome PW Pro in Nottinghamshire as our East Midlands car care partner. PW Pro draws on over 12 years of full-time experience using only the very best tools and products to bring the very best out of your pride and joy’s paintwork and keep it looking its best. They have been following SCD throughout their journey and it’s great to have such a highly regarded company on board once more.
Founder Paul says “We are incredibly excited to partner with SCD, providing Xpel PPF, detailing, windscreen protection film and ceramic coating services to members. Established in 2009 and having originally supported SCD back in 2012, it is great to be back!”.
XPEL Ultimate used by PW Pro is truly the most revolutionary paint protection film ever invented and carries a ten-year manufacturer guarantee, backed by PW Pro and the full UK XPEL dealer network. Using XPEL’s Prime series of films, PW Pro can also offer a range of tinting options to improve the appearance of your car and keep the cabin cooler.
PW Pro are also proud to be one of the UK’s longest-serving Swissvax authorised dealers and the only authorised installer of XPEL’s Fusion Plus ceramic coating within Nottinghamshire to give an ultra-slick finish which not only looks amazing, but also keeps your car cleaner for longer and makes it a delight to maintain.
Initially, PW Pro are offering a free car care kit worth a minimum of £120 whilst taking out any car detailing package with full ceramic coating. In addition to this, Paul and his team will offer complimentary windscreen protection on any full car PPF installation (worth £480).
Whether you are looking to protect, improve or completely change the look of your car, PW Pro are looking forward to helping SCD members going forward.
After two fantastic years of partnership with Collecting Cars and having seen hoards of SCD members utilising the platform, we have agreed to partner with their sister company Watch Collecting.
Cars and watches are two passions that naturally fall hand in hand and with over 60% of our membership having a passion for watches it felt right to extend the partnership to include this exciting platform.
SCD members can purchase rare watches and build their collections for a fraction of the price of what they would spend with a jeweller. With zero fees for the seller, selling your watch has never been easier than with Watch Collecting.
Rohan from The Collecting Group said "Following the success of Collecting Cars’ relationship with Supercar Driver it seemed a natural fit to add Watch Collecting as a partner." "Whether buying or selling...," Rohan continues "...Supercar Driver members can expect the same outstanding support and service from Watch Collecting as they currently enjoy from Collecting Cars."
In a previous SCD article we detailed the extensive development and testing programme of our Suspension Secrets Porsche Circuit Handling Pack. After being signed off, our kits have since been in service on numerous 911 GT3s, GT3 RSs and Cayman GT4s across the UK and therest of the world.
Written by: Matthew Cowley
Encouraged by this success, we again enlisted the help of RMA Track Days MD, Leyton Clarke in an attempt to push the kit to its absolute limits and to see what it can really achieve. Previously, Leyton's remarkable speed and consistency as a driver, alongside his technical feedback, was invaluable in the development of our Porsche Circuit Handling Pack, but this time our objective was pure speed.
With Leyton at the helm of his Suspension Secrets Porsche Circuit Handling Pack equipped Porsche 911 GT3 RS Weissach, we visited some of the UK’s toughest circuits and set the car against the stopwatch. Over the course of the last six months, Leyton claimed what were at the time three outright road car lap records at Donington Park GP, Brands Hatch Indy, and Oulton Park International.
During a visit to Castle Combe, Leyton received a rather unexpected endorsement of the Porsche Circuit Handling Pack’s capabilities. In the middle of a session he was black-flagged, and after enquiring with the marshals as to the nature of the black-flagging, he was told he was, “simply going too fast”.
Having tackled some of the UK’s best circuits with success, we looked for the next challenger to overcome and the answer was obvious — the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Dubbed ‘The Green Hell’ by Jackie Stewart, the Nürburgring is widely considered to be the most technically challenging race track on the planet, and is the ultimate test for both cars and drivers.
After some last-minute arrangemenets, the date was set and we made the trip to the Eifel Mountains to tackle the fabled 12.9 miles of undulating and extraordinarily bumpy tarmac that makes up the Nordschleife.
Recently, the Nürburgring has become a battleground, with car manufacturers one- upping each other in an attempt to claim the overall road car lap record. Whilst the purpose of our trip was not to try and set a scorching lap time, we couldn’t help but strap some timing gear to Leyton’s GT3 RS for our own curiosity.
When in Rome...
In fact, the main objective of our visit to the Nürburgring was to gather data on our Circuit Handling Pack and how it performed on the ultimate test track.
One of the key upgrades of our Porsche Circuit Handling Pack is to install a shorter and stiffer front spring. This gives the chassis some all-important rake angle which improves turn-in, reduces nose- diving on the brakes and makes trail braking far more intuitive. This lower front spring is combined with a re-engineered damper cup that allows the front dampers to retain their standard range of operation in combination with the lower front spring.
Leyton’s car runs a lower front spring than usual which drops the front axle quite considerably, and to a point where some have commented that perhaps it is too low for the Nürburgring. Some of the older hands at the Nürburgring even declared running such a low front ride height as ‘impossible’. The consensus for the Nürburgring is to run a slightly higher nose in order to prevent any front splitters from being damaged over the bumpier sections.
In order to test our kit to the fullest, we chose to keep the setup that was applied to Leyton’s Porsche when he set the UK lap records. This meant running a very short front spring and having faith in our redesigned spring cup.
When we discovered that the front splitter, that was sat mere inches from the ground, had barely even brushed the tarmac over the course of an entire day, that was an amazing vindication of our design and our determination to achieve what was considered an impossibility.
We then began our testing regimen and were thrilled when Leyton reported back to us that the stability of the car, even over the toughest bumps and jumps, was infallible. This additional stability, combined with the ability — thanks to the Circuit Handling Pack — to carry far more speed into the corners, allowed Leyton to quickly settle into a fast and consistent pace, despite often heavy traffic.
Our Circuit Handling Pack is designed to be supple enough for the road whilst also greatly improving track performance. In setup terms, the Nürburgring is considered to be more of a ‘fast road’ than a pure track setup thanks to the elevation changes, varying tarmac quality and uneven surfacing. Our choice to maintain this suppleness compared to a traditional very stiff setup that emphasises wrought iron body control, allowed Leyton to tackle even the most treacherous sections of the Nordschleife without experiencing any unwanted suspension deflections.
After two days of intensive testing we were satisfied that we had pushed our Suspension Secrets Porsche Circuit Handling Pack to the limit at the toughest track of them all.
Leyton managed to record a Bridge to Gantry time of 6:52 on a tourist lap, with traffic and in 30+ degrees weather, which was very encouraging and stands as a testament to our Suspension Secrets Porsche Circuit Handling Pack.
We always try to push what is possible with these cars and after two hard days at the Nürburgring we thought there was no better way of celebrating than heading to Europe’s second most famous race track, Circuit de Spa- Francorchamps, where Leyton again put the kit to the limit. Again, our kit’s improvements to the caster and camber settings of the GT3 RS allowed Leyton to really lean on the chassis during the higher speed corners, such as the fast left hander at Blanchimont.
The pinnacle of our visit to Spa was the scarcely believable pace at which Leyton was able to attack the Eau Rouge/Radillion complex at the top of fifth gear only to lift for a slight moment, downshift, and then bury the throttle on the way up the hill.
For Premier GT, supercars are more than just business, so we caught up with Director David and his team to chat cars and delve into how they came to be and what makes them special.
Who are you and what do you do?
Premier GT’s business is more than just buying and selling supercars. Based in Washington, West Sussex, the Premier GT showroom is a beautiful home to an enticing mix of meticulously hand-picked cars for sale, provided by the best in the business from all continents, and the whole team prides itself on sourcing the most unique and special vehicles on the market. We ensure that each car has something unique or special about it, whether that be an exquisite colour combination or an incredible specification you’re unlikely to have seen elsewhere.
Performance is key in all meanings of the word and a will to succeed is driven in tandem with their meticulous eye for detail, exceptionally high standards and impeccable customer care. With over 45 years of experience in the motor industry, every single car available has met the team’s exacting requirements in terms of provenance, history and quality.
Alongside Premier GT, we offer a luxury car storage facility — The Premier Car Hotel. This is a secret location in the heart of the West Sussex countryside. The bespoke premises are temperature and humidity controlled with the latest in security and CCTV, and also offer a full concierge service.
To complement these services, we also run Club 44 — an exclusive member’s club offering the best in luxury lifestyle events. We run incredible driving tours and trips to the most exclusive dates in the calendar — think the Monaco Grand Prix, driving excursions to Spa Francorchamps and our famous Champagne region excursion.
Tell us about David and his history.
Headed up by Director, David Trigg, the supercar industry means a great deal to him and the Premier GT Team. As a result, the brand is really much more than just a buying and selling platform.
Premier GT was born in 2014 and David, humbled by the opportunity to have a career in this sector, was pushed by his passion for cars and motorsport to build the brand. Having spent more than 20 years working in all areas of the motor industry, David has strived to succeed and continually move forward, with a goal of always growing Premier GT. Buying and selling supercars is just the tip of the iceberg.
David’s passion for cars came in his early 20s, after a childhood of two-wheeled adventures. At the age of 3, he was often found on the seat of his Father’s Grasstrack Sidecar and his first bike was a Malaguti 50cc which he rode at the age of 7 before competing in Motocross at 11.
Road racing came afterwards competing in 12 and 24-hour endurance races and then a natural love of four-wheels stemmed from here in harmony with the beginning of his career. Pair this passion with a meticulous eye for detail and you’re left with a natural recipe for supercar success — a key driving factor for Premier GT. Above all else, he and the team truly care both about the cars and our clients.
How has the Premier GT evolved over the years?
The company has grown from strength to strength year-on-year, and as a result, it has been recognised for its customer service with five-star Google review ratings and the team have been able to earn awards for Motor Trader Independent Dealer of the Year, Car Dealer Magazine ‘Specialist Used Car Dealership of The Year’, ‘Best Dealership Use of Video’, and the Acumen top fastest growing business in Sussex award. The business has naturally evolved over time to match the calibre of the stock we hold.
How many cars do you typically hold in stock?
We typically hold north of 35 cars at any one time, but each one has to meet our exacting requirements which isn’t always an easy feat! However, we are just in the process of expanding our showroom and over the next 12 months will increase the capacity to 60 cars in stock.
Can you pick a few favourites from your current stock?
Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato Coupe — a work of art and fabulous to drive. Mercedes SLR McLaren — a car I have wanted to own since its launch many years ago. Porsche 991 GT3 Touring — it’s a real driver’s car.
All three of these are as interesting as we are! In terms of value, they’re all particularly good in today’s market. We keep a close eye on the market with the utmost attention and always strive to ensure our cars are priced competitively.
Just for fun, if you could have a three-car garage to cover all bases from one manufacturer, all in the same colour, what cars would you choose and what colour?
Rosso Fuoco would be the colour, then it would have to be the Ferrari Purosangue SUV for an everyday driver, a LaFerrari Aperta as the perfect investment and a very special car to enjoy on occasions, and a Pista for track days.
Tell us about your relationship with SCD.
We had followed SCD for a while before we finally decided it was the right time to get involved, and we have very much enjoyed our time so far. We hosted this year’s south New Year meet which was great, with a fantastic turnout of cars and lovely people. It was a meet the whole Premier GT team enjoyed, and it was a pleasure to host.
What does the future hold for Premier GT?
Moving forwards, we would like to continue the current growth that the last few years have brought us, expand our showroom and enjoy managing the challenges that this will obviously present, all whilst maintaining the exceptional customer service standards and company ethos that have allowed us to get to where we are today.
