Car Chase Heroes — Local services in Vale of White Horse

Wattisham Airfield, Ipswich, IP7 7RA

*Getting there..

Okay so getting there was a little awkward, as it says on the website you do not go through the main entrance but it doesn't actually say where you go.. the actual entrance you need to go to is nowhere near where the sav nav takes you there is one sign pointing you in the correct direction but only half way there so your basically driving blind till then.. and sav nav can't help you..

*Contacting them on the day..

There's no weekend contact number to call.. which is pretty stupid as it's on weekends.. their call times are only monday-friday

*check in

checking in was brilliant and very well organised! I didn't catch his first name but Mr Williamson was very kind and helpful

*Sight lap

There is no signs anywhere for you to stand & staff are all bundled together in the pits and there's a barrier in the way so was hard to catch there attention..

After a 20 minute wait I finally got fed up and went in the pits and was told we were waiting in the wrong bit.. there was others complaining throughout the day saying the same thing..

so a sign to say que here for the sight lap wouldn't hurt and would stop people being ticked off....

*Organisation

I felt like the organisation for the cars was quite good .. there is a lot of people just standing about but there is 2 people calling your names out on the tannoy when it's your turn next. So you don't miss anything plus you are given a QR code on the day that takes you to a lost of people and cars and you can see how long it will be till your turn..

We only had a 30 minute wait between the first 2 cars and a 10 minute wait from the 2nd till 3rd car.

*Cars and drivers

First up was the Roush Mustang lovely teacher driver made my son feel comfortable and confident with his first ever drive so thank you for that. My son said it was his favourite car to drive.

Second up was the Ferrari California, again lovely instructor and even my son said after his drive how much he liked the instructor.

Third up was the Lamborghini Gallardo, the instructor from the video we purchased seemed to feel comfortable enough for my son to fully take the lead was hardly any do this and thats he just let him drive and you could tell my son way aloud to put his foot down a bit more so enjoyed that ride just a tad more..

*High speed chase

High speed chase available yes but they make you go in a normal GTI golf (all of your party can go for a extra £10 each)

they made us pay a extra £10 each if you want to go in the buggy or in the BMW as your lining up.. takes it and pops in his pocket.. felt a little suspicious if I'm honest..

*Prices of photos and videos

prices I feel we're reasonable for all the photos is a lump sum of £25 and all the interior and exterior video footage was £25 we got a deal because the guy didn't feel there was alot of photos as we had 10 of one car and only 2 of another whitch was a little disappointing.

biggest annoyance was no view of track only them coming in and going out.

*Facilities

we didn't go to it but there is a big food truck with burgers and chips and I think I saw a hog roast ect.. there is also a number of porter loos available.

*Overall

The staff that have a one on one with you were very nice and friendly, the day is expensive but I felt like my 15 year old really did enjoy himself and I suppose that's all that matters at the end of the day, thank you to the staff that did make are day great specially to the ones I've mentioned 😊

Waiting time wasn't too bad just make sure you have a umbrella if it's due to rain as there really isn't any shelter unless it's your turn next to drive then you stand...

I was given a Gift to drive three cars with car chase heroes. I am based in Cornwall, so I was lucky enough to go to the Spitfire track near Perranporth. I wasn’t sure what to expect but pre booked a DB9 Aston Martin, an Aston V8 Vantage and finally, a Maserati GT. My first drive was in the DB9 and I have to say on approach. I thought the car was a little bit worn and when I opened the door found it was a little bit tatty inside, torn seats, which had been mended with tape. And the console wasn’t particularly clean.

I guess these cars get used relentlessly at different events but I did expect a little bit more, Shall I say class as I was driving a classy car.

Take that out of the equation I had a great first drive, getting used to the fact that this car was automatic as well as paddle shift change. It kept slipping from manual to automatic, but I was concentrating too much on the lap to be able to worry about the fact that it kept going into automatic.

My second drive was in the Aston V8. I was delighted to find that this was manual driving and quite enjoyed that experience. thankfully we saved the best till last. The Maserati is the car that if somebody said to me pick one that would’ve been the one . I had a great experience, driving this one around the track whether it was because after my third time I was getting the feel of it I’m not sure. it is a two lap experience , but actually I think three laps would’ve been better. That came though with an additional cost. regards to instructors, they were all very kind ,supportive, encouraging and made the driving experience pleasurable. sitting and waiting for your experience was very well organised. There were chairs with the cars names on them. You just had to sit in your designated car and wait for instructor. At the end of my driving experience, I had a high speed lap around the track with an extremely experienced driver. I actually felt I was on a bank robbery heist because the speed we went around and the way we took the corners was just as if we were in a getaway car. He was in full control, and I never once felt unsafe I think that was a lovely ending to the day. The gift was obviously purchased for me as a birthday present, but I think you need to be made aware that there are extra costs involved in the day with regards to options to purchase photographs and videos, extra laps and the all important insurance indemnity, so even though the gift has been given to you, you still have to put your hand in your pocket for extras so go prepared with extra cash because we all want to come away with a picture of the experience. Finally, I think as a female mature adult although I enjoyed the day it really is a day for those who love classic high-speed performance cars. It made me smile when we had our lap awareness tour. I was sat next to a young lad in the back who was absolutely overcome with excitement of the fact that you could see all these classic cars and have the ability to drive them that to me was wonderful that children could still get behind the wheel of these high-performance cars obviously with an instructor and still experience driving them. That must be every small boys dream so I think that was invaluable. The children were allowed to take part in...

MEH.........

TRACK: Bicester Heritage. DATE: 17/10/23 EXPERIENCE: Supercar taster CARS: Audi R8 V8 & Mclaren 650s

I was given this experience as a Christmas present, and was elated upon receiving it. I was finally able to take some time off work this year so set about booking online, the website and booking process was a clunky mess, I originally wanted to book a track fairly local to me as I had done a track day there before, but there was a supplementary fee of £120 (hidden cost), so that was a no go, I spent some more time looking through the website and eventually plumped for Bicester Heritage, which still had a £30 supplementary fee (weekend bookings cost even more!).

I booked the Audi R8 V8 and the Mclaren 650s, these weren't really what I wanted to drive but all the Lamborghini's and Ferarri's were booked up so these were the next best supercars.

THE DAY; upon arriving at Bicester Heritage ( when I eventually found the right entrance, as it's not given on any booking info, and is gate 8 FYI) I joined the signing on queue, to be present with a damage waiver form, I initially declined but upon reaching the signing on desk it was noted that I had declined the waiver and that I'd have to present a debit or credit card with at least £5000 which whould be kept at the desk and debitet should any damage occur, I didn't have £5k so was essentially pressured into paying a £29 waiver fee (another hidden cost)

I was then told that the Audi R8 was broken, and given a chouce of replacements, although if I wanted another supercar I'd have pay extra, which was confusing as I'd already booked a supercar and should have been given a like for like replacement, however I felt rushed during choosing a replacement and ended up picking a Mk1 Ford Escort, which presumably was a retired rally car.

THE CARS; I didn't have to wait long before my name was called, and I was directed to a seat to wait my turn, first up was the Escort, upon approach I saw it was left hand drive, which I wasn't initially made aware of, I did however adapt easily and driving/changing gear wasn't a problem, the brakes however, were terrible even for non ABS brakes, was ok but certainly no R8.

Next was the Mclaren, a pretty well used one at that! The instructor showed me through the car controls etc, then we headed out on track only for him to be shouting orders at me every corner, I understand he was trying to show me the best line around the track, but I have done track days and raced stock cars, and he came across quite condescending with it, and even grabbed the steering wheel at one point!!!!! I'm glad I didn't pay out for an extra 3 laps as I don't think I'd have put up with him, also the car didn't feel 650bhp quick, think it might have been restricted.

GOOD POINTS: Got to Drive a Mclaren.

BAD POINTS: Lots of hidden costs, was pestered several times to buy extra laps, didn't purchase any footage as it was £40 and £25 for photos. Nearly £200 for about 10 minutes seat time!

Overall the cost was £59 on top of the initial voucher price which I think must've been around £120.

My advice, save your money if you've experienced fast cars and been around fast cars in general, great for kids who love cars, that's about it.

Wouldn't recommend, and won't be...