Well, what a morning we had! To start the day, my girlfriend and I were greeted in the car park by a lovely guy in a Q7 E-tron who chauffeured us through Glenarm estate and up to the front door of the castle where all the gleaming cars were lined up. We were greeted by a lot of familiar faces from Belfast & Portadown Audi along with some of the staff over from Audi UK. The hospitality was first class, making us feel very welcome and well looked after.
First up for me was the Sepang Blue Q5 Black Edition. I had originally booked this car as a chance to drive something different as I don't have a whole lot of experience with driving SUVs, and what a pleasant surprise it was. For the size and weight of the car, I couldn't believe how flat it cornered and how hard it accelerated for only being a 2.0tdi model. I was initially intimidated by the size of the thing, but once I was behind the wheel it was just like my A3 only raised up a little!
Next up was the TT Coupe, a serious contender for my next car. This one had the 184PS 2.0tdi engine, but despite being a diesel still felt as sporty to drive as TTs always do. Personally, I'd buy the 230PS 2.0TFSI Quattro with an Stronic box in it! I loved getting to use and interact with the Virtual Cockpit system when out on the road, a reminder of how far ahead Audi are when it comes to new technology.
Finally, I managed to squeeze in a third car despite only booking two. I chose the TT Roadster as I'd never driven a convertible car before, and given the location and the weather we were blessed with, I decided to see what all the fuss was about. This particular car was fitted with a 1.8TFSI 180PS engine so sounded a lot better than the previous TT I'd driven. Although this isn't the engine I'd go for myself, it was a joy to drive and sounded quite fruity once it got past around 4000rpm. Having the roof down and the wind in your hair just adds to the drama of the drive, with only 50-60mph needed to really enjoy the car and the roads we were on.
As with all Audi events and even a simple visit to the showroom, the Audi Sport models always bring a smile to my face. Although they weren't available to drive this time, the all new S5 Coupe and R8 V10 Plus were both on display for us to drool over. As nice as the S5 was, I couldn't seem to stop myself gazing into the R8's beautiful Ara Blue paintwork as the sun beamed down on it.
Once I had finished at the event, I took advantage of being on the Antrim coastal route and headed up to Ballintoy Harbour for a walk and a few pics since the weather was so nice.
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the teams from Belfast and Portadown Audi, Audi UK, the staff at Glenarm Castle, and last but not least Sandra for all your work in getting this organised for us to be able to spend the day driving and experiencing the best cars on offer by the best brand out there, Audi. I can't wait for next year's showcase event, and look forward to seeing some of you at our meets in the coming months!
