Best Valentine´s Day car gifts for petrol heads

Who can forget, it´s Valentine´s Day today. Well, the fact of the matter is many of you do. So, with this in mind, we´re offering you some last minute Valentine´s Day ideas that could save your blushes.

Gifts for the special petrolhead in your life shouldn´t be too hard to think of - alloy wheels, MP3 compatible-stereos, mufflers and furry dice all spring to mind - while £50´s worth of petrol would not go amiss in these times of high oil prices.

Nevertheless, for those of you who want to go that little bit further we´ve several ideas on which you can lavish hundreds of pounds. So whether it´s for Valentine´s Day, birthday, bank holiday or that ´Sorry I filled your diesel Range Rover with unleaded´ apology, here´s a selection of the best car gifts.

Classic Car Hire

For those of you who like to slow things down a little in the love department, a day´s classic car hire might be more your wicker picnic hamper.

Dreamy, sepia visions of a bygone romantic era captured behind the wheel of an E-Type Jaguar, a Jensen Interceptor, Austin Healy 3000 or a Morris Minor Traveler prove very popular at this love junction.

Normally valid for 12 months from the date of purchase, classic car hire gift vouchers demonstrate a little more imagination and thought than a bouquet of petroleum-tinged service-station daffodils. Not the cheapest surprise arrangement for the day in question, but surely having the wind rush through your hair whilst you pilot an Alfa Romeo Spyder is unsurpassed.

A genteel day that conjures up scenes reminiscent of a forgotten automotive period could be just the ticket to impress the socks of your gentleman/lady friend.

There´s a myriad of companies on the other side of your PC that provide these fabulous cars and go that little bit further to set the scene, should you require it, such as delivery of the car to your hotel to perpetuate the surprise element.

Gift vouchers, authenticated framed pictures of the car in question, picnic hampers and champagne can all be arranged as part of various packages. Prices tend to start from around the £100 mark, and can include unlimited mileage.

Be aware that prices can rise steeply dependant on the vehicle, length of hire and other factors described by reputable companies. The internet provides you with the ideal starting point to arrange a great, and overtly stylish escape for you and your loved one this Valentine´s Day.

Ultimate Driving Experiences

Should your love be free from the shackles of sensibility, you may want to give them more of a thrill on the special day. And what better way to release all that pent up energy than by whizzing around a track in an Aston Martin DB8 or a Ferrari 355?

There are numerous ´gift package´ companies out there that arrange just that. Providing you don´t wear a hood, perform in a midget´s act at the circus, or class Pete Doherty as a close friend, yet can prove that you hold a full UK drivers license, and weigh no more than 19 stone, your heart´s desire can be hurtled around a few laps of a racing circuit in anything from the aforementioned cream of supercar exotica to a tricked-up Subaru Impreza or a Caterham 7.

Remember to book beforehand to guarantee this ride of your life, where a standard itinerary usually reads something like this: Refreshments on arrival; exchanging handshakes and smiles with professional drivers; safety and technique briefings; familiarization laps with helmeted pro; graduating to have a blast yourself, followed by being shown how its really done by your instructor on the day.

That just leaves a de-briefing, a post-drive assessment and the handing out of commemorative certificates to bore your pub mates with forever more. Costing anywhere from £150 upwards, this is inclusive of accident insurance.

IAM ´Skills for Life´ Valentine´s Pack

Why not bestow upon that person you love the gift of immeasurable driving skills? Or at least set them on the road.

With the Institute of Advanced Motorists special Valentine´s Day gift pack, amorous motoring lovers will learn all the necessary attributes required to be known in certain circles as an ´advanced motorist´.

Ultimately awarded the accolade of ´Associate of the IAM´, and afforded all the advantages that membership permits, your loved one will aspire to become a safer road user, be it in four wheels or on two.

Not just that, they´ll also make life less risky for their passengers and other motorists and pedestrians. Now that really is love in (careful and controlled) motion.

Available to drivers of any age, the recipient of the ´Skills for Life´ pack will be equipped with all they need to prepare and pass the Advanced Test, including an IAM-written guide, 12-month subscription to the organisation´s magazine, an initial IAM-approved driver assessment and ongoing assistance with test preparation, entry into the Advanced Driving/Motorcycling Test and an automatic upgrade to full membership of the IAM if you pass the test within a year.

For £75 your IAM ´Skill for Life´ Valentine Gift Pack arrives at your ´intended´s´ door complete with a ribbon/bow on the cover. Best hurry mind, as this once in year offer ends today.

Tenuously-linked Valentine´s registration plates

For car lovers across the country theres a whole plethora of fun, frivolous and ´lovely´ personalised registration plates on a Valentine´s tip.

For starters, just who could resist the allure of ´M155 YOO´, currently on offer for £3,299? Or maybe your star-crossed, and eye-crossed lover might be overjoyed to receive ´M155 YUU´ for a slightly more palatable £2,299? Both sharing the common declaration that they ´Miss You´.

Personalized registration plates are big business these days, with a lot of people wanting in on the action. Any letter configuration preceded by ´K155´ goes down well with couples according to industry insiders, whereby you can mix and match to your, well, heart´s content.

Sadly, as we go to press ´K155 MEE´ is unavailable. Set to steal someone´s heart this year though is ´K155 YUU´, which will express precisely £2,299 of your unquestionable love.

Love fools and their hard-earned will soon be missing each other terribly, however, if anyone buys ´K15 SME´, as it costs £17,495.

And finally in this trawl through a veritable sea of distaste, why not hook up with Dr Love himself this year. Yup, ´DR51 OVE´ can be yours for £1,606.

If you want to say something unpronounceable and different this Valentine´s Day then online search engines will direct you to a multitude of approved, simple to use personalized vehicle registration websites, including the DVLA´s own specialist section.

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