That time of the year is on us already. The torturous process of thinking about what Nanny Pat and Uncle Dave want for Christmas. Year on year it gets harder to be original, generous and be 'gift appropriate'. Of course, if you know what someone really likes then it is easy to get a present, take car enthusiasts for an example. Someone who loves their car, tinkering with engines and other parts and reads all the motoring mags on the market. Must be easy to buy for them, right? Just think of the best car gifts for Christmas on the market. The danger of everyone knowing you love cars means that every gift can be car related. Car care kits are the obvious choice but how many de-icer packs can any one motorist use unless they live in the Arctic Circle? So you have to think out of the box which is where we at Breakeryard can offer some advice.
The obvious Christmas car gifts
OK, the 'safe' options are things like de-icer packs, small tool kits and if your budget is bigger how about a sat nav or car radio? Last Christmas I got a sat nav and I was thrilled but as a new driver I was easy to please. But long time drivers will have all this and more so what else is there? You can buy a year's subscription to a motoring magazine of their choice, helpful and useful, but it's not exactly earth shaking.
Original Christmas car gifts
One quite affordable option is to buy someone a 'car experience' for the day. Lots of the discount companies like Wowcher, Groupon and Living Social have these 'experience' gifts and these appear to be worth the money. Wowcher recently had a deal for a two hour supercar driving experience for £70 with eight locations across the country including Donington. You could choose from a Lamborghini Gallardo, Ferrari, Aston Martin DB9 or an Audi R8 and drive solo for four laps. Likewise Groupon also offer a sports or super car experience from £30 to £129 including the Maserati GT, Porsche 911 Turbo and the Lotus Elise. For petrolheads who are also adrenaline junkies there is a car drifting experience from £409 which will teach drivers to perform doughnuts, figures of eight and learn to slide sideways. A great half day experience for Fast and Furious wannabes. Groupon also don't forget the practical motorist as they have a car diagnostic tool for £29.99 and a waterproof car cover for £12.98.
Some of the cutest things we have seen are tax disc cufflinks which you can buy with a special date (birthday, anniversary) commemorated on it. Visit: Me and My Car.
Not just for the boys
If you Google car gifts you'll find the results have quite a gender bias. One of the sites I found was Presents for Men: http://www.presentsformen.co.uk/car-and-bike-accessories-and-gadgets-deptgadgbkcr_pg1/ and another site http://www.gearboxgifts.com says "Looking for car gifts for men who love classic cars and historic motor racing?" Don't forget the girls and I don't just mean the fluffy dice nonsense. Ariel toppers and car eyelashes are just too silly and frivolous for a lot of us girls. We might like an experience day driving a sleek and cool red Ferrari or lessons in car maintenance so we can manage our cars ourselves.
As always buying a present for anyone is full of pitfalls, but .... if you want to be really different why not buy a car part that your loved one really needs. At least that is practical, shows thought and saves them money!
