Right, I know what I want for next Christmas. Have a look at the Slot Mods Porsche 917 story in the Classic Life section of the newsletter.

As if having a full–size replica of a Martini Porsche 917 in your 'man cave' (great expression, thank you, Slot Mods) is not enough, the American manufacturer has added a realistic slot–racing track underneath the swooping bodywork, ready for play at "just a push of a button".

Having a click around on the company's website reveals more. It can also build replicas of actual tracks, such as Laguna Seca and even drag–racing venues.

The lengthy, classic 'rail' design of a Top Fuel dragster lends itself perfectly to enclosing a miniature strip, so clearly a future project could well be to replicate this in fine detail.

All one would need are the 'Christmas tree' countdown lights one end and a helpful assistant at the other, catcher's glove at the ready to snaffle a 300mph scale–speed Funny Car as it heads for the Axminster.

And at least you would know this time that the cars were going to leave the track within two seconds of mashing the hand–controller, rather than waiting for the inevitable, "can you put me back on?" a corner or so from the startline.

By the way, in case you're thinking of trading up to a new classic and want to sell your old one, do use our all–new Private Ads system.

Steve Wakefield Managing Editor sw@classicdriver.com

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