About 3 years ago I was organising to have an Integra Type-R imported and it fell through. I had already sold my existing car (Madza MX-3) and needed another in a hurry. The dealer had 2 FTOs in the lot at the time and I had discounted them because of price and insurance. I took a manual GS out for a drive and loved it, it drove and handled great and certainly looked the part. The next 9 months saw me spend a small fortune on the GS in terms of Veilside side skirts, 17"s/Pirellis, strut braces, stereo, shiny bits and a load of other stuff.
Surprisingly, I had never a driven a GR or GPX until about a year of owning the GS. I took a mates GPX up the M50 and got the shock of my life - I couldn't belive the difference between the two models and knew that I had to have one. Shortly after that, Rob (a fanatical FTO owner himself) decided to sell the GPX and gave me first refusal. I said yes in a flash. I havn't looked back since.
Going back a few years, I got involved with a few owners over the net (Kace is still around!) who had put an Irish FTO club together but it had become fragmented over time - people sold up and lost interest etc. I met up with Rob with a view towards bringing the club back to life in the form of a website, you're looking at it now
. It took a while to get going but its managed to generate a lot of local interest and I would like to think that it serves as a good communication means between Irish owners. Interest levels in the FTO have never been massive in Ireland but we have managed to build up a small community of enthusiatic owners nonetheless.
Every so oftern I get a hankering to change the car but I don't think I can let it go. Best car I've ever owned, 'nuff said...
Ciaran
