Racing driver, presenter and model Jodie Kidd may have turned down the Top Gear job but she’s keeping busy.
Earlier this month she helped Halfords launch its new campaign offering free winter car checks.
Back at home, she said she splits her driving time between a Jaguar F-Type and, perhaps more so at the moment, a Volkswagen Touareg that she dubs ‘the mummymobile’.
“It’s a big car but still has enough power under the bonnet to go quickly and has plenty of room in the back for car seats,” she said.
With the extreme weather hopefully now behind us, Jodie recalls how her first time driving on frozen roads wasn’t entirely problem-free. “It was quite tricky but the key is not to be daunted by driving in bad weather. Confidence is everything,” the 6ft 2in mum said.
“On my first time I ended up sliding sideways down my drive like Torvill and Dean.”
She said that lowering your speed, keeping a much greater distance in front of yourself and manoeuvring gently are the main secrets to not getting it badly wrong. She’s never needed winter training, she told us, but she does see the point.
“I do wonder whether we do enough to help Britain’s drivers cope with difficult conditions,” she said. “That’s why Halfords’ free winter checks campaign is a great way of giving drivers a little bit of extra confidence.”
Speaking of drivers and confidence, what about the proposals to give learner drivers motorway tuition? “It’s a great thing,” she answered quickly. “Going on the motorway is one of the things that frightens newly qualified drivers the most. Passing a test without having been on a motorway is an unusual situation.”
Jodie learned to drive in summer, in a first-generation Volkswagen Polo called Doris. “I learned to drive in her taking the rubbish down to the end of my drive.” Must have been some driveway . . .
As for crashes, there’s nothing to tell – or at least not outside the confines of the race track. Part of that could be down to the Classic Car Show presenter’s use of cold-weather tyres. “They’re great at giving extra grip when driving on snow and ice,” she added. “You might need some extra room in your garage to store your out-of-season tyres but it’s worth it for the extra grip.”
With our time almost up, we ask Jodie for her top three tips for car
owners when it comes to winter motoring.
“Small things matter,” she said. “Sometimes keeping the car topped up with oil or checking your lights isn’t the top priority but making these small checks will keep your car roadworthy and save money in the long run,” referring to costly MOT failures or police fines.
“Let the experts give your car the once-over,” she added.
And finally, a word for the sat-nav drones who might stray off the gritted highway. “If you’re in the countryside you’ve got to be wary of the conditions. If you’re advised it’s extremely icy then don’t go off the
beaten track – stick to the major roads.”