As car folk of a modified persuasion, it’s likely that things have gotten out of hand once or twice. Who’s promised themselves that the daily will stay stock? Just wheels and suspension? We hear you, it’s the circle of life that keeps magazines such as ours alive and long may it continue. However, the time, money, blood sweat and tears can be all-encompassing and sometimes a heavyweight should bow out when they’re at the top.
Dean hails from Dover and has been at the Steven Eagell Toyota in Ashford for the last 23 years. His eye for detail lends itself well to the role of Workshop Controller at the busy Kent dealership. The forty-five-year-old’s automotive journey started at the tender age of seventeen when his mother bought him a Mk1 Fiesta for the princely sum of £30. This insurance-friendly base model was treated to the obligatory XR2 kit and XR3i alloys. Dean and his twin brother, Gary worked hard and saved £800 to buy a Renault 5 GT Turbo. The modified bug hit hard with this one and the French hot hatch was fitted with a Skeete front bumper, a one-off rear spoiler, a 200bhp motor, and what were at the time considered huge 17” wheels. The distinctive black and salmon car was well known and respected and bagged a feature in Redline magazine in
