Five unlikely epic drives

British car designer Ian Callum first submitted a car design to Jaguar in 1968 in hope of landing his dream job. Nearly 50 years on, he now leads the iconic brand’s internationally renowned design team, and his latest creation, the F-TYPE, was recently crowned World Car Design of the Year 2013. He shares his pick of roads made for driving, from Cape Cod to Cape Town, with motoring journalist Jason Barlow.

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Cape Town to Franschhoek

This part of South Africa is so beautiful and so varied that you feel as though you’re travelling through five continents in a day. It’s a country that has weathered some tough times, yet there’s an innocence to some of the towns as you pass through, and some fascinating architecture. The roads can be fast and sweeping, so you’d need something powerful and mid-engined for the full sensory experience.

Car of choice: Lamborghini Miura

Photo: Alamy

Inverness to Ullapool

I’d find myself on this road when I was learning to drive as a teenager. We used to go on holiday here, in a caravan, so obviously my thoughts are suffused with childhood memories. More recently, I was invited to drive a wonderful original lightweight E-type and an ex-Stirling Moss Ferrari 250 GT on this road. They are two extraordinary cars, and as we headed west it got sunnier and the tyres seemed to grip the road more and more. It really was one of the best days of my life.

Car of choice: the lightweight Jaguar E-type roadster

Photo: Alamy

Dumfries to Edinburgh, via Moffat

Yes, another Scottish road, but this one’s from my hometown. It goes past what’s known as the Devil’s Beef Tub, which is a huge hollow in the hills north of Moffat, and it’s probably the road I know better than any other. There’s something about the sweep of the roads, the camber and the corners that just comes together in an almost spiritual way. Scotland is particularly evocative, because the roads tend to follow the natural topography, and of course there’s an overwhelming sense of history.

Car of choice: Jaguar F-type Coupe

Photo: Alamy

Great Ocean Road, Australia

As Arlo Guthrie said [on The Motorcycle Song], “On one side of the mountain road there was a mountain, and on the other side there was nothing. It was just a cliff and the air…” If you’re driving something interesting along here, you get all the resonance and noise bouncing off the cliffs. It gets busy with bikers, and the cops like it, too, so you have to have your wits about you. But it’s an incredible experience, and not dissimilar to the Pacific Coast Highway in California.

Car of choice: Holden HSV

Photo: Shutterstock

Cape Cod to New York

The US road trip is irresistible, and this drive to Manhattan is pretty special. My brother Moray [now Ford’s executive director of design] bought me a handful of US car magazines, including Hot Rod, for my 14^th birthday – and I still love hot rods. There’s something wonderfully rebellious about them. I own one, a 1932 Ford Model B coupe, though ironically it has cost me more than any other car I’ve ever had. It would certainly startle the locals if I used it on the I-95.

Car of choice: ’32 Ford Model B coupe

Photo: Getty Images

Ian Callum

Five unlikely epic drives

Cape Town to Franschhoek

Inverness to Ullapool

Dumfries to Edinburgh, via Moffat

Great Ocean Road, Australia

Cape Cod to New York

Cape Town to Franschhoek

Inverness to Ullapool

Dumfries to Edinburgh, via Moffat

Great Ocean Road, Australia

Cape Cod to New York

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