Five of the best cheap thrills for car nuts

'Buy a supercar' has slipped down the list of priorities for most of us in the current economic climate, but that shouldn't stop your car-based fun. Sadly, not all of us can claim irrelevant luxuries on our expenses, which stops us from buying fun 'essentials' like horse manure, pot plants and supercars using other peoples' money. So, it means we have to be a little more creative about how we get our kicks.

You may, of course, be one of the lucky few drivers who own an old banger that's blighting the ambience of the neighbourhood, and that can be used to get two grand off a brand new SUV. However, you're probably not, and like us you're probably watching your pounds at the moment. So, we've come up with a list of things you can do for well under a grand that will perk up your life no end, no matter what your motoring predilection. We realise that £1,000 is quite a lot of money, but to be honest most of our suggestions can be undertaken a lot cheaper with a little bit of ingenuity. Read on...