Sean O'Dwyer's VW Golf Gti has collected an average of an award per month since he purchased and began modifying it last October. He has invested so much in it over those nine months that it is now worth a fairly staggering €80,000. And while it may not be to everyone's taste the, car is certainly something to behold.
At first glance it looks reasonably like a standard Golf Gti to the uneducated eye. However, close inspection quickly reveals that it has had its body restyled and new lights. And this is just a foretaste of what's to come. Lifting the bonnet reveals an engine decked out in the livery of a can of Red Bull, but the real treat is the interior of the car itself. The sumptuous leather seats are nice, but not the first thing to catch the eye.
What really stands out is the in-car entertainment system. This includes five TV screens, one mounted below the stereo slot on the dash, two mounted on the rear of the front seat headrests, and two more on the rear of the rear seat headrests. This means that passengers in the front and the back can enjoy watching TV or playing PlayStation games while on the move.
But what's a TV without good sound, and this car boasts it all. Without getting into the ohms of resistance and the wattage output it is sufficient to say that sitting in the back of this machine is like being in a hi-fi lover's nirvana with the car almost becoming one big sound system.
"I bought the car in October and started modifying it then," says Sean O'Dwyer. "This was the first car I bought new and decided to do a really good job on it. Since then I have been to numerous shows including the Xtreme Promotions show in the RDS in March and Britain's top show in Birmingham a few weeks ago.
"The car has won prizes at every show it has been to, and has been featured in just about every modified car magazine. But it costs a fortune. I am currently looking for a sponsor to help out with the costs as it is hard to keep bringing it to the shows.