2017 Globe Drive gift guide

Brendan McAleer

If price is no object: AMG Winter Academy

Cost: $4,495

Generally speaking, the Canadian Prairie is a pretty chilly place in the winter. Here's something to warm you up: heavy-hitter AMGs, heated seats and some sideways sliding.

Truth be told, you won't come away from Mercedes's three-day driving academy having absorbed many lessons to make you safer on the road. The cars wear studded, specially made tires that aren't quite road legal. Moreover, stability controls have been totally removed, beyond what the street cars are capable of.

It doesn't matter. Sliding across a frozen lake with a bellowing V-8 up front and huge rooster tails of snow behind is just about the most fun ever. Forget the margaritas on the Mexican Riviera, and head to Winnipeg for a more-Canadian holiday. It's like curling, with horsepower.

Stocking stuffer: Playforever Maverick

Cost: $54

Playforever's series of brightly coloured cars and trucks are stylish, well made and durable enough to survive a direct hit from a North Korean ICBM. Your junior car enthusiast won't be able to do them much damage.

The Maverick is their newest offering, fitted with rugged tires and just made for launching off some sweet jumps. Double down on the action with the Maverick Heat – the police car version – and get ready for some Dukes of Hazzard action while the turkey's in the oven.

Matt Bubbers

If price is no object: Specialized for BMW Turbo Levo FSR 6Fattie

Cost: $7,800 (est.)

It costs more than some real motorbikes, but makes you feel like Lance Armstrong at the peak of his doped-up powers. A 250-watt motor multiplies your pedalling force. BMW's version comes with, um, blue paint and a recharging cable for plugging into your car, but Specialized makes other versions with prices up to $13,200 (!).

Stocking stuffer: Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay H3

Cost: $199

This Danish firm is best known for its incredible car stereos for Aston Martin and Bentley, its ludicrous $80,000 flagship speakers and industrial design that earned its hi-fi gear a place in the Museum of Modern Art. The little H3 earbuds or H5 wireless buds are a (relatively) affordable way to enjoy B&O's rich sound. Or, at least they're cheaper than an Aston Martin.

Mark Richardson

If price is no object: Motorcycle adventure tour of Morocco

Cost: €3,550 ($5,400) from Moto Adventours

You can't beat the promise of warmth and adventure, and an organized motorcycle tour makes it easier. Moto Adventours partners with BMW to offer guided tours on their motorcycles in Europe and Africa. We'll take 12 days in Morocco at the end of March, please.

Stocking stuffer: Meccano 4x4 Off-road truck

Cost: $69.99, from Mastermind Toys

Meccano is a building toy, like Lego, but it uses metal strips and screws instead to make things that can be even more intricate.

Officially, the motorized off-road truck is suitable for ages 9 and up, but adults will find it just as satisfying to build, with more than 400 parts to create 25 different versions.

Mark Hacking

If price is no object: One-on-one driver coaching

Price: $3,000 (estimated)

Former IndyCar racer Ross Bentley offers select clients personal driver coaching, an activity that sees Bentley travelling the globe to observe people in their own cars and on their home turf. Students should expect a radical improvement in both speed and finesse.

Stocking stuffer: ZOOB RacerZ Car Designer

Price: $55

A great way to share the love of car design with the next generation, this kit includes the pieces needed to build 13 different vehicles. For those designers who want to go off-script, the 12 wheels, 12 rubber tires and 76 interlocking pieces can combine to create one Mad Max-style monstrosity.

Petrina Gentile

If price is no object: A bucket-list trip to visit gearhead heaven

Cost: €75 ($115) plus roundtrip airfare, accommodation and meals

Visit Modena, Italy – where Italian supercar companies such as Lamborghini, Ferrari, Maserati and even Ducati (in case you prefer two wheels over four) call home.

These iconic car companies open their doors to the public with museum and factory tours. A tour of Lamborghini's museum and factory in Sant'Agata, Bologna, for instance, costs €75.

Stocking stuffer: Auto show tickets

Cost: $24

They're already on sale for the Canadian International Auto Show, the Vancouver International Auto Show or the Montreal International Auto Show.

Adult admission to Canada's largest auto show, the CIAS in Toronto, is $24, but order online before Dec. 31 and they're 25 per cent off.

Jeremy Sinek

If price is no object: BendPak MD-6XP Mid-Rise Lift

Cost: $2,525

I've worked on – and under – my own cars since the age of 16, but lying on my back on a crumbling concrete floor is getting old. And even if my budget could accommodate a full-height car lift, my low-ceiling garage can't. A mid-rise lift is the perfect compromise. This portable unit can lift up to 6,000 pounds to a height of four feet.

Stocking stuffer: MaxWorks Tire Rack

Cost: $59.99

For the gearhead who does their own seasonal wheel/tire changes, this foldable rack isn't sexy, but it frees up valuable floor space in the garage.

Dan Proudfoot

If price is no object: Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance

Cost: $3,500 (estimate)

That's to ship your car from Toronto (about $1,640 according to snowbirdadvisor.ca) to the vintage show in Florida on March 11. Then there's accommodation, airfare and meals plus admission, which is $95 (U.S.) for advance tickets. Better still, reserve a spot in the concours' vintage tour March 9, $250 for two.

Stocking stuffer: A five-litre container of Millers Preservation Oil

Cost: $89.95

It warms a car person's spirits through a long winter's storage. Why? This oil coats an engine's cylinders, preventing corrosion and promising "wet" starts for up to six months. Available at comatmotorsports.com.

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