Cutting out the printed words from his father’s car magazines and sticking them on his bedroom wall because he liked their turns of phrase was an early sign of Alex Forrest’s passion for cars and writing. In his final year at university, he undertook work experience at The West Australian. On his final day, he found himself in the right place at the right time and was offered the chance to write a brand-new weekly newspaper column called Idle Torque. The column would run in the paper every week for the next 21 years and kickstart an extraordinary career that would lead Alex to drive a tank, a DeLorean, an amphibious car and an $11m Jaguar.