A delighted widower has won two Porsches for just £35 as part of the latest Omaze prize draw.
Jimmy Calllaghan, 58, scooped the Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid and the all-electric Porsche Boxster S – worth over £170,000 together – after he was forced to stop driving his Ford C-Max in London as it was not ULEZ compliant.
The top-of-the-range hybrid and electric motors are both compliant with Sadiq Khan‘s ULEZ zone.
The lorry driver joked about how he almost deleted the email telling him about his mega prize, as it was ‘probably spam’.
The amazed 58-year-old gushed: ‘They are absolutely stunning. To say they’re a bit different from my lorry would be a massive understatement. My lorry doesn’t even do 60mph – now I’ve got two cars that hit 60 in 4 seconds.
‘I think I’ll turn more heads in these than I do in my lorry.’
Jimmy has worked as an HGV driver for 30 years, he currently works for construction company Quattro UK Ltd, delivering mixed cement to building projects.
Jimmy Calllaghan, 58, scooped the cars – worth over £170,000 – after he was forced to stop driving his Ford C-Max as it was not ULEZ compliant
He said: ‘When I first saw the email from Omaze telling me I’d won something, my initial instinct was to delete it as I thought it was spam, I’m very glad I decided against it.
‘I was absolutely flabbergasted when they told me I’d won not one but two Porsches. I still can’t believe it now even though I’m looking right at them.
‘I’ve been wanting to upgrade my old Ford as I can’t drive it around London anymore because it’s not ULEZ compliant, that’s been a real pain so I’m delighted I’ve got no such issues with these two.
‘I’ve been driving lorries for 30 years, but winning these cars doesn’t feel like a busman’s holiday, I love it, these things are rapid! The guys at work are already calling me Jimmy two cars.’
The prize was part of an Omaze Million Pound House Draw that raised £3,500,000 for suicide prevention charity, Campaign Against Living Miserably – CALM.
Jimmy, whose wife died 18 years ago, lives in a rented flat in outer West London.
He has been in and out of hospital all his life due to complications since birth and had only just come out of hospital to begin his recovery from an emergency appendicitis operation, when he found out about his double win.
He added: ‘Nothing makes you feel better than winning two Porsches I can tell you!’
On which of his two new cars he likes best he said: ‘You shouldn’t have favourites and I don’t want them to be jealous of each other, so I love them both the same. I feel like the luckiest man in London, maybe even the world.
‘I’m a big motor racing fan and bit of a petrol head – but I never dreamed I’d ever own a Porsche – let alone two.
‘I don’t care that it’s winter – I’ll be driving the Boxster with the top down all year round.’
He has been in and out of hospital all his life due to complications since birth and had only just come out of hospital to begin his recovery from an emergency appendicitis operation, when he found out about his double win
On his recent stay in hospital he said: ‘I’ve only just recovered from an emergency appendicitis operation, otherwise I’d be literally jumping for joy, but nothing makes you feel better than winning two Porsches I can tell you.
‘I’ve been in and out of hospital all my life due to complications I’ve had since birth, so I reckon I’m due a bit of luck, and I reckon my luck has finally come in.’
He added: ‘I’m not sure what I’ll do with them both long term yet – I might keep one to enjoy and sell the other to bank the cash, it’s a fantastic position to be in. £35 ticket for £170k worth of cars isn’t bad is it!?
‘Whatever I do my boss will be happy as I won’t retire early – I’d be bored out of my mind!
‘I entered Omaze as I love the houses obviously – but I also like supporting good causes too – I’m glad so much money was raised for CALM.
‘If it can happen to me, it can happen to anyone, so get entering!’
Jimmy’s Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid is a four wheel drive with a plug-in hybrid powertrain that produces a whopping 470PS from a 3.0-litre V6 petrol engine and 25.9kWh battery – that provides over 40 miles of electric range.
It can accelerate from 0-60mph in just over 4 seconds, has a top speed of 158 mph and covers a quarter mile in a little over 12 seconds
It comes with over £30k of extras including a Burmester sound system, with 21 speakers, Head-up display and ‘surround view’ parking cameras, Club Leather’ interior in Basalt Black, 14-way electric front seats with massage function as well as heated and cooled front and rear seats.
The Porsche Boxster S comes in black, with matching black roof and plus 20in wheels. Its 2.5-litre turbocharged ‘flat-four’ engine produces 350PS, and 420Nm of torque to the rear wheels, propelling the lithe sports car from 0-62mph in just 4.2sec and top speed of 177 mph. It covers a quarter mile in a 11 seconds
It has a seven-speed automatic ‘PDK’ gearbox, with manual paddle shift override, adaptive suspension and the Sport Chrono Package, with four driving modes.
It also has a BOSE surround sound system with 10 speakers, parking sensors and reversing camera, heated seats embossed with the Porsche crest and heated ‘GT sports’ steering wheel.
James Oakes, Chief International Officer at Omaze, said: ‘We’re thrilled that Jimmy has won not one but two dream cars. Not only did he win one of our Early Bird Prizes, he also contributed to the incredible £3,500,000 raised for CALM.
‘We’re tremendously proud that the Omaze community has already raised over £63 million for good causes across the UK.’