Colin-on-Cars - New season roars in

The new year in South Africa does really get going for the petrolhead fraternity until the Passion for Speed festival at Zwartkops Raceway - scheduled for January 28/28 - where some of finest fast cars will strut their stuff.

Speed is the challenge, but the machine is his weapon. It all started in America with the oval Daytona-type tracks and events in 1950. However, by the sixties big American family cars were racing on road racetracks. The drivers were the heroes of the day. These thunder sound monsters with 350 to 500 Horsepower engines with standard suspension and brakes became the rage.

In South Africa it started in the 7-litre Galaxie (the red monster) which Lee Thompson will be driving followed by the Ford Mustang Commit (Hennie Groenewald), Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt (Mark Du Toit) the Chevs, and Barracudas.

Graeme Nathan will be out for the first time to tame the Chevelle. Franco di Matteo will race the Black Widow in a 1975 Chev Bel-Air. Stiaan Kriel in the black Studebaker Lark. With Hennie Groenewald, Ben Morgenrood Mark du Toit, Lee Thompson, Jaki Scheckter, and Paolo Cavalieri to compete with the big new bangers.

Class B is equally competitive with repeating champion Paige Lindenberg in her grey Ford Fairlane being pushed to the limit by Oliver Broom’s 1965 Ford Mustang and the purple FIA Mustang. Carel Pienaar in his Ford Escort MK1 could just slip by the big bangers.

This is an annual “ONLY FOR THE BRAVE.”

https://bit.ly/3GHRQ9R

Colin-on-Cars - Fastest Xmas tree

Breaking records is a very human condition and the reason the Guinness Book of Records exists but, down Texas way a new, unofficial record has been set for the fastest Christmas tree.

Hennessey, the Texas-based hypercar manufacturer and high-performance vehicle creator, has attained a new unofficial holiday record, having driven its Venom 1000 Mustang GT500 to a velocity of 307 km/h with an illuminated Christmas tree strapped to the roof.

Based on the most powerful factory-produced Mustang of all time, the stock Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 boasts a hand-built supercharged 5,2-litre V8 with a 2,65-litre Roots-type supercharger nestled on top.

Hennessey's Texas team upgrades the iconic pony car with a high-flow induction system, new fuel rails and injectors, and an air/oil separation system. In addition, fittings, lines, belts, and tensioners are upgraded, and the dual-clutch transmission is recalibrated for its high-output role.

The result is the Venom 1000 Mustang GT500, which is rated at 745 kW and 1 156 Nm on 93 octane pump fuel.

Piloted by professional race car driver Spencer Geswein under clear blue Texas skies with temperatures in the mid-50s, the road-legal Venom 1000 Mustang GT500 achieved the record speed on the closed circuit without drama.

This is despite the significant additional drag (and holiday cheer) produced by a festal light-adorned evergreen. The vehicle was not altered explicitly for the run, except for removing the factory under hood ‘rain tray’ to improve airflow.

John Hennessey, company Founder and CEO, says: "Our annual ‘Christmas Tree Run’ serves two roles for our growing company. First, testing our performance at a proving grounds is a great opportunity to validate our engineering – the Venom 1000 delivers impressive numbers. Second, adding the seasonal twist allows our hard-working team to end the year with some high-speed fun before they slow down and enjoy their families for the holidays."

The ‘Christmas Tree Run’ has become a Hennessey tradition, with the team carefully choosing the proper pairing between vehicle and evergreen – if nothing else than to ensure needle stripping speeds.

In 2017, the company used a 2018 Dodge Challenger Hellcat Widebody to take a tree to 280 km/h – establishing a benchmark. The number was broken in 2019 when its HPE1000 Jeep Trackhawk hit 291 km/h with a hapless Douglas Fir strapped on its roof rails and last year, Hennessey cracked 294 km/h with a tuned Audi RS 6 Avant (borrowed from John Hennessey's wife!) with a fresh Christmas tree tied to its roof.

https://bit.ly/3Vgzhik

Limited edition Mustang Mach 1 coupe 

Just 90 units of the 338 kW Ford Mustang Mach 1 Fastback coupé have been allocated to the South African market.

“The Mustang has achieved legendary status as a performance icon around the world, and in South Africa too,” says Doreen Mashinini, General Manager for Marketing at Ford South Africa. “The remarkable success of the Mustang Bullitt proved South Africans have an appetite for exclusive, limited-edition models and we are proud to extend the Mustang’s rich heritage with the launch of the Mach 1.

“Like the 1969 original, the Mustang Mach 1 bridges the gap between the standard Mustang GT and the high-performance Shelby models, delivering V8 power, unique functional aerodynamic enhancements, competition-capable suspension upgrades and a driver-focused cockpit.”

It becomes the most track-capable 5,0-litre Mustang yet, courtesy of a newly designed front end, plus Ford Performance parts derived from the Mustang Shelby GT350 and Shelby GT500 models.

The performance of the specially calibrated 5,0-litre V8 engine matches that of the Mustang Bullitt, producing 338 kW of power and 529 Nm of torque. Mach 1 buyers can select the high-performance six-speed manual transmission derived from the Shelby GT350, or there is the option of Ford’s 10-speed automatic. Both transmissions receive numerous performance, cooling and calibration enhancements that are specific to the Mach 1.

Visually, the Mach 1 is easily identifiable by the bold Mach 1 grille that pays tribute to the original, along with extensive use of low-gloss Magnetic dark grey and black accents.

This is complemented by a rear spoiler that helps the Mach 1 generate 22% more downforce than the Mustang GT with Performance Pack, which is standard in South Africa, as well as a rear axle cooling system and lower diffuser sourced from the mighty Shelby GT500.

New 19-inch five-spoke Tarnished Dark-painted aluminium wheels are a modern interpretation of the classic Mach 1 Magnum 500 style wheels, fitted with 255/40R19 tyres in front and 275/40R19 versions at the rear, giving the Mach 1 a sportier, more aggressive demeanour and enhanced handling prowess.

To further improve ride and handling, the Mach 1 features the latest MagneRide adaptive suspension, new performance-oriented electric power steering calibration, stiffer sway bars and front springs, an upgraded brake booster, a rear subframe with stiffer bushings and a rear toe-link from the Shelby GT500. And, as expected of a track-focused Mustang, the available Drive Modes includes a Track mode, and Track Apps with Launch Control.

All units destined for South Africa are painted in distinctive metallic Fighter Jet Grey with the Appearance Package as standard. Other distinctive elements include satin black bonnet and side stripes with orange accents, and orange-painted brake callipers. Additionally, the front fenders feature the legendary ‘Mach 1’ badging which reaffirms this model’s iconic lineage.

The same theme is carried through to the cabin thanks to orange seatback accents, and a Dark Spindrift instrument panel with aluminium accents. Other interior upgrades include new door sill plates, an updated splash screen on the 12,3-inch full LCD instrument cluster, Mach-1-branded door-sill scuff plates, and engraved badging on the instrument panel that displays the vehicle’s unique chassis number to reinforce its special, limited-edition status.

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