Innholdsfortegnelse for #234 16-01 i Just Cars

“While the MX-5 sticks with naturally-aspirated power, the Fiat will use a modified version of their existing 1.4-litre MultiAir turbo, producing 119kW/250Nm.” Almost 50 years after Fiat’s original 124 Spider made its debut, a new version of the two-seat roadster has been presented and is set to go on sale in US and European markets later this year. Unveiled at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November, the reborn 124 Spider is a reskinned and re-powered version of Mazda’s latest MX-5; part of a joint project that was originally to be shared with Alfa Romeo. The new model will be built alongside the MX-5 at Mazda’s Hiroshima plant, but will carry some specific differences. DESIGN AND APPEARANCE While sharing the same platform as the MX-5, the new Spider shares no…

Janis Joplin’s famous psychedelic Porsche, as featured in JUST CARS #238, proved to be a smash hit at RM Sotheby’s ‘Driven by Disruption’ auction when it almost trebled its estimate to sell for $2.45 million. As reported last issue, the 356 SC cabriolet didn’t carry its original artwork, but this seemed to be no barrier to its appeal. A sharp bidding war saw the pre-auction high estimate of US$600,000 (AU$786,000 approx.) smashed and in less than five minutes the car was sold for an incredible US$1.76 million (AU$2.45 million approx.) The psychedelic murals were originally applied by Joplin’s roadie, Dave Richards, soon after she purchased the car in 1968, but were removed as part of a restoration in the late 1970s. In the 1990s, the livery was recreated by Colorado…

While High Wheelers (mostly American-made motorised vehicles produced between 1907 and 1915) may be small in number here, the High Wheeler movement in Australia is big and has been established for a long time. All credit for that goes to Veteran Car Club of Victoria members, Noel & Sue Holbrook. PERFECT DOZEN The first ever National High Wheeler Rally was held in Warrnambool, Victoria in 1991. Since then, the event has been held every second year, rotating through all states, focusing on rural and regional areas. The most recent rally, staged at Hahndorf from October 19 to 23, was the 12th biennial gathering of these rare vehicles, and we were there for the fun. This would be our second National High Wheeler Rally, in our restored Black delivery van (which…

After all the hype and all the waiting, the new Ford Mustang is officially in Australia. The first batch of customer vehicles, driven off Melbourne’s Appleton Dock on 2 December, were in the hands of most of those early bird buyers before Christmas. The overwhelming favourite amongst the first arrivals has been the V8 coupe – in red. Ford Australia says V8-powered cars accounted for 86 per cent of those initial orders, while 88 per cent of Australian buyers chose the coupe over the convertible. Ford says they expect more interest in convertibles and the EcoBoost turbo four-engined Mustangs in the future. “We are simply overwhelmed and humbled by the reception to Mustang thus far,” said Ford’s local President and CEO, Graeme Whickman. That reception included more than 4,000 pre-orders…

It was unveiled in July, hit the UK and Euro markets in September and now it’s coming here. Due to arrive in Australia and New Zealand soon, Lotus’s new ‘Evora 400’ promises to be the fastest and most powerful production-model Lotus ever. It’s also 42kg lighter than the current Evora, with improved ergonomics, too, making it as practical for the open road as it is potent for the racetrack. The ‘400’ comes from the 400hp (298.3kW) delivered by an all-new supercharged and charge-cooled 3.5-litre V6 engine. This is an increase of 55hp (41kW) over the outgoing Evora’s powerplant, with 410Nm torque, a top speed of 300km/h and 0-100km/h arriving in 4.1 seconds. Revised spring and damper settings, a Limited Slip Differential, and a downforce figure of 32kg at 242 km/h…

“The 390 V8 was swapped for a fully rebuilt 351 Cleveland which is a bit more economical to run and get parts for.” A sharply restored mid-50s Ford is a thing of beauty, even for those not already enamoured with cars from the Blue Oval. Add in the specially-trimmed and finished ‘Victoria’ in the 2-door hardtop body style and you’ve got something even more special. But, in the case of the car pictured, a few additional upgrades and some more personal touches enhance the appeal even further. EYE CANDY The car pictured, owned by Alwyn Pridham, was spotted by the JUST CARS crew at the 2015 Victorian Hot Rod Show in Melbourne. One of a number of tidy 50s-era Fords on show, what initially drew our attention to Alwyn’s car…

Along with Volkswagen’s Beetle, the Citroën 2CV is one of the world’s most famous cars. Light, robust, reliable and affordable, the ‘Deux Chevaux’ was intended to bring motoring to the French masses, particularly those in rural areas. It achieved that aim and then some, becoming something of a ‘classless’ car in the vein of the Mini. Almost 4 million examples were built over 42 years before production ended in 1990. Naturally, those sort of numbers and that level of popularity feeds a healthy aftermarket industry. Just like the Beetle and Mini, there have been numerous conversions, modifications and reinterpretations of the 2CV; one of those being a ‘Hoffmann’ convertible, like this feature car. TALES OF HOFFMANN Based in Hohenfurch in the extreme south of Germany, Hoffmann are one of the…

Shannons Melbourne Summer Classic Auction saw another classic Volkswagen Kombi bus sell for a big dollar amount. At the November 23 auction, a restored 1967 11-window Microbus sold for $158,000. While this didn’t match the $202,000 that a 1960-model 23-window Samba Microbus achieved at another Shannons auction in February, 2015 (see JUST CARS #230), the result was still almost double the vehicle’s pre-auction estimate, and especially impressive considering it had been consigned with no reserve. Adding to its appeal, the ’67 Kombi was an Australian-assembled RHD model with only two previous owners. A pair of floor bidders slugged it out for the VW before the final price – the best ever for an 11-window Kombi here, and the second-best ever achieved in Australia – was reached. Also in the VW…

ROCKPOOL PUBLISHING Turning Japanese book The history of the Japanese car in Australia is a subject that hasn’t received much love in print – until now! ‘Turning Japanese’ is a recently-released book from Rockpool Publishing (the crew behind ‘Ford: The Muscle Car Classics 1969-79’, ‘Muscle Car Mania’ and ‘Ford vs Holden’), which provides an entertaining and informative look back at the Japanese car’s impact on this country. Subtitled ‘50 Years of Japanese Motoring in Australia’, this photo-heavy 224-page softcover by James Cockington looks at some of the earliest Japanese cars to reach our shores, as well as more recent offerings. From the familiar to the downright bizarre, this book shows that some interesting (and now quite rare and valuable) cars were peddled here in the ’60s. There are interesting tales…

RON THORP’S 1964 AC COBRA ENGINE Ford Windsor 289 V8 CUBIC CAPACITY 4727cc POWER 350hp (261kW) TRANSMISSION Ford T-104-speed manual FRONT SUSPENSION Lower wishbones,upper transverse leaf springs,Gabriel shocks REAR SUSPENSION Transverse leafsprings, Gabriel shocks BRAKES Discs w/three-piston Girlingcalipers Fr / Discs w/two-pistonGirling calipers Rr WHEELS Halibrand magnesium15 x 6 Fr / 15 x 8 Rr Amongst the cars in the Bowden family’s collection, this vehicle isn’t an ATCC campaigner, it doesn’t have Mount Panorama enduro history (although it has raced at Bathurst), and no famous names, like Moffat, Brock or Johnson, have been in the seat, either. This vehicle does, however, have an impressive competition pedigree, but perhaps more significantly, it’s an original example of a sports car that’s been replicated countless times over and has become one of the…