SVO SuperUte
Thanks to the guys at Knox Ford in Ferntree Gully (Melbourne, Australia), the SVO name has reappeared in the form of the current model XH2 Falcon S Longreach five litre auto utility.
Mick Webb's famous SVO product range is optional on a scoop buy of the above-mentioned utility which comes complete with standard features of free air, 3.23:1 limited slip diff, power steering, remote control central locking (with Smartlock Immobilisation), power mirrors, leather-wrapped steering wheel, rear window demister, variable wipers, rake and reach adjustable steering column, full velour trim, 4 speaker rad/cassette, fully carpeting, floor console and tonneau cover for the amazing drive away price of A$29,990.
The base SVO option which retails for A$4000 includes lowered suspension of reset rear leaves and new front coils, 16 x 7 SVO alloy rims wrapped in low profile 225/50/16 tyres, a neat two tone paint scheme, white instrument facia and unique badging. Over and above, the Longreach can be ordered with a body kit of front spoiler, side skirts, and bonnet vents and there is the choice of full Bilstein suspension.
Interested parties should call Bill Mapletoft at Knox Ford on +61 3 9758 1155.
Video Review: Serious 4s in Your Face
Serious Fours & Rotaries and Performance Cars Number 2 is a 75 minute VHS video produced in association with Australia's Fast Fours and Rotaries magazine.
The sequel to the hugely popular first video (Number 1 - in case you didn't realise) this tape is a great one to whack in the player while you've got some rev-head mates over. You can sit and drool or argue all night long over whether a rotary is superior to a piston engine.
The tape kicks off with a coupla of Italian jewels (a Fiat 131 and 124) converted to twin-cam turbo Lancia power. The camera goes for a short ride around a racetrack in each car, and the narrator gives a quick run down of the mechanical aspects of each.
Launching straight into the really serious stuff, Australia's fastest rotaries are next on the tape.
Maztech's 13B twin-turbo RX-3 does a couple of 9-second passes before the camera, and the owner talks briefly about the car. Moving on to Sydney, PAC Performance's rotaries are put to the test. There's footage of their RX-3 sedan fitted with a triple rotor, and the quicker-still coupe with its highly tuned 13B turbo. These cars do a couple of high speed passes down the ¼ mile, and some of their customers cars are put through the same torture too - but not before the odd burnout! To make things interesting, a top
Japanese performance bike is lined up against the PAC cars, only to be beaten by the RX-3 coupe.
Nissans are the theme of the next segment. Two Datsun 1600s -one powered by a FJ20DET, and the other by a later SR20DET - are "compared", on the ¼ mile and on the track. However the FJ20 car has a locker diff which prevented any real laps, but it does do one spectacular oversteer. The SR20 turbo engine is then the main focus - the examples fitted into a 3-series BMW, Bluebird TRX, 1600 and a GTi-R Pulsar. Each car gets a quick technical run down before they do a lap of the circuit and hit the quarter mile strip. All the cars are fairly even in straight line performance, except the GTi-R canes them all off the line with its four wheel drive advantage.
The TRX then breaks its gearbox, and the BMW spits out (another) CV joint!
Buckley Street Autotech's (now sold) 12 second Lancer GSR receives a good tech description and gets to do a couple of understeering donuts before lining up next to a standard R33 V-spec Skyline GT-R. The modified Lancer obviously whips the GT-R's butt... Then Mitsubishi's Evolution 5 gets punted around the track accompanied by a brief description of its handling and braking, and the Lancer segment ends with a cosmetic-oriented Lancer. With big wheels, a spectacular paint-job and a reworked interior, it gets a good looking over.
One of the current tastes in Australia is for Subaru's all-conquering WRX. The rare STi Version 3 Type R 2-door gets driven around a car park to get some action footage, and there is a well-detailed description of the car's mechanical package to go with it. Then we're taken into the workshop of a WRX rally team for a look at the preparation of a full competition car. There're still more WRXs with the Osman's brightly-coloured and extensively-modified cars, touring cautiously around the track. One lines up next to a budget modified example on the strip to test the difference in straight line go. The Osman car wins by a couple of lengths.
Mazda's Cosmo triple-rotors from Japan get their own segment that covers their extensive specifications and prices landed here in Australia. They take a couple of the later models around the track and then give a quick spec-check on the older HB model 929 rotary turbos. From there we flow onto a special on Japanese import cars in Australia. Cars put through their paces on the racetrack include R32 GT-R, GTS-4, GTS-T models and even the later R33 V-spec GT-R and GTS-T. The narrator talks about their engines, performance and prices - giving a good insight for potential buyers. A Nissan 300ZX twin-turbo, 180SX turbo, Supra twin-turbo and Mitsubishi FTO all get the same run down also, with some spectacular oversteering from these rear wheel drive vehicles. A heavily-modified MR2 3S-GTE turbo then gets thrown around the circuit and receives a mechanical overview. Spitting flames out the rear pipes, it then goes to the ¼ mile strip where it beats an R33 GTS-T and an MR2 GT.
The tape then takes an unexpected twist and follows a young lad through the purchase, panel repair and basic engine mods to a "budget build" Series 2 RX-7. He gets 15hp through exhaust and intake mods, but then the engine dies and we see a rather distressed owner sitting on the footpath, as his car is taken off on the back of a flat-bed truck. He installs a replacement 6-port 13B import motor and finally gets the chance to take it to the racetrack while sitting alongside a professional driver. The pro takes him through some performance driving steps, and there is the inevitable spin and stuff-up as the nervous owner tries to get it together. This segment culminates with a modified Series 2 convertible that proves a real handful to drive, as we see it spin, again and again. There's tyre smoke aplenty to add to the effect.
Croydon Autosport's 12 second Suzuki Swift GTi gets a couple of sprints down the straight track and you learn a little bit about the engine set up. The guy that owns it makes some pretty funny comments too.
Getting back to into rotary swing of things, an extensively modified MX-5 (Miata) with a 13B turbo whistles its way around a racetrack and is pitted against a new Lotus Elise. The Mazda seems quicker on the racetrack, but when it comes time for the ¼ mile attempts, a turbo hose blows off and it loses the run! A later G-Tech timed sprint (with secure hoses) indicates it to be significantly quicker than the Elise though.
A couple of FWD Corollas get evaluated on the track - one with a 4A-E 20 valve engine, the other with a 4A-GZE conversion. There are some good oversteering shots as the driver pulls the handbrake on mid-corner to demonstrate how to get them to turn-in. Again, these cars perform the ¼ mile, to reveal the supercharged vehicle with its fatter torque curve is the quicker of the pair.
Finally, you know you're near the end of the video when it takes you to a Sydney 4-cylinder show and talks to the owner of one of the cars and his impending marriage. A few seconds later, you see him being driven off to the Big Day in his immaculately detailed rotary turbo powered Mazda wagon - but the bastard thing refuses to start when it's needed later in the day. Both husband and wife took the limo instead!
Overall, it's a good video that's worth the money with plenty of ooh-ahh appeal as it has heaps of burnouts, oversteering cars and quarter mile demons. Its just the thing to watch when you've been working all day and want to come home for some not-too-serious entertainment. But as the name suggests, some of the cars are pretty serious...
The tape is available in TV formats to suit anywhere in the world. Email bj@seriousbiz.com.au or go to http://www.seriousbiz.com.au/
Quickies
- Mitsubishi in Australia is still looking longingly towards the Federal Office of Road Safety to okay low volume imports. The first car that would definitely come would be the Lancer Evo 6, at a retail cost of A$65-$70,000. Mitsubishi has also been testing in Australia Japanese-spec GDI (Gasoline Direct Injection) engines but Australia's high sulphur content fuel and variable octane ratings are giving the Japanese engineers nightmares. Mitsubishi found Australian standard unleaded to vary from 88-94 RON depending on the refinery! So don't expect to see a GDI engine in the Magna for at least a couple of years. Incidentally, AutoSpeed will have a road test of the about-to-be-released Magna 3.5 litre Sport soon.
- BGT Performance's web site at http://www.bgtperformance.com.au is under construction but there is already some interesting material on the site. Included is a dyno library featuring dyno graphs on such cars as the R33 GTR, WRX STi, EVO V, and a 368kW at the wheels 20B turbo 323 drag car.
- If you're into the "finest examples of older Rear Wheel Drive Toyotas in the world" check out
http://surf.to/maximum-toyota-power
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