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New Mustangs secured in 30 seconds

16 June, 2014

 

The nerves of Ford executives about releasing there “baby” were eased when the first 500 Euro-spec 2015 Mustangs were reserved within the first 30 seconds of the UEFA Champions League Final in Europe.

There were 9300 people who tried to secure one of the 500 spots when registrations opened during the match between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid. The 500 secured ended up being spread across 20 countries

The vehicle goes on sale officially next year and it is the first one ever to be made available across Europe.

“We knew there was huge excitement building for the new Ford Mustang coming to Europe, but the response during the UCL Final was overwhelming,” said Roelant de Waard, vice president, marketing, sales and service, Ford of Europe.

“It was a truly special way to kick off the Ford Mustang era in Europe.”

The models made available for the UEFA final release were the fastback models in Race Red and the convertible models in Magnetic Silver. Securers were able to choose from Ford’s all-new 2.3-litre EcoBoost engine with more than 309 PS and 407 Nm of torque; or the 5.0-litre V8 engine which delivers more than 426 PS and 529 Nm of torque.  They’ll also get Ford’s SYNC 2 connectivity ad navigation system,, heated and ventilated seats, Park Assist, black leather trim, chrome detailing, and 19-inch alloy wheels.

You can see the thoughts behind the redesign of the iconic vehicle here:

Bronze treasure unearthed

20 August, 2026

The car was put away in favour of something more practical, and when his father was unable to drive any more, Matt’s friend asked him to come and take a look at his dad’s old Holden. It turned out this was one of those phone calls that leads to that feeling of pure joy in the classic car world — the ‘barn find’ that turns out to be even better than expected. The HT Monaro had been put to bed some years before and had not seen the light of day since. Layers of dust and boxes of junk littered her undercarriage and bodywork and access points all around.

NZ Classic Car magazine, September/October 2026 issue 407, on sale now

16 August, 2026

We love bugs!
A bit of TLC that became a major restoration
The 1302S, or ‘Super Beetle’ as it became known, was built for two years before it, too, was replaced by a further-enhanced Beetle, the 1303, continuing an amazing 65-year lineage for one of the World’s best-known shapes.
The world’s best-selling single-model vehicle, the VW Beetle, possibly established another record for the amount of controversy it has created since the inception of the Type 1.
In a meeting with Hitler in June 1934, Ferdinand Porsche was contracted to build a ‘People’s Car’ that could accommodate two adults and three children, was air-cooled and simple to maintain, and could cruise economically at moderate speed along Germany’s proposed new Autobahns.
Our feature car, a 1972 1302S ‘Super Beetle’, was found by Dave and Michelle Dickie in Mosgiel a few years back. It was a runner, but like most VWs of this age, it needed a little TLC. They were looking for a daily driver for Michelle when they first came upon the VW being sold locally on behalf of its owner.
“The owner offered it to his grandchildren, and they didn’t want it, so he got the guy out at Mosgiel in the Mobil petrol station to sell it for him, and he put it on Trade Me for them. We never met the owner, and we were always dealing with the guy at the petrol station. We put a bid on it, and we were the only people that bid on it.”
Their bid was eventually successful, eight years ago. Not knowing much of the history, in situations like that, it’s always a risk buying a car, but they were in for a bit of a surprise.