Photo: Motor/YouTube
At home in America, the Mach 1 is already in the company of vloggers and whatnot, but in other parts of the world, it is just getting the chance to shine. Naturally, professionals will defer judgment to a safe environment, such as the track days on Australia’s Wakefield Park Raceway.
Nicknamed “The Nation's Spectator Track,” this 2.2-kilometer (1.36 miles) motor racing circuit located near Goulburn, New South Wales, not only delivers a tribute to Charles Cheers Wakefield, the founder of Castrol Oil, but it’s also ready to provide perfect conditions for Mustang Mach 1 shenanigans... with a TCR twist.
But we’ll get back to that soon. First things first, the perspective. It seems that Mustang fans from the Land Down Under were thoroughly disappointed by the official absence of Shelby models from local dealerships. Since the Mach 1 is the latest and greatest version that’s globally available, they naturally have quite high expectations.
So, the host of Australia’s “Motor” magazine (Scott Newman) and YouTube channel decided to see if the modern Mach 1 was scared of the track just like its predecessors or ready to pursue the Blue Oval’s chance at redemption. Naturally, it all starts with a presentation, and after the 1:35 mark, we’re already gearing for the action.
All the beefs and past transgressions come up in waves, but it seems the Mach 1 manages to hold up pretty well once all the upgrades kick in—the additional power, better cooling, MagneRide adaptive dampers, and above all, the new Tremec manual from the GT350.
We could easily conclude that the video presenter is way more content with this Mach 1 than previous Mustang versions, judging by his quick considerations about the gearbox being “more involving” and the overall attitude putting a “this is fun” smile on his face.
With all that considered, we could label this as a traditional track review. But from the 8:50 mark, the unexpected kicks in, and with specific Aussie flavor we’re notified there’s a TCR “car at my clacker.” That seems to be the local slang explaining that a faster vehicle was trying to pass, and Newman decides to try and keep up the pace, but gives up just as fast and returns to sliding around.
But we’ll get back to that soon. First things first, the perspective. It seems that Mustang fans from the Land Down Under were thoroughly disappointed by the official absence of Shelby models from local dealerships. Since the Mach 1 is the latest and greatest version that’s globally available, they naturally have quite high expectations.
So, the host of Australia’s “Motor” magazine (Scott Newman) and YouTube channel decided to see if the modern Mach 1 was scared of the track just like its predecessors or ready to pursue the Blue Oval’s chance at redemption. Naturally, it all starts with a presentation, and after the 1:35 mark, we’re already gearing for the action.
All the beefs and past transgressions come up in waves, but it seems the Mach 1 manages to hold up pretty well once all the upgrades kick in—the additional power, better cooling, MagneRide adaptive dampers, and above all, the new Tremec manual from the GT350.
We could easily conclude that the video presenter is way more content with this Mach 1 than previous Mustang versions, judging by his quick considerations about the gearbox being “more involving” and the overall attitude putting a “this is fun” smile on his face.
With all that considered, we could label this as a traditional track review. But from the 8:50 mark, the unexpected kicks in, and with specific Aussie flavor we’re notified there’s a TCR “car at my clacker.” That seems to be the local slang explaining that a faster vehicle was trying to pass, and Newman decides to try and keep up the pace, but gives up just as fast and returns to sliding around.
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