We’re going drag racing! But it almost didn’t happen…

We’re going drag racing! But it almost didn’t happen…


Round 10 years in the past at our used industry (CarAdvice, now Force) we made up our minds to execute a video of a Tesla Fashion S P85 drag racing a Walkinshaw-tuned HSV GTS and a manufacturing V8 Supercar at Winton Raceway in Victoria.

The video went viral and scored over one million perspectives inside the first 24 hours (Elon Musk even tweeted it). Again next, this used to be plenty. It used to be ahead of non-standard drag racing movies have been truly a factor and ahead of YouTube used to be as customery as it’s nowadays.

So, rapid ahead 10 years and we concept, let’s do it once more. And this while, let’s accumulation the similar theme – inexpensive manufacturing automobile up in opposition to some unbalanced unique unobtainium.

Simple – we’ll retain a monitor, organise some vehicles and we’ll be candy. Our first video is live now, by means of the way in which!

Err…no longer moderately. We got here throughout plenty of hurdles – all of the means as much as actually simply ahead of we began capturing. It got here very similar not to going down, so we concept we’d percentage with you the progress we went via to get to some degree the place shall we collision document with vehicles on a runway.

The venue used to be probably the most toughest issues to accumulation. We checked out a qualified drag racing venue, however there have been obstacles on helmets, filming, timing, monitor preparation and next backup highway blocks for one of the sooner vehicles with regards to roll cages and parachutes.

We scrapped that concept and next began taking a look at airports. It feels like a very easy enough quantity activity, however for this manufacturing to be cost-effective, we’d wish to execute plenty of those back-to-back around the length of a occasion to form it profitable. That’d imply discovering an airport keen to close for a whole occasion.

That dominated out maximum airports close any primary towns or even some additional afield.

An additional complication used to be that we had to centre the layout round Perth. One in all our (very beneficiant) traders, tech billionaire, Laurence Escalante, had presented us his fleet of tremendous and hypercars to usefulness for this layout and lots of the vehicles have been positioned in Perth.

Trucking tens of tens of millions of bucks importance of vehicles across the nation used to be too pricey and the insurance coverage would were a nightmare, so we went at the hunt for a regional airport round Perth.

We in any case discovered one in a the town known as Wyalkatchem – positioned round 2.5 hours inland of Perth. With a society of beneath 1000 crowd, the as soon as bustling the town is now a tiny quieter, but additionally includes a not too long ago resurfaced runway (essentially impaired for personal airplane and the Royal Flight Physician’s Carrier).

Initial discussions with the council went neatly. Alborz made various journeys in the market extreme occasion to aim and persuade the council and the get permission. Issues have been going neatly abut by means of the while we were given nearer to locking in a age, the council’s CEO modified and the committee used to be a tiny much less enthused concerning the challenge.

We made extra journeys out to Wyalkatchem (later 4-5 moment flights from Brisbane and Melbourne respectively) to fulfill with the council in particular person to re-pitch the speculation.

Then the committee’s vote, we have been again on with an extended listing of necessities for the challenge to go.

Attractiveness, we concept. Now all we wish to do is name our population legal responsibility insurer, prolong our insurance coverage to preserve the development and we can be in a position to rumble. Yeah, no longer moderately.

A variety of agents we approached didn’t need to advance anyplace close this. We couldn’t discover a unmarried insurer that may deal population legal responsibility insurance coverage (no longer even insurance coverage for the vehicles, simply legal responsibility insurance coverage for component injury). Then months of to-and-fro with insurers, we have been positive it wasn’t getting to occur (Alborz used to be way more ambitious).

However, we in any case collision the jackpot once we discovered an insurer keen to insure the development with plenty of strict statuses and a hefty top rate. This approbation got here actually with two weeks to extra. We have been on.

Era within the movies it seems find it irresistible’s simply a few crowd – there have been a stack of crowd within the background that we wish to thank.

Town of Wyalkatchem:

Population who are living in regional cities are most often laid again and simple to trade in with. The crowd of Wyalkatchem advance neatly and in point of fact above and past. The council committee, councillors, and council employees went above and past to house each and every request we had. There used to be not anything they couldn’t or wouldn’t do for us. Essentially superior crowd – so thanks once more for having us on the town for the occasion!

We had the probability to fulfill one of the locals on our ultimate pace as neatly once we had one of the drag race vehicles on show on the town for everyone to peer. Should you’re ever close Wyalkatchem – form certain you swing by means of and aim out the pub or one of the native cafes.

St John’s Ambulance:

We had 3 paramedics on standby each and every pace of the development in two automobiles simply in case the rest went unsuitable. Hugely recognize their assistance – fortunately they didn’t wish to do the rest and were given to experience Alborz and I ripping into each and every alternative all of the while.

Segment of Fireplace and Crisis Carrier:

We had the Shire of Wyalkatchem’s fireplace carrier on standby all of the while, too, in a fireplace truck, 70 Layout and a mean-sounding F truck.

Those guys additionally had not anything to do all of the while – once more, admirable information!

Western Australia Police drive:

Regional police are absolute legends as neatly. We had native police and police from some other pocket i’m sick throughout the development to form certain the whole thing used to be to deliver. Thank you once more in your while and repair and for pretending to arrest Alborz a tiny too realistically on various events.

Hyundai:

I’m certain you’ll consider the expense of this challenge. In reality – although you’ll consider the fee, simply double it…or triple it. Hyundai did one thing that almost all producers don’t do – whisk a punt on a challenge this measurement with no need any keep an eye on at the end result or the manufacturing.

Hyundai helped preserve the majority of the prices fascinated about making this occur and with out their assistance, none of this may be imaginable. So all the way through this layout you’ll see the untouched all-electric Hyundai Ioniq 5 N.

Past Customized:

The fellows at Past Customized helped supremacy and prep the vehicles to safeguard they have been in a position to roll once we arrived. Some of the vehicles we raced used to be a McLaren P1 GTR, which additionally wanted its personal fuelling station and to be crammed/tired ahead of and later it used to be impaired.

Weighty cry out as neatly to Steve who transported his non-public 1800hp HQ i’m sick for probably the most races (this factor used to be unreal!).

Diamond Towing Carrier:

As you’ll consider – riding a few of these vehicles on 2.5 hours of nation roads wasn’t getting to paintings, so we needed to truck the entire automobiles all the way down to Wyalkatchem for the development. Abundance logistics and lengthy days. The fellows at Diamon Towing made that procedure a wind.

LEE Assortment:

After all, none of this may be imaginable with out get admission to to Laurence’s vehicles. Those vehicles have been only a petite collection of what he has in his many sheds round Australian and the sector, so form certain you subscribe to the channel to get notified when our then quantity of movies is going are living, as a result of we’re best getting staerted!



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