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About the car: The “Twister Special” was a specially made 1970 Mustang Mach1 produced by Ford exclusively for the Kansas City Sales District Ford dealers. Synonymous with the tornado-prone geographical area, the name “Twister” was aptly applied. Consecutively numbered, only 96 Twister Specials were built. In addition, 90 1970 Torino Cobra’s with 428 SCJ motors were fabricated and 4 Torino Ranchero’s with the 351 Cleveland engine were made. Of the 96 Mustang Twister’s, 9 had the 351 Cleveland V-8 with 4-speed tranny, 39 had the same motor with an auto trans, and 24 each, were made with the 428 SCJ; half with a 4-speed, the other half with an automatic transmission. Each and every Twister was painted Grabber Orange while all Torino’s and Ranchero’s were painted in Vermilion.
About the model: Danbury picked a stunningly flamboyant Mustang to reproduce and they did all the home work necessary to accurately pull off a magnificently detailed replication. The diecast depicted here is a one of 24 Twister built with the big, bad 428 SCJ power plant and equipped with a 4-speed gearbox and 3.91 traction-lok rear axle. The paint is exquisitely applied, glossy and rich and shines like a mirror. Then the DM Boyz got busy replicating the black accent flashes; centered on the hood, surrounding the massive air scoop sticking up through it. They labeled the scoop sides perfectly with, “Cobra Jet” scripting, and interrupted the secondary stripe with a painted, “428” in black.
Not to be outdone, the sides of the car are adorned with a center black stripe accented with a black pinstripe running from the front fender into the door and part way into the rear fender. There’s a “Ford” oval in the front fender stripe and, “Mach1” in the door stripe and you better get out the magnifying glass to see it in its infinite glory. Then the rear fender is emblazoned with a cool Kansas twister and the car’s namesake, “Twister Special”. Wait until you see the fabrication of the lower body panel where the, “Mach1” moniker resides in photo-etched metal. Just above it is a chrome metal-foiled, “Mustang” badging script. Up front, the black air dam and meshed metal grillwork dominate the car and lead your eyes to the twin hood hold-downs in chrome. The antenna raises and calls attention to the nearby black-washed cowl air vents.
The trunk and chassis detailing are typically DM-astonishing but play a back-up role to the leading parts of the interior and engine bay build. Oscars all around here please, this is an Academy moment. The doors open on internal hinges to showcase a fantastic interior that provides what might be our only opportunity to view a real Twister Special’s driver’s lair. The wood inlay of the doors and dashboard are phenomenal. The visors work, seats fold forward and the delicate nature in which DM crafted the ‘small’ parts is legendary. Ok, now to the 428 Cobra Jet. Boys and girls, this is what precision diecast engineering is all about and always should be – perfection. I hope you didn’t put that magnifying glass away, you’re going to need it here big time.
Of course Danbury’s latest claim to fame hood scissors springs are present, but just cast your eyes toward that massive V-8 in all its magnificence. Every informational sticker is in place; the battery, brake cylinder, carburetion and radiator connection is present and accounted for. Wiring and plumbing have never been better crafted and the suspension componentry below is represented as if by Ford manufacture itself. If ever there was a ‘must have’ model, this would be most definitely it. For more detailed information on the actual car visit the Twister Special Registry website at: http://www.twisterspecialregistry.com/
(10/24/2009)
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