SEPTEMBER 2016Tel: +27 11 670 8400 • www.mickeythompson.co.za • info@mickeythompson.co.za

The Mickey Thompson/Danny Thompson Land SpeedRecord story is a fascinating one and far too intricateto summarise here. But suffice to say that the worldland speed record for a normally-aspirated,piston-engined and wheel-driven car has theThompson name behind it again.

Danny Thompson, Mickey’s 66-year-old son, set a newLSR for his class during the weekend of August 12/13 anaverage speed of 406.7 mph of the famous Bonneville SaltFlats. That’s about 654 km/h. At each corner of hisChallenger 2.5 – a cigar-shaped dragster originally built byhis father in the late 1960s with this very goal in mind –was a specially-designed tyre with the M/T logo on it.

I wish I could’ve been there and in 2014 I was – with aview to seeing Danny accomplish what he has just done.But on that occasion the entire Bonneville Speed Week waswashed out, heavy rains turning the pan into a salty lake. I did get to meet Danny and see his amazing twin-engined3 700 kW ‘streamliner’ though and since then I’ve keenlyfollowed the project.

The sheer determination and tenacity of the entire crewhas been remarkable, but totally in keeping with the spiritof Danny’s father, and of course the Mickey Thompson tyrebrand. Danny Thompson, you’re a legend! Find out moreabout this remarkable journey on the links below.

Mike HarlingMickey Thompson Brand Manager

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/14/us/bonneville-danny-thompson-speed-record/index.html

http://blog.caranddriver.com/danny-thompson-breaks-his-dads-48-year-old-family-bonneville-record/

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/22/us/danny-thompson-bonneville-speed-record/index.html

http://thompsonlsr.com/

THE LEGEND CONTINUES

Interested in stocking Mickey Thompson wheels and tyres? Contact us on Info@mickeythompson.co.za or dial 011 670 8400. Find out more about our Proudly Americantyres by visiting www.mickeythompson.co.za

www.mickeythompson.co.za

AFTER TWO EXPEDITIONS (across Madagascar in 2015 and then across Africa just afew months back) Voetspore 4x4 guru Johan Badenhorst has had plenty ofexposure to the Mickey Thompson ATZp3 and more recently the MTZp3. More tothe point, after 11 African expeditions (including a 23 000km epic from Casablancato Cape Town in 2009) he knows a thing or two about off-road tyres in general.

“If you’re going to venture out on any serious overland expedition the first twothings you need are a reliable vehicle and durable tyres. The other stuff is generallynice to have, but few are truly essential if you’re going to be brutally honest withyourself,” says Badenhorst. “No one wants to get stranded in the wild – it can belife-threatening.

“Our recent ‘Reunion’ trip was our second on Mickey Thompson rubber, andafter Madagascar we were very keen to stay with the brand. The ATZp3 was asuperb performer on all three Land Cruisers taken to the island and in fact we’reusing the exact same tyres again – those on the single cab have now done 35 000 km. Multi-terrain MTZp3s were fitted to the additional two Cruiser wagonsbut they’re both great options. Because the conditions on our route have been sovaried, they’ve been equally impressive – sometimes the ATZ has been better andsometimes the MTZ. It is a chunkier tyre but it is surprisingly quiet on tar and verystable even on open dirt roads.

“What we really like about the Mickey Thompson is the load rating: around 1 400 kg per tyre and an important factor when you’ve accessorised a vehicle. Inthe two expeditions with them and a cumulative total of close to 100 000 km wehad one puncture.”

• Link to Voetspore video:https://www.facebook.com/voetspore/videos/1070131239711941/

• Link to MOAB video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VOi08Wgs1A

PRODUCT FOCUS NEWS

SAVE THE DATE!September 16 to 18 is the Speedand Sound MotorEx at the TicketproDome in Northriding and we’ll bethere in force. For example, there’llbe opportunities to buy – and alsoto win – K&N washable/serviceableperformance air filters. We cansupply a replacement cotton gauzefilter for just about any SUV or 4x4bakkie made this decade – fromAmarok to Ranger – as well as aselection of performance intakesystems for many. It could be thelast filter you ever need.

Watch this clip on our Facebookpage to get an idea of how muchdust a K&N can cope with (and allyou have to do afterwards is washand re-oil it, and it will perform likenew):https://www.facebook.com/KNFilters/videos/1329629483718278/

LOOK OUT! The Spring edition of theAutomobile Association’s Travellermagazine includes a feature onVoetspore’s latest 4x4 expedition,which saw them cross Africa fromWest to East in a six-week periodfrom mid-June. A fleet of five ToyotaLand Cruisers, fitted with a mix ofour ATZp3 all-terrain and MTZp3multi-terrain tyres covered acollective mileage of 50 000 km –without incident – in the odysseythrough six countries and over everykind of terrain imaginable.

WHEN YOU’RE ON THE WILD SIDE ofcivilisation it isn’t very often that’ll you’ll needto weld something but when you do you’llneed…a welder! Yep, if something is made ofmetal and it is properly broken, cable ties andduct tape aren’t going to do the job.

The Ready Welder 10 000, a productendorsed by the US military, is what’s needed.A portable MIG (magnesium inert gas) welder,it includes all the cabling needed to run up to three 12 Volt car batteries in series for anoutput of up to 350 amps! That’s sufficient toweld steel up to 19mm thick. Find out moreat www.readywelder.com and then come buyyours from Automotive Technology Specialistsfor an enticing R5 495 including VAT.

‘N BOER MAAK ‘N BETER PLAN

www.mickeythompson.co.za

NEWS

TIME FOR AN UPGRADE?Our all-terrain STZ represents amajor improvement on the OriginalEquipment rubber fitted to SUVsand double cabs, and we’ve made iteasier than ever for owners of thesevehicles to upgrade. For just R3 405per corner you can enjoy legendaryMickey Thompson all-round ability ina 265/70/17.

The STZ’s impressive strength andhigh load ratings (thanks toreinforced sidewalls) coupled toexcellent off-road traction anddependability on both dry and wettarmac, make this the idealall-terrain tyre upgrade. Check outthe other STZ specials on ourwebsite: http://goo.gl/tS4pDc

website: http://goo.gl/tS4pDc

DID YOU KNOW? Drag slicks are not designed for astanding kilometre! Talk to our salesstaff about your specific tyrerequirements and make sure you getthe ideal solution to your particularneeds – whether 4x4, drag, rallyingor circuit racing.

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE the importance of protecting your hands, and there arefew better ways of doing so than Mechanix gloves, a brand which has beenaround for more than 20 years. We recommend their M-pact range, which wecan offer in a number of versions, including the 0.5mm High Dexterity, which areideal for precision work thanks to their ultra-thin fabric. For wheel-changing (storethem with the jack and wheelspanner) there’s a more affordable and thickerall-purpose glove, but common qualities are an ergonomic,secure fit and rugged design from hard-wearing materials.

The best part is that having completed whatever youneeded to do, you simply whip them off and get backbehind the wheel, without the need to hunt forsoap and (precious) water.

It isn’t our newest tyre (in fact,it’s the pre-p3 ATZ) and thisisn’t the newest double cab,but we do happen to thinkthis is quite a cool bakkie…

FITS LIKE A GLOVE

HALO VEHICLE