Los Angeles - Thought your birthday present was cool? Bet it doesn’t come close to what Vin Diesel received for his 52nd birthday recently.
His colleagues from the Fast & Furious movie franchise surprised him with what is easily one of the most wicked muscle cars ever created - a heavily modified 1970 Dodge Charger ‘Tantrum’ from US tuner
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Needless to say, the actor was virtually speechless after his work buddies surprised him with the car - as you’ll see in the video below (the action starts around the 1:45 mark). “What! ... What! ... What” was all he could muster initially.
It’s not hard to see 'What!' all the excitement is about, when delving into the spec sheet.
The on-road 'tantrum' is enabled by a 9-litre twin-turbo V8 engine supplied by Mercury Marine Racing, with a stratospheric 1230kW going to the rear wheels through a Tremec T53 six-speed manual gearbox. Because it is a boat engine designed for gliding over lakes, keeping it cool on the road was a major concern, which the team solved by fitting an oversized radiator.
The car also gets a Penske Coilover shock package as well as mixed-size HRE alloys, with 19-inch wheels featuring up front and 20-inch rims doing duty round back.
Although it retains the basic proportions of the 1970 Dodge Charger, many of the body panels are in fact made from carbon fibre. Inside it gets a custom dash complete with classic instrument gauges and retro-modern leather and alcantara upholstery.
The car also featured in Jay Leno’s Garage, back in 2016: