Ken Block’s tire-shredding, drifting spectacle is back in its seventh generation, with Gymkhana Seven released just this morning. Replete with blinding tire smoke and intoxicating engine sounds, this iteration of Gymkhana takes place on the closed-down streets of Los Angeles, an ideal setting. However, the biggest news is that Ken Block’s familiar Fiesta rally car is gone, replaced by a raucous, 845-horsepower 1965 Mustang ‘Notchback’ sporting all-wheel drive.
Beginning the film with the sleek Mustang chained to a warehouse wall, Block spins all four of the Mustang’s tires at once, enveloping himself in a massive plume of burning rubber before taking the streets of Los Angeles. He slides past the standard parked police cars and barrels before visiting some of LA’s most famous sites, including Randy’s Donuts and Chinatown. One of the video’s final scenes involves Block doing donuts on the bottom of a freeway interchange before the camera zooms out, showing the cloud of white smoke that extends hundreds of feet into the air.
Los Angeles was highly compliant in the making of Gymkhana 7, according to reports. A city with such a vibrant auto culture is used to accommodating stunt drivers, even allowing Block to make a high-speed run on the hillside behind the iconic Hollywood sign. However, there still were a number of hoops that Block had to jump through, with the Department of Homeland Security weighing in on the legality of a few of his stunts.
Overall, the LA setting and the retro (but highly modified) Ford Mustang make this evolution of the Hooligan Gymkhana series one of the most entertaining to date–check out the video below for a full experience of Block’s shenanigans.
And here is Roman with the Hoonicorn Ford Mustang at the 2014 SEMA show.
