The Firenza looks like a fun little muscle car.
Photograph courtesy Ford
Miata might be the answer here in the U.S., but in South Africa, die antwoord could mean something else entirely.
No longer ruled by the discriminatory Apartheid government, South Africa is now home to 12 official languages, three capital cities, some of the planet’s oldest mountains, sentient robot cops, an internment camp of aliens (okay, those last two were just movies) and some truly unique versions of cars sold only within the country.
While almost all the cars on this list were built to go racing, most were offered in very limited numbers to meet homologation rules.
Despite their current rarity–even in South Africa–here are five cars sold only in the Rainbow Nation that you should know about.
Photograph Courtesy BMW
Rarer than an E30 M3? The 333i makes a compelling case.
Like most of the other cars on this list, the 333i was specially developed to outpace the competition on track–in this case, South African Group N.
To achieve that, BMW South Africa, with help from Alpina, essentially dropped a M30B32 inline-six into a two-door E30-chassis BMW. Since that M30 took up so much space, however, buyers had to choose between power steering or air conditioning–not both.
In total, a few over 200 were produced. Tracking down a current value proved difficult, but we did feature a 333i for sale last year with an asking price of approximately $147,000.
Photograph courtesy Ford
Yeah, the RS500 Cosworth is cool and all, but you know what would make the Ford Sierra even cooler?
That’s right, V8 power–and that’s precisely why the lesser-known Sierra XR8 is on this list.
More specifically, that V8 was Ford’s famed 302-cubic-inch Windsor V8.
Just like the 333i, the XR8 was offered in limited numbers–fewer than 300 total were produced–to meet homologation rules, but for Group A racing instead of Group N.
Photograph courtesy Moto Village
Normally, having a larger heart than the rest of your family isn’t a good thing, unless your family is Chevrolet and you are a car.
Such is the case for the Chevrolet Firenza Can-Am.
Known in other parts of the world as the Vauxhall Firenza, the South African-exclusive Can-Am stands apart thanks to the engine it’s packing under the hood: a 302-cubic-inch V8 borrowed from the contemporary Camaro Z/28.
The Can-Am is also among the rarer options on the list, as just 100 were made to–yep, you guessed it–meet homologation rules.
Photograph courtesy Bring a Trailer
Here’s an option that’ll have you seeing green–basil green, that is.
Basil Green Motors made a name for itself in South Africa upgrading Fords and, later, helping Ford produce unique models just for the South African market.
One such example is the Ford Capri Perana. (And before you say anything, “Perana” is deliberately spelled that way because someone else was already using “Piranha.”) Look under the hood and you’ll see a familiar friend in this story, the 302-cubic-inch Ford Windsor V8.
While the Perana did go racing–to much success–it wasn’t built to meet any homologation rules, which makes it that much more rad.
Photograph courtesy Iconic Auctioneers
One of these things is not like the others, but this thing does belong, even if it wasn’t built to go racing.
What, exactly, is a Citi Golf? It’s pretty simple.
Instead of switching over to producing the Mk2 Golf when it was released in the early 1980s, Volkswagen South Africa continued to produce the Mk1 Golf, but with an updated exterior and a slightly more powerful version of the factory powerplant normally found in the Mk1.
Powerful race car? Not quite. A highly unique piece of VW history that’ll likely win a Radwood event? Exactly.
And yeah, I’m sure you could take it racing, too.
The Firenza looks like a fun little muscle car.
In reply to J.A. Ackley :
Size-wise, it's even a little bit shorter and narrower than the Camaro, so it has that going for it, too.
Gents - Great article about the amazing automotive contributions from a country that probably never crosses the radar of most petrol-heads! My favorite is the Perana, which I would love to drive someday. But, allow me to add one more South African homologation gem to your list - the Alfa Romeo GTV-6 3.0. They apparently only made 212 of these and only in South Africa. Classic Driver magazine ran a good article on these in 2023: https://www.classicdriver.com/en/article/cars/alfa-romeo-gtv6-a-south-african-homologation-hero
Enjoy!
Two things come to mind, the first is an article recently about owning Alfa GTV6s and folks dropping the 3.0 motor in them for horsepower and torque
Secondly, I've be searching for an Opel Rekord or Kadet to install an Ecotec turbo into. But an old skool DZ302 might be even more fun and keeping with the times. Something you could flat shift at 9 grand . I like!
Wow, how about an Opel Rekord Wagon with the DZ and a 5-speed!
just a dug addled thought 🤔
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