#MagnaFlow Drivers Feature: Josh Liem and Corinne Currie’s Hot Wheels Legends Tour Contender

Today we’re highlighting #MagnaFlow drivers Josh Liem and Corinne Currie’s 1975 Opel Manta, which is currently in the running to be inducted into the Hot Wheels Garage of Legends after capturing the hearts of judges at the Hot Wheel Legends Tour stop in Detroit, Michigan, back in August. The victor of the contest will see their ride turned into an official 1:64 scale die-cast Hot Wheels car to be sold to the public. Josh Liem isn’t just a #MagnaFlow driver. He’s also a MagnaFlow Product Manager and coworker of ours, which makes this car and its potential victory extra exciting! Our whole team is pulling for him.

Fortuitous Find

Josh and Corinne came across this little gem of a vehicle on Craigslist in 2019. It had clearly been used for dirt track racing at some point, and the car had been well gutted. This included the dashboard, which had been completely cut apart. It had been resting in a garage since sometime in the early 90s.

The vehicle is quite a rare find, as General Motors never imported many cars from the German-made brand. That said, GM has rebranded Opels under other brands for sale in the US, but true Opels haven’t been sold here since 1978. This 1975 example represents the last year they ever sold the Manta in the United States.

Beginning in the summer of 2020, it took about six months of work to turn the garage-dwelling Opel into a sleek, street-legal resto-mod. Their modifications include 15-inch wheels, an ATL fuel cell and a front splitter, as well as new leather sport seats and Bosch gauges. They also elected to delete the rear bumper and side-marker lights for improved aesthetics.

While Josh and Corinne have elected to keep the Manta’s stock 1.9L four-cylinder for the time being, they decided to add a dose of improved sound and dyno-proven performance by way of a MagnaFlow Universal Performance Muffler (#11224). Josh built an entire custom 2-inch diameter exhaust system around the straight-through muffler body, and, as a result, the car now sounds as sporty as it looks.

A Legendary Marque

Even those unfamiliar with cars have, without a doubt, heard of Hot Wheels. Since its origins in the late 1960s, Hot Wheels have kindled the interest of many a nascent gearhead with their perfectly scaled-down models of new cars, customs, classics and fantasy builds alike. The popularity of the die-cast models extends well beyond the young, as seasoned collectors vie for limited edition releases and rare examples produced over the course of the brand’s fifty-plus year history. However, there’s no greater honor in the world of Hot Wheels than Mattel deciding to create a new release based on one’s own vehicle.

The folks over at Hot Wheels obviously appreciate all the work that Josh and Corinne put into their beloved ride, as it won in what was a very crowded field of several hundred awesome vehicles in Motor City, USA, of all places. They loved the story of the car, and especially the plucky “garage spirit” of its owners. Now the car, Josh and Corinne move on to another elimination round virtual event later this month. The ultimate winner of the tour contest will be announced in November.

Team Manta All the Way!

We’re looking forward to seeing how the rest of the tour shapes up and have our fingers crossed that Josh and Corinne get the opportunity to witness their little blue sports car become a real Hot Wheels Legend. It’s always fantastic to see #MagnaFlow drivers, MagnaFlow employees and their cars succeed, and we hope to be able to add a 1:64 Manta to our Hot Wheels collection soon!

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