Latest news with #BMWE30
IOL News
30-06-2025
- Automotive
- IOL News
How Bloemfontein's Robin Fortuin gained confidence through spinning
Most pre-teen girls just want to dress up with their Sunday best, go to the mall with their friends and catch up with the latest gossip that's trending in the halls of their school, but not Robin Fortuin. At 12, the Bloemfontein spinner was gifted her first car by her father Rodger, a BMW E30. Before entering her teenage years, Robin already knew that she was going to be a spinner and coming from a family of motorheads solidified that dream. Now 19-years-old, Fortuin is already a brand name in the world of spinning and even has her own signature salute while standing on a moving vehicle. So what happened in 7 years that turned this young woman into a role model for South African teenagers? Robin Fortuin Robin Fortuin sits on the bonnet of her BMW E30 at the Gas Motor show in Durban. Image: Auto Rush Well, touring the country with her twin brother Roberto, who also spins, and sister Alison, again, who also spins, made life as a teenager very exciting this past decade. With her parents backing her 100%, Fortuin is hoping to make a career out of spinning and if that does not work out, she wants to be a nurse. Being an introverted person made the sport a little difficult to get into at first, because let's face it, spinning is about showing off. Introverts stay far away from such activities, but if you are destined for the spotlight, then it's only a matter of time before it finds you. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ 'Spinning makes me feel like I'm in control," said Fortuin. "It gave me so much confidence. I am naturally a shy person, even my siblings are all introverts but spinning changed us. I don't really know how to explain it, but it makes me happy. 'My parents expected me to do ballet when I was 12. In fact, they kept my car a secret. "When I was 12, they had this conversation with me about getting into ballet. But I said 'no, I really like spinning and want to do that'. Later that day, they surprised me and bought the car." Her BMW E30, draped in 'Southside Crew' stickers, runs on a M52 B29 engine with Wild Cat branches and is brought together by a Dicktator engine management system. It's a common weapon in the world of spinning, mainly because of the lure that the shape has here in South Africa. The E30 is seen as the gangster of vehicles, which presents a rare sighting to see a petite young lady twisting it around so violently. Fortuin indicated that the octane is in her blood and learnt how to spin from her elder sister Alison, who also competed in the sport. Her twin brother Roberto is also a spinner and the mechanic that works on her vehicle when he isn't destroying the rear wheels. The Fortuin family spends most of their time driving around South Africa and entering spinning events, making it a family sport and hobby. Both her siblings also drive an E30. Fortuin was arguably the highlight of the Gas Motorshow in Durban this month, pulling off stunts in front of a crowd that never saw a young lady 'operate' at that level. Stunts aside, Fortuin is also quite the drifter and thinks she can make it in the sport if she ever considered entering. But for now, spinning is her love. 'My dad used to do it back in the day when it was just something to do on the streets. Obviously, it wasn't legal at the time so it had this negative stigma attached to it. "He was the one that taught us how to spin but we kind of took it to another level. Even at the recent Gas Motorshow in Durban, he came to me and said 'I never knew you could do those things'. 'Spinning at that time was mainly in the first and second gear, I am already using third and fourth gear so the style of driving has changed over the years. "I think my Matric year was most important for me because it's when I went to M-fest and also won at Orange Farm. That's when I decided to take a gap year but I am planning to go into nursing. "I like helping people and think it's something I'd enjoy. I'm not so much into business or money and prefer to be hands on,' Fortuin concluded.
IOL News
24-06-2025
- Automotive
- IOL News
How spinning is becoming South Africa's fastest growing motorsport
ALTHOUGH not mainstream but spinning is becoming the fastest growing sports in South African. | Supplied Image: Supplied Words could never really describe the feeling you get when you see a BMW E30 in a roll back burnout which ends up clouding the area around it with smoke. You can hear the car's engine limiting like it's going to break, and then all of a sudden…it disappears in a cloud of white smoke. It's not so much a sport but a stirrer of emotions, mainly adrenaline, which permeates throughout the drivers, stuntmen and the spectators alike. There's no real point structure like the Super Drift series, but rather, spinning is mainly judged by the crowd's applause - which makes it the most interactive motorsport to date. South Africa can be looked at as a pioneer of the sport, which is now entertaining crowds in Austria (shout out to Samkeliso Thubane). The amount of raw, young talent bubbling to the surface right now in the world of spinning is a breath of fresh air. In many aspects, spinning has also given the youth something to strive toward, given that is achievable to participate in financially. Aspiring for greatness Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading Sam Sam has reached the pinnacle of the sport, according to McKeenan 'Troubles' du Plessis, 33, a Johannesburg spinner from team Japan Auto - who would one day follow in similar footsteps. Troubles got into the sport at 13-years-old as a stuntman and knew since then that he was destined to be a driver. A decade later, the colourful spinner drives his own Nissan VQ25 swapped BMW E30. His 'boxshape' has been fitted with a 5-speed BMW gearbox to go with the V6 Nissan power plant and runs on a Spitronics engine management system. The diff's also been welded locked. 'I think immediately after getting into the sport as a youngster, I wanted to drive one day. But I was small and didn't have the money so I became a stuntman just to stay close to the sport and grow as well. 'I used to be a stuntman for a guy named Rogan from Reiger Park Spinners. We competed mainly in Vosloorus, Soweto and Soshanguve. Since then, I think the crowds have really grown, mainly because of social media. There's a lot more attention on the sport now, especially after Sam Sam became a star and went all over the world. 'I think as a spinner, he reached the pinnacle of the sport and we all would like to be like that and go around the world spinning. Things are moving here in South Africa though and I'm sure it will grow the sport,' du Plessis said. Troubles even got himself a stuntman now - Dillon 'Toppie' Holster. Holster is often holding on to the side of the E30 for the past two years. "I enjoy hanging out of the car and showing that I fear nothing. The best part about spinning is showing off our skills. Since I started with McKeenan the sport has really grown and I hope one day people can watch it on TV like a real sport," Holster said. McKeenan du Plessis spinning the Japan Auto BMW E30 at the Gas Motorshow in Durban. McKeenan du Plessis spinning the Japan Auto BMW E30 at the Gas Motorshow in Durban. Image: Auto Rush Why so popular? Unlike drag racing and circuit or drifting, spinning doesn't require a private vault filled with cash to be successful. Do not misunderstand that, however, you do need money to get started but it is possible to develop in the sport with a 'beginner' level car. More experienced drivers tend to spruce their cars up with more power but that must be accommodated by other modifications to support the power - which is when it starts getting very expensive. Hence, most spinners try keep it as simple possible. What separates spinning from other motorsports though, is the fact that you do not need too many specialized parts in your vehicle when it comes to the gearbox, suspension or engine. A drag racing vehicle for instance, needs a custom gearbox, suspension and fuel system or else you are swatting flies with a chopstick. In short, a drag racing vehicle has to be completely rebuilt with aftermarket parts for it to be "win". Spinning on the other hand, is more about style than about speed. Its about expressing yourself and standing out from your competitors through different tricks, stunts and your stuntman. Engines on a spin car also undergo a serious amount of pressure but it's the differential that takes the most beating because of the constant locking and unlocking motion. Most spinners have opted to weld the differential at a locked position to keep the wheels spinning more easily. The cars in the sport are not necessarily the prettiest and that's because they often take a bump or two every now and again. Drivers do not care so much about the aesthetic appeal of their cars but mainly the engine, gearbox and suspension. The gearbox is not much of a deciding factor when building a spin car and it is possible to "get away" on a budget option although not advised.
