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PAGE 52

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G

’DAY, and thanks for picking up the
August issue of Street Machine.
There are some incredible cars in
this month’s mag, not the least of
which being Adam and Kelly Rogash’s epic
new Mk1 Capri, STRIPSHOW (p.26). The
twin-turbo big-block monster created quite a
stir when it was unveiled at Meguiar’s MotorEx
earlier this year following a frantic six-month
build.
Lightweight, with plenty of tyre under it and
certainly no shortage of horsepower, the Capri
is a purpose-built drag-and-drive weapon with
parallel fuel systems for both pump fuel and
methanol, a full interior, and the ability to quickly
and easily bypass the 98mm turbochargers for
making the road miles at Drag Challenge.
Since MotorEx, the crew has had the car to
Heathcote for some eighth-mile licks to refine
the chassis side of things, before dragging it
from Melbourne to Sydney for Grudge Kings.
After a wild mid-track wheelie in testing, the
Capri went on to reel off a 7.00@191mph
on its first full pass, promptly followed by a
6.91@199mph.
I was there to see it happen, and I don’t mind
telling you that it was impressive. There’s only
a handful of six-second street-driven cars in
the country, so to land there so early on in
the car’s development (and with a shit-ton of
horsepower left in reserve) bodes very well for
the future.
While Adam is yet to prove the Capri’s streetcar chops at Drag Challenge, he’s eager to do
exactly that this year. With no fewer than four
past DC competitors now armed with proven

six-second-capable cars, and the new, state-ofthe-art Tailem Bend strip added for the 2023
event in October, maybe we’ll hand out our first
six-second hat at DC this year!
With that being said, if you prefer blowers
over turbos, you’ll no doubt enjoy Ray Elia’s VH
Valiant Regal (p.34). It’s a staunch bit of gear,
with 543ci of Mopar fat-block up front topped
with a shiny 10/71 and Joe Blo EFI injector hat.
And if you’re of the belief that power adders
are for people who can’t build engines, then
Pat Langdon’s Quey (p.54) might be more your
jam. It’s packing 632ci of GM’s finest, and it
makes 1000hp and change with no need for
artificial aspiration.
In other news, Street Machine Legends
Volume Three is out now! On the cover is
the late, great Chic Henry smoking out the
Summernats burnout pad in his iconic ’62
Impala.
While the first two editions of SM Legends
focused on the iconic cars of the first and
second decades of Street Machine’s history,
Volume Three is all about the people who have
made the sport what it is today. Among the 40
legends covered are the likes of Rod Hadfield,
Victor Bray, Howard Astill, Peter Fitzpatrick
and Paul Bennett. Telfo and art director Gavin
Morrison delved deep into our archives to
turn up some rare – and in some cases neverbefore-seen – imagery. She’s on sale now in
all major bookshops, or just scan the QR code
below to grab it from our online shop.
Cheers,
Broads.
andrew.broadley@wheelsmedia.com.au 

MAIL
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ST RE E T MA C H I N E

005

C ON T E NTS
AUGUST 2023 | VOLUME 43 | ISSUE 8

042

> FEATURES
COOLY ROCKS ON

42
66 GRUDGE KINGS

088

Retro cool takes over Coolangatta for a huge
Gold Coast weekend

BELIEVE THE HYPE
With an injected SBC up
front, Steven Thrift’s cherryblack EH is shooting for 10s

The huge Sydney meet saw big wheelstands
and bloody impressive ETs

066

94 TECH TORQUE: LT FAMILY

The lowdown when it comes to GM’s latest
generation of small-block shove

ADAM & KELLY ROGASH
1970 MK1 FORD CAPRI

100 TIME MACHINE: ’66 MUSTANG
Janet Hough and Victor Reilly’s gorgeous
ex-feature ’Stang is still going strong

104 DRAG CHALLENGE: K24 CELICA

This screaming Honda-swapped notchback is a
seven-second force to be reckoned with

094

> REGULARS
05 BROADCAST 10 NEWS FRONT 14 PEOPLE LIKE US
16 SNAPSHOTS 18 FANGING FLICK 21 YOUR STUFF
110 IN THE BUILD 114 IRON MAIDEN 122 DIRTY STUFF
124 URBAN WARFARE 128 IN GEAR 132 READERS’
ROCKETS 140 LOL 142 SUNDAY TOO FAR AWAY
146 MILL OF THE MONTH

100

104

RAY ELIA
1972 VH VALIANT REGAL

146

118

SLEEPER: 2JZ VL

The other big Japanese six
powers Chris Ethell’s sneaky
VL Commodore!

STRIP TEASE
Adam Rogash’s mindblowing, street-ready Capri
has already run a six!

034
PREMIER LEAGUE

Pat Langdon has transformed his first car
into a 1000hp, all-motor monster

Cat Hewitson’s VK-fronted VL Calais
smokes rubber with NASCAR power

Tyres beware! This stunning blown and injected
VH Regal packs 543 cubes of Mopar grunt

054
060

FEROCIOUS FELINE

CRANKY AS

GREY’S ANATOMY

The latest evolution of Jason De Silveira’s LSAswapped C10 is low and anything but slow

076
082

DREAMWEAVER

Legendary drag racer Ben Gatt takes his heirloom XT
from family chariot to neat-as-a-pin streeter

PHOTO: CACKLING PIPES
EDITOR
Andrew Broadley
ART DIRECTOR
Leah Gionis
ADDITIONAL DESIGN
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Kian Heagney, Jack Houlihan
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Mary Lee
SOCIALS
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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Simon Telford
KICK-ARSE CONTRIBUTORS
Mark Arblaster, Troy Barker, Peter Bateman, Caprice Photography, Carly Dale, Drag
Photos, Matthew Everingham, Rusty Gregory, Ben Hosking, Nathan Jacobs, Iain
Kelly, Steve Kelly, Jordan Leist, Simon Major, Shawn McCann, Craig Parker, Michelle
Porobic, Liam Quirk, Grant Stephens, Shaun Tanner, Noah Thorley, Chris Thorogood,
Noel Tuckey, Boris Viskovic, Ashleigh Wilson

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© 2023. All rights reserved. ISSN: 0810-0187

N EW S F R O N T

AUGUST 2023: ALL THE NEWS THAT MATTERS
STORY JACK HOULIHAN

QUEY TO THE CAPE

> TOM CARRIERA’S MASSIVE FUNDRAISING ODYSSEY ENDED WITH A BANG!

A

N UNLIKELY 70s classic recently
notched over 11,000km in a
pilgrimage to Australia’s northernmost
tip and back, raising money and
awareness for a great cause along the way.
Twenty-seven-year-old Tom Carriera of
Wangaratta, Victoria drove his HQ Holden ute
all the way to Cape York – and back through
the centre of Australia – to accompany mate
Cam Gray and his dad Andrew on a fundraising
mission for Young Veterans, dubbed ‘Tassie to
the Tip,’ in their 1978 HJ45 Land Cruiser.
Tom didn’t expect to tag along at first. “Cam
said I should come, and I said, ‘No way I’d get
time off work, and I don’t have a 4x4 to do it in,’”
he says. “But then my boss said I could take as
much time as I want over winter, so I said, ‘What
about a month to go up to the Cape?’”
Tom’s an HQ fanatic, with a GTS sedan and
Kingswood that make regular Street Machine
Summernats appearances, so he decided to
have a go with the farm-fresh ute he picked up
earlier this year. “It’s just a 202 and four-speed;
nothing flash,” he says. “It’s still got the banjo

010

ST RE E T MA CH I N E

single-wheeler diff, and I had all the Sandman
gear in the shed. Because I was tagging along,
I thought I’d put a few Young Veterans stickers
on the ute, just to help them out a bit.”
The trip kicked off on 9 June with a 600km leg
from Wangaratta. “The day we left was the day I
finished the ute,” Tom laughs. “I got it registered
and did 25 kays around town getting fuel and
stuff, then hit the road!”
It was all fairly smooth sailing until the bitumen
gave way to north Queensland’s corrugated
dirt. “It actually rattled the carby in half!” Tom
says. “I pulled over and one of the screws was
completely out.”
When we first chatted with Tom, he was
camping 45km from the tip of the country,
waiting for Cam and Andrew to tackle the iconic
Old Telegraph Track in the Cruiser. “I did a little
bit of it, which I probably shouldn’t have,” he
laughs. “The poor old ute’s not made for that,
and it was pretty hairy! I’ve got a fridge in the
back, double batteries, a rooftop tent and a
heap of tools, so she’s not overly great on fuel,
either.”

Tom copped some good-natured ribbing
about his vehicle of choice along the way.
“People have been coming up going, ‘You’re a
dickhead,’ and laughing with me,” he says. “A
bloke on the HQ Holden Facebook group said
he did the whole Telegraph Track in his HG ute
30 years ago. Not everybody had 4x4s, so they
just used what they had.”
The next leg of the trip was an extended solo

AN UNLUCKY
KANGAROO FOUND
ITS WAY INTO THE
UTE’S FRONT END,
PUNCHING THE
RADIATOR INTO
THE CLUTCH FAN

> HOT GOSSIP
LEGENDS GATHER!

THIS year’s Adelaide Auto Expo (17-18
November) is set to bring some of the most
iconic street machines ever built under one roof.
We’re talking about some real heavy-hitters,
including Colin Townsend’s SMOTY-winning FJ,
Phil Rillotta’s Raging Bull LC Torana, and Ian
Hazel’s PREM70 HG wagon (below).

CRUISE FOR A CAUSE

THE street machiners of Canberra showed their
class in July, turning out in force at Exhibition
Park to support Cruise for a Cause. The event
was held to raise funds for Ryan Tanaskovic, a
local towie and Ford freak who is fighting a tough
battle against leukaemia. Over 450 cars entered
the event, which saw almost $75,000 raised to
help Ryan and his family. His friends and family
got his XY running in time for the event, enabling
him to rip a massive trailer skid in celebration!

detour through the heart of Australia, cutting
across to Mount Isa and down to Tennant Creek,
Uluru, Alice Springs and Coober Pedy.
Feeding the laden 202 across the NT’s
130km/h roads proved tricky. “I thought that
was going to be the bee’s knees; the foot was
down and I was up her,” Tom laughs. “I knew the
roadhouses up there would be spaced out, but
I didn’t realise just how spaced out. I was just
watching the fuel gauge go down, so I ended up
having to slipstream behind a caravan for 70 or
80 kays because I was running out of fuel.
“I pretty much made it to the Barkly Roadhouse
on fumes, and it took 75 litres of fuel – pretty
much a whole tank! I thought it was hilarious
when I got there, of course.”
There was a close call with a scrub bull on the
waterlogged roads out of Tennant Creek, and
Tom found himself avoiding camels later on.
“I thought I was home free once I got through
the top half of South Australia, but I was very
wrong,” he says.
Just an hour from home, an unlucky kangaroo
found its way into the Quey’s front end. “I wasn’t

speeding, but I was thinking I should take it easy
because there were probably a few around,”
Tom says. “The second I thought that, old Skippy
came out and I didn’t even have time to brake.”
The impact punched the radiator into the
clutch fan, bent the nosecone under the bonnet,
mangled the radiator support and snapped off
a driving light. “I rang my brother and he had
a spare radiator sitting in his workshop, so he
brought me that while I pulled the roo out of the
grille and smashed out as much as I could with
a 4lb hammer,” Tom says. “I was going to just
ask him to bring the car trailer and load it up, but
I thought, ‘It’s come this far; it can bloody drive
home!’”
All up, Tom drove 11,338km over four weeks,
and despite the last-minute smash, he’s stoked
to have done the trip, with his time spent at the
Cape a highlight. “You can’t describe what it’s
like up there,” he says. “Through the Territory and
Uluru are just so different to here, and the people
I met through the ute were just sensational.
“I had that many people try to talk me out of it.
Don’t listen to them – just give it a go!” 

NEXT!

WE’VE got a spicy array of feature cars for you
next issue, including a stunning Harrop-blown,
plastic-powered VH Commodore, a gorgeous XR
Falcon with a Gurney Eagle-headed Windsor, and
a wild HR ute with the tallest induction set-up in
the known universe (below). We’ll also announce
the 16 finalists for the richest prize in Aussie
street machining, the 2023 Milwaukee Street
Machine of the Year. You stand to win $5000
cash just by voting for your favourite, so pick up
a copy of the September issue of Street Machine
and throw your hat in the ring! On sale 31 August
– don’t miss it!

ST R E E T MA CH I N E

011

N EW S F R O N T

AUGUST 2023: ALL THE NEWS THAT MATTERS
STORY KIAN HEAGNEY

SCAN FOR
CARNAGE!

ON THE WAGON

> OUR CARNAGE 1UZ V8 SLEEPER WAGON PROJECT IS FULL STEAM AHEAD!

E

VERYONE loves a good sleeper,
and for our latest Carnage project,
Scotty Taylor has decided to create
a super-cool example of the concept
by throwing a 1UZ Toyota V8 into a VR
Commodore-based Toyota Lexcen wagon.
The 1UZ will be helped along by an
appropriately large Pulsar 7170G turbo, and
we’ll be keeping the thing registered to create
an awesome drag ’n’ drive machine that’ll also
be able to haul parts for all our other Carnage
projects.
We bought the Lexcen wagon off Facebook
Marketplace for cheap as a standard and fairly
tidy machine. We drove it around stock with
the Buick V6 until the transmission packed it in
on Telfo in the middle of nowhere during one
of the Drag Challenge Weekend 2022 drive
routes.

012

S TR E E T M AC HIN E

That was the trigger to tear the car down to
make way for the 1UZ V8, which we’d scored
from a viewer who donated a whole (but very
sorry-looking) Toyota Soarer runner to pillage
the engine from.
The project is in full swing right now, with
Scotty having treated the mill to a Scotty’s
Garage hone job and rebuild, along with
getting the thing mounted in the car. If you’ve
been watching the series on YouTube, you’ll
know it hasn’t been an easy task, with the
much wider quad-cam V8 causing a bunch of
clearance issues for Scotty.
Carnage sponsor VPW Australia has
provided plenty of good gear for the project
so far, including a whole Proflow fuel system,
70mm throttlebody, and boost clamps (which
eliminate silicone joiners). We’ll be raiding
the VPW catalogue for even more parts as

we edge closer to getting this thing done.
We’ve also got to give a shout-out to Haltech
for providing the engine management side
of things, and Castlemaine Rod Shop for the
engine mounts and Wilwood brake booster
delete kit required to help the tall 1UZ squeeze
into the Lexcen.
The photos you see here are of the car at the
Top G Fabrications workshop in south-east
Melbourne, where Top G’s Ben has sorted all
the major piping work to the Proflow intercooler
and mounted the big Pulsar hairdryer.
We’re eyeing off around 500rwhp and
timeslips in the 10-second range, and with
flex-fuel, the car should be the perfect allrounder for street and strip. If you haven’t
already, make sure you check the build out by
scanning the QR code above or heading to the
STREETMACHINETV YouTube channel. 

P E OP L E L IKE U S
STORY & PHOTOS ASHLEIGH WILSON

E OR
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,
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AND SHARING

BRYAN & TRACEY LITTLE
> BRIBIE ISLAND, QUEENSLAND

W

HEN we heard there was some
unique metal rolling around this
year’s Cooly Rocks On festival
(see p.42 for full feature), we
set out on a mission to spot Bryan and Tracey
Little’s split-window Kombi and Ford Sunliner
convertible amongst the thousands of assembled
cars. We found them parked side by side, which
was where we caught up with the married couple
to talk about their love of classic cars.
You’ve both got some rare rides! Tell us about
them.
BL: I’ve got a 1960 Ford Galaxie Sunliner
convertible. There are only six in Australia,
and three are in Queensland. It’s got a 351
Cleveland in it with a C4 automatic. The engine,
transmission, brakes and suspension have all
been rebuilt during my ownership.
TL: I drive a 1965 split-window Kombi called
Charlie. She’s a genuine Westfalia. The
uniqueness of this one is that she’s got what
they call a turret-top – a little pop-top. The story of
Charlie is that an American bought her in Germany
and travelled through Europe with her in the 60s.
He then got a job in the Snowy Mountains Hydro
Scheme and brought her over. That’s when she
was converted to right-hand drive.
What’s the history of your Sunliner, Bryan?

014

S TR E E T M A CH IN E

BL: They made 44,762. This one was brought
into Australia brand new by somebody who
worked in the US Embassy in Canberra; that’s
why it’s right-hand drive. I bought it about seven
years ago.
How did you both get into the car scene?
BL: I’ve always had a fascination with cars,
especially big cars with dual headlights. My father
worked for Rolls-Royce for a while in the UK.
He was a very good toolmaker and made bikes
that did motor racing in New Zealand, where I
was born.
TL: We both have such an appreciation for
classic cars and how they’re made. As a young
child, my grandfather was an old-school diesel
mechanic. I loved to sit and watch as he worked
on different machines.
When did you two meet?
TL: We had our first date 12 years ago at the
local golf club. Unfortunately, I didn’t realise I’d
organised our date on the same day the V8s
were on. I was watching the TV and Bryan
thought, “What’s going on? She’s kind of looking
behind me all the time and not really making any
conversation.” Then he realised what I was doing
and we discovered we were both Ford fans.
And you’ve been cruising together ever since?
BL: We love going to shows together and sharing
the history of the cars. We’re in the Gold Coast

Muscle Car Association and are very grateful
they let us display our cars as a couple.
TL: We’ve been going to Cooly together now
for 12 years. Bryan first introduced me to the
Wintersun Festival [forerunner to Cooly Rocks
On]; he’s been going for 25 years.
I’m sure your cars turn a few heads parked
next to each other.
BL: You just don’t see cars like mine or Tracey’s
at shows. The Sunliner is such a unique car; it
was only one year they came out with that body
shape. And you never see the pop-top Kombis
in Australia.
TL: We get so many kids looking at the cars and
grandparents that will stop and tell old stories.
We love the classic cars and rockabilly scene
and the people that we get to catch up with.
It sounds like they’ve taken you on some
adventures.
TL: I’m a marriage celebrant and have used
Charlie in the background at a few elopements.
She’s so cute and romantic, and the green is
very in vogue.
BL: We also did the Gold Coast V8 drivers’
parade in Monty [the Sunliner] in 2018 with
Fabian Coulthard and Tony D’Alberto, and again
in 2022 with Will Davison.
TL: We love these cars and will be holding on to
them as long as we can. 

“NO ONE KNOWS YOUR
P A S S I O N L I K E S H A N N O N S.”

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SNA P S H OT S

1

STORY SIMON MAJOR

2

3

AUSTRALIAN CUSTOM FORDS & CHRYSLERS

W

HILE Holden was the maker of
choice for many budding Australian
customisers of the 1960s and early
70s, Ford and Chrysler products
from the preceding decades were also popular and
cheaply available once they had a few years under
their belts. A number of builds from the Aussiedelivered Ford and Mopar stables left an indelible
mark on our show scene and captured the hearts
of many, so for our final Snap Shots instalment
on custom builds of this era, we remember a few
icons that flew the flag for the Blue Oval and the
Pentastar.

1:

SURE, all hot rods are basically ‘custom’ by
default, but it isn’t overly common to see pre-’48
models treated to body mods like headlight, grille
and tail-light changes. George Clark was one
builder who opted for touches more commonly
applied to post-’48 builds, and his 1939 Plymouth
Coupe was pioneering in many ways. These threewindow coupes were an Australian-build-only TJ
Richards & Sons bodyshell, so they were already
a rare car when George commenced the build
in 1957. He added slightly canted International
truck headlights along with a custom grille and taillights, while the original flathead six-cylinder was
extensively modified and fitted with a ‘six-pack’
triple two-barrel carburettor set-up that George
developed in 1960. Virtually every part that could
be unbolted was chromed, including the brake
drums and leaf springs, and the Plymouth’s original
Tangerine paintjob was later replaced with a purple
metalflake respray by George’s brother, Alick; it’s
rumoured to be one of Australia’s first ’flake-painted
hot rods. George and the ’39 were no slouches at
the strip either, and this drag racing connection
offers a clue to the car’s fate: it was this very ’39
that was later purchased and rebuilt into an iconic

016

ST RE E T M A CHI NE

black pro streeter by the late, great Mario Colalillo.

2: TONY Alessi’s AP5 Valiant sedan was barely

two years old when it nabbed the cover of The
Australian Hot Rodding Review for September/
October 1965. Built into a fastback and modelled
loosely on the ‘big-window’ Plymouth Barracudas
of that era, Tony’s Val had the factory tail-lights
mounted vertically rather than horizontally, and the
custom rear screen was shaped from Perspex and
covered a boot area that opened up to the interior.
The AP5 retained slant-six power, was resplendent
in bright red paint, and rolled on chromed reversed
rims, while the front end was tastefully customised
with twin headlight assemblies from a Toyota Stout.
The Val was later relocated from NSW to Brisbane,
but sadly, by the mid-1970s it was seeing out its
days in a local wrecking yard.

3:

CALLING Vin Boyle’s 1959 Dodge Custom

4

Royal sedan ‘radical’ would be a serious
understatement. Vin kicked off the build in the mid60s by sectioning the bodyshell a full six inches
before trimming the doors and guards to suit. The
front bumper was recessed well up into the stone
tray area to form the custom nose and offer some
crash protection, while the usually pronounced
rear fins of this model were trimmed right down to
create a hipline for the quarter panels. The Dodge
was later purchased by Bruce Andrews, who
altered it from what you see here by adding US
Racing five-spoke mags, a new rear bumper using
two Austin Freeway units, and a boldly revamped
grille featuring unmissable DODGE lettering and
chromed tube bars. Mechanical performance was
often an afterthought in the custom scene, but this
Dodge had ample go thanks to its 350hp, 361ci
Chrysler V8 sporting a Wade solid cam and twin
Carter four-barrel carbs. Thankfully, this amazing

6

5

7

Mopar survives in the hands of custom aficionado
Leigh Russell, who purchased it in 1976 and is
currently preparing it for a return to the streets.

4: THE ‘Top Custom of Australia’ gong for 1967 was

awarded to Dave Andrew’s 1953 Ford Customline.
Dave’s wildly restyled Cusso was built at his brother
Tony ‘Blue J’ Andrew’s Kustom City and, later, Mag
Wheel Centre shops, where Dave worked as a
paint and panel man. He began by welding up the
rear doors, frenching a pair of aerials and adding
air scoops to the rear quarters and bonnet, before
creating a custom nose that used canted Toyota
headlights and a handcrafted, chromed coppertube grille set above a rollpan. The rear was shaved
of any unnecessary additions before being outfitted
with a matching rollpan, number plate recess and
’59 Cadillac tail-lights – surely one of the first cars
to sport this mod in Australia along with the Pirotta/
Caruana ‘Crimson Pirate’ Model A bucket. The
completed body was lavished in multiple coats of
deep bronze flake and finished off with a set of Mag
Wheel Centre ‘Kustom Mag’ rims. A hopped-up
250ci sidevalve V8 provided the grunt, backed by
a British Riley four-speed. The Customline was later
sold so Dave could focus on other projects, and, like
many other customs, has since been lost to time.

5:

THIS custom Falcon known as Delta has led
an eventful life indeed. Built in the late 1960s by
young Brisbane panel beater Neil Flynn, Delta was
crafted from a written-off XL Falcon sedan and
treated to Mustang-esque fastback styling from the
A-pillars back. Once Neil had wielded his sheetmetal skills over the main bodyshell, he added an
XP front clip and gold Amos wheels, and painted
the car in Fire Red Candy with gold stripes and
lacework. A Valiant slant-six and Torqueflite were
both lavished in metalflake paint and chrome, and
the build scored People’s Choice, Best Interior and

second in Radical at the 1969 Brisbane Hot Rod
Show. Local policeman Cliff Crawford was smitten
with Delta and bought it from Neil, using it as daily
transport until 1973, when his ever-growing family
struggled with the limitations of two doors. Delta
ended up waist-deep in water during the 1974
Brisbane floods, before later being stolen and used
as a getaway car for an armed robbery. It was back
on the Brisbane scene by the mid-1990s sporting
maroon paint and a Windsor conversion, before
disappearing into the back blocks of a Chinese
market garden and resurfacing again in 2012.
Happily, these days Delta is in the hands of another
panel beater, Chris East, who plans to restore the
car to its original 1960s guise.

6: CUSTOMLINES were a popular Ford product

here in the years before the Aussie Falcon and were
often used for hot street, race or custom projects.
However, none were quite as wild as this 1955
model built by South Australian Bob Hoskins. An
avid hot rodder and customiser, Bob was a skilled
fabricator and initially considered a roof chop for
the Cusso, but instead opted for a sectioned body,
removing five inches from above and below the
centreline before pancaking the roof an additional
2.5 inches to further lower its profile. Tube
frames created the basis for the custom front and
rear ends, while modified wheelarches, chromed
reversed rims and Vermilion Fire paint with matteblack highlights and a gold vinyl roof completed
the look. The matching gold vinyl interior was just
as radical, with four bucket seats, a full front-torear centre console and a plethora of gauges and
switches. A warmed-over Y-block V8 backed by a
Humber Super Snipe four-speed gearbox were just
the ticket for Bob and the Cusso to clock up several
thousand kilometres once it was finished in 1972.
The car went through a number of hands and even

a sinister flat-black paintjob before being stored for
the past three decades, but it remains in Adelaide
and has received a worthy restoration back to its
Hoskins specification.

7:

AN ABSOLUTE showstopper both here
and during its 1970 tour across the ditch, Ron
Wickham’s beautiful 1952 Ford F100 was a
radical custom indeed. Ron began the build in the
late 1960s with a well-used ex-NRMA tow truck,
shortening the chassis six inches and sectioning
the cab a further six. The front was extended to
create a trick Firebird-inspired nose, finished with a
fibreglass bonnet, Toyota headlights and handmade
split grille. The tray was from an XT Falcon ute and
was shortened in length, width and height, and
used two pairs of inverted HD sedan tail-lights to
create a Mustang effect. The Blue Wildfire paint
was complemented by extensive chrome plating
throughout, along with bright yellow and white
detailing for the Chrysler 313-cube ‘Poly’ engine,
which featured triple and later quad carb set-ups
on Ron-built intakes. Unfortunately, subsequent
owners of this Effy weren’t as caring, and by the
1980s it was languishing in a Newcastle wrecking
yard. The remains were saved by a Brisbane fan,
John Bishop, who began a significant and faithful
rebuild on the truck before offering it up for sale as
an unfinished project in 1985. That is where the
trail runs cold; it has been nearly 40 years since the
Wickham F100’s last sighting, likely making it yet
another Australian custom icon that we’ve lost. 
S TR E E T MAC HI NE

017

F A NG I N G F L I C K

COOL FLICK FACT:
‘Those’ skin-tight pants
and leather jacket worn by
Olivia Newton-John in the
film fetched $405,000 when
auctioned off in 2019

STORY SIMON MAJOR

GREASE 1978
> GREASE IS THE WORD

BREAKDOWN
VEHICLES: Custom 1946 Ford
Super De Luxe, 1949 Mercury
convertible, 1948 Ford Super
De Luxe, 1948 Studebaker
Commander Regal, 1956 Buick
Special, 1949 Dodge Wayfarer,
1956 Plymouth Savoy
STARS: John Travolta, Olivia
Newton-John, Stockard Channing,
Jeff Conaway, Didi Conn, Jamie
Donnelly, Dennis Stewart, Sid
Caeser, Alice Ghostley, Dody
Goodman, Eve Arden, Frankie
Avalon
DIRECTOR: Randal Kleiser
ACTION: Some panel-chewing
road racing for pink slips pushes
1940s handling characteristics to
the limit
PLOT: Two 1950s teenagers who
fall in love during a summer beach
vacation unexpectedly meet again
and try to establish a relationship
AVAILABLE: DVD, streaming

018

S TR E E T M AC HIN E

T

HE 1978 flick Grease has become such a cultural
touchstone over the past 45 years that reviewing
it in 2023 seems a little redundant. That said,
modern-day critics haven’t been too kind to the
film in recent years, with many declaring it all kinds of
inappropriate based on current mores and attitudes that
didn’t exist when it hit the big screens back in ’78. Because
of this, I fear there’s a whole generation of younger movie
fans who might miss out on the simple pleasures of this
box-office smash, so let’s try to redress the balance.
The film’s premise is simple – two high school kids from
completely different walks of life fall in love during summer
break and fear they’ll never meet again, only to later find
themselves reunited and having to navigate the trials and
tribulations of 1950s high school life.
Danny (John Travolta) leads the local cool gang of
misfits, the T-Birds, with his best mate Kenickie (Jeff
Conaway), while new girl Sandy (the late, great Olivia
Newton-John) clings to the skirt strings of Frenchie (Didi
Conn), who rolls with the Pink Ladies, headed by the
abrasive Rizzo (Stockard Channing).
As the worlds of Danny and Sandy collide, the pair try to
adapt to each other’s lives, and, along with their friends,
belt out various musical numbers in an attempt to help
guide them all towards answers.
The film offers a fun mix of harmless innuendo, simple
comic elements, teen coming-of-age issues and great
tunes. However, we’re here for the cars, and they are

very cool – most notably the flame-throwing black ‘Hell’s
Chariot’ ’49 Mercury of rival Scorpion gang leader Leo
(Dennis Stewart) – while the road-race between Leo
and Danny in the white version of Kenickie’s ‘Greased
Lightning’ ’48 Ford sees some tricky wheelwork as
they traverse the concrete walls of the Los Angeles
river. The rides created for the film by customiser Eddie
Paul have become legendary and since immortalised as
diecast models and the like; they hark back to an era of
movies where the cars oozed as much star quality as the
performers.

VERDICT: 5/5
IGNORE the recent negativity; Grease is a fun and
energetic film with plenty of sass and an obvious
connection to its stage-play roots. It’s full of cracking
songs, many of which have since embedded themselves
in popular culture, and any possible ‘problematic’
connotations will likely fly straight over the heads of
younger viewers, just as they did when we were kids. 

FRIDAY

BURNOUTS
SKID ROW
DRIFTING SATURDAY

SHOW CARS
UNVEILS
DYNO

4-7 JAN 2024 SUMMERNATS.COM.AU

YO UR S TU F F

SUSS IT OUT

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U
INSID E: A

PAGE 114

Write to: Your Stuff, Street Machine, Unit 9/3-5 Gilda Court, Mulgrave, Vic 3170, or email streetmachine@wheelsmedia.com.au. Make sure you include your address (not necessarily for
publication). Keep it short and sweet!

> LETTER OF THE MONTH

HR DEPARTMENT

HI BROADS, I would like to thank you in writing for
your kind words in your editorial about my old HR
ute in the July mag. I didn’t realise you were a big
fan of the car, mate.
It gives me great pleasure to see that Craig and
Kristie McKenzie have taken the HR to the next
level (SM, Jul ’23, pictured right), and I wish them
all the success in this coming year.
I would also like to thank Chris Thorogood and
Kian Heagney for putting together a great feature
article on the incredible work that Craig and his
team have done to the HR to bring it back into a
highly competitive show car scene here in Australia.
Again, many thanks for giving the HR a new
platform to continue its historic journey with Craig
and Kristie.
Ditch Jones, email
HEY Ditch, great to hear from you, mate. Yep,
the ute is one of my faves from back in the day.
I love that its story has now evolved, and it was
a pleasure to be able to run it on the cover again
years later. Craig and Kristie have done an amazing
job with it. Glad to hear you’re pleased with how it
came up in the mag! – Broads

PL US :

TW IN-T URB O CHA RGER
MILWA UKE E YOUNG
SM OTY WIN NER
LS ENG INE GUI DE

WILD
CUSTOM HR

DR OP PE D ,
CH OP PE D &
BL OW N!

JULY 2023

$11.95 incl GST
NZ $12.45 incl GST

streetmachine.com.au

ELITE HALL

HI, MY name is Owen and I wanted
to share with you a picture of my
hallway that leads into my bedroom.
I am a very passionate Holden
supporter – if you can’t tell already
by the pic – and I have turned this
boring hallway into what I now
call the ‘Holden Hallway of Fame’,
thanks largely to posters from Street
Machine! I love the mag and would
love it if my hallway could make it
into the next issue!
Owen Laycock, email

20/6/23 2:14 pm

SATISFIED CUSTOMER

HELLO Andrew, I have been a Street Machine
subscriber for over 20 years now and
hopefully will be for another 20 years. I have
loved every issue since subscribing – great
value, delivered straight to my door, wellpackaged and sealed. I hope Street Machine
magazine never finishes!
Anyway, keep up the brilliant job of keeping
us revheads glued to the magazine.
George Andrasik, email
HEY mate, thanks very much for the kind
words – it’s much appreciated. Glad to have
you aboard! – Broads
S T RE E T M A CH I N E

021

PERFECTLY IMPERFECT

HEY legends! Tell me if this sounds
familiar. The weather is nice, you have
knocked enough domestic jobs off the
list to put your brownie points in the
black, and there’s a car show on. So,
you grab the keys to your old banger,
hoik up the roller door and climb into
the driver’s seat. A couple of hefty
pumps on the go-pedal and you kick it
in the guts.
You pull out of the driveway and head
off to the car show to take part in the
show ’n’ shine. As you roll through the
entrance, old mate at the gate gives
you a wry smile and directs you “down
the back for this old banger, mate”.
You nod and plop her into drive, wait
the 3-6 business days for the shift
to lurch you forward slightly, then
scamper away with a wisp of oil smoke
dutifully trailing behind.
That’s all well and good, but a bunch
of us blokes got a bit tired of being
the cheap sideshow to the main event.
We decided to make our own show,
and we called it Patina Breakdown
(pictured left), a celebration of the
perfectly imperfect – flaky, scuffed,
bruised and battered. Worn in but not
worn out.
So, in November 2022 we rolled into
the Moonambel Recreation Reserve
in western Victoria. We camped two
nights and made use of the local pub
only 300 metres down the road, where

> DEPARTMENT OF YOUTH

PONY
EXPRESS

HI, MY name is
Fred. I am 10
years old, love
cars and draw
them all the time.
This is my picture
of a Mustang
fastback. It would
be awesome if my
drawing was in
Street Machine.
Fred Thomas,
10, email

022

S TR E E T MAC H IN E

many stories were swapped and
friends were made. We had a local
coffee Kombi keeping the caffeine up,
and a wood-fired pizza van for the big
display on the Sunday.
On show day, the turnout was
amazing. Some killer cars showed up,
with any apologies for dirt, dust or rust
being batted away with a “don’t you
dare apologise for that stuff – you’re at
Patina Breakdown!”
The locals have welcomed us back
for round two of Patina Breakdown,
which will take place 17-19 November.
The venue is once again Moonambel
Recreation Reserve, around 2.5 hours
north-west of Melbourne and 45
minutes east of Stawell.
We will have a meet-and-greet at the
Moonambel Resort Hotel on the Friday
night, a cruise to Avoca for lunch on
Saturday, and there’ll be plenty of time
to relax on Saturday night at the Rec
Reserve.
Sunday will be the open-to-the-public
display between 10am and 2pm. Entry
is $10, but if you want to camp there’ll
be an extra fee set by the Reserve.
Car entry for the show on Sunday is
$10 per car. All funds raised will be
donated back to the local community.
We hope to see you there! In the
meantime, you can find more info on
our Patina Breakdown Facebook page.
Tim Barnett, email

v
Importer of High Performance
Auto Parts For Over 20 Years
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> IN YOUR FACEBOOK

ROAD TRIP!

R

EMEMBER when Aussies spent
more time getting the family
car out to see our country’s big
backyard than they did in the 4x4
accessory aisle? Well, young tacker Tom
Carriera decided to relive the glory days of
basic Aussie motoring, taking his ’73 HQ
Holden ute all the way from Victoria up to
the tip of Australia at Cape York. The drive
was all in the name of charity, so we shared
Tom’s story on our Facebook page. Here’s
what you had to say. And for more on Tom’s
journey, turn to p.10 of this issue!

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024

sales@autopd.com.au
www.autopd.com.au
ST RE E T MA
CH I N E

Shannon Heraud – That is so cool! What
an awesome adventure.
Wok Smith – You just can’t beat the
mighty big-block Holden six!
Rodney Menso – We drove the Monaro
from Ayr to Canberra for Summernats 12,
stopped in Bathurst for a few hot laps on
the way down, then across the Sydney
Harbour Bridge on the way home. No
mobile phones or Google Maps to spoil
the fun either!
Paul Robbo – That is so awesome. Back
in the day, my 308 HZ pano did some epic
trips, including Sydney to Cape Tribulation.
David O’Farrell – I did that exact trip over
30 years ago in my old HQ sedan. I was
fresh on my P-plates and had no idea about
the tropical weather. I only just made it
back into Cairns before the monsoons hit.
Crazy times; I remember the locals telling
me I was mad when I got back to Cairns.
Andrew Levine – Those HQs would go
anywhere. Commodores can’t achieve
what the HQ could.
Steven Jaksetic – I did a full lap of
Australia back in 2019 in just 28 days in my
WB. Raised a bit of coin for a local charity

then. Cape is the next on the bucket list.
Hopefully 2024.
Jon Read – I did the Gibb River Road and
went into the Bungle Bungle Range in my
HJ ute. I also went to Palm Valley when I
lived in Alice Springs.
Tony Nardi – I had a GT Falcon I took bush
to Kakadu NP, crossing the South Alligator
River – GT guards and bonnet swapped
for each trip with standard panels. You can
take a well-prepared 2WD a lot of places.
Ron Kiehne – I took a WB Holden all
the way to Punsand Bay and back in the
1990s. Mind you, l did spend a little time
underneath it, and I also had to make a
welder out of three 12V batteries – worked
a treat!
North East Autoshop – Tom Carriera, we
better get this thing to Summernats 36!
Christine Rich – I remember doing the
Canning Stock Route and the Gunbarrel
Highway in an HZ in the late 70s and early
80s.
Kev Harris – Gee whiz, how is this even
possible without a $150K V8 diesel ute
kitted out with all the gear?
Dave Bradbury – I saw a bloke do it in a
120Y back in ’89. Made me wonder why l
bought a new HiLux to do it.
Phillip Furnari – Do that with an electric
car.
Deegee Stone – I rolled my HQ ute (with
dinghy on top) outside of Laura at 30km/h.
I hit a bulldust hole and the car did half a
roll and landed on its roof. I left the dinghy
on the side of the road and kept going!
There was fun to be had back in 1984.
Kim Leach – I was told that the only thing
that would make it to the Cape was a fully
kitted-out 79 Series dual-cab. Well, there
ya go!

C U S T O M
CAST ALLOY / 15” 17” 18” 20”

M A D E

W H E E L

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TWISTED AERO BRN

FORGED WHEELS / 15-24”

TWISTED VISION II

TWISTED PARMENTER

FINSTER

RAPID

015 FORGED

015H FORGED

019 FORGED

021 FORGED

001 FORGED

003 FORGED

005 FORGED

007 FORGED

009 FORGED

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STORY LIAM QUIRK

PHOTOS CHRIS THOROGOOD

ADDAM
M ROO GASS H HAS STRRAYED FROM
M MODOORE R OOOTS TO B U ILD ONE OF THE
HISS C OM
COO UN
N TRYY’S Q UICC KESST STRR EET CARS

026

S TR E E T M AC HI N E

ST RE E T M A CH I N E

027

ENGINE BAY: The Dandy Enginesbuilt 596ci big-block uses an
aluminium Brodix block, Pro-Filer
12-degree heads and a custom
solid-roller cam. It makes 1000hp
naturally aspirated, and more than
double that with a mere 20psi up
its skirt courtesy of the twin 98mm
Pulsar turbos! Adam expects north
of 3000hp when he lets it eat
BELOW: The cam-driven fuel pump
is strictly for methanol and draws
from a tank in the engine bay to feed
the whopping 5500cc XX Racing
injectors. The boot-mounted fuel
cell, with its twin Walbro 525
pumps, feeds pump fuel to the
2400cc injectors for street duties

028

S TR E E T MAC H IN E

IF YOU’R
RE BUILLDIN
NG A DED
DIC
CATTED RACE CAR,
EN STR
REE
ET MANN
NERS
S DON
N’T MATTER.
THE
BUT WE DON
N’T BUIILD MILLD RACE CARS,
WE BUIILD WILLD ST
TREEETT CARS!

S THE proprietor of MPW Performance, Adam Rogash is
not new to building show-quality, big-power cars to tight
deadlines, but his new street-and-strip Capri is next level.
It also represents a change of tack from Adam’s previous
projects, as he elected to build the car largely at home rather
than at the shop, allowing his wife Kelly and young kids to be
heavily involved.
Not only did Adam and the family choose to depart from the
Commodore platform and twin-turbo LS engine combination that
has served them so well over the years, they gave themselves just
six months to build it. Lunatics.
“I was keen to do a Fox-body [Mustang], but the missus liked the
shape of the Capri,” Adam says. “We found one in Queensland that
was engineered for a big-block, so that seemed like a sign.”
The car turned out to be a bit like a Tinder date – it presented pretty
well in photos online, but when Adam and Kelly laid eyes on it for real,
it was barely recognisable. “It was f*cked,” says Adam, bluntly. The
years had not been kind to the Capri, with dodgy rust repairs and
liberal helpings of body filler among the hidden ‘gems’ awaiting the
Rogashes as they began to tear the car down.
Adam, Kelly and the kids spent every spare evening and weekend
tinkering on the car together – family time that Adam is grateful for.
“The car was pretty bad, but it gave me the opportunity to get the
kids involved with rust repairs and bodywork and teach them the
process,” he recalls fondly.

With the car straightened out, the team could turn their attention
to chopping it up and sprinkling in plenty of race-car eye candy.
The back end was cut out to accept the huge rear wheel-and-tyre
combination, then decorated with goodies like the MPW fabricated
nine-inch housing and the kind of hardware you’d expect from a
2000+hp radial race car.
The car rolls around on 315 Mickey Thompson rear radials, a tyre
that Adam has used on plenty of MPW builds; however, the tubs
were built to also accept a 31.5x12.5 slick. “We’ll start on a radial
and then prepare the car to race at Drag Challenge on the big tyre,”
Adam says. “Obviously, there’s a big difference between the radial
and the slick, but we tried to build the car in such a way that all we
had to change was a few bar angles and the rear shocks to swap
between the two tyres.”
The fab work continued up front, where Adam was obsessed with
getting everything to fit perfectly. “It took me three days to get the
engine and turbos in the right place,” he recalls. The Capri’s tightly
packed engine bay is like a Where’s Wally puzzle of high-performance
parts, with Adam managing to cram two 98mm Pulsar turbos, the dry
sump oil tank, and a fuel cell for the cam-driven fuel pump into the
front of the car, functioning in perfect harmony with the chassis and
rollcage, as well as the jewel in the crown: the 596-cube big block.
“We’re really known for our LS combinations, but we’re starting to
see more diversity in the workshop these days, so it made sense,”
explains Adam of the choice of the big-block. “Plus, we’ve got the VK

S TR E E T MA C HI N E

029

WE’’LL STAR
RT ON A RADIAL
AND THEEN PREPARE
THE CAR TO RACE AT
DRA
AG CHALLLEN
NGE ON THE
BIG
G TY
YRE

[ALLSHOW, SM, Oct ’17] to the point where the LS is right on the
cusp of reliability – they’re great for 1500hp, but as you edge closer
to 2000hp, you can’t work around the fact that they’re a small-journal
engine, and that becomes a limitation.”
For his first foray into the world of big-cube big-blocks, Adam
enlisted the help of Frank Marchese of Dandy Engines. “Frank had
just finished building this engine for a customer who ended up
purchasing a 481X, so we grabbed the Chev engine and slotted
it into the Capri,” he says. “They’d originally built it as a naturally
aspirated engine, but the specs made sense for us to add the EFI
and turbos and go racing.”
The mill is centred around a Brodix aluminium block, and the
internals read as you’d expect them to – nothing too exotic. But
remember, this isn’t a highly strung aspo engine; a lot of the heavy
lifting is done by the bolt-ons.
The Pulsar turbos force-feed a Plazmaman billet intake with two
injectors per cylinder – one set for street driving on pump fuel, and
the other, larger set for racing the car on methanol.
One of the coolest aspects of the Capri is how easily it can be
converted to naturally aspirated trim for the road legs of Drag
Challenge, and for engineering and registration purposes. “The
turbos sit on Maven turbo mounts, so the weight isn’t supported
by the headers,” Adam explains. “The car runs J-pipes from the

030

S TR E E T M A C HIN E

2.25in-primary headers to the turbos, which I can remove and replace
with connecting pipes to join the headers straight to the exhaust
system, bypassing the turbos. Then we just remove the bullhorns
and fit block-off plates. The whole process takes around 15 minutes.”
A two-speed Turbo 400 isn’t a misprint – M&M offer its Turbo 400s
with only two gears to help racers better select more optimal gear
ratios. It’s mated to an M&M bolt-together converter, which Adam
and the team have already tinkered with a few times to get the car
launching, while out the back, an MPW-fabricated nine-inch houses
3.5:1 gears and Race Products floating axles.
More than just a matter of making everything fit though, it had to
be practical. Adam and the MPW cohort are avid campaigners at
Street Machine Drag Challenge and firm believers in using their
cars on the street.
“The Capri was a packaging nightmare! We had to make everything
fit, but it also had to be easy to work on. It really made us consider
every system – the cooling system, the oiling system, the fuel system,
our suspension set-up,” Adam explains. “If you’re building a dedicated
race car, then street manners don’t matter. But we don’t build mild
race cars, we build wild street cars!”
Despite the lightning-quick build time, Adam says he wouldn’t
change a thing on the Capri: “We built it right the first time. It will be
the last big car I build myself for quite a while, so it had to be right.”

EXTERIOR: It’s got us
gobsmacked why more
people aren’t building
tough Capris! Adam has
nailed the stance on his
car, slung low over a fat
wheel-and-tyre combo.
The bodywork is as slick
as the rest of the car – all
steel, save for the front
guards, and finished in
HAMR Coatings custom
Electric Blue

WHEELS: The Keizer
wheels are a breath
of fresh air, and a
product the MPW
team are looking
to stock and use on
future builds. They’re
15x6 up front and
15x14 on the rear,
with Wilwood brakes
lurking behind them

INTERIOR: It’s not a street
car without a full interior,
according to Adam! Race-car
goodies like the CO2 bottle,
floor-mounted pedal box and
the 6.50-teched rollcage share
space with Racetech seats, MPI
steering wheel and practical
suede trim. The Haltech iC-7
dash and Nexus R5 vehicle
management system monitor
and control every single
electrical system in the car

S TR E E T MA CH I N E

031

ADDAM
M AND KELLLY ROGASH
199700 FORD CAPRRI
Paint: Custom Electric Blue

ENNGIN
NE

Brand: 596ci Brodix 10.2-deck
aluminium big-block
Induction: Plazmaman billet intake
Heads: Pro-Filer 12-degree
Camshaft: Dandy Engines customground solid-roller
Conrods: GRP
Pistons: Diamond forged
Crank: Callies Magnum
Oil pump: Peterson five-stage dry
sump, custom pan
Fuel system: Eight XX Racing
5500cc injectors, eight Siemens Deka
2400cc injectors, Aeromotive Li’l
Bertha 30gal/min cam-driven fuel
pump, boot-mounted fuel cell, two
Walbro 525 internal pumps
Management: Haltech Nexus R5
Cooling: Custom MPW radiator, SPAL
3500 thermo fan
Exhaust: Custom MPW headers,
removable J-pipes, Turbosmart 60mm
wastegates, dual 3in stainless-steel
exhaust, removable bullhorns
Ignition: Haltech IGN-1A coils

TRRAN
NSMISSSIOON

That mantra extends to the vehicle management system,
and in describing how he specced the car, Adam admits he
treated the Capri like the Noah’s ark of Haltech products,
ushering two of every kind of switch and sensor into the tiny
Ford coupe! “We’re pulling data from every moving part on
the car, and even some parts that don’t,” he says. “Without
the data, you’re just guessing, and on a big-dollar build like
this, that’s just not an option. You don’t go fast by guessing.”
The Capri has already seen some time on the MPW hub
dyno, with Adam punching numbers in the Haltech Nexus

R5 that controls the car. After a few shakedown passes to
refine the power management and tune the suspension, the
car rattled off a seemingly effortless 6.91@199mph pass
at Sydney Dragway’s Grudge Kings event – on its second
ever full-track pass!
Between now and Drag Challenge, though, the Capri
is destined for some road miles. “If you have something
that’s safe to be driven on the street with all the mod cons
– including cupholders – then anything can be a street car
if you’re game enough,” Adam grins. 

Gearbox: M&M two-speed TH400,
Reid case
Converter: M&M bolt-together
Diff: MPW fabricated housing, Strange
GLIIFHQWUH5DFH3URGXFWVpRDWLQJ
axles, 3.5:1 gears

SUUSPENSIIONN & BRAKES

Front: Custom-fabricated tubular front
end, AFCO/Gazzard Bros 6in coil-overs,
Strange steering rack
Rear: AFCO/Gazzard Bros 6in coilovers, Haltech travel sensors, MPW
four-link, anti-roll bar
Brakes: Wilwood discs and calipers
(f & r)
Master cylinder: 7LOWRQpRRUPRXQWHG
pedal box

WHEEELS & TYRRES

Rims: Keizer Beurt; 15x6 (f), 15x14 (r)
Rubber: Mickey Thompson ET (f),
Mickey Thompson 315 radial or
31.5x12.50 slick (r)

THHAN
NKS

The whole team at MPW, especially
Abe; my good friend Mark for helping
with the transmission; Frank at Dandy
Engines; Dale Heiler for the injectors;
Chris Cutajar for reasons no one
knows; my wife Kelly and my kids for
their unwavering support; Turbosmart;
Haltech; Plazmaman; Pulsar Turbos;
Cameron at Rosebud Panels; GJ
Drivelines; Raceworks; Rick and
Dragos; Scotty Cortina at Gazzard Bros;
Keizer Wheels; HAMR Coatings; Racer
Industries

032

ST RE E T M A CHI NE

TOTAL CONTROL  FULL FLEXIBILITY

• New Generation ECU
• Power Distribution Module
• Wi-Fi Module
• Wideband Controller
• Data Logger
All controlled through one
powerful software.

So much functionality squeezed
into one compact, rugged unit!

For more information go to

www.haltech.com

EMPOWERING AUTOMOTIVE PASSION SINCE 1986

034

S T RE E T M AC H IN E

RAY ELIA’S VH VA
LIANT REGAL
HAS GONE FROM
P-PLATE
CHARIOT TO BADARSE, 543-CUBE
TYRE-FRYER
HAN
CK HOULI
A
J
Y
R
O
T
S
NG
EN HOSKI
PHOTOS B

ST RE E T MA C HI N E

035

E’VE all dreamed of finding that perfect one-owner
project car, and Sydney’s Ray Elia wound up with
one of these elusive gems – not through years
of hunting, but straight from his Chrysler-mad old
man, John! “My dad bought it new; I drove it when
I was on my L- and P-plates,” Ray grins. “I bought
it off Dad when I was 16 years old – 27 years ago. I met my
girlfriend, who’s my wife now, in the car as well.” By the way,
don’t get him confused with Ray Elia of blown VN fame (SM,
Dec ’22) – that’d be his namesake and cousin!
“I was 22 when I stripped the car,” Ray continues. “It’s
just been a slow build ever since; obviously with starting a
business and starting a family, it went on the back-burner.”
Ray’s first iteration of CRNKY1 hit the blacktop back in
2014, having been doused in custom-mix PPG metallic silver
by Keven at Grange Smash Repairs to replace the original
black-vinyl-on-white combo. “It was a really good base,” Ray
says. “I was actually going to paint it in [Mopar] Vitamin C
or Dukes of Hazzard orange, or maybe even a purple, but
I reckon the silver came up all right with the chrome!” The
wraparound stripe kit from Angel Signs isn’t directly based
on a particular design, though similar treatments feature all
over American Mopar hotties of the era.
“The paint and body are 10 years old now and still in bloody
awesome nick, but the rest of the stuff got changed in the past
couple of years,” Ray says. Aside from the generous bonnet
relief and smoothed rear filler panel seams, the exterior
metalwork is basically as-stock, down to the VH 770 front end
often associated with Chargers.
To power the car, Brett McNiff at St Marys Engines bolted
together a stout, 543-cube big-block Chrysler. Built on a
440 block, it runs a forged rotating assembly topped with
Edelbrock Victor heads and Comp valve gear. In its original
form, it wore twin carbs and a tunnel ram. “I was hardly driving
the car, and the carbies would start fouling up and leaking
fuel and all that shit,” Ray says. “I’d always wanted a blower
anyway, so I went with the 10/71.”
The whole shebang came from Joe Blo Speed Shop, from
the blower and low-profile hat to the injector rails, linkages,
cables and belt guards. “Joe, I reckon, has one of the best

036

S T R E E T MA CH IN E

ENGINE BAY: ICE ignition
with a locked billet dizzy lights
up the E85 or PULP to feed the
hefty 543ci big-block. The
custom four-core radiator from
Lowe Fabrications and twin
Davies Craig thermo fans have
already proven themselves at
the car’s Chryslers on the
Murray track session

WITH ALL RESPECT TO THE TURBO
BOYS, IF THEY WERE THAT GOOD, THE
TOP FUELLERS WOULD ALL BE TURBO
CARS. BUT THEY’RE NOT – THEY’RE
BLOWN HEMIS!

ST R E E T M AC H IN E

037

LEFT: “If you look at the
bottom of the rear windscreen
on a normal Valiant, there’s
two seams around the filler
panel; I welded them up for
a smooth finish,” Ray says.
“People reckon it cracks, but
mine hasn’t, thank god, and
it’s been 10 or 12 years”

LEFT: “Olivia is my mini-me
daughter who is heavily involved
in the car scene,” Ray says. “She
wants an RX-7, so I’m looking for
one of those now! She’s really
mechanically minded and loves
everything that goes fast. She
even got her Ps in a manual”

RAY ELIA
1972 VH VALIANT
REGAL

Colour: PPG custom silver

ENGINE

Type: Chrysler 543ci
big-block
Induction: Joe Blo
manifold and injector
hat
Supercharger: 10/71
ECU: Haltech Elite 2500
Heads: Edelbrock Victor
Cam: Solid-roller
Crank: Mopar forged
4340
Rods: Callies H-beam
Fuel system: Holley VR2
pump
Cooling: Custom
four-core radiator, twin
thermo fans
Exhaust: Custom 2.5in
primary extractors, twin
3in system
Ignition: ICE

038

ST RE E T M A C HI N E

TRANSMISSION

Gearbox: Coan Racing
Torqueflite
Converter: Continental
5000rpm
Diff: 9in, Truetrac,
35-spline billet axles

SUSPENSION &
BRAKES

Front: Koni springs and
shocks
Rear: Four-link, Strange
coil-overs
Brakes: Wilwood discs
and six-piston calipers
(f), Wilwood discs and
four-piston calipers (r)
Master cylinder:
Wilwood

WHEELS & TYRES

Rims: Simmons FR; 20x8
(f), 20x15 (r)
Rubber: Nankang
245/45R20 (f), Mickey
Thompson 29x15.00R20 (r)

THANKS

My wife Samantha
(Minister of War &
Finance) and my two
girls Faith and Olivia;
Brett at St Marys
Engines; Joe Schembri
at Joe Blo Speed Shop;
Keven at Grange Smash
Repairs; Angel Signs;
Pierre Touma at iTilT
Towing; Con and Vic at
CV Performance; Jack
at Earl’s Performance
Plumbing; Mark Sant at
Ontrak Auto Electrical;
Sam at Tempe Tyres; Billy
Tsimingos at Final Stage
Enhancements; Fernando
at Mainalign; Brett at
Wicked Industries; Bruce
at Charlestone Exhaust;
Alan the Valiant specialist;
Joe Molluso; Chubby at
Lowe Fabrications; my dad
John Elia for putting me
onto the love of Mopars

WHEELS: The three-piece
Simmons wheels blow out to
a huge 20x15 at the back. “I
wouldn’t mind going for more of
a pro stock look with the wheels,”
Ray admits. “Something like
V-series Welds with a 15in at the
back with a big bag of rubber; the
smallest I can go to clear
the brakes at the front
is a 17in”

set-ups – if I need something urgently, he’ll express post
it to me,” Ray enthuses. “It was never a problem for him.”
A Haltech Elite 2500 and flex-fuel sensor manage the
flow of E85 or 98 from a Holley VR2 brushless pump. “I
don’t need a separate tank or to empty the tank, which is
pretty cool,” Ray says. “I put the fuel in and drive off – it’s
mad!”
As for how much power the big mill makes, Ray’s first
answer is a simple “plenty”. When quizzed further, he
reveals the big-block made 728rwhp and about 1000lb-ft
of torque at 5300rpm on the CV Performance hub dyno.
“It’s only running around 4psi at the moment, so it’s not
even working,” he laughs. “By the time we wind her up and
get to 12 or 15psi, she’ll make an easy 1300 or 1500hp.”
Behind the fat-block is a reverse-pattern 727 Torqueflite
by Coan Racing, packing an aluminium drum and billet input
shaft and hooked to a Continental 5000rpm converter.
The back end is a nine-inch with 35-spline axles, Truetrac
centre and 4.11:1 gears, which sits in a four-link running
Strange coil-overs, all from Brett at Wicked Industries.
Brett also squared off the tubs to the rails, allowing Ray to
bolt up the steamroller 20x15-inch Simmons rims. “Sam
from Tempe Tyres did them for me – he said he had to weld
two centre sections together to get them wide enough,”
Ray says. “It’d be close, but I’ve got enough room to get
an 18 in the back!”
Up front, you’ll still find torsion bars, now sharing space
with Koni shocks and big six-pot Brembos, while an
E-series Falcon rack-and-pinion and 2018 Mini electric
pump make shifting the front wheels a breeze despite the
hefty mill.

S TR E E T MA CH I N E

039

“I was going to go black, but I said, ‘Let’s spice it
up,’” says Ray of the red leather-packed interior. Steve at
Alltrim handled the reworked XR6 front and rear seats,
custom flat headliner, carpet, door trims and leatherwrapped dash pad, rounded out with body-coloured
accents to tie everything together.
The Regal debuted at this year’s Chryslers on the
Murray, which doubled as its shakedown run. “We
finished it two days before the show and tilt-trayed it
down,” Ray says. “The shifter cable melted onto the
extractors, so we had a little teething issue there, but
it steered and braked and didn’t overheat, and it was
bloody hot there!”
With the car’s monster torque numbers, Ray’s looking
forward to planting his foot at Sydney Dragway before
cranking the boost. “It’s actually violent, to be honest
with you. I’m looking forward to some slicks and hooking
up to see what she can do.
“With all respect to the turbo boys, if they were that
good, the Top Fuellers would all be turbo cars. But
they’re not – they’re blown Hemis!” 

NEXT!

AS MUCH as Ray loves the lazy tyre-frying action of the big-cube
Mopar and 10/71, he admits it’s probably more suited to track
work than street duties. For that reason, he’s thinking of something
different for his next big build. “Maybe a twin-turbo Viper V10, like a
restomod with a TKO manual and massive brakes,” he says. “There’s
a lot of people going with the Toretto look, and I’m kind of getting
over it. With a turbo car, you can control the boost more, whereas on
a blown car, it’s all instant power.”

INTERIOR: Steve at Alltrim
managed the interior, including
late-model Falcon seats that
had their headrests turfed and
padding modified to hide their
origins. “We bolstered the shit
out of them,” Ray says. The
Haltech iC-7 dash was added
when the blower went on, and
liaises with the 2500 ECU

IT’S ACTUALLY VIOLENT, TO BE HONEST WITH YOU. I’M LOOKING
FORWARD TO SOME SLICKS AND HOOKING UP TO SEE WHAT
SHE CAN DO

040

S TR E E T M AC HI N E

HROME & TUNES FROM THE GOOD OL’ DAYS
CARS, C

STORY & PHOTOS ASHLEIGH WILSON

042

ST RE E T M ACHI N E

THE ICONIC COOLY ROCKS ON FESTIVAL
DREW THOUSANDS OF PUNTERS TO THE GOLD
COAST FOR FIVE DAYS OF CLASSIC CARS,
ROCK ’N’ ROLL AND ALL THINGS RETRO
S TR E E T M AC HIN E

043

IPS were swinging and engines were revving as a recordbreaking number of petrolheads rolled into Coolangatta on
the Gold Coast to celebrate all things 50s, 60s and 70s at the
2023 Cooly Rocks On festival. Vintage fashion, rock music
and car culture of bygone eras were front and centre over the
five-day event, with plenty of hot rods, chopped sleds and
classic cars lining the beachfront and surrounding streets.
The show is an adaptation of the Wintersun festival, which morphed
into Cooly Rocks On in 2011. The annual event saw a massive
136,000 spectators in 2022, and this year’s celebrations look to
have topped that. The extensive program included car cruises, club
runs and a mammoth show ’n’ shine spanning six city blocks. If that
wasn’t enough, live music echoed across the precincts, with swing
dances filling the parks and an Elvis tribute competition making sure
things were all shook up.
The action began on Wednesday as the Gold Coast Car Club led
a cruise out to Seven82Motors in Nerang, which opened its auction
house to showcase the latest inventory and celebrate the grand
opening of Big Benny’s Diner.
Thursday hosted an earlybird show ’n’ shine at Greenmount Park,
while the Nostalgia Markets offered an array of retro threads, trinkets,
car parts and memorabilia for visitors to explore. Round one of the
Ultimate Elvis Tribute competition began on the main stage, while
others joined the convoy out to Balter Brewing. The SCARAB Car

1: Justin Collins’s 1957
Chevy 3100 was built for
the drag strip, powered
by a 500ci big-block
that breathes through
an 8/71 blower, runs on
E85 and makes 1000hp
at the flywheel. The
powerful combo sits on
a custom chassis and
airbag suspension, with
a transbrake-equipped
Turbo 400 for when
Justin hits the track
2: Pin-up model Miss
Roxanne La Roller
embodied vintage
beauty skating among
the colourful display of
classic rides
3: The high-gloss patina
on Luke Kilpatrick’s
1954 3100 pick-up
caught our attention.
It runs a smallblock Chev, TH350
transmission and airbag
suspension, and Luke
lapped his pick-up in

Saturday night’s car
cruise
4: Dennis Rogers
cruised up from
Newcastle in his EH
wagon. For some extra
grunt, Dennis slapped
a 6/71 supercharger on
top of the 253 Holden
motor, along with a cam
and a set of extractors.
The real head-turner
is the red Mazda paint
with a touch of pearl
and metallic
BELOW: Dean Webb’s
Sandman demands
attention with its
Absinth yellow paint
and Candy Apple Gold
flames. Sitting in the
meticulously tidy
engine bay is a 383ci
small-block, backed by
a ‘rock crusher’ gearbox
and a Ford 9in diff.
Dean and the van have
run an 11.2 on the drag
strip

SLICKED HAIR, LEATHER JACKETS, HIGH HEELS AND
ROCKABILLY DRESSES WERE AS ABUNDANT AND VIBRANT
AS THE CADILLACS AND PICK-UPS ON DISPLAY

044

S TR E E T MA CHI NE

1

2

3

4

S TR E E T M AC HI N E

045

1

2

3

4

046

ST RE E T MA C H IN E

1: Graham Young’s
slammed, bare-metal
1948 Dodge pick-up
is fed by a 318ci
Chrysler engine, with
a drivetrain to match.
The independent airbag
suspension set-up
extends to the customfabricated gooseneck
motorcycle trailer, all
built by Graham
2: Georgie Wilkinson
has been flat-out
finishing her ’64 Chevy
C10. After rebuilding
the 350ci small-block
and C-notching the
chassis, Georgie could
give the build its
finishing touches. ”I
got it back from paint
and panel three weeks
ago,” she said. “The
turquoise colour is
close to factory, but
with heaps of Xirallic to
modernise the paint”

3: Chris Boorer has
been a regular at
the event since he
imported his 1957
Buick Riviera from
the US eight years
ago. Although the
car was already in
decent condition, Chris
decided to give the Riv
a facelift, wrapping the
exterior in a striking
blue
4: Joe Allia unveiled
his stunning 1964 EH
Holden, a fatherand-son project that
spanned three-and-ahalf years. The streeter
is aptly named,
boasting a stroked 350
Chev built by Aaron
Tremayne. With a
Rod-Tech front end,
five-speed Tremec
gearbox, four-link and
a 9in diff, it’s a trick bit
of gear

Club led the charge for an afternoon of beers and banter, and the
day wrapped up with the event’s first-ever moonlight swing dance.
On Friday, the Kustomville precinct made a triumphant return
following last year’s successful debut, showcasing some of the
show’s wildest custom sleds, hot rods, coupes, and even an old
fruit truck that had been given new life. Mark Duckworth, Festivals
Director for Major Events Gold Coast, welcomed the Kustomville
showcase’s second outing. “For years we had hot rodders and car
clubs that would come out but separate around the whole gig,” Mark
said. “We thought it would be cool to create an area and celebrate
the custom cars. As we got to know the guys in car clubs, they
talked about all the cool stuff they could do like pinstriping and
modifications, and it sounded great!”
The pin-up pageant added to the fun, with 12 beauties gracing the
stage in elegant fashions embracing the rockabilly style of the 50s.
Among them was Bunny Boulevard, who claimed the much-coveted
crown.
The festivities carried on well into the late evening, with worldrenowned Elvis tribute artist Shawn Klush taking the stage, followed
by Swedish rockabilly trio The Go Getters, among other cool cats
on the mic.
There was electricity and copious amounts of hairspray in the air as
folks packed in on Saturday. Music was pumping all day as retro acts
and rhythm & blues performers rocked the many stages. Slicked hair,
leather jackets, high heels and rockabilly dresses were as abundant
and vibrant as the Cadillacs and pick-ups on display.

THE EXTENSIVE PROGRAM INCLUDED CAR CRUISES,
CLUB RUNS AND A MAMMOTH SHOW ’N’ SHINE
SPANNING SIX CITY BLOCKS

ST RE E T MA CH I N E

047

1: Zane Waldon spent two years
on the build of his custom 1950
shoebox Ford, sectioning the body
and chopping the roof by 4in.
7KHZKLWHZDOOVDQGPHWDOpDNH
bumpers set off the DNA Tropical
Green paint nicely, while the
Chrysler grille and DeSoto taillights exude early custom style
2: Chris Langtry channelled his
1930 Ford roadster 5in and threw
a 350 Chev and Turbo 350 trans
XSIURQW&KHFNRXWWKHEOXHDQG
ZKLWHPHWDOpDNHYLQ\OLQWHULRUDQG
chrome OE wheels

1

048

S T RE E T MA CHI N E

3: %URFN%DLOH\DQGKLVGDG*UDQW
transformed their LX SL/R 5000
Torana into a street and strip
car. The 308 was replaced by
a 350ci Chev with a Holley 850
FDUEEDFNHGE\DUHEXLOW)DOFRQ
T5 gearbox. Flares were added
to the original body, as well as a
custom-made front bar, bonnet,
scoop and rear spoiler

3

2

S T RE E T M A CH I N E

049

Spectators flooded in from all directions for the massive show ’n’
shine, which opened at 9am and included more than 900 restored
classics, lowriders, blown hot rods and one-off rides lining every
street.
Among the artistic displays, merch stands and ratted rods, the
Beatniks Car Club hosted a live roof chop, giving the audience a
glimpse into the build process of their custom creations.
As the sun fell, 250 cars lined up for the Saturday-night cruise.
The Coolangatta Hotel was a hot spot to watch the cavalcade of
sweet rides and sink a few tins, and onlookers cheered as chromebumper Chevs, restored Holdens and all kinds of rare metal lapped
the streets late into the night.
Sunday offered another jam-packed schedule and an enormous
turnout as festivities continued. More captivating live performances
had couples swinging across the dance floors, while others
wandered through the markets and Indian motorcycle display, and
the live car mods again proved to be a crowd favourite.
As the day wound down, a sense of calm fell across the beach. The
sky turned purple and the rumbling sound of V8s and lumpy cams
filled the air as drivers farewelled the festival for another year, their
departure proving quite a spectacle in itself.
Cooly Rocks On will be back 5-9 June next year, so lace up your
dancing shoes and grab your best girl for another celebration of
yesteryear in 2024. 

1: Adam Nicholas
brought his 710hp
1985 VK Brock tribute
up from NSW. “It’s
got a 355 stroker in it
and a TH400,” Adam
explained. “It’s been
tubbed and has a set
of Forgiato wheels.
Everything has been
copper-plated for
something a bit
different”

few original elements
is the 235 Blue Flame
Chevy motor with dual
Stromberg carbs

2: Guy Humphries
salvaged motorbike
chains to fabricate fuel
tank straps and used
scrap metal to weld
together the parts he
collected over the twoand-a-half-year build
of his quirky 1951 farm
truck. He shortened the
chassis, fabricated a
tilting and sliding tub,
and built a custom dual
exhaust system and a
set of stacks. One of the

BELOW: Lyndon
Stephenson bought this
’55 Chevy panel truck
during a trip to the US.
The slammed Chev was
once a fruit truck in the
Napa Valley, and if you
look closely you can still
see the original signage
on the doors. The rig
sits on a pneumatic
airbag system with a
custom ladder-bar rear
end, and runs a Vortec
V8 up front

3: Josh Northcott’s ’61
Cadillac caught our
attention. Josh rebuilt
the stunning Caddy with
the help of his mates,
throwing a 502ci bigblock up front and a 9in
underneath

THE KUSTOMVILLE PRECINCT SHOWCASED THE WILDEST
CUSTOM SLEDS, HOT RODS, COUPES, AND EVEN AN OLD
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S TR E E T M A CH I N E

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054

S TR E E T M A CH I N E

FORGET YOUR 427 s AND 502s ; THIS HQ PREMIER
THUMPS TO THE TUNE OF 632 CI OF THE
GENERAL’S FINEST
Story I A I N K E L L Y Photos C H R I S T H O R O G O O D

ST R E E T MA C HIN E

055

ATRICK Langdon has refined his HQ Premier from a
dead stock nanna-mobile to the 1000hp, 632ci monster
you see here. The car’s vintage pro street vibes are no
accident, as Patrick’s custodianship of the more-door
Quey goes back nearly 40 years to the era of big ’n’ littles,
tunnel rams, sump-scraping stance, and hair metal.
“I bought it in 1985 as my first car,” Patrick begins. “I’m the
second owner, and it was in awesome condition at the time. It
had been owned by an elderly couple who must not have driven
it over 100km/h, as it had a real good flat spot there. It was a
high-compression 202 and it was dead stock. All my friends
were driving HXs and HZs, which were the newest Kingswood
models to have been released, and I had this old HQ. It’s funny
how that’s turned around now, as everyone wants the HQ!”
Pat’s factory Prem is resplendent in the now-rare factory
Nutmeg Metallic brown, with a contrasting vinyl roof. “I kept
the vinyl roof, despite half my mates telling me to get rid of it,”
Pat laughs. “It works with the original Nutmeg Metallic colour,
and I didn’t modify that, as I wanted an original-looking cruiser.”
While the paint has remained brown through the years, one
thing that has changed is the powertrain. Originally red sixpowered, Pat’s HQ has thumped to the tune of a 308 iron lion
and two different small-block Chevs. But nothing compares
to the tower-of-power big-block that’s now sitting between
the front wheels.
“I was in the process of building my third small-block and it

was going to be a monster motor, but I was waiting for a set
of these killer heads from the USA, and it just got too much,”
Pat explains. “So, I decided to go big-block, and my engine
builder mate, John Holzer from Prostar Motorsport, said, ‘If
we’re going big-block, let’s go big big-block!’”
The core of the powerplant is a Chevy 632ci block and Brodix
Big Brodie heads, with CP Bullet slugs, Lunati H-beam rods
and a Lunati Sledgehammer crank making up the rotating
assembly. A solid-roller cam, high-volume oil pump and
Moroso oil pan round out the bottom end, and the tall-deck
monster is topped by a Prostar Motorsport sheet-metal tunnel
ram wearing a pair of 1050cfm Quick Fuel QFX carbs.
“I wanted 800hp, which was more than what I needed,” says
Pat. “It went over 1000 on the engine dyno on pump 98, and
even though I had all the race fuel ready to go if we turned it
up, we just didn’t need to go there. It would have made over
1100hp with more sorting, but this is already so much more
than what I ever thought I’d get.”
We’re used to seeing big-blocks in HQ-HZ Holdens, but
Patrick says fitting this 10.2in-deck-height monster took a bit
more work than simply bolting mounts on while eating pizza.
“My engine builder did everything custom-made,” he says.
“We got the engine set on plates as far back as we could go
without touching the firewall, but we had to modify the tunnel
and do a bit of trimming to get the engine down in the bay
properly, as it’s so tall.”

ALL MY FRIENDS WERE DRIVING HXs AND HZs, AND I HAD THIS
OLD HQ. IT’S FUNNY HOW THAT’S TURNED AROUND NOW, AS
EVERYONE WANTS THE HQ!
CRUISING: It may have over 10L of
capacity and 1000hp on tap, but the HQ
drives like a pup. “I can drive it from
Werribee to Ballarat no worries,” Pat
laughs. “I’d be hot and sweaty, but I
can drive it. I’ve had small-blocks with
half the power, and they were nowhere
near as streetable as this engine”

056

ST RE E T M A CH IN E

ENGINE BAY: Such a huge engine
needs beefy support systems. Fuel is
supplied by a Product Engineering 460
pump, while a Race radiator keeps the
fluids cool, and spark is provided by
an MSD digital ignition
BOOT: A custom fuel tank lives in the
boot but still uses the original filler
located behind the number plate.
Though it doesn’t help the Prem
go fast, trimming the boot was an
important step for what Pat sees as a
dedicated street car

Long & Winding Road
WHEELS: Geelong hubcaps
were always going to be
the spinners of choice for
Patrick, who shod the Quey
in 15x3.5 and 15x10 satin
Auto Drags. “I stuck with the
Center Lines because it’s
an old-school wheel and it
suited the build,” he says

THE path to pro street righteousness has been
full of twists and turns for Patrick and the Prem,
as he’s grenaded engines and survived many life
setbacks to hang on to the car.
“For my first build, a mild 308 was dropped
in and a set of Dragway Skogs got the nod,” he
says. “The car got its first paintjob in the late 80s,
a better set of wheels, and a way better stance.
Then the need to go faster hit, and it ended up
getting a 350 Chev with direct-port nitrous added,
but it threw a rod out.
“In the early 90s, the second rebuild came
along with a bare-metal paintjob, new interior,
Center Lines and, of course, a new small-block
with all the rods in the right places,” Pat
continues. “The car looked mint in my eyes for a
shitbox brown HQ that my mates used to tease
me was a Mission Brown Belmont!
“That big rebuild was lots of fun, but then life
took over, and somehow, I forgot and neglected
my first love. It took a backseat for my beautiful
family and got put away for over 10 years.
Luckily, I managed to keep it through all of life’s
little problems during that time.
“After leaving it in storage for so long, when
I was approaching the big 5-0, I decided, as a
birthday present to myself, I would get my HQ out
and give her a little love with a total rebuild.”
S T RE E T M AC HI N E

057

INTERIOR: Dave Higgins of VCS Motor
Trimming refreshed the whole interior,
keeping all the style of the stock cabin
but looking and feeling much nicer.
Upgrades include leather trim, GTS tiller,
RTS shifter, Auto Meter gauges and
Bluetooth head unit
RIGHT: John Holzer from Prostar
Motorsport didn’t just screw the biginch fat-block together for Pat, he also
handled a stack of complex fab work.
This included the custom headers
featuring giant 2.25in primaries that step
up to 2.5in, flowing into a gargantuan
4.5in collector and a twin 4in exhaust
system

MAIN: Getting the HQ to sit so
tough involved plenty of fab
work, including mini-tubs and
a carefully tucked 4in exhaust
system. The six-point rollcage,
colour-matched to the shell,
was also added before the
fresh, factory Nutmeg Metallic
was reapplied. “I used to get
teased about the brown, but
now everyone loves the colour
scheme,” Pat says

058

S TR E E T M ACH I N E

Behind the 4.60in-bore, 4.750in-stroke behemoth is a
TCE 3200rpm converter and manualised TH400 ’box, with
a beefy braced nine-inch third member passing the grunt to
the blacktop. The diff has been filled with all the good gear
needed to handle over 1000hp, including full-floater axles, a
Mark Williams aluminium centre section, Truetrac LSD and
35-spline axles.
The narrowed diff swings off QA1 coil-over struts, with a
Competition Engineering four-link and anti-roll bar replacing
the stock pressed-tin hardware. Up front, the handling has
been dragged out of the disco era with double-adjustable
Viking coil-overs, a Flaming River power steering rack and a
remote-mount TS Astra electric pump.
While he has run 11s down the strip in the Prem’s former
guise, Pat hasn’t had it on the quarter-mile in its current form
just yet. He simply isn’t in a rush to see what it will do after
all this hard work. “It’s probably been six years in the build,”
he sighs.
Thankfully, Patrick is reminded that all this was worth
it every time he takes the 10.7-litre monster out for a run.
Hopefully he’ll get another 38 years of enjoyment out
of it. 

“The best thing, other than having
my pride and joy in my possession
and being able to enjoy it, is being
able to share the love of my car with
my family, and especially my son
Josh [pictured at right],”Pat says.
“Don’t worry, Josh, I will let you
drive it one day!”

I WANTED 800HP, WHICH WAS MORE THAN WHAT I NEEDED. IT
WENT OVER 1000 ON THE ENGINE DYNO ON PUMP 98!
PATRICK LANGDON
1972 HOLDEN HQ
PREMIER
BODY: Frank Padoin, Adrian
Camillo and Graeme Stephens
from Impressive Panels
sorted the HQ’s body and
paintwork, while Harkrome’s
Mick Simpson made the
chrome bits shine once more.
While big-inch billets and
candy paint has been popular,
there was only one style for
Patrick’s HQ in his eyes: “It
needed to hit that classic pro
street look”

Paint: Nutmeg Metallic Brown

ENGINE

Brand: Chevrolet 632ci big-block
Induction: Prostar Motorsport
sheet-metal tunnel ram
Carburettors: Twin Quick Fuel
QFX 1050cfm
Heads: Brodix Big Brodie
Camshaft: Comp solid-roller
Pistons: CP Bullet
Rods: Lunati H-beam
Crank: Lunati Sledgehammer
Oil system: High-volume pump,
Moroso pan
Fuel system: Product Engineering
460 pump
Cooling: Race radiator
Exhaust: 2.25in headers, 4in
exhaust system
Ignition: MSD Digital

TRANSMISSION

Gearbox: TH400, manualised

Converter: TCE 3200rpm
Diff: 9in, Mark Williams
aluminium centre, Truetrac LSD,
IXOOpRDWHU35-spline axles, 3.5:1
oQDOJHDUV

SUSPENSION & BRAKES

Front: Double-adjustable Viking
coil-overs, Flaming River power
steering, electric pump
Rear: Four-link, QA1 coil-overs,
Comp Engineering anti-roll bar
Brakes: Slotted HQ discs (f),
Wilwood discs (r)
Master cylinder: Wilwood

WHEELS & TYRES

Rims: Center Line Auto Drag;
15x3.5 (f), 15x10 (r)
Rubber: Hankook 165/80R15 (f),
Mickey Thompson 295/55R15 (r)

THANKS

John Holzer for the engine; Dave
Higgins for the trim; Frank Padoin,
Adrian Camillo and Graeme
Stephens for the body and paint

S T RE E T MA CH I N E

059

060

ST RE E T MA CH IN E

STORY BORIS VISKOVIC

PHOTOS JORDAN LEIST

ANATOMY
A SHORTBED PICK-UP THAT’S
LONG ON STYLE, BIG ON POWER
AND LOW ON RIDE HEIGHT

ST RE E T M A C H I NE

061

The blacked-out wheels and
grille play out nicely against
the Galaxy Grey paint, and
the smooth look is helped by
deleted quarter windows and
shaved badges

GR

Y’S

ASON De Silveira purchased this 1970 Chevy C10 way
back in 1996, not long after he began an apprenticeship
as a mechanical fitter. “I bought it in bits, thinking I knew
what I was doing,” he recalls. “The old chestnut – it looked
like it was nearly finished and just needed to be put back
together.”
As it turned out, the build ended up taking a good while, as
Jason’s career took him overseas. He still chipped away at it over
the years, but as his knowledge and financial situation improved,
the direction and quality of the build also changed.
“When you’re an apprentice, [you buy] what you can afford
then, but it usually means you end up doing it again,” Jason
says. “This car’s had three paintjobs, three interiors and three
engines, but once I found Grgic Bros, they just did it properly.”
Having had the car for so long, Jason’s ideas about the build
have evolved over time. The truck used to roll on 15x15 Center
Lines out back with a set of drop spindles, which Jason calls the
first iteration of the build. “I built the first engine, a 400 Chev with
a Pete Jackson gear drive, fuellie heads and all sorts of things
in there. But when I looked back, I thought that maybe I didn’t
check those clearances very well, and started second-guessing
myself,” Jason explains. “So, I ended up selling that motor and
bought an LS2.”
It was only when Jason took the C10 to Grgic Bros that an
LSA came into the picture. They’d picked up a few from the US,
knowing that with just a little bit of work you could get close

062

S T R E E T M A CHIN E

ANAT

O
MY

E

ONE THING THAT GRGIC BROS ALWAYS TOLD ME WAS,
“IF IT LOOKS MODIFIED, IT’S NOT DONE RIGHT”

to 600hp out of them. Well, they did that and a little bit more
to Jason’s LSA, fitting a Comp 223/246-duration cam, Gilmer
pulley kit on the blower, and a Holley EFI Terminator ECU. The
end result was 620hp at the tyres! Love ’em or hate ’em, you’ve
got to admit an LS is tough to beat when it comes to making
easy horsepower.
While the engine is a pretty important factor in this build,
it pales into insignificance compared to the work that’s been
done to the C10’s body, chassis and interior. “One thing that
Grgic Bros always told me was, ‘If it looks modified, it’s not
done right,’” Jason says. “When you don’t know what it used
to look like, you don’t question anything. People think it’s got
a nice paintjob, nice engine and the stance is right, but I don’t
think a lot of people can appreciate the amount of work that’s
gone into that car.”
In a nutshell, the only original parts remaining are the chassis
from just behind to just in front of the cab, and the cab itself.
Every other panel has been replaced with new parts or heavily
modified, which is one benefit of building something that’s
immensely popular in the US – the aftermarket for them is
massive!
You don’t get a stance like this with an angle grinder and oxy
torch – although an angle grinder was definitely used in the
creation of the new suspension. The C10 now sports Porterbuilt
suspension all ’round– a front-end clip with tubular A-arms,
drop spindles and rack-and-pinion steering, and out back, an

TRAY: The bed has been treated
to a hard-wearing liner, but it’s
unlikely Jason will be carting too
many engine parts in it. The air
tank has been made a feature with
beautifully fabricated hard lines
ENGINE BAY: The crate LSA has
been tidied up a little bit, but
it sits inside a highly modified,
smooth-as-silk engine bay. Grgic
Bros fabricated the flat firewall and
radiator cover and fitted the Slosh
Tubz inner fenders

S TR E E T MA C HI N E

063

INTERIOR: The interior is
a clever blend of modern
styling in a classic
setting. The stock dash is
filled with Dakota Digital
gauges, while the VF
SS seats have had the
headrests shortened and
been expertly trimmed
in black leather with red
stitching by Trimcare.
The Grgic Bros-fabricated
custom centre console
houses the B&M shifter
and control buttons for
things like the ignition
and electric handbrake
WHEELS: The narrowed
9in allows for the 22x10
KWC Forged rims and
285/35 tyres to easily
fit under the stepside
guards. Brakes are
cross-drilled and slotted
Wilwoods on all four
corners
BELOW: The front bumper
has been removed
and a smooth rollpan
fabricated. The splash of
red from the Custom/10
badge is the only
departure from the black
and grey theme

064

ST RE E T MA C HIN E

The original rear fenders were
pretty rough, so Jason had
them recreated in fibreglass.
The rear pan was smoothed
and the tail-light housings
were 3D printed

GR

Y’S

JASON DE SILVEIRA
1970 CHEVROLET C10
SHORTBED
Paint: Galaxy Grey

DONK

Type: 6.2L LSA
Blower: LSA, Gilmer drive belt
ECU: Holley Terminator
Heads: LSA
Valves: 2.165in (in), 1.590in
(ex)
Cam: Comp Cams 223/246
Internals: Standard
Radiator: VZ Commodore
Exhaust: Pacemaker headers,
twin exhaust
Ignition: Standard

SHIFT

Transmission: Hughes Turbo
400
Converter: AllFast
3500rpm

ANAT

O
MY

eight-inch notch kit with tubular trailing arms. The whole lot rides
on AccuAir self-levelling airbags with Koni shocks and massive
Wilwood brakes on all four corners.
The final and crowning touch to the C10 was the absolutely
stunning interior. Trucks from the 1970s aren’t exactly renowned for
their luxurious cabins, but just like the exterior of Jason’s example,
there isn’t much of the original stuff left inside. The basic shape of
the dash and instrument cluster is unchanged, but the gauges are
analogue-style items from Dakota Digital. The seats are from a VF
SS, and the rest of the interior panels and console were fabricated
out of aluminium by Grgic Bros and then trimmed in black leather by
the very talented crew at Trimcare.
One of my favourite parts of the interior is the pattern that was
stitched into the inserts and carries over to the door and kick panels.
It breaks up the large expanse of leather, and the addition of red
stitching really finishes it off nicely.
While Jason had a few cracks at getting the paint right, he’s stoked
with how the boys at Leighton Panel & Paint have got it looking now.
The Galaxy Grey covers pretty much everything, and the bits that
used to be shiny either got chucked in the bin or painted in gloss
black. It sounds like it could be a dull combination, but as you can
see from the pics, that’s definitely not the case.
With suspension that handles, a modern engine, air conditioning
and plenty of sound deadening in the interior, the C10 is a very
civilised car to drive; apparently you can even talk hands-free on the
phone! That useability means Jason can even take it to work a few
times a week, and while it’s not a real long drive, I’m sure plenty of
necks get snapped along the way. 

E

THE ONLY ORIGINAL PARTS ARE THE CHASSIS FROM JUST BEHIND
TO JUST IN FRONT OF THE CAB, AND THE CAB ITSELF. EVERY
OTHER PANEL HAS BEEN REPLACED OR HEAVILY MODIFIED

Diff: 9in, Truetrac, 31-spline
axles, 3.45:1 gears

BENEATH

Front: Porterbuilt front clip
and rack-and-pinion steering,
AccuAir airbags, Koni shocks
Rear: Porterbuilt 8in notch,
AccuAir airbags, Koni shocks
Brakes: 14.25in drilled and
slotted Wilwood discs with sixpiston calipers (f), 11in drilled
and slotted Wilwood discs with
four-piston calipers (r)

ROLLING STOCK

Rims: KWC Forged; 20x8 (f),
22x10 (r)
Rubber: Achilles Desert
Hawk UHP; 255/45R20 (f),
285/35R22 (r)

THANKS
Grgic Bros

S TR E E T MA CH I N E

065

PHOTOS MATTHEW EVERINGHAM
& MICHELLE POROBIC

STORY RUSTY GREGORY

KILLER CONDITIONS AND A STICKY TRACK MADE
GRUDGE KINGS 2023 A PRO STREET PARADISE
066

ST RE E T M A CHI NE

S TR E E T M AC HI NE

067

LEFT: Brad ‘Fox’ Cullen’s way-cool
Valiant ute received some CPR
throughout the day. With Dale Heiler
on the keyboard, the car knocked out
a 4.6@158mph to the eighth – a PB
on a 28x10.5 tyre
MAIN: The big-money class at
Grudge Kings is Pro Mod, with
$4000 up for grabs for the winner.
Pete Lovering’s gnarly ’55 Chev took
the chocolates on this occasion,
logging a 5.85 PB in the process

ADAM ROGASH’S BRAND-NEW STRIPSHOW CAPRI KNOCKED
OUT A 7.00@191MPH, FOLLOWED UP BY A 6.91@199MPH
TO DIP COMFORTABLY INTO THE SIXES ON DEBUT

OMETIMES, race events are exactly
as advertised on the packaging, and
Grudge Kings tells you everything you
need to know right there in the name.
The first Grudge Kings event, way back
in 2016, aimed to bring the US style of
grudge racing to Australia – door cars, worldclass trash-talk and side bets were the name of
the game. Race fans embraced the concept put
forward by promoter Po Tung from the get-go. It
didn’t matter what make, model or power adder
you had – the only thing that mattered was the
win light.
In the post-COVID years, Grudge Kings has
evolved into more of a traditional race event, but
it’s definitely retained its ‘outlaw’ image, with
some of Australia’s wildest pro streeters on
track alongside full-chassis Doorslammers and
some of the world’s quickest imports. Basically,
if it has doors and is fast, there is a place for it
at Grudge Kings.
There’s also a car show on the hill along the
eastern side of the track, so you can cruise in

068

S T R E E T M A CHIN E

with your streeter, set up on the hill, listen to the
tunes being spun by the DJ, and watch the day’s
racing. You might even win a trophy.
At the 2023 event at Sydney Dragway, some
of the big hitters that you would have expected
to be on the pace from the outset struggled with
cool temperatures and an extremely tight (read:
very, very good) track, which caught more than
a few racers out and claimed some mechanical
sacrifices along the way.
The first car to really grab a hold of the track in
the early part of the day was Doorlammer racer
Peter Lovering in his beautiful ’55 Chev, logging
a 5.89 off the trailer to continue his streak of
good form after the Winternationals in June.
The addition of a Liberty five-speed and lock-up
converter has really helped his team find some
consistency, and Lovering now has plans to put
the car on a diet, with a new composite body on
the way in the off-season that should help him
shave as much as 200lb from the shoebox Chev.
He finished the weekend with a 5.85-second
PB, with plenty of potential left on board!

ABOVE: Secondgeneration racer Josh
Boskovich pilots this cool
Falcon coupe, complete
with Fontana small-block
power, manually shifted
(with levers) Lenco
transmission, and a
healthy dose of nitrous

ABOVE: Trent Blainey made the trip
up from Melbourne with his stunning
twin-turbo LS-powered WALKE VL (SM,
Feb ’23), and was rewarded when the
car rocketed into the sevens at Grudge
Kings, setting a new PB of 7.73@187mph

BELOW: A 6sec timeslip would have you
smiling, too. Adam Rogash rounded out
his day at Grudge Kings with a blistering
6.91@199mph in his brand-new Capri, with
plenty more boost in reserve. Check out the
full feature on p.26 of this issue!

ST RE E T MA CH I N E

069

LEFT: Victorian racer Rohan Hutson is well
travelled with his beautiful black ’55 Chevy, and
put a few more kays on the clock with another trip
to Sydney
BELOW: What goes up must come down. Johnny
Habib and his iconic Torana are already familiar
with defying gravity (and when it catches back up
to you, as illustrated here!)
MAIN: Another run, another monster wheels-up
launch. Jason Hoctor’s killer 455ci Windsorpowered Cortina gets ’em up and keeps ’em up

WHEELSTANDS WERE THE ORDER OF TH
E DAY FOR MANY
A RACER, INCLUDING JOHNNY HABIB,
MARK HAYES, AND
JASON HOCTOR IN HIS TOUGH CORTIN
A

070

S TR E E T MA C HI N E

ABOVE: With the number of huge wheelstands at Grudge
Kings, it was hard to pick one that stood out, but this effort
from Chris Vassilis’s monster all-motor Torana hatch was
right up there. Its BK Race Engines-built 433ci small-block
makes a healthy 840hp
BELOW: Lee Murray’s ProCharged Holden-powered Torana
(SM, Oct ’15) is an absolute WEPN by name and by nature.
Lee came away from Grudge Kings with a smile on his face,
having had a ripper day’s racing with his family and running a
new PB of 8.54@161mph. Read more from p.124 of this issue!

THE WIN LIST

OUTLAW
Lee Docherty – M
azda MX–5
EXTREME BIKE
Alex Borg – Suzuki
Hayabusa
PRO MOD
Peter Lovering –
’55 Chevrolet
PRO STREET
Peter Pisalidis – C
hevrolet Corvette
PRO ELITE
Rodney Rehayem
– Mazda RX-8
PRO MODIFIED
Steve Athans – Fo
rd Mustang
R275
Riccardo Pontonio
– VK Commodore
SMALL-TYRE FIG
HTER PRO
Michael Elkhouri
– Mazda RX-7
SMALL-TYRE FIG
HTER
Pat Firriolo – Holde
n One Tonner
STREET OUTLAW
Martin Stevenson
– HQ Holden van

S TR E E T MA CH I N E

071

LEFT: Steven Nikolovski’s
7M-GTE-powered Mk2
Toyota Corona was doing
grudge runs throughout
the day. The cool and
unorthodox combo logged
a best of 9.68@143mph by
day’s end

IT DIDN’T MATTER WHAT MAKE, MODEL OR POWER ADDER
YOU HAD – THE ONLY THING THAT MATTERED WAS
THE WIN LIGHT

LEFT: Our reigning
Milwaukee Young Street
Machine of the Year
winner, Grant Azzopardi,
keeps popping up
everywhere with his rad
little Barra-powered
Anglia pano, including
the show ’n’ shine at
Grudge Kings

072

ST RE E T MA CH I N E

Street Machine Drag Challenge regular
Riccardo Pontonio’s twin-turbo LS-powered
VK knocked out a string of incredible sevensecond PBs over the event, besting with a
7.56@181mph – all in full DC trim on a 275
radial, full exhaust and pump E85! To say the
boys were happy is an understatement.
Trent Blainey in his gorgeous LS-powered
VL Walkinshaw tribute, WALKE (SM,
Feb ’23), also managed to knock out a 7.7 at a
whopping 187mph – another PB for yet another
heavyweight of the pro street scene.
One of the wildest saves of the day came
from Damian Ferraro in his recently reworked
LJ Torana. The car now boasts a 526 Keith
Black Olds donk, complete with a screw
supercharger, and has run in the low six-second
zone at well over 220mph. On Damian’s first hit
of the day, the car launched well but dropped
fluid under the right rear at around 130mph,

sending him on a sudden unplanned detour
across the centreline. Only Damian’s quick
reflexes got the ’chutes out in time to keep the
gorgeous LJ intact.
The V8 brigade were putting on a show, but
the Sport Compact guys were not going to be
left behind either! George Haramis is a name
known throughout the Sydney off-street drag
racing scene for close to 20 years, and at
Grudge Kings, he wowed behind the wheel of
the Maatouks Racing Mk4 Supra.
Haramis gave us a taste of what was to
come with a 7.21 at a monstrous 202mph
after blowing the tyres off at the hit early in the
day, before smashing out a 6.71@212mph in a
round-one win over George Rehayem (after a
long staging duel, with both teams pumping the
crowd up in the process).
Jay Sadek was another stand-out in the
20B-powered RX-3 made famous by his dad

ABOVE: Jay Sadek and Steve
Athans put down side-by-side 6sec
runs in the final of Pro Modified,
with Athans taking the win in his
Mustang (at top) with a PB of 6.58

BELOW: Twin-turbo LS-powered
Pontiac versus a shoebox Chevy
with a screw-blown Hemi? Yes
please! Stuart Bennett and Pete
Lovering face off in qualifying

ST R E E T M AC H IN E

073

LEFT: Drag Challenge vet Riccardo Pontonio
had a belter of a weekend in his almighty
brown VK. Running in full street trim (275
radials, full exhaust and on pump E85), he
knocked out a PB pass of 7.56@181mph,
then went on to win the R275 class
BELOW: Martin Stevenson’s 410ci small
block-powered HQ pano edged out Craig
Warren’s LJ Torana to take the win in the
hotly contested Street Outlaw class

RICCARDO PONTONIO’S TWIN-TURBO LS
-POWERED VK
KNOCKED OUT A STRING OF INCREDIB
LE SEVEN-SECOND
PBS OVER THE EVENT, BESTING WITH
A 7.56@181MPH

Sam. With a 6.63@210mph (alongside one of
the OGs of pro street, Mark Hayes, running a
7.10 in his stunning big-cube, nitrous-guzzling
LC Torana), Sadek’s car became one of the
quickest and fastest RX-3s in the country.
Wheelstands were the order of the day for
many a racer, with Rob Evans from South
Australia probably having the biggest of them
all in his big Chrysler hardtop. Unfortunately,
what goes up must come down, and when it
did, it was with a shower of sparks and must
have hurt – we didn’t see him out on track again.
Others trying for their pilot licence on the day
were Johnny Habib, Mark Hayes, Darryl Dando,
and Jason Hoctor in his tough Cortina.
Adam Rogash’s brand new STRIPSHOW
Capri (see full feature, p.26) had a weekend
to remember! After a massive half-track
wheelstand in testing that bent a front strut on
touchdown, the team thrashed hard overnight
to fix the damage. On race day, the team
knocked out a 7.00@191mph, followed up by a

074

S TR E E T M A C HI N E

6.91@199mph to dip comfortably into the sixes
on debut. With Dandy Engines power under
the bonnet, the blue Capri will be one to watch
in future!
As always at Grudge Kings, there were
plenty of big names in quick streeters. SmallTyre Fighter was probably the pick of the
categories, with a cracking final between
Dom Perri in his stunning GODRX2 and Mick
Elkhouri in his 2JZ-powered RX-7, LOL13B.
Early in the day, Mick laid down a 7.13 and
a 200mph blast (yes, you read that right) on
separate runs, and it was the later-model
Mazda that would take the win with another
low-seven-second pass. Alongside him, Perri
showed the potential of the little RX-2 with a
7.91@173 mph.
Overall, there was plenty of carnage at this
year’s event, with more than a few cars breaking
on the day, but for fans of grudge racing and
world-class timeslips, Grudge Kings continues
to deliver excitement. Bring on 2024! 

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STORY KIAN HEAGNEY
PHOTOS NATHAN JACOBS

CATHERINE ‘DRIFTCAT’ HEWITSON BUILT THIS
NASCAR-POWERED, VK-FRONTED VL CALAIS AS
THE ULTIMATE DRIFTING WEAPON
076

ST RE E T MA CH IN E

ST R E E T M AC HI N E

077

Engine bay: The 660rwhp and 9500rpm
worth of NASCAR goodness will do just
fine for a fun sliding machine, with the
air filter filling all the space under the
swollen Group A bonnet

Body: Not only does the Group A-style

bodykit give this VL/K the look Cat
adores, but it was also the path of least
resistance to giving the car the wide body
needed for the heavily dished wheels

HILE most of the readers of these
pages would be better versed in the
history of straight-line racing than
the sideways malarkey, those who
were at the genesis of drifting in
Australia would probably remember
the name Catherine Coleiro, better known as
Driftcat. Not only was Cat the first female
professional drifter in Australia, but she was
also a pioneer in taking Aussie cars sideways.
“I had a 308 VK Commodore when we
all started to get into drifting in 2003, so I
used that, and I was the first person to enter
a Holden in a national drift competition,”
says Cat, whose surname is now Hewitson
following her marriage. “Back then it was really
basic; most tracks didn’t know what drifting
was and everything we did was self-taught. All
we had was Initial D to learn from!”
Cat picked up the skills for drifting very

078

ST RE E T M ACHI N E

easily, and soon found herself being thrust
to the forefront of the fast-growing sport. “I
was approached by a Chinese company who
wanted to sponsor me for an entire season of
national comp, but as part of the deal, I had to
sell the VK and use an S13 Silvia instead, so
that’s what I did,” she says.
The deal paid off, with Cat becoming the
first woman to win a championship drifting
title in Australia by taking out the 2005 NSW
State Championship, while also placing fourth
overall in the national competition that same
year. Cat has also been invited to drift cars
in Beijing, Chile and at the Gatebil festival in
Norway. Adding to her extensive résumé are
some stunt driving jobs for big-dollar movies,
including Marvel’s 2021 flick Shang-Chi and
the Legend of the Ten Rings. “The Marvel
experience was such a cool one, jumping and
sliding and all that,” she says. “Seeing my name

in the end credits gave me a major kick as well.”
Cat and husband Trent Hewitson opened
their business, Chequered Tuning, in
Melbourne in 2008. It’s a workshop dedicated
to dyno tuning, with Trent in the workshop and
Cat running the day-to-day. Business has been
booming, but to get it off the ground, Cat had
to bid farewell to the S13 and full-time driving.
“We used the money from selling the S13 to
get the business going, and after four years or
so, my husband turned to me and said, ‘We
need a workshop car; how about you get back
into drifting?’ So I thought, how cool would it
be to get back into drifting with the car that got
me into the sport, a VK Commodore?”
The hunt for a suitable VK was on, but what
the pair actually ended up with was a VL Calais
Turbo manual, which they’ve used as the base
for the machine you see here. The first iteration
was completed in 2012, with an 858rwhp

I THOUGHT, HOW COOL WOULD IT BE TO GET BACK INTO DRIFTING
WITH THE CAR THAT GOT ME INTO THE SPORT, A VK COMMODORE?
Top right: The car

retains a live-axle
rear end, but it’s now
a DMI Bulldog quickchange

Right: Nitrous is
commonplace in
high-end drift builds,
and Cat’s Commodore
is no different.
If ever she feels
that 660rwhp isn’t
enough, the 200-shot
is there for extra bang
S T RE E T M A CH I N E

079

Far left: Here’s Cat’s signature
driver logo, which is now also
being repurposed for her new
YouTube channel, Driftcat
Chronicles
Wheels: Wondering when Cat

nicked the spinners from a
Ferrari F40? They’re Autostrada
Modena three-piece wheels,
re-barrelled by Whitehorse
Industries to measure 18x10
front and 18x13 rear

twin-turbo LS1. “That was a big deal back then,
but after I drifted it, Trent wanted to change
the engine, mainly because LS swaps became
so common, and he also hated the noise of a
turbo LS,” laughs Cat. “So we started looking
at doing another unique swap, and then we
found the Dodge NASCAR engine.”
Between Cat popping out two kids and the
inevitable COVID-related delays, the swap
and overall rebuild took around six years to
sort. “There weren’t heaps of issues getting
the engine in there, and all we really had done
externally was the fab work and the wiring; the
assembly and all that was done here,” says
Cat.
Shoehorning the engine in wasn’t so
bad, but Trent put the hard yards into the
underpinnings to ensure the steering and
suspension geometry was still bang-on for a
drift car. “He spent a lot of time making sure the
rack and subframe was positioned right, using
an S14 steering rack and bespoke uprights
and geometry,” says Cat. All four corners

080

S T RE E T M A CH I N E

also feature Shockworks coil-overs, while a
quick-change live-axle rear end allows gear
ratio changes in as little as five minutes. It’s an
important asset to have in a drift car, as correct
gearing is vital.
As for the engine itself, it’s an Arrington
Performance-built unit that sits at a rev-happy
358ci capacity. It’s dry-sumped, and packs
a Bryant crank, Carrillo rods and JE pistons.
The stick is a Comp Cams solid-roller, while
heads are NASCAR-spec P7s. Other notables
include the Edelbrock intake manifold, Haltech
Nexus R5 brains, and E85 fuel. The mill made a
best of 630rwhp on Chequered Tuning’s hub
dyno through the G-Force dogbox, until the
clutch started slipping. “We’ve got the new
clutch in now, so it’ll hit the dyno soon and we
think it should be good for 660rwhp,” says
Cat. “Then we have the 200-shot of nitrous to
go as well.”
Once it’s all dialled in, Cat and Trent will give
the now VK-fronted VL a shakedown before it
makes a proper on-track debut this year. “I’m

super excited to get it out and give it a good
go; I’ve been out of the seat for a while, so I’m
keen for it,” says Cat. “We don’t have the time
or budget to go back to running full national
series stuff, so it’ll more be used for demos
and special events like World Time Attack
Challenge.” We also have it on good authority
that the Commodore may make a proper debut
at a big event at Melbourne’s Calder Park in
October, so keep an eye out for that.
At this point, you’d be forgiven for thinking
the car is very much a one-dimensional smoke
machine, and we thought the same until Cat
surprised us with this remark: “I would love
to take it to next year’s Summernats, Drag
Challenge, drift for fun around Australia, and
then the ultimate goal would be to ship it to
America and do Drag Week.” It turns out this
thing has been built more as an all-purpose
motorsport machine than simply a drift
weapon, so it seems like we’ll be seeing a lot
of Cat, Trent and the Commodore in several of
forms of motorsport in the years to come. 

I WOULD LOVE TO TAKE IT TO DRAG CHALLENGE, AND THE ULTIMATE
GOAL WOULD BE TO SHIP IT TO AMERICA AND DO DRAG WEEK
Interior: Not much

VL is left inside,
save for the dash.
Bride front seats
replace the Calais
items and the rear
seat is long gone,
while a Haltech iC-7
dash and PDM talk
to the Nexus R5 ECU.
Steering is done with
a Sparco threespoke wheel, while
a drift-appropriate
hydraulic handbrake
replaces the centre
console

Pedals: A race-spec

pedal box gives Cat
all the heel-toe and
clutch-kicking ability
needed in a top-level
drift car

CATHERINE HEWITSON
(COLEIRO)
1986 HOLDEN VL
CALAIS
Paint: Mazda RX-8 Yellow

ENGINE

Brand: Dodge 358ci
Induction: Edelbrock manifold
ECU: Haltech Nexus R5
Heads: P7
Camshaft: Comp Cams solid-

roller
Conrods: Carrillo
Pistons: JE
Crank: Bryant
Oil pump: Dailey dry sump
Fuel system: Raceworks
pump, 1180cc injectors
Cooling: C&R NASCAR
radiator
Exhaust: 3in stainless sideexit pipes
Ignition: Haltech IGN-1A

TRANSMISSION

Gearbox: G-Force T101A
dogbox
Clutch: Quartermaster twinplate
Diff: DMI Bulldog quickchange

SUSPENSION &
BRAKES

Front: Shockworks coil-overs
Rear: Shockworks coil-overs

Brakes: Endless discs (f),
Harrop discs (r)
Master cylinder: AP
Racing

WHEELS & TYRES

Rims: Autostrada Modena;
18x10 (f), 18x13 (r)
Rubber: Nankang AR-1
235/40R18 (f), Mickey
Thompson ET Street
305/35R18 (r)

THANKS

Haltech for providing the right
parts to do the right job on this
car and every day at Chequered
Tuning; Nick at LUX Racing for
the front suspension; Dimi and
Dan at CPG for wiring up the
Haltech gear; Darryl Dickie for all
the fab work; Derek Van Zelm at
Motorsport Engineering Services;
Craig at Whitehorse Industries;
Steve at EFI Hardware
ST RE E T M A CH I N E

081

BENNY GATT TURNS HIS LATE DAD’S OLD XT INTO
THE CRUISER HE’D ALWAYS DREAMED ABOUT

082

S TR E E T M ACH INE

EMAN
OS PETER BAT
T
O
H
P
&
Y
R
O
ST

ST RE E T MA C H I NE

083

HEN drag racing legend Ben Gatt
was told his family’s 1968 XT
Fairmont was available for sale, he
had to have it. The old Ford held
too many memories, and he knew
exactly what his dad, Paolo (Paul),
had desperately wanted to do with the car back
in the day. Once he had this family treasure
under his care, Ben and some trusted mates
rebuilt it over 15 months or so, transforming
Mum and Dad’s old XT into a very neat streeter,
just like his old man would have wanted.

activated. On these western Sydney tracks –
sorry, roads – the ride was smooth, helped, no
doubt, by the seats, but you could feel the XT’s
tyres were planted firmly on the tarmac.
“Dad always reverse-parked in the drive, so
I will too,” Ben said as we pulled up outside
the old home. The traffic made this manoeuvre
something of a chore, and Ben needed his daily
spinach sandwich to complete the task, as the
Ford has no power steering.
The house, built by Paul and some uncles,
is the last on the street still standing from the

poor – drums on all for corners was the norm
at the time. But now that Benny had a hold of
it, he knew he had to change all that. “All Dad
ever wanted was a V8,” he said. “And it had to
be red.”
A 302 Windsor was gathering dust in Ben’s
workshop. It hadn’t been there ages, but Ben
had to have a little peek inside and tweak a
few things. So, another real McCoy powers
the XT: a Ben Gatt race engine. Interestingly,
Ben never dynos his mills; he reckons that if he
puts them together correctly, all that’s needed

BEN NEVER DYNOS HIS MILLS; HE RECKONS IF HE PUTS THEM TOGETHER
CORRECTLY, ALL THAT’S NEEDED IS JUDICIAL USE OF THE LOUD PEDAL
I’ve known Benny for a good number of years,
and jumped at the opportunity to photograph
the car. He had the perfect location in mind;
we were off to the Gatts’ old family home at
Fairfield Heights, Sydney – in Benny’s parents’
old car no less, now completely restored.
Heading towards the old stomping ground,
the Ford’s exhaust let out a gorgeous burble
when Benny backed off the gas, and a decent
dose of mumbo when the loud pedal was

084

S T RE E T MA CHI N E

old days. Ben went to school from this house,
kept his budgerigars here and even learned to
drive in this very XT. He built his first car – a
’28 Model A hottie, with help from his older
brother Joe – in the backyard, and dad Paul
raced his pigeons from the back shed. So many
memories.
Back then, the car was painted white, there
was one of those long straight-six engines
under the bonnet, and stopping power was

is judicial use of the loud pedal to get all the
power needed.
The engine bay has been tidied up and looks
better than new, and brakes-wise, XY discs
now do the work at the front, with drums still
used out back, and the brake booster was
moved to the driver’s side. All the electrics are
new, as are the bumpers, although the original
set is safe in the shed. The factory XT grille
is gone, replaced with an original GT item. “I

BOOT: With its mild 302,
2.7:1 gears, and the 36-gallon
fuel tank in the boot, the
XT could probably make it
halfway across the country
on a single tank

GAUGES: Rather than
swapping in a GT instrument
cluster, Benny elected to
keep the Fairmont gauges
that his dad looked over for
all those years

ENGINE BAY: Benny just happened to have a 302
lying around, so he gave it a freshen-up, put on
some Edelbrock alloy heads and intake, slid in a
mild cam and topped it with a 600 vac-sec Holley.
It was then dropped into the XT’s bay, fulfilling
Ben’s dad’s dream of the car one day running a V8

INTERIOR: The interior has
been redone in black, keeping
in theme with the GT exterior,
but that B&M ratchet shifter
definitely wasn’t a factory
option, not even on the GT!

ST RE E T MA C H IN E

085

LEFT: Benny out the front of the
Fairfield Heights house he grew
up in, with the XT backed into the
driveway, just like his dad used
to do
REAR: The XT looks smart with its
wheels dressed in GT hubcaps over
redline tyres. The mild 302 Windsor
up front burbles through a twin 2in
exhaust system, and is barely off
idle on the freeway thanks to 2.7:1
gears in the 9in

BEN GATT
1968 FORD
XT FAIRMONT

Paint: Candy Apple Red

ENGINE

Brand: Ford 302 Windsor
Induction: Edelbrock intake,
600 Holley vac-sec
Heads: Edelbrock Performer
Camshaft: Crane hydraulic
Conrods: Standard
Pistons: Standard
Crank: Standard
Exhaust: Pacemaker headers,
twin 2in system
Ignition: Electronic

TRANSMISSION

Gearbox: C4
Converter: Standard
Diff: 9in, 2.7:1 gears

SUSPENSION &
BRAKES

Front: Standard
Rear: Standard
Brakes: XY Falcon discs (f),
GT drums (r)
Master cylinder: Standard

WHEELS & TYRES

Rims: 14x6 steelies with GT
hubcaps (f & r)
Rubber: 185/75R14 with
redlines (f & r)

THANKS

Sharon; Owen Webb; Hoody;
Jonesy and Steve for the auto
electrical brilliance; Dean at
Dawn’s Touch-Ups for the body
and paint; Al for the trim; Betts
Customs; Norm Hardinge at
Aussie Desert Cooler; Craig at
Craig’s Automatics; Michelle at
Rare Spares; Ford Muscle Parts;
Bob and Tom at Bridgestone
7\UHV6PLWKoHOG6WHYHDW%XUW
Bros for brakes; Joe Vallis
for hubcaps, grille, dash and
steering wheel; the gang at
Westend Performance – RIP
Sam; Peter and Sarah for the
Cobra air cleaner; Daryl and
6XHIRUoQGLQJWKHFDU

086

S T RE E T M AC HI N E

know everything I’ve done is exactly what Dad
wanted to do,” Ben reminded me.
But the big-ticket item in any car is the paint – it’s
the first thing that hits you – and wow, the paint
on this car! Ben’s dad had always wanted the
XT to be red, so Ben’s had it coated in gleaming
Ford Candy Apple Red. Fortunately, time sitting
in that shed had not treated the XT’s body badly.
There was no rust, and the previous owner had
been careful when he pulled it apart. There were

need the bank’s authority to fill. That’s a whopping
164 litres of high-octane mumbo juice. But gee,
it looks cool.
Inside, the Fairmont is pristine. Everything is
black – upholstery, roof lining, carpet and door
trims. Just sitting in those seats reminds one
of a lazy afternoon in a Jason Recliner, the GT
steering wheel is completely in keeping with
Paul’s desires, and the overall result is a credit to
Ben’s mate Al, who has trimmed it all beautifully.

IF YOU’RE GOING TO DO IT, YOU’VE GOTTA DO
IT RIGHT, I SUPPOSE, HAVEN’T YA?
the usual areas where TLC was needed, but
in general, it was pretty good. Ben’s long-time
buddy Dean did wonders with the paint, and
he reckoned it was one of the best bodies he’d
worked on.
To remain true to the old XT’s rather basic
factory fit-out (and, I suspect, to show off the new
long-range fuel tank), Ben has kept any carpet
and sound deadening away from the boot. And
there is now no room for the spare – that fuel tank
is the proper 36-imperial-gallon one, the kind you

On the parcel shelf, just like the old days, are
a couple of caps. These are special – they were
Paul’s. But I have to wonder if Ben’s mum Nina
would have ever allowed the famous Paul Gatt
racing pigeons to travel on the back seat in this
beautiful time capsule?
Well done, Ben – this car is a credit both to
you and its history with your family. “Ah, if you’re
going to do it, you’ve gotta do it right, I suppose,
haven’t ya?” Ben stated simply. He had to have
the last word. 

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WWW.RODSHOP.COM.AU

088

S TR EE T M AC H INE

STEVEN THRIFT’S HYP064 EH IS A
BLACK-ON-BLACK STREET BRAWLER PACKING
500HP WORTH OF EFI SMALL-BLOCK SHOVE
Story

ANDREW BROADLEY

Photos

BEN HOSKING

S T RE E T MAC HI NE

089

T THE risk of it sounding a bit like a cheesy Dom
Toretto line from a Fast & Furious film, Steven
Thrift’s EH Holden is all about family. It was built in
Steve’s shed with his dad Geoff front and centre,
to be enjoyed by Steve, his ever-supportive wife
Amanda, and their two kiddos Holly and Marley.
The family connection is such that Geoff even owned the
EH for a time!
“The car was quite nice when I got it 15 years ago; blue
with a white roof, billet wheels, a 186 and a four-speed,”
says Steve. “I had the idea of painting the engine bay after
pulling the engine out for a tidy-up and got carried away,
stripping the whole car for a little rust work and a change
of colour.” A familiar tale, indeed.
Steve worked with Geoff to get the car repaired and into
primer before the build lost momentum, and the former
ended up selling the car to the latter.
“That was about 10 years ago,” says Steve. “Dad got
it painted by one of his good mates in a custom Spies
Hecker cherry black, mixed by my brother Anthony. After
Dad fitted the panels, new bolts, catches and glass, it sat
in his shed for another seven years, until I begged him to
buy it back so that I could finish it the way I intended all
those years ago.”
The deal was done, and the EH returned to Steve’s
care. His intentions for the powertrain were a little more
ambitious than his dad’s, and some changes needed to
be made to the now-painted car to facilitate them. We’re
talking mini-tubs, engine, transmission, diff and brake
conversions, and a set of custom headers to suit a small-

090

ST RE E T MA CH I N E

block Chev, which anyone who’s ever dropped a V8 into an
early Holden knows is an absolute mission.
Steve purchased a tough small-block Chev and
Powerglide from a family friend, Roy Romeo at In Touch
Automotive. The 350-cuber runs a steel Crower crank,
Lunati rods, Ross flat-top pistons and a Comp Cams solid
stick. Heads are polished and ported Dart Sportsman
items, topped by an Edelbrock Victor Jr intake manifold and
Holley Sniper four-barrel EFI system. The whole shebang
is handy for around 500hp.
The nine-inch rear end sports 31-spline billet axles and
a 3.7:1 Truetrac centre, and is suspended by factory EH
leaf springs aided by Gazzard Brothers traction bars.
The 15x8.5 Street Pro II rear wheels wear 235/60R15
hoops, which necessitated some negotiations with the
inner wheelarches. “Dad and I mini-tubbed the car at my
place, after a lot of convincing – the car had already been
painted!” Steve says.
At the steering end, there’s a modified HR front end
featuring Torana rack-and-pinion steering, HK V8 coils and
Ultima Nitro shocks. Brakes are Commodore discs and
calipers at both ends (VZ front and VS rear), regulated by
a VX master cylinder.
“During COVID lockdowns, I sent the car out to have the
exhaust and extractors done by Peter at Newcastle Muffler
Service; what a helpful bloke who takes pride in what he
does,” says Steve. “I just left it all up to him, and he has
done a perfect job and didn’t cut the inner guards, which
everyone said was impossible. It sounds beautiful.”
Jason at Custom Auto Electrics came out and rewired

THE EH SHOULD END UP IN THE 10S ON THE MOTOR, BUT STEVE’S
MORE THAN HAPPY TO PUT IT ON THE BOTTLE TO GET THE JOB DONE
ENGINE BAY:
The staunch solidcammed 350ci
small-block is good
for around 500hp
and is a delightfully
old-school recipe,
save for the Holley
four-barrel EFI
set-up, which
modernises things
a touch without
compromising the
look

BODY:
Cherry black paint
is a bold choice;
you want to have a
lot of faith in your
bodywork to do it
justice. Steve and his
dad Geoff tackled the
panels themselves,
and Geoff then
outsourced the
painting to a good
mate. The results are
spot-on

HEADERS:
Steve didn’t want
to run fenderwell
headers on the EH,
so he commissioned
Newcastle Muffler
Service to skilfully
craft a set of custom
block-huggers,
despite the fact that
the engine bay had
already been painted
– no mean feat

ST RE E T MA CH I N E

091

the EH from front to back, including the Holley Sniper EFI set-up,
while Steve handled the plumbing himself with Speedflow fittings and
braided lines. Good mates Kane White and Luke Catty were called
upon for their help fitting up the engine and driveline, and were more
than happy to oblige.
It was a huge push to get the car to Street Machine Summernats
35 this year, with every spare minute dedicated to making sure the
deadline was met. Steve wants to thank his dad Geoff, brother-in-law
Lyle Cavell and mates Scott Vickery, Stephen Rouse and Phill Cater
for helping get it across the line.
“I want to say a special thanks to my wife Amanda and little girls
Holly and Marley for being so patient with me and understanding that
my dream wasn’t easy,” says Steve. “Leaving the girls inside while I
spent so many late nights in the shed trying to get it finished was much
appreciated, and now we can enjoy it all together.”
A trip to the drags is on the agenda, and while Steve is confident the
EH will end up in the 10s on the motor, he’s more than happy to put it
on the bottle to get the job done if he needs to. But above all else, the
EH is all about clawing back valuable family time.
“The look on my little girls’ faces when I took them for their first drive
was awesome; what a great feeling it was to be cruising with the wife
and kids. I’m looking forward to many more cruises and shows, and
the girls can’t wait to come to a car show.” 

STEVEN THRIFT
1964 EH HOLDEN

Paint: Custom Spies Hecker
Cherry Black

ENGINE

Brand: 350ci small-block Chev
Induction: Victor Jr intake
manifold, Holley Sniper fourbarrel EFI
Heads: Dart Sportsman, ported
and polished
Camshaft: Comp Cams solidroller
Conrods: Lunati
Pistons: Ross flat-top

092

S T RE E T M A CH I N E

Crank: Crower steel
Oil pump: High volume
Fuel system: Holley Sniper
in-tank
Cooling: Aussie Desert Cooler
radiator, twin 12in fans
Exhaust: Custom headers,
twin 3in exhaust, MagnaFlow
mufflers
Ignition: MSD billet distributor,
MSD 6AL, MSD leads, Fireball
coil

TRANSMISSION

Gearbox: Powerglide,
transbrake

INTERIOR: The black-on-black
aesthetic is a well-trodden path,
and it works a treat on Steve’s EH.
Black vinyl covers the Premier seats
and door trims, while a SAAS classic
black twirler, Aeroflow pistol grip
shifter, Auto Meter gauges and TruFit moulded carpet also got the nod

Converter: Dominator 3500rpm
Diff: 9in, Truetrac centre,
31-spline axles, 3.7:1 gears

SUSPENSION & BRAKES
Front: HR front end, LX Torana
rack, V8 HK Holden springs,
Ultima Nitro shocks
Rear: EH Holden leaf springs,
Gazzard Brothers traction bars,
Rod Shop chassis kit
Brakes: VZ Commodore discs
with CAE adapters (f), VS
Commodore discs (r)
Master cylinder: VX
Commodore

WHEELS & TYRES

Rims: Street Pro II; 17x4.5 (f),
15x8.5 (r)
Rubber: Nankang; 165/70R17
(f), 235/60R15 (r)

THANKS

My wife Amanda and my girls
Holly and Marley for putting
up with me; my champion of
a dad Geoff Thrift; my brother
Anthony for mixing the custom
cherry black colour; my
brother-in-law Lyle Cavell; my
mates Kane White, Luke Catty,
Stephen Rouse, Scott Vickery

and Scott Meharg; Peter and
WKHER\VDW1HZFDVWOH0XIpHU
Service; Roy Romeo at In Touch
Automotive for the engine,
gearbox, MSD and Holley Sniper
system; Unique Customs for the
wheels; Jason at Custom Auto
Electrics; Phill Cater for the
trim; Luke Dean for the trailer;
Scott Meharg for the VX booster
set-up; Alien Retro Columns;
Driveline Services; Vision
Autoglass; Aussie Desert Cooler;
Rare Spares; Rocket Industries;
Resto Spares; Meguiar’s; Wyong
Automatic Transmission Service

STORY IAIN KELLY PHOTOS GENERAL MOTORS

094

ST RE E T M A CHI NE

NEW-AGE DINOSAURS
GENERAL MOTORS’ PUSHROD
S,
RD
FO
M
-CA
AD
HE
ER
OV
D
AN
ES
ICL
VEH
IC
CTR
> IN THE FACE OF ELE
ESE LATEST-GEN MILLS
TH
AT
K
LOO
R
OU
IS
RE
HE
N.
TIO
RA
NE
GE
TH
FIF
SMALL-BLOCK IS NOW IN ITS

L

AUNCHED with the seventhgeneration Corvette in January 2013,
the new Gen V V8 ushered in a new
era of tech for GM’s venerable smallblock. The new LT1 may have had the same
capacity, bore/stroke, six-bolt mains, allaluminium 90-degree construction, 4.40-inch
centre-bore spacing, cam location, pushrods
and deck height as the LS3, but it also
brought some huge differences.
On top of a new block and head design,
the cooling and oiling systems were radically
overhauled, and all Gen Vs feature direct
injection. Power was up all over the shop,
with the LT5 found in the C7 ZR1 packing
755hp, making it GM’s most powerful

production car.
In the decade since the LT series broke
cover, GM has released 11 variants, with the
new 6.6-litre (400ci) iron-block L8T causing
a huge stir amongst enthusiasts looking
to build boosted combos off a production
block. On the higher-tech front, the new
naturally aspirated LT6 from the C8 Z06
Corvette brought dual overhead camshafts,
5.5-litre capacity, an 8600rpm redline and an
astounding 670hp output.
On top of this, GM still has plans to release
a spicier version of the LT in the upcoming
hot-shoe C8 Corvette ZR1, so we’ll bring you
the skinny on that when details are confirmed.
In terms of power potential, these babies

have loads! One of the many big upgrades
the Gen V enjoys is gusseted water jackets
in the aluminium blocks, as these add a great
deal of strength. While alloy Gen IV blocks
are known to tap out around 700hp, the alloy
LTs can nudge 1000hp thanks to better
stability in the platform.
So far, we haven’t seen enough iron L8T
builds taken to the limit to say what they can
handle with any certainty. The 12mm head
bolts (larger than the 11mm used in LS)
should provide better clamping to handle
boosted combos, while GM has also worked
on eradicating windage issues from the LS,
which always suffered in this area due to the
deep-skirt design of the blocks.

Engine code: L83/L84
Block type: Allloy
Bore size: 3.78in
Capacity: 5.3L

WHILE we commonly thi
nk of the Vortecseries 5.3-litre LS ‘truc
k’ engines as iron-block
variants, the Gen V mills
changed all this.
Now called EcoTec3, bo
th the L83 and L84
5.3s feature alloy bock
s and 11:1 comp.
Packing 355hp and 38
3lb-ft, these 5.3-litre
Gen Vs use a cast cran
k and hypereutectic
aluminium-alloy pistons
, and really only differ
due to packaging differ
ences in the various
truck models they’re so
ld in. Thanks to the
direct-injection and cylin
der-deactivation AFM
tech, the L83/L84 in GM
light-duty trucks are
claimed to be more fue
l-efficient than Ford’s
turbo six-pot EcoBoost
donks.

ST R E E T MA C HI NE

095

Engine code: LT6
Block type: Alloy
Bore size: 4..10in
Capacity: 5.55L

THUMPING out an am
azing 670hp, the 5.5-lit
re LT6
is currently the most po
werful naturally aspirate
d V8
found in a production ca
r in the world. Developed
for
the supercar-fast C8 Co
rvette Z06, it is almost
an
LT in
name only thanks to it ha
ving to fit into a mid-en
gined
car. Packing chain-driv
en dual overhead cams
ha
fts,
titanium rods and intake
valves, 32 valves, a flat-p
lane
crank, dry sump oil syste
m and 12.5:1 comp, it’s
a
spicy
unit. The intake manifold
is a giant 11-litre item pa
cking
twin 87mm throttlebodie
s, meaning the direct-in
jection
squirters ended up side-m
ounted, unlike other LT
s.
Redline is an amazing 86
00rpm.

Engine code: LT1
Block type: Allooy
Bore size: 4.066in
Capacity: 6.22L

forged steel crank,
WITH 460hp, 11.5:1 comp and a
heat to the C7
the all-new LT1 brought a fair bit of
oil pump runs
Corvette and sixth-gen Camaro. The
nder heads are a
variable displacement, and the cyli
same on left and
common design, meaning they’re the
n (AFM) and direct
right banks, while cylinder deactivatio
the 21st century.
injection bring the pushrod V8 into
g and six-bolt mains, but
GM retained the 4.40in bore spacin
mounts, so they won’t
changed the position of the engine
sidebar, opposite page).
bolt in where an LS once was (see

Engine code: L86/L87
Block type: Alloy
Bore size: 4.006in
Capacity: 6.22L

THE new-gen 6.2-litre V8 found in GM’s
light-duty trucks (including the Chev
Silverados now so plentiful on Australian
roads), the L86 and L87 are basically
the same engine with minor packaging
differences to suit the various models
they’re sold in. Largely the same as the
high-performance LT1 apart from the
intake manifold, the 420hp L86/L87
also runs 11.5:1 comp and a forged
steel crank, although it misses out on the
LT4’s forged pistons.

096

ST RE E T M ACHI N E

FITNESS IN
their LS and LT hardware, though,
as the aftermarket is now selling
tools that make it easier to fit
an LS top end on your LT short
motor, or vice versa. While the
head bolt pattern and water
jackets line up between LS and
LT heads, the locating dowels have
moved from the lower outer position
(LS) to upper outer (LT).
This doesn’t resolve the issue
with piston-to-valve clearance
on the high-compression LT
engines. There is also the
issue of the Gen V camshaft,
which features a unique eccentric
at the back of the shaft to drive the mechanical
direction-injection fuel pump, and this means you’d
likely need to swap to a new cam and lifters at the
same time.

IF YOU’RE fixin’ to slap an LT5 in where your LS1 or LS3
used to be, then you’re in for some surprises.
Firstly, GM changed the engine mount bosses on the
side of the LT blocks, so you’ll need to make new engine
mounts when swapping from an LS to an LT.
The cylinder heads are an all-new design, as GM had a
heck of a job fitting valves, a sparkplug and a fuel injector
into the combustion chamber. They’re universal castings,
which means the left and right are the same, but the
orientation of the intake and exhaust valves is reversed
compared to a traditional LS head. This will require new
headers for a car previously fitted with an LS, and you’ll
also need a Gen V-fitment intake manifold, as the LS item
won’t fit.
They do share the same reluctor-wheel tooth count
on the crank, but the electronics required to run all the
factory functions of an LT aren’t as simple thanks to the
variable valve timing, active fuel management, direct
injection and more.
There is good news for those wanting to mix-and-match

LT GEN V SMALL-BLOCK ENGINES
Engine
code
L83
L84
L87
LT1
LT2
LT4
LT5
LT6
LT376
L8T

Power (hp)

Torque (lb-ft)

Redline (rpm)

355@5600rpm
355@5600rpm
420@5900rpm
460@6000rpm
495@6450rpm
650@6400rpm
755@6400rpm
670@8400rpm
535@6300rpm
401@5200rpm

383@4100rpm
383@4100rpm
450@4100rpm
465@4600rpm
470@5150rpm
650@3600rpm
715@3600rpm
461@6300rpm
470@4600rpm
464@4000rpm

5800
5800
6000
6600
6600
6600
6500
8600
6200
5600

GEN IV
Engine
Capacity
Power (hp)
Torque (lb-ft)
Compression ratio
Cylinder head
Oil system
Induction
Weight (kg)

GEN IV
LS3
6.2L
430
474
10.7
Aluminium,
2-valve
Wet sump
Naturally
aspirated
183

GEN V
LT1
6.2L
460
465
11.5
Aluminium,
2-valve
Wet sump,
variable pressure
Naturally
aspirated
193

V S

GEN IV
LS7
7.0L
505
480
11
Aluminium,
2-valve
Dry sump
Naturally
aspirated
205

Displacement
(L)
5.3
5.3
6.2
6.2
6.2
6.2
6.2
5.5
6.2
6.6

Bore (in)

Stroke (in)

3.78
3.78
4.06
4.06
4.06
4.06
4.06
4.10
4.06
4.05

3.62
3.62
3.62
3.62
3.62
3.62
3.62
3.15
3.62
3.86

Compression
ratio
11:1
11:1
11.5:1
11.5:1
11.5:1
10:1
10:1
12.5:1
11.5:1
10.8:1

GEN V
GEN V
LT6
5.5L
670
461
12.5
Aluminium,
DOHC
Dry sump,
variable pressure
Naturally
aspirated
215

GEN IV
LSA
6.2L
580
555
9.1
Aluminium,
2-valve
Wet sump
1.9L Eaton
supercharger
212

GEN V
LT4
6.2L
650
650
10
Aluminium,
2-valve
Wet sump,
variable pressure
1.7L Eaton
supercharger
239

Engine code: LT4
Block type: Alloy
Bore size: 4.06in
Capacity: 6.22L

WITH more power than the fabled, hand-assemb
led LS9,
the 650hp LT4 blew minds when it debuted in
the C7
Corvette Z06. Aussies got a taste when the ZL1
Camaro
lobbed Down Under in 2019. The compression
is 10:1,
with forged pistons and rods getting the nod on
top of the
forged crank. A new, skinnier 1.7-litre Eaton supe
rcharger
allowed 9.4psi of boost and lower bonnet heig
hts, and
the mill itself retained other Gen V signatures
like variable
valve timing, alloy construction and direct injec
tion.
The LT4 took over from the 580hp LSA as GM’
s go-to
supercharged crate motor for years, listing at
$US15,000.

ST R E E T M A C H I NE

097

Engine code: LT2
Block type: Alloy
Bore size: 4..06in
Capacity: 6.22L

THE C8 Corvette’s midengined layout created
huge
packaging headaches
for General Motors, so
the LT2
rectified this. Most of the
central specs of the LT
2 are
the same as the LT1, inc
luding the compression
ratio,
bore/stroke, base block
specs and head layout,
but the
cam is more aggressive,
it has new intake and ex
haust
systems to suit the MR
placement, and a dry su
mp oil
system. This means it pu
mps out an impressive
495hp.

Engine code: LT5
Block type: Allooy
Bore size: 4..066in
Capacity: 6.22L

and the
fastest production car,
’s
GM
as
n
ow
kn
is
1
antic 755hp
THE Corvette ZR
inly saw to that, with a gig
rta
ce
l
de
mo
on
ati
er
en
main
seventh-g
me as the LT4, but the
sa
the
ly
ge
lar
are
s
ec
rger offering
output. The basic sp
the 2.65-litre supercha
th
wi
p,
to
up
ed
en
pp
difference ha
2650 blower is
er the LT4’s pump. The
ov
y
cit
pa
ca
tra
ex
e
litr
a
injection
nearly
ectors as well as direct
inj
rt
po
ns
ru
5
LT
the
t
so big it mean
1 long out of
mand. With the C7 ZR
de
l
fue
the
th
wi
up
ep
just to ke
crate motor.
the LT5 is offered as a
ys
da
se
the
n,
tio
uc
od
pr

Engine code: L8T
Block type: Irron
Bore size: 4.005in
Capacity: 6.6LL

THE only iron-block LT engine and
the largest-capacity
Gen V (6.6 litres, or 400ci in the old
money), the L8T is GM’s
answer to Ford’s 7.3 Godzilla. Use
d in heavy-duty trucks, the
L8T’s forged crank and 3.86 stroke
differ from the other LT
truck motors, while the intake manifo
ld and cam are geared
for lower-rpm torque production. Tho
ugh the mill is only rated
at 401hp stock, the L8T block and
crank are already available
from Chevrolet Performance as afte
rmarket accessories,
which will no doubt be used for boo
sted builds soon. 

Engine code: LT376
Block type: Allloy
Bore size: 4.066in
Capacity: 6..2LL

t GM sells as a higherTHE LT376 is essentially an LT1 tha
the LT Hot Cam (228°/248°
performance crate motor. Packing
r heads, it lifts the LT1’s
duration) and CNC-ported cylinde
n 535hp. The LT376 is
horsepower up 75hp, throwing dow
engines as part of Chevrolet
available alongside several other LT
m, including the 650hp LT4
Performance’s crate engine progra
and big-banger 755hp LT5.

098

S T RE E T M A CH I N E

GENUINE

PERFORMANCE
DESIGNED, ENGINEERED & TESTED BY
LS3

Displacement
Horsepower
Torque
Compression
Bore & Stroke

6.2L (376 cu. in.)
430 HP @ 5,900 RPM
425 LB-FT @ 4,600 RPM
10.7:1 Hypereutectic Aluminium Pistons
103.25 x 92 mm (4.065 x 3.622 in.)

SP350/357 Deluxe

Displacement
Horsepower
Torque
Compression
Bore & Stroke

350 cu. in.
357 HP @ 5,500 RPM
407 LB-FT @ 4,000 RPM
9.0:1 Cast Aluminium Pistons
4.000 x 3.480 in.

LT4 SUPERCHARGED

Displacement
Horsepower
Torque
Compression
Bore & Stroke

6.2L (376 cu. in.)
640 HP @ 6,400 RPM
630 LB-FT @ 3,600 RPM
10.0:1 Forged Aluminium Pistons
103.25 x 92 mm (4.065 x 3.622 in.)

LT1

Displacement
Horsepower
Torque
Compression
Bore & Stroke

ZZ502 Deluxe

Displacement
Horsepower
Torque
Compression
Bore & Stroke

502 cu. in.
508 HP @ 5,200 RPM
580 LB-FT @ 3,600 RPM
9.6:1 Forged Aluminium Pistons
4.470 x 4.000 in.

6.2L (376 cu. in.)
460 HP @ 6,000 RPM
465 LB-FT @ 4,600 RPM
11.5:1 Hypereutectic Aluminium Pistons
103.25 x 92 mm (4.065 x 3.622 in.)

ZZ632 Deluxe

Displacement
Horsepower
Torque
Compression
Bore & Stroke

632 cu. in.
1004 HP @ 6,600 RPM
876 LB-FT @ 5,600 RPM
12.0:1 Forged Aluminium Pistons
4.600 x 4.750 in.
TCO1255

AVAILABLE FROM:

chevroletperformance.com.au
SUPERSTORE
03 8710 3000
92 South Gippsland Hwy, Dandenong, Victoria

Mon - Fri 8.30am - 5.30pm Sat 9am - 1pm

TI ME M A C H I N E
STORY CRAIG PARKER

PHOTOS CAPRICE PHOTOGRAPHY

> NEARLY 40 YEARS AFTER IT FEATURED IN STREET MACHINE, JANET HOUGH AND
VICTOR REILLY’S 1966 MUSTANG IS STILL ON THE ROAD AND STILL TURNING HEADS

J

ANET Hough and Victor Reilly own
and run Bucket Panels in Moorabbin,
and have been together for over 43
years. Throughout their journey, Janet
and Victor have remained diehard hot-car
fans. They also had a lot of fun racing Honda
Odysseys for many years, plus a bit of touring
on their Harley-Davidson. And while a number
of cars have come and gone, the one street
machine that has steadfastly remained is
Janet’s beloved 1966 Mustang. Having first
featured the bright yellow fastback in our June
1986 issue, Street Machine couldn’t resist
catching up with Janet and Victor to see what
the three of them have been up to over the
ensuing 37 years.
You’ve owned the Mustang for a very long
time!

RIGHT: Not many of us
can lay claim to owning
the same car for 40
years, but Janet Hough
can! Power steering,
air con and a modern
sound system have
dragged the Muzzy’s
comfort levels into the
21st century

100

ST RE E T M A CH I N E

JH: Our daughter Raewyn is about to turn
40, and I’ve had the car since before she was
born. I never thought I’d be able to afford
a Mustang; however, a mother had gone
guarantor on a car loan for her son, who’d
stopped making payments. She just wanted
out of it, so I was able to pick it up in ’83 for
just $3500.
VR: We did the original build at Bucket Panels.
Jan initially wanted it to be black, but we
convinced her to paint it yellow, and it’s stayed
that way ever since.
It certainly did very well at its first outing.
JH: Yes, Top Coupe and Top Ford at the ’86
Nationals. We nearly didn’t make it. Towing it
up to Canberra, the trailer got the sways and
nearly jack-knifed. We went across the road
and off through some trees before coming to
a stop. Luckily, we managed to get it back on

the road.
VR: This wasn’t the first time the car was
nearly destroyed. It was almost finished for the
’84 Nationals when it suffered an engine bay
fire, which almost burnt it to the ground.
What about after the Nationals?
JH: We did a few shows through the next
couple of years. It went in and out of storage a
couple of times, as we’d bought a house that
didn’t have a garage.
VR: We also did the ’92 Nationals at Calder
Park. The bonnet flipped up while cruising
around the Thunderdome. I took it back to the
shop, repaired and painted it overnight, and
had it back at Calder the next morning ready
for judging.
What came first: your relationship or the
car?
JH: We were already going out. We’re good

M, June
S
n
i
d
e
r
it appea amp’s Torana
s
a
y
z
z
The Mu th Rob Beauch m winning
i
o
1986 (w ver!), fresh fr et Machine
e
co
on the at the 7th Str
s better
i
r
e
a
p
c
u
e
Top Co . No doubt th
am, but
r
l
e
s
n
l
a
n
tu
Nation
out the tough!
t
h
i
w
e
to driv n, did it look
ma

RIGHT: The 289 has been
rebuilt and treated to a bunch
of new goodies, including
alloy heads, a single fourbarrel and billet rocker covers
replacing the Morosos

S TR E E T MA C H I NE

101

friends of Carol and David Ryan of Rare
Spares and met at David’s 30th.
VR: After we started going out, I built an XT
Fairmont for Jan, which was sold off to build
the Mustang.
Ever thought of selling the Mustang?
JH: Never! When we moved house, it had no
carpets. Victor’s mum kept saying, “Sell the
car, buy some carpet.” But no, we lived with
bare concrete floors for years rather than sell
it. We’re going to hand it down to Raewyn,
even though BMWs are more her thing.
However, her husband Dion is very happy to
take it, along with all of our other cars – he
loves them!
VR: You never sell them. Once you’ve built
a nice car and sell it, you’ll never replace it –
you’ll never have another one again.
What’s been the reaction to the car over the
years?
JH: I’ve had old boyfriends come looking for
me at shows to say hi after recognising the
car. Also, for years I’d be out picking up parts
for the shop, and I’d see a big poster of the
Mustang in reception – it was kinda weird.
VR: We’ve met so many really nice people

through the car world. People like Dave
Ryan and Alan Hale, plus many other lifelong
friends. It’s a real ice-breaker; people will
come up to talk to you about your car.
It’s still in fantastic condition!
JH: We gave it a mini-rebuild about 10 years
ago. Victor made it more driver friendly; he
nanna-fied it for me. I am, after all, 72 now!
VR: Yeah, after years and years in storage,
all the chrome had corroded and the paint
and lost its pop. Steven from Bucket Panels
repainted it [in XD/XE Blaze Yellow], and I got
my good friend David Young at Huntingdale
Electroplating to redo all the chrome. The
engine was rebuilt with alloy heads, new cam
and the original tunnel ram swapped for a
single four, without any loss of power. The
trans was also rebuilt, the diff got a new ratio
and we added power rack-and-pinion steering
and air conditioning. There’s also billet rocker
covers, billet bonnet hinges and an alloy
radiator to stop it from getting hot. Inside,
there’s km/h Dakota gauges and a powerful
Pioneer sound system, while a Mustang
console and T-bar shifter replace the old B&M.
The carpets have been replaced, but it’s still

the same trim.
JH: It wasn’t an easy car to drive, but now it
drives beautifully – 20-25 miles to the gallon,
cruising with air con on, the stereo blasting,
one hand on the steering wheel. It’s really
lovely.
Who drives it more these days?
JH: I still love driving it. However, Victor looks
after it and drives it more often than I do.
I understand ‘JANS66’ is the only Ford in
garage?
JH: Yep.
VR: I had a really nice FC Holden back in the
day, and I just seem to build Chevs – probably
built 50 cars over the years. I’m still building
cars; always got four or five on the go at any
one time. We’ve got a ’64 Impala hardtop
that we use for weddings and formals, and
I’m nearly finished a ’64 Corvette Stingray.
It’s going to be very nice; it’s got an 800hp
supercharged LS in it.
Ever thought about taking the Mustang
back to Canberra for Summernats?
JH: Canberra in January is hard for us, as that
time of year is all about family. These days, we
prefer driving it to showing it. 

WE GAVE IT A MINI-REBUILD ABOUT 10 YEARS AGO. VICTOR
NANNA-FIED IT FOR ME. I AM, AFTER ALL, 72 NOW!

102

S T RE E T M AC HIN E

ABOVE
:
350-Ch Victor’s fuelin
ev pow
ered, C jected,
Re d F C
andy
H
toughe olden was on Apple
s
e
of stree t cars of the e of the
arly da
t mach
ys
ini
in the v
ery firs ng and appea
r ed
tm
SM nam
e – Van ag to wear th
e
Whee
Machin
e, Aug-S ls & Street
ep 1981

INSIDE: The trim job by
the Authentic Leather
Company 40-odd
years ago has held up
beautifully! A set of
Dakota Digital gauges
monitor the vitals,
while the old B&M
shifter was replaced by
an easy-to-use T-bar

S TR E E T MA CH I N E

103

D RA G C HA L LE N G E
STORY KIAN HEAGNEY

PHOTOS CHRIS THOROGOOD, SHAUN TANNER, NOAH THORLEY & GRANT STEPHENS

> BRENDON DE RUYTER COMBINED A HONDA K24 FOUR-POT AND AN UGLY 80S CELICA TO MAKE A
1200RWHP, SEVEN-SECOND DRAG-AND-DRIVE WEAPON
HE Honda K24 is the new hot ticket
to major horsepower and reliability
on the cheap, as you can pluck ’em
straight from grandpa’s junker, throw
some basic forged goodies in and
boost them to the moon to enter
the four-digit power club. That explains why
Queenslander Brendon De Ruyter has slung
one into his 1983 Toyota Celica to make a
killer small-tyre drag-and-drive weapon.
Brendon was less interested in the Celica
itself than in its potential as a base for what

104

S TR E E T M A CH IN E

he wanted to build. “They’d have to be one of
the ugliest cars out there, but the wheelbase
was right for what I wanted, and the engine
bay had enough room for the K24 and turbo
gear,” he says. “So, I got it from my mate and
turned it into what it is now.”
As the owner of the Auto Perfection
workshop on the Gold Coast, Brendon had
all the tools and know-how to get the entire
driveline swap done. It wasn’t a simple job
by any means, with the Sillycar copping a
rear-end conversion to a nine-inch, as well

as a whole new raised floor to accommodate
both the diff and Powerglide transmission.
The front of the car was also renovated
to accept the north-south-converted K24
Honda mill, which involved changing the
original front panels for ones pinched from
an AE82 Corolla. “The Celica one had all the
garbage for the flip-up headlights there, and I
wanted the room for more important things,”
Brendon explains. We’d argue that it makes
the front far more presentable, too.
Brendon also built the K24, and at Drag

THE CELICA RAN SUCCESSFULLY ALL WEEK AT DRAG CHALLENGE
TO FINISH SECOND IN CLASS AND WITH A BEST OF 8.38@164MPH
The Celica team at DC
2022-’23 (L-R):
Mark Terepai, Brendon,
Cameron Humphrey
and driver Dan Smith

S TR E E T MA CH I N E

105

The G42 turbo dwarfs
the Honda K24 four-pot,
feeding it up to 47psi in
full kill mode to crank
out just over 1200rwhp

LEFT: As part of the Toyota’s
weight-shedding program
post-DC, Brendon fitted some
Billet Specialties Comp 7 wheels,
as shown in this pic from Sydney
Jamboree in May. The chrome
units it was wearing at DC 2022’23 were American Racing AR172s

106

ST R E E T M A CHI NE

THEY’D HAVE TO BE ONE OF THE
UGLIEST CARS OUT THERE, BUT THE
WHEELBASE WAS RIGHT AND THE
ENGINE BAY HAD ENOUGH ROOM FOR
THE K24 AND TURBO GEAR
Challenge 2022-’23 earlier this year, it was
running a standard block and crank, steel
BoostLine rods and Wiseco pistons. The
standard head was CNC ported and runs
a pair of Drag Cartel sticks, and hanging off
the side of it is a G42 turbo. Using a Haltech
Nexus R5 and sucking E85, the combo made
a best of 1012rwhp in that form at a whopping
40psi.
Testing before Drag Challenge yielded a
best of 8.39@162mph, with Brendon’s good
friend Dan Smith from Fab Lab behind the
wheel, and Brendon then had the car shipped
down to Victoria for our five-day torture test.

He had to ditch his preferred 26x8.5 Mickey
Thompson ET Radial Pros for 235-stamped
versions (which use a different compound) to
meet the rules of the Tuff Mounts 235 Blown
class.
Brendon once again had Dan do the
driving at Drag Challenge, and the car ran
successfully all week both on road and track
to finish second in class and with a best of
8.38@164mph. The boys arguably would’ve
topped the class had they not been forced
to hand in an 11-second slip on Day One due
to startline dramas, but second spot and a
healthy car at the end of a torturous week was

still a result most would sell their mother for.
Once the car was back up north in Brendon’s
workshop, he and Dan began changing up
the Celica in the quest for sevens. First, he
turned his attention to weight. “People look
at it and think it’s a light car, but it really isn’t,”
he says. “Even after we got it 200lb lighter,
it still weighs 1250kg with Dan in it.” The
boys’ weight-shedding strategies included
removing sound deadening, adding new
Billet Specialities wheels, and the option of
running the composite bonnet and bootlid
panels that Brendon commissioned from
Kapelke Kitcars.

S TR E E T MA CH I N E

107

EN AFTER
EV
T.
N’
IS
LY
AL
RE
IT
T
BU
R,
CA
T
GH
LI
PEOPLE THINK IT’S A
IN IT
N
DA
H
IT
W
KG
50
12
S
GH
EI
W
L
IL
ST
IT
WE GOT IT 200LB LIGHTER,
The other ingredient in the go-faster recipe
was more power, obviously. While the engine
had been a solid unit, Brendon threw in some
new BME aluminium rods to replace the
old steel ones to help futureproof the K24.
The G42 turbo and everything else was still
good to rock, so the boys turned the thing
up to 1130rwhp and then headed to Sydney
Jamboree in May.
The hard work paid off, as the Celica ran
a comfy trio of 7.8s during testing with Dan
driving, the best being a 7.83@178mph on the
softer ET Radial Pros. The boys were gunning
to run 7.8s during racing later that weekend, but

BRENDON DE RUYTER
1983 TOYOTA CELICA

Class: Tuff Mounts 235 Blown

ENGINE

Brand: Honda K24

108

S TR E E T M AC HIN E

their campaign was cut short when the head
gasket blew out. “We just found the limits of
E85,” Brendon says. “With that much boost, I
was worried it was going to happen, and it did.”
Replacing the head gasket was easy
enough, but to prevent it from happening
again, the Celica now runs methanol in full
race trim. “We’re using FuelTech 520lb meth
injectors and an Elixir electric pump for the
methanol, and with the Nexus we can switch
over to normal pump unleaded with the
flick of a button without turning the car off,”
says Brendon. “It’s like the good old days of
switching between gas and petrol dual fuel,

Induction: KPower Industries
ECU: Haltech Nexus R5
Turbo: G42
Head: Standard, CNC-ported
Camshafts: Drag Cartel 003.2
Conrods: BME aluminium
Pistons: Wiseco
Crank: Standard
Oil pump: Standard
Fuel system: Elixir 1380 pump,
FuelTech injectors

and Haltech reckons we’re the first to do
it,” he says.
Drinking the good stuff, the K24 got turned
up to a whopping 47psi on the dyno at 101
Motorsport, resulting in a peak of 1210rwhp,
spinning to 9500rpm. “We’ve gained 300hp in
the mid-range, which’ll make a big difference
on the track,” says Brendon.
As for the Celica making a return to Drag
Challenge, Brendon’s all for it. “We’ll bring it
back,” he declares. “Dan will be driving again,
and we’ll try and get that seven on those 235s.”
He also hinted that there might be an even spicier
engine in the works – watch this space! 

Cooling: PWR radiator
Exhaust: 4in dump
Ignition: Haltech IGN-1A

15x3.5 (f), 15x10 (r)
Rubber: Nankang 165/80R15 (f),
Mickey Thompson 26x8.50R15(r)

TRANSMISSION

THANKS

Gearbox: Powerglide
Converter: SDE
Diff: 9in, 31-spline axles, 3.9:1 gears

WHEELS & TYRES

Rims: Billet Specialties Comp 7;

Fab Lab; 101 Motorsport;
Soteria Industries; Top Level
Projects; Wheel Nation; Burson Auto
Parts; Auto Parts Supply; Kapelke
Kitcars; Australian Rod & Custom
Components

TUFF MOUNTS
SUPPORT YOU &
THE AUSSIE
CAR SCENE
Support Local and
Support those that
Support You!

Tuff Mounts 2-4 Denis St, St Marys South Australia 08 8374 0011

www.tuffmounts.com.au

I N T H E B UIL D

RICHARD BRADFORD
LJ TORANA

KI WI F

RUIT

“HERE is my current little project, a 1972 Holden LJ Torana I’ve dubbed
PRHBTD. It started life as a standard SL sedan when I got it back in 2017,
and has undergone some major surgery since then. In the rear, I had the
factory fuel tank removed and added a new boot floor, mini-tubs and a
custom-made drop tank. Brakes have been upgraded and converted to
VT 330mm discs up front, and a Hopper Stoppers custom nine-inch discbrake conversion in the rear. It runs an LS1 and four-speed auto from a
2004 Monaro, which is a pretty basic set-up for now, but I have individual
throttlebodies, a camshaft and a stall converter all ready to go in. The
interior includes new Auto Meter gauges in an XU-1 dash cluster. I’m going
through the stages to get the car road-legal here in New Zealand, and am
busting at the seams to get behind the wheel and hit some roads.”

110

S TR E E T M ACH I NE

GOT a sweet ride that’s
currently in the build? Send
photos of it along with some
details to: In The Build, Street
Machine, Unit 9/3-5 Gilda Court,
Mulgrave, Vic 3170, or email
inthebuild@wheelsmedia.com.au.
Please note: Send us copies of
your prints as we are unable to
return photos.

LUKE-ING GOOD!
LUKE GERDES
H T H O L DE N W A G O N

n that I’ve
lden HT Kingswood wago
Ho
70
19
my
is
s
thi
d
an
have only
“I’M 15 years old,
g shell back in 2016 and
lin
rol
a
as
it
ht
ug
bo
We
Holden
built with my dad.
e’s running a standard 173
Sh
.
ild
bu
ar
-ye
six
a
er
just finished it aft
drive it on my P-plates
. It’s still stock, so I can
six backed by a Trimatic
that doesn’t mean it’s all
Don’t be fooled, though;
on the Billet
without being hassled.
a 26x12.00R15 rear tyre
fit
to
d
be
tub
nimi
en
nut-andstandard! It has be
diff. This has been a full
h
nc
e-i
nin
a
s
run
d
an
after work
Specialties wheels,
urs spent out in the shed
ho
ny
ma
en
be
ve
ha
re
bolt resto, and the
uldn’t be happier with
r to where it is today. I co
ca
s
thi
t
ge
who have
to
l
oo
sch
d
an
family and all the people
my
nk
tha
to
e
lik
I’d
t.
how it has come ou
s until I’ll be able to drive
ly a couple more month
On
y.
wa
the
ng
alo
d
lpe
he
d I can’t wait!”
her out on the street, an

’BIRD IS THE W

DANIELLE WO
OD
1 963 FORD
T H U N DE R B
I
“

ORD

RD

THIS is my 19
6
auto electrica 3 Ford Thunderbird pro
je
l apprentice
, and I origin ct. I’m currently an
’Bird to pract
ally purchase
ise my trade
d the
on. So far I h
in the origin
ave
al p
the States. T ink, which I bought from a new interior for it
he
S
freshen-up a original 390ci FE big-blo MS Auto Fabrics in
nd been pain
ck V8 has ha
ted in metall
d a quick
engineering
ic g
ap
low. The pla proval for the airbags to old, and I have
n is to build
it into a 60s- get her to sit nice and
original fact
sty
ory shade of
pink, with so le mild custom in the
patterns on
me flake and
the roof to se
candy
t it off nicely
.”

ST RE E T MAC H I NE

111

IN TH E B U IL D

ENRICO BIANCHINI
VB COMMODORE

SEE YOU AT
SUMMERNA
TS

“I AM 16 years old and in my
first year of my panel-beating
apprenticeship. I
became interested in cars fro
m a very young age, as my wh
ole
family are car
fanatics. I got my first job at
14 and saved up my money, and
in
just under 12
months, I purchased my first
car, this 1979 VB Commodor
e. The car didn’t start
and needed a lot of work don
e to it, so I started saving har
d, and each fortnight
I would put something toward
s the car. So far I have stripp
ed it on my own, and
then paid to have it sand-blas
ted and undercoated/primed.
I am currently in
the process of tubbing it mysel
f. My goal is to have a Top 60
elite car that can
get unveiled at Summernats.
I believe that with my hard wo
rk,
determination
and newly acquired skills, I can
achieve this goal some day.”

MATTHEW KNOWLES ESMAN
AT
W H H O L DE N S T
Wagga
r I bought from the

ca
WH Statesman, a
s currently
“HERE’S my 2002
a-spec machine. It’
dp
an
gr
ll
fu
a
as
cil
un
e LS1 with ITBs,
Wagga Shire Co
ith a full build on th
w
s,
ge
an
ch
g
bi
e
s in the rear end.
undergoing som
nd it and 3.7:1 gear
hi
be
on
si
is
m
ns
nel, has been
a Paul Rogers tra
ing the paint and pa
ud
cl
in
t,
ou
d
an
is one!”
Everything inside
balls deep with th
g
in
go
re
e’
w
;
ed
replaced or restor

STATESMAN-LIKE BEHAVIOUR

112

S TR E E T M AC H IN E

FIRST TIMER
JAYDEN DEIGHTON
WB HOLDEN UTE

“JUST before COVID kicked off
,
I bought this 1984 WB ute for
cheap. It was originally going
to be put away, but once I got
it home, I was inspired. I did
a
quick rebuild so I could use it,
with the goal of rebuilding it
to a
better standard later on. In late
2022, I started the proper reb
uild,
and I had always wanted a blu
e
202 with a built red head and
triple carbs. With that in min
d, I
salvaged a 10-bolt Salisbury
diff
from my dad’s WB Tonner aft
er
it was written-off in an accide
nt.
I rebuilt the diff and also tracke
d
down an M22 gearbox. Then
I
started on the body, learning
how to weld on my first big bui
ld;
it was definitely daunting, but
it had to be done. I’m looking
forward to painting it; the col
our
will be Flamenco Red, which
is its
original shade.”

LEIGH WALKER
ULTIMA GTR

ERC
P
U
S
A
R
R
BA

AR

GTR
“THIS is my 2000 Ultima
y building
ntl
supercar that I’m curre
with a
ine
ch
into a mid-engined ma
gine!
en
rra
Ba
good old Aussie Ford
kind.
its
of
t
This is (I believe) the firs
nson
Joh
k
Dic
by
It was originally built
ased
rch
pu
I
d
Racing as a track car, an
it
ve
dro
it,
it with damage. I fixed
n decided
around for a bit and the
it into the
to pull it down and turn
rra engine
Ba
monster it is now. The
with goals
,
will have an 88/88 turbo
e is
gin
en
of around 1500hp. The
with a
,
rds
placed in the car backwa
e the
ntr
ce
10-degree angle to help
stom
cu
a
s
weight distribution. It ha
fer
ns
tra
61
CNC-machined billet 60
ars
ge
t
case with four straight-cu
id-cased
to allow a two-speed Re
ngside the
Powerglide, mounted alo
fabricated
engine facing back to the
with a
f
live-axle sheet-metal dif
linkage.
four-link and billet Watt’s
’round
all
It runs AP Racing brakes
a new
s
ha
under 15x15 wheels, and
on.
cti
se
chrome-moly rear chassis
uld
mo s to
I’m currently taking new
n to make
produce the body in carbo
get it in the
it even lighter. I hope to
d also win
Top 10 at Summernats an
g awards.”
some MotorEx engineerin

S T RE E T M A C HI N E

113

I RO N M AI DE N
STORY CARLY DALE

PHOTOS TROY BARKER

ZSA ZSA BIACSI

> BAROSSA VALLEY, SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Z

SA Zsa Biacsi has been a keen
revhead since she was a young lass,
and is a willing wrench-turner on her
stable of rides. There’s too many
of them to feature here, so we focused on
the hot rod she can be found piloting most
weekends at car events across SA – her
chopped and channelled ’26 Model T coupe
dubbed FIDDY.
How’d you get into hot rods?
Growing up, my brother and I were always
going to the drags and Rowley Park
Speedway. Then I built a 302ci Clevelandpowered ’29 Dodge roadster when I was
in my 20s. That took me about two years to
build, with help from my brother. That was
in the early 80s, and I sold the Dodge a few
years later. I still see it around to this day,
but the new owner won’t sell it back, as he
reckons it’s the best hot rod he’s ever had!
And you’ve had a few other cars since?
After going to the drags and seeing Mustangs
out there, I fell in love with them. I’ve now
owned three Mustangs and still own the
’67 coupe I bought 27 years ago. I’ve also
had a few hot rods and currently own a fully
fendered ’32 Ford three-window coupe, and
my ’26 Model T coupe, which I bought around
2019.
How’d you come across your T?
I’m always looking at cars for sale, and this
came up in WA, so a mate and I flew over
for a look. There were a couple of things that

114

S T RE E T MAC HI N E

Girls — wanna be
famous? Send pics, car
details and contact details
to: Iron Maiden, Street
Machine, Unit 9/3-5 Gilda
Court, Mulgrave, Vic 3170.
Or email: streetmachine@
wheelsmedia.com.au.

THE FINNED CORVETTE
ROCKER COVERS, EDDIE
MEYER FUEL BLOCK AND
RAMS-HORN HEADERS GIVE IT
A TRADITIONAL HOT ROD LOOK

S T RE E T M A C HI N E

115

needed doing, but overall I liked the T, so I bought
it and had it shipped back to Adelaide.
Have you done much to it?
A few things for registration purposes, and the
engine had a knock, so I had Joe Schirripa rebuild
the 283ci Chevy. It’s now stroked to 316ci, and
runs Speed Pro pistons and a Crane H288 cam,
with twin Edelbrock four-barrel carbs on top. The
finned Corvette rocker covers, along with the
Eddie Meyer fuel block, rams-horn headers and
old-school-looking PowerGEN alternator, give it a
traditional hot rod look.
Sounds like it’s got some poke!
Yeah, I don’t have anything that’s stock! I think
it’s from always going to the drags; I need to have
a bit of grunt. My ’32 five-window coupe has a
600hp 383ci – that’s a toughie. I know how to
drive it without getting in trouble, but I’m keen on
making it handle even better.
How did your FIDDY Model T get its name?
That’s from the previous owner, Dave Wright, who
owns the Fiddy Customs workshop in WA. I like
the name and the car’s heritage, so I kept it.
What’s next?
I’m still looking at cars! I’m keen on a highboy hot
rod, and I recently looked at a couple for sale. I
might even sell my Mustang to buy one. But I’m
not interested in selling either of my hot rods. And
as for FIDDY, I’ll leave that one as is – it’s a bit
iconic. 

116

S TR E E T M A CH I N E

I DON’T HAVE ANYTHING THAT’S STOCK! I
THINK IT’S FROM ALWAYS GOING TO THE
DRAGS; I NEED TO HAVE A BIT OF GRUNT

ST R E E T M A CH I N E

117

SLE E P E R S
STORY KIAN HEAGNEY

PHOTOS STEVE KELLY

CROSS POLLINATION

> CHRIS ETHELL’S VL COMMODORE MAKES 1000RWHP WITH A JAPANESE INLINE SIX, BUT THERE’S NO
RB TO BE SEEN

T

HE BARRA versus LS rivalry has been
a mainstay of Australia’s modified car
scene for close to two decades, but
in the Japanese tuner scene, a much
longer battle has been raging, with Nissan’s RB
and the Toyota JZ vying for force-fed straightsix supremacy. Chris Ethell’s VL Commodore
kicks that rivalry up a notch, taking one of the
most revered RB-powered cars of all time and
slapping 1000rwhp worth of 2JZ under the
bonnet.
“I’d say most people aren’t that angry about
it, but I have had some purists get upset at me,”

118

S TR EE T M AC H IN E

Chris says. “I will admit it was on the cards to
upset people with the JZ.”
If it’s any consolation to the RB faithful, Chris
did initially have intentions of putting a hot
RB25 turbo and manual into the VL. “I was
going to replicate another VL I previously had
with an RB20 that was also very unassuming,
but after I bought this new VL, I decided I’d
rather have the car remain an auto,” he says.
“So, the RB stuff went into an S14, and then
Scott Hoffman talked me into a JZ for the VL.”
A basic, non-turbo 2JZ-GE engine was duly
sourced and turned into a 920rwhp weapon

on the cheap, thanks to head studs, GTE head
gasket and oil pump, HKS 280 cams, a Link
ECU and the same GTX42 turbo it has now.
“We knew it was a stock-bottom-end combo
that’d work, but then we got a bad batch of
fuel at Powercruise and ended up bending a
rod after I ignored the ECU safety cuts,” Chris
laughs.
Replacing the bent rod called for a set of
Spool I-beams, along with some CP pistons
to match. The crank is still standard, and the
GE head and HKS sticks were carried over.
The hot side uses a 6boost manifold and the

Got a car that looks
mild, but goes wild?
Send pics, car details and
contact details to: Sleepers,
Street Machine, Unit 9/3-5 Gilda
Court, Mulgrave, Vic 3170.
Or email: streetmachine@
wheelsmedia.com.au.

ENGINE BAY: Chris
kept any Toyota
markings off the JZ
to keep people who
are none the wiser
guessing, but the
turbo on the opposite
side is a dead
giveaway to any RB
or VL diehard

BELOW: Chris’s mate Jake
had a bunch of very loosely
translated warning labels
printed up, and Chris felt
it was an appropriately
tongue-in-cheek OEM-esque
sticker for the top of the JZ

S TR E E T MAC H I NE

119

PAINT: A quick blowover of the VL’s original
colours turned into a
mini-resto, with Chris’s
mates Jake Beazley and
Todd Wilson tearing
the whole car apart and
turning it around for a
full respray in just two
weeks

I’D SAY MOST PEOPLE AREN’T THAT ANGRY ABOUT IT,
BUT I HAVE HAD SOME PURISTS GET UPSET AT ME
GTX42 turbo, with the boost crammed through
a Plazmaman intake and throttlebody. With E85
and singing to around 8000rpm, the 2J made
a best of 1025rwhp at 36psi. “That’s the turbo
maxxed out, but I don’t think the minister of
affairs will approve the bill for another one,”
laughs Chris.
The rest of the driveline comprises a
transbraked Powerglide ’box and (believe it or
not) the original Borgy rear end. “It has billet
axles and all that, but I’m still too scared to use
the transbrake,” Chris says.

TOP TRIO

THIS VL is Chris’s third car to
appear in our Sleepers section, the
first being his 9sec 1UZ-swapped
KE20 Corolla (December 2015),
and the other his properly cool
1JZ-swapped Mitsubishi L300
tradie van (September 2018).
He admits he’s a real sucker for
sleepers, so it’s no surprise the VL
has been built in the same vein.

120

S TR E E T M ACH IN E

The car has run a best of 9.5@145mph, making
750rwhp on a low boost setting of 23psi, which
is about all the 235s will take. “This car was a
nice original example when I got it, so I don’t
want to cut it up to put tubs and a fancy rear end
in it,” says Chris. Same goes for a rollcage, so
Chris is pretty limited with how quick he can go
at the strip, but he’s okay with that.
After all, Chris built the VL more as a tough
streeter than a drag machine, and if you’re local
to the Bundaberg region of Queensland, odds
are you’ve seen it prowling the streets. “I take it

out at least once a weekend,” Chris says. “It’s a
great cruiser that even my wife can drive, which
is more what I built it for. It’s also fully engineered
for every mod it has, so it’s a perfect streeter.”
As for future plans for the VL, Chris just wants
to enjoy it as-is. “It was never meant to go this
far, so I won’t be spending more money on it,” he
says. He did reveal that the the VR Commodore
currently sitting in his paddock is slowly winning
him over for a cheeky LS1 turbo combo, so the
VL may not be the last sleeper we see Chris roll
out of his stable! 

CHRIS ETHELL
1986 HOLDEN
COMMODORE VL
EXECUTIVE
Paint: White Gold

ENGINE

Brand: Toyota 2JZ-GE
Induction: Plazmaman
ECU: Link G4
Turbo: Garrett
GTX42/94
Head: Standard GE
Camshafts: HKS 280
Conrods: Spool I-beam
Pistons: CP forged
Crank: Standard
Oil pump: GTE
Fuel system: Surge
tank, 2200cc injectors
Cooling: Copper
radiator, SPAL fan
Exhaust: 6boost
manifold, 3.5in system
Ignition: R35 coil packs

SUSPENSION &
BRAKES

Front: King Springs FE2
springs, Koni adjustable
shocks
Rear: King Springs FE2
springs, Koni adjustable
shocks
Brakes: VT discs (f), VL
Turbo discs (r)
Master cylinder: VT
booster, AU Falcon
reservoir

WHEELS & TYRES

Rims: Steel interceptor;
15x6 (f), 15x7 (r)
Rubber: Nankang
205/65R15 (f), Mickey
Thompson 235/60R15
(r)

THANKS

Scott Hoffman at
Cleveland Dyno/Nugget
Garage; Peter Kiprios
TRANSMISSION
at Kiprios Performance;
Gearbox: Kiprios
Kristian Goleby at
Performance Powerglide Goleby’s Parts; Jake
Converter: TCE
Beazley and Todd
5000rpm
Wilson for the paint and
Diff: BorgWarner,
bodywork; Dave Spann
31-spline axles, Harrop
at 180 Fab; my fantastic
Truetrac, 3.45:1 gears
wife Tarsha
INTERIOR: The VL still
retains all the original
interior in primo
nick. The only real
giveaway to the major
grunt up front is the
B&M shifter hidden
within the factory
centre console, which
also has a transbrake
button for company

S TR E E T MA C HI NE

121

D I RT Y S T U FF
WILLIAM PORKER

O

F ALL the different makes and
models of carburettors I have
worked on – from the really crude
all-brass veteran car stuff, through
SUs and Rochesters, to Zeniths and Holleys
– my-all time favourites would have to be the
Italian Webers. Not that they are made there
anymore, for I hear that they are manufactured
in Spain these days.
Weber made downdraught and sidedraught
carbs, specialising in stuff for fast road cars and
exotic racing stuff like Ferraris, Lamborghinis
and Maseratis, ranging from single throats
to duals and even triples for the special V12
engines. They came in really small duals for the
sports version of the Fiat 500, as well as the
huge, double-throat 58 DCO sidedraughts that
were found mainly on F1 cars, although one
model of Corvette featured four of these on a
special aluminium cross-over manifold, which
sure was impressive to look at!
A fair few years ago, I was involved in reviving a
1955 Formula One Ferrari owned by the Gilltrap
Auto Museum on the Gold Coast. It had been
bought when nobody wanted old race cars and
had sat on display without being started for 14
years. I approached George Gilltrap to ask if
we could fire up the old car to run demo laps at
an Australian Grand Prix meeting at the Surfers
Paradise International circuit, and I would write
up the story for Wheels magazine. George said
he would love to hear it going and I could work

on it for as long as it took.
This 555 Ferrari was raced on the European
GP circuits throughout 1955 but was too heavy
and slow to match the Mercedes straight-eight
cars, although its 2.5-litre four-cylinder mill made
270hp. It was front-engined, with a five-speed
transaxle almost underneath the pilot’s seat,
and sported 16-inch Borrani wire wheels and
huge alloy drum brakes. Given a long enough
straight, the car’s top speed was almost 300
clicks, and the twin-cam alloy engine breathed
through two of these aforementioned 58mm
DCO Webers, sucking alcohol fuel.
My wife Jan and I worked on the car for almost
a week and discovered that much of it had
seized up. When we pulled the flat sump plate
off, mainly to check if the original castor-based
oil was now a congealed lump, we found broken
lock wire. Then we got Dunlop to check whether
the old racing tyres were safe, and BP donated
fuel and enough oil for the event. The rear drysump oil tank held 20 litres, the three fuel tanks
took heaps, and the 14:1-comp engine was
originally fired up on raw benzol fuel. Racing fuel
was to be a mix of methanol, avgas and benzol,
with 2 per cent of castor oil added to lubricate
the two mechanical fuel pumps.
Once we’d finished working on it, we took
the car to the quiet dead-end street beside the
museum, which was long enough to pump up
fuel and oil pressure. I dropped the clutch and
the twin magnetos and eight sparkplugs fired

the engine almost immediately, the big singlepipe exhaust making wonderful booming
echoes to the amazement of a busload of
tourists who had gathered to watch.
Race day came at Surfers, and with the alloy
body now fitted, we were told that my mate Trevor
could drive a few laps in the Ferrari, in company
with Doug Partington in his MG Special. Then
triple AGP winner Doug Whiteford would jump
in to show us how the car could really go. And
that it did, on old tyres and rusty brakes, running
lap after really fast lap to the cheers of the crowd.
Later, we were invited to a special Ferrari
owners’ day at that same circuit to show off the
car and put in a handful of quick laps. I put in my
usual 1min 27sec circuits, and although most
of the Ferrari owners tried very hard, only one
driver, who had spent a lot of money on go-faster
bits for his engine, beat the time I had set!
Those huge Webers on the engine only let me
down once. We were booked to run the car for
a photoshoot at the Surfers circuit, and it
wouldn’t start. I checked magnetos and plugs,
looked for mud wasps up the exhaust pipe
and kicked the tyres several times. Finally, I
lifted the lid off one of the Webers and found
a severe shortage of that essential stuff, fuel.
We had plenty of fuel pressure, so I traced that
back to where the fuel line fed the float bowls.
Underneath the two big brass nuts were two
small mesh-tube filters, totally blocked with
white, dried-up methanol! 

THE FERRARI’S TOP SPEED WAS ALMOST
300 CLICKS, AND THE ENGINE BREATHED
THROUGH TWO 58MM DCO WEBERS

122

ST R E E T M ACH I N E

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PHOTOS MATT EVERINGHAM & CHRIS THOROGOOD

OLD LION, NEW TRICKS
> LEE MURRAY’S PROCHARGED HOLDEN V8-POWERED TORANA IS REALLY SINGING THANKS TO EFI

T

HE WEPN number plate is spot-on;
Lee Murray’s LJ Torana is one badarse ride. We featured it in Street
Machine in October 2015, with its
Holden V8 mill sporting an F1 ProCharger

The car retains the 355-cube lion from
2015; hard to believe that after 10 years
of Powercruise and drag-race beatings,
the stroked 308, built by Zoran at Zox
Performance in Brisbane, remains

roller-cam block with four-bolt main caps,
half grout-filled. A Scat billet crank with
a big-block Chevy snout swings Callies
Compstar conrods and JE pistons. Heads
are Yella Terra –9 items, with the valves

KON AND LEE BUMPED THE BOOST UP TO 20PSI, AND THE TORANA
BELTED OUT 870HP AT THE HUBS ON E85 AND 970HP ON METHANOL
and blow-through carby set-up. Since
then, Lee has been busy revamping the
combo, to the point that the Torry now runs
mid-eights over the quarter!

124

S TR E E T M AC H I NE

untouched and still sings like a canary. In
the days before billet Holden V8 blocks,
the 355-cuber was really the best you
could build at the time, based around a VT

operated by a solid-roller camshaft.
Zoran employed plenty of tricks to keep
the plastic healthy, including an external
coolant crossover to the rear of the heads,

ST RE E T MAC HI NE

125

126

ST RE E T MACH I N E

a heavily modified oiling system, bronzed
lifter bores, diamond-coated piston pins,
a Newby crank support timing case, –12
breathers located in the valley, and the
disused fuel pump port on the timing cover.
More recently, Lee decided to pull the
pin on carby life and go EFI. “I got lucky
and found a Shaun’s Custom Alloy billet
inlet manifold to suit a Holden motor,” he
says. “Then I jumped on the phone to Kon
Michaloudakis at Wollongong Automotive
Services, and he gave me a list of everything
I needed.

carby set-up on E85, the best the engine
made was 795hp on 15psi boost and E85.
With the new EFI combo, Kon and Lee
decided to bump the boost up to 20psi,
and it belted out 870hp at the hubs on E85
and 970hp on methanol.
The next big gain came when Lee
fabricated a cold-air intake pipe via the
front scuttle area. At the recent Holden
Nationals in Heathcote, Lee ran without
the intake during testing and netted a
9.1@148mph, but come race day, the
intake was reinstated and the car went

and a seven-gallon in-tank brushless fuel
pump can make to a car. Oh, and let’s not
forget some great tuning by Kon.
“I knew the car had an 8.90 in it, so an
8.54 is just a bonus,” Lee says. “Will I turn it
up? No, it’s happy the way it is. I don’t want
to wreck it, but I figure it can run an 8.40
with some suspension upgrades.
“It’s taken me a few years, that’s for sure,”
Lee concludes. “The biggest challenge
has certainly been waiting for people to
get stuff done. Luckily, it was worth the
wait.” He ain’t kidding! 

I DON’T WANT TO WRECK IT, BUT I FIGURE IT CAN
RUN AN 8.40 WITH SOME SUSPENSION UPGRADES
“I pulled the engine from the car and sent
it to Owen’s Paint & Panel Repairs on the
Central Coast for what was supposed to
be an engine bay repaint, but it turned into
a full car respray. [I also] lashed out with a
new set of headers.”
Once the car was back together, it went
to Kon for a rewire, and eventually made it
to the hub dyno. With the old blow-through

8.80@158mph – pretty stout on a 275
radial! The intake paid further dividends
when the car ran 8.54@161mph at Grudge
Kings in Sydney.
That’s pretty wild for a Holden motor with
Cometic head gaskets and stock-sized
head studs. It’s amazing the difference a
set of smart coils, a Holley Dominator EFI
system with an ICE dual-sync distributor,

RIGHT: Lee and son Jai at
the 2023 Holden Nationals
at Heathcote Park Raceway,
where the LJ ran a best of
8.8@158mph. The car went
even better at Grudge Kings,
netting an 8.54@161mph

ST RE E T MA C HI N E

127

I N GEA R

To have your product featured here, call Joseph Lenthall on (02) 8114 9421
or email joseph.lenthall@wheelsmedia.com.au.

01

01

128

ST R E E T M ACH I N E

UNDER PRESSURE

WHETHER you’re at the drags or deep in
the scrub in a 4x4, the ability to adjust
tyre pressures can make all the difference.
Lugging around big compressors is a pain in
the balls, so Ryobi has come up with the 18V
ONE+ Digital Pressure Inflator as a compact
solution. No bigger than a cordless drill,
it uses Ryobi’s normal 18V rechargeable

batteries, so you can just use your existing
gear. The digital gauge on the back gives an
accurate pressure reading in real time, and
the lock-on fitting for valves means you won’t
have to worry about air leaks. For just $99,
this inflator is a steal, and you can grab one
now from your local Bunnings, by visiting
ryobi.com.au, or scanning the QR code.

02

02 NOW YOU’RE TORQUING!

THERE’S nothing worse than a dud torque converter sapping
away your power. A higher-stall torque converter enables you to
launch the car in a higher rev band where more power and torque
are available, and RTS now offers a cool new range of Stalker and
Bandit high-stall converters. Cool features include new stator
caps, bearings, springs and rollers. They’re also pressure-tested
to ensure all the welds are top-notch and up to the task, and
assembled by the best in the USA. To find a converter that suits
your needs, just head to rts.com.au or scan the QR code.

03 BETTER OFF RED

BILLET Specialties has been churning out some ripping
pro street-style race wheels lately, and the company’s new
Redline rim is suitable for both street and strip duties. The
Redline wheel features forged centres, one-piece spun
barrels to save weight, and machined serrations at the
bead to improve tyre-to-rim grip and reduce tyre slip on
those heavy launches you’ll be doing. They’re available
to order now from Speed Pro by calling (03) 9794 5177,
visiting speedpro.com.au, or scanning the QR code.

03

S TR E E T MA CH I N E

129

I N GEA R

04

06

07

05
04 CLEARED FOR TAKE-OFF

06 REST EASY

05 HARNESS THE POWER

07 AIR APPARENT

GOT an XA-XF Falcon with a Barra conversion but having
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conversion. For $295, you’ll get the new bar, D-link bushes
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IF YOU’RE restoring an HK-HG Holden and you’re either
missing the wiring or want to replace the old crusty stuff, the
gang at Bluewire Automotive have you covered with their
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for such a convenient product, and you can order one now at
bluewireautomotive.com.

130

S TR E E T M ACHI N E

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or addition to your early Commodore. They’re also available as individual parts
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Roush 5.0L V8 Cold-Air Intake Kit should suit nicely, and it’s now available to
purchase through local mob Mustang Motorsport. The kit is a complete plug-andplay deal and doesn’t require a re-tune. Cool stuff includes a dry filter, a clear
airbox lid and all the required mounting hardware. Given it replaces the factory
airbox, it uses all the original mounts for a seamless installation. You also get
the benefit of more induction noise and response, so it’s a win-win in our books.
Retail is $695, and you can order one now at mustangmotorsport.com.au.

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R EA D E R S R O C K ET S

SEND photos of your car and a few details of what went into the build to Readers’ Rockets, Street Machine, Unit 9/3-5 Gilda Court, Mulgrave, Vic 3170
or email readerscars@wheelsmedia.com.au. Please note: Send us copies of prints as we are unable to return your photos.

DYLAN MATWIJOW
VX COMMODORE SS
“HERE’S possibly Australia’s cleanest VX SS!
Before builder’s fever hit the car, it was a standard,
plain, untouched one-owner vehicle with under
80,000km on the clock. It wasn’t long before me
pouring money into it became a familiar sensation.
It’s only running a baby cam and freshened LS1
heads (with all the supporting mods as well), but
the Harrop 2300 supercharger sure woke this
beast up, as it makes just shy of 500hp at the
wheels. From frying the tyres to Nan driving it
to the shops, it offers the best of both worlds. It
tucks 10in-wide Lenso D-1R wheels thanks to the
Air Ride suspension, and a full exhaust system
including ceramic-coated extractors gives this
car the perfect note at all times. With the interior
being in immaculate condition, it had to be kept.
I hydrodipped the dash fascia trims, custommoulded the airbag gauge and added some rear
cup holders to set it off while still keeping a sleek
appeal. The boot again had to be kept practical and
clean, hiding the airbag set-up along with a hidden
storage compartment for all the cleaning gear. It
also features a genuine Monaro bonnet, Calais
rear garnish, custom drop tank cover and more!”
Photos: Ben Hosking

132

S TR E E T M A CH I N E

S TR E E T M AC HI N E

133

LINDA RENNIE
FORD CORTINA
“OVER eight years, my husband Dave lovingly restored my Mk1
Cortina. The car was made a convertible by a previous owner,
and it was ready for the car graveyard. She has had major
structural work to strengthen her, which includes a rollcage and
a complete box frame. We purchased a donor car for the engine,
which is a 4.6-litre Range Rover V8. She has a five-speed
automatic gearbox with overdrive, and HiSpec disc brakes all

134

ST R E E T M A C HI N E

’round. We had Porsche seats shipped from Scotland, and
retrimmed the interior ourselves, which included leather to match
the seats. The paintwork is candy purple, and all the bodywork
was completed by my husband. Wheel-wise, instead of going
for the norm, which would have been Minilites, we decided to
have a set of rims custom-made for the car. She also has electric
power steering, which helps make it an amazing ride.”

TROY BILLINGTON
LJ TORANA
“THIS is my 1973 LJ Torana, which is a replica of the great Peter
Brock’s 1972 Bathurst-winning car. I have owned it for almost
two years and love driving it. I had the pleasure of taking it around
the Bathurst track last October for the 50th anniversary of the
Great Race; it was an awesome event organised by Muscle
Car Events Australia. There were 72 LC and LJ Toranas at the
track that day, and 12 of those cars had just completed a lap
around Australia in the ’Round the Block for Brock rally. Such an
awesome achievement celebrating a great Australian icon.”

TROY HEARD
FORD FAIRLANE
“THIS is my 1963 Ford Compact Fairlane, with a 434ci Clevo up
front that is good for 680hp through a Powerglide transmission. It’s
mini-tubbed and runs Calvert suspension.”

S TR E E T MAC HI NE

135

CHRISTIAN HANSCOMBE
BF FALCON
“MY BF Falcon wagon packs a built turbo Barra that’s
fed 22psi. Behind that is a T56 manual and M86 diff.
It makes 383hp at the wheels, with 737lb-ft of torque,
and is engineered and mod-plated as my daily driver.”

THE CALAIS KIDS
MERCEDES
W114
“HERE’S my Mercedes. It used
to race back in the day, but had
been stored away for a decade or
so. I purchased it and am starting
to rebuild it to finally bring it back
to life. In terms of running gear,
it had a 454ci BBC and ’Glide
in its early days, but I have opted
to go down the nice and efficient
turbo LS and Powerglide path. It
will be getting a different colour,
but will keep its original name,
The Bahnstorma. You can find
more about it on The Calais Kids
YouTube channel.”

136

ST RE E T M A C H IN E

SHAUN RICHARDSON
1956 BUICK SPECIAL
“THIS is my wife Debbie’s fully restored
1956 Buick Special that runs a factory
322 nailhead and Dynaflow auto.”

PAUL BERRYMAN
HQ ONE TONNER
“MY 1972 HQ One Tonner runs a 355 stroker and a fully manualised
TH400 trans with a 4500rpm stall. The rear end has a nine-inch diff
with 31-spline billet axles and 4.33:1 full spool. I’ve had the Tonner
for about three years now, and I still have some work to do on it.”

ST R E E T MA C H I NE

137

GASOLINE ALLEY
Importer of High Performance Auto Parts
For Over 20 Years
Special Orders & Custom Cams
Airfreighted Weekly

SRC POSITIONS
VACANT
• Mechanic/Assembler •
• Body and Paint
Technician •
Southern Rod & Custom located in
Shepparton Victoria is looking to hire a fulltime experienced Mechanic/Assembler as well
as a Body and Paint Technician. Both positions
will require trades persons that are used to
working to a very high level of detail.

We deal direct with the US manufacturers
and can offer service, backup and support
that other resellers cannot.

Ph 08 8363 5566

sales@autopd.com.au
www.autopd.com.au

If you are interested in applying for any of
these positions, please forward your resume
as well as your references along with a short
covering letter to:
michael@southernrodcustom.com
15-17 Provincial Crescent,
Shepparton VIC 3630

YOUR ENGINE DRESS UP
& BILLET SPECIALIST

EARL’S
PERFORMANCE
HAS MOVED
New Address:
VB–VS, VT-VZ & TORANA
FRONT END DOLLY

LOWEFABRICATIONS.COM.AU

Level 1/51
Sammut Street
Smithfield
NSW, 2164
Ph (02) 9748 6011
www.earls.com.au

CALL US FOR YOUR NEXT BUILD!
Phone: 0417 768 143
5/127 LAHRS ROAD, ORMEAU

atomickustomfab

GASOLINE ALLEY

HQ-WB Torana

Commodore Tubular
X-Members

Superior
Transmissions

FG Falcons
V8 & Turbo

STREET & STRIP TRANSMISSIONS SPECIALIST

rglide
OEM Powe

Chrysler
TUFF MOUNTS

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850HP
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• Transmission Refresh Service •
• Powerglide Aftermarket Cases •
• High Capacity Powerglide Clutch Drums •
• Hi Stall Converters •

LS Conversion Mounts

WARRANTY All Superior Transmissions carry a 90-day
warranty free from defects in materials and workmanship

Contact us for Pricing & Transmission Specification
3 Ericksen Street, Springvale, VIC 3171
0452 317 864
franktomisich@bigpond.com

P: 08 8374 0011
www.musclegarage.com.au

L OL

Send your favourite funnies to: LOL, Street Machine, Unit 9/3-5 Gilda Court,
Mulgrave, Vic 3170, or email them to: streetmachine@wheelsmedia.com.au.

> GAG OF THE MONTH
LAW-IMBIBING CITIZEN

A BARTENDER asks the customer
sitting at the bar, “What’ll you have?”
“A scotch, please,” the man replies.
The bartender hands him the drink and
says, “That’ll be 10 dollars.”
“What are you talking about?” the man
says. “I don’t owe you anything for this.”
A lawyer sitting nearby overhears the
conversation and says to the bartender,
“You know, he’s got you there. In the
original offer, which constitutes a binding
contract upon acceptance, there was no
stipulation of remuneration.”
The bartender is not impressed, but
says to the man, “Okay, you beat me for
a drink. But don’t ever let me catch you
in here again.”
The next day, this same bloke walks
into the bar. “What the heck are you
doing in here?” the bartender demands.
“I can’t believe you’ve got the audacity
to come back!”
The man replies, “What are you talking
about? I’ve never been in this place in
my life!”
“Oh, I’m very sorry, sir,” the bartender
replies, “but this is uncanny. You must
have a double.”
To which the guy replies, “Thanks very
much – make it a scotch.”
Al Kahole, email

DUCKING HELL

TWO women die and go to heaven, only to
find it full of ducks. St Peter appears and says,
“Hello! Welcome to heaven. There’s only one
real rule here, and it’s because God really
loves ducks: do not EVER step on a duck.”
The women, slightly confused, agree to the
terms – what other choice is there? – and
head off to explore heaven.
Well, barely a day goes by before one of the
women treads on a duck. St Peter appears
in an instant and immediately chains her to
a disgusting, smelly, ugly beast of a man. St
Peter is gone almost as soon as he appeared.
The second woman is now more cautious
than ever, and weeks go by without incident.
Then, one day, St Peter suddenly appears
and wordlessly chains her to a handsome,
muscly man with a chiselled jawline and
wondrous eyes. Again, St Peter disappears
without explanation.
“Oh wow,” the woman says. “I wonder what

140

S TR E E T M A CH IN E

> FUNNY FOTO

Hey, if you’re going to fall, give it some pizzazz!

I’ve done to deserve this!”
“I don’t know about you, love,” the handsome
man says, “but I trod on a duck.”
Pearl E Gaites, email

CARD HOUND

THERE’S a travelling salesman who loves to
play poker. Every town he visits, he manages to
find a game.
One night he’s led to the back of a saloon,
and seated among the locals is a German
Shepherd. The salesman is surprised to see
a dog at a poker table, but the dog appears to
be very well behaved, so the man sits down to
play.
Well, after a couple of hours, the salesman
and the dog are in a showdown. The salesman
raises, the dog raises back, the salesman
raises again, and the dog calls.
The salesman shows his hand: three queens.
The dog turns over his hand: a flush. The
salesman is so impressed with the dog, he
isn’t even mad that he lost the hand.
“You know,” he says to the one of the locals,
“not only can that dog play, but he’s really
pretty good.”
“I guess he plays okay,” says the local, “but
we usually beat him.”
“Is that right?” says the salesman.
“Yeah,” says the local. “Whenever he has a
good hand, he wags his tail.”
E Zagoodboi, email

SHORT STUFF

MY PASSWORD needed to be eight
characters. So I used, “Snow White and the
seven dwarves.”
I THREW a ball for my dog the other day. A
little over the top, maybe, but he looked great
in a tuxedo.
JUST got fired from my job as a set designer.
I left without making a scene.
WHY do Peruvian owls always hunt in pairs?
Because they’re Inca hoots.
I CALLED the tinnitus hotline yesterday, but it
just kept ringing.
DID you hear about the bloke whose left arm

and leg were severed in an accident? He’s all
right now.
I TRIED fly fishing once. I didn’t catch any flies.
I TOOK my puppy for his first swim at the
beach the other day. I wasn’t surprised when
he floated – good boy in sea.
AFTER an unsuccessful harvest, the farmer
decide to try a career in music. After all, he had
plenty of sick beets.
Juan Liners, email

PROBABILITY

A MAN walked into a bar and ordered a drink
for himself and the empty seat next to him. The
bartender, perplexed as to why the man would
order a drink for an empty chair, nonetheless
made the two drinks.
This seemed to happen every time the man
entered the bar; he would order a drink for
himself and an empty chair next to him.
Finally, curiosity overtook the barman and
he said to the customer, “Every time I see you
come in here, you always order a drink for the
empty chair next to you. Why do you do that?”
The man replied, “Well, you see, I am a
physicist, and quantum physics states that it
is possible for the matter above the chair to
spontaneously form into a beautiful woman,
whom I hope to give this drink to and go out on
a date with.”
“Well, plenty of women come to drink here
every night; why don’t you buy one of them a
drink?” the barman asked. “Maybe one of them
will go out on a date with you!”
The man snorted. “Yeah, right. What’s the
likelihood of that happening?”
Slim Chantz, email

> THOUGHT OF THE MONTH
Doing nothing is very hard
to do. You never know when
you’re finished – Leslie Nielsen

TAILSHAFTS
MADE TO ORDER
GJ Drivelines are the complete tailshaft
specialists, boasting more than 50 years of
combined experience. We manufacture, repair
and balance tailshafts for all makes and models.

THE COMPLETE TAILSHIFT SPECIALISTS
-Chromoly -Aluminium -Carbon Fibre
Ph: 03 9706 3166 | gjdrivelines@live.com.au

www.gjdrivelines.com.au

BRAKE UPGRADES
FOR AUSSIE & AMERICAN MUSCLE CARS – and even Volvos!
ALL OUR
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Whether it’s two, four or six-piston kits, from 290mm rotor size
right up to 343mm, on almost any vehicle you can think of,
Hoppers Stoppers has the brake upgrade package to suit you
EMAIL: Enquiries@hoppers.com.au
9 Nevada Court, Hoppers Crossing, Victoria 3029

GIVE US A CALL! (03) 9748 6950

WWW.HOPPERS.COM.AU

S UN D AY TO O F A R A W AY

SEND your photos of fun with cars to: Sunday Too Far Away, Street Machine, Unit 9/3-5 Gilda Court, Mulgrave, Vic 3170, or email high-resolution images (1mb+) to:
sundaytoofaraway@wheelsmedia.com.au. Please send copies of prints as we are unable to return your photos.

WILL WALLACE

N
DAVE WADDINGTO

NICHOLAS STUBBS

142

S TR E E T M ACH I NE

SIMO

MICHAEL CULLIS

DANIELA GIGS

KYLE LOWRY

SIMO

S TR E E T MA C H I NE

143

WILL WALLACE

CHEZ IMAGES
DANIELA GIGS

HEATH VAN DER WAERDEN

144

ST RE E T M A C HI N E

JACK HOULIHAN

SAM

STEVEN GORDON

NICHOLAS STUBBS

S TR E E T M A CH I N E

145

M IL L OF T H E M O NT H
STORY ANDREW BROADLEY

PHOTOS SHAWN MCCANN

DRESSED TO KILL

411CI HOLDEN V8
> MOLINARI RACE ENGINES, MORWELL, VICTORIA

G

ATHER ’round, Holden V8 fans; this
one’s a doozy. Ever encountered a
900+hp all-motor plastic before?
Ange at Molinari Race Engines has
screwed together this absolute screamer for
Domenic D’Agostino’s street-and-strip LX
Torana hatch, aided and abetted by Pete Murray
at Horsepower Engineering.
It measures in at 411ci, and while it uses a
Torque-Power Little Paw cast-iron block,
arguments we’ve seen online that it’s somehow
“not a Holden” as a result are pure nonsense. The
Little Paw accepts OEM-style Holden cylinder
heads, crankshaft, timing case and bracketry,
and this engine retains the factory firing order.
It is simply an aftermarket block, and this mill is
no less a Holden than an SBC built using a Dart
block is a Chev.
“I first built the car in 1996, and it’s only ever
had a Holden V8 in it,” Dom says. “At first it was a
red 308 with an Edelbrock Performer on it. Then
I went to VN heads, then the first stroker combo.
Ange has always built my engines, and I said to

146

S TR E E T M A CHI NE

the boys that this time we were going to have a
fair-dinkum crack.”
That fair-dinkum crack yielded a monumental
944hp and 600lb-ft on ETS XPRODRAG 3 fuel,
turning to 8800rpm with a single carby on a
cast manifold – impressive numbers in anyone’s
language.
There is a surprising amount of off-the-shelf
hardware in the engine, including the Scat steel
crankshaft and Oliver rods. Pistons are custom
CP forgies to suit the meaty 4.175-inch bore,
because cubes were an important component
of making the heads perform like they were
designed to. Compression is a lofty 14.75:1,
which was the ceiling for this combo while
sticking with a flat-top piston.
Cylinder head castings are Torque-Power
240s with Victory titanium valves, T&D 1.75:1
rockers, PSI valve springs and considerable R&D
invested by Pete in the porting department. The
Torque-Power block is designed for a 50mm cam
core, and the camshaft in this combo is a custom
Comp Cams solid-roller, acting on BAM .904

VERY few engines this serious
look this good, but Dom’s hatch is a
stunner, and the mill had to match. The
inlet manifold copped 40 hours of external
polishing for a show-like finish, and the billet
rocker covers are one-off custom pieces from
Fastlane Industries. “I disassembled the Clear
View oil filter, painted it and reassembled it,
because I wanted it the same silver as the
rest of the bits on the engine,” says Dom.
“Everything on the engine has been
looked at – if it’s not HPC-coated,
it’s two-packed.”

bushed offset lifters and 7/16-inch Jet Engineering
pushrods.
The induction system consists of a TorquePower Domi Paw single-plane intake, topped
with a custom Ray Edwards 4150 BX4X bigblade, four-circuit carburettor.
“It made more power than we expected, and
we were a bit amazed by the way it carried the
torque; from 6800rpm to 8300rpm, it didn’t drop
under 590lb-ft,” says Dom. “The car is untubbed
and runs a 255 radial with standard-style
suspension, and it went 9.48@142mph on the
old factory Holden-block combo with a lot less
power. It might end up a little heavier than it was,
but eight-something has always been the goal.”
Is this the toughest naturally aspirated V8 ever
built? We reckon it might be.