KILLER RIDES #8

THE HOME OF AUSTRALIA’S Toughest STREET CARS

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RE SU EXTPO wins out in Public ISSUE #8 - JAN 2019

Decent

Getting the

LOOK WHO’S

BACK!

BLOWN

BIG-BLOCK

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Y FOR ACTION! D A E R D N A S U O R IT BIG BLOCK, N

TURBO 6 VALIANT SEDAN - TOUGH STREET XT FALCON - 1500HP DIESEL PLYMOUTH CUDA BALLARAT AIRPORT DRAGS - BRIGHT ROD RUN - JAF’S LAST CRUISE - HEMI HIDEOUT - AND MUCH MORE!

From the Desk WANT TO SAVE TIME, MONEY AND A BUTTLOAD OF HEARTACHE ON YOUR NEXT PROJECT? PLAN THE BUILD RIGHT! Welcome to 2019, hope you’re prepared for another big year for Killer Rides!

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I speak to so many people about their cars and more often than not they tell me they could have saved thousands of dollars if they had Pre planned the build a little better.

Look we all know that things change during the build period due to money, needs and time restraints. These things are unavoidable. But if you have a firm plan in mind of what you want to achieve, sticking to that will ultimately save you plenty of time, money and heartache. Trust me, I’ve been there!

With the Studebaker, I had planned on building a tough, pro-street styled car. The Hemi was getting a blower and EFI hat and the big and little wheel combo would give it the 2 desired stance. But, (and there is always a but), could I jump in that car and drive it to Queensland without any hassles? Maybe. Would it be a painful and costly experience?

Possibly. And that got me rethinking the whole build.

I like, no make that, need my cars to be drivers - anywhere, anytime. So with this build I’ve have to think hard about what I really wanted to do with this car when it was eventually finished. I’m just lucky I’ve realised this before too much work had happened. Some aren’t so lucky.

So guys, think long and hard about the finished product. Where you want it to be and what you want it to do. Write down the mods planned and get some idea of the cost. Do your homework and speak to those that have been down that road before. Learn from their mistakes. It could save you lots of time and money.

And if you’re like me and lack a little enthusiasm from time to time, get a rendering done of what you hope the finished product will look like and put it next to your computer, on the garage wall, on the fridge door and on your phone.

Hopefully every time you look at it, you get excited enough to get on the tools.

See you on the Street.

Paul

Shop online now @ WWW.SPEEDPRO.COM.AU 11 A I R L I E AV E N U E , D A N D E N O N G V I C 3 17 5

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Contents

24 TT LS3 VK Commodore

Blown Big Block ‘33 Speedster

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ISSUE NO.8 Jan 2019

REGULARS 06 WHAT’S HAPPENING News, views and things of interest

SUBSCRIBE

10 HAVE YOUR SAY Tell us what you think

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SHOW TIME Events coming up

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DARE TO BE DIFFERENT Diesel-powered Cuda

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COMING ATTRACTIONS Maskell Customs & Classics

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CYBER CRUISING The Amazing Hemi Hideout

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BRIGHT IDEA The Bright Rod Run

AT THE WEBSITE TO ENSURE YOU NEVER MISS A NEW ISSUE!

34 Hemi Hideout

72 KEEP YOUR EXCUSES Radial Racing from Ballarat Airstrip

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363ci Tough Street Falcon

102 KILLER PIC It’s only water!

104 SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST... South Oz’s Jaf’s Last Cruise 110 WINDOW SHOPPING All the latest and greatest products

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Iconic Nitrous Big Block Tonner

112 PERFORMANCE DIRECTORY Specialty Ad’s

FEATURES 24

MAKE MINE A DOUBLE Twin-turbo LS3 VK

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TOUGH LUCK Tough Street XR Falcon

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DOIN’ IT TOUGH Blown Big Block ‘33 Speedster.

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HISTORY REPEATS C&V’s Iconic 1-tonner reborn.

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MEAN STREAK Turbo 6-pack Valiant Sedan

94 Turbo 6-pack Valiant

16 Diesel-powered Cuda

LaurenJade Jade -- Xposed Xposed Photography Lauren Photography Joe MadayBall Greg ‘Beach’ Julie Marshall Vincent De Rossi Mike Davison Joe Crispin Karstormz Photography

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What’s Happening

It only takes a minute to subscribe at the website (killerrides.com.au) and you’ll be guaranteed to be alerted when each new Issue of the magazine has been added to the website. Don’t miss out, SUBSCRIBE NOW!

RESSURECTING A LEGEND

Pat Fay was a larger than life character in the street machining world. He was a stalwart at the Summernats from its inception and always occupied the same spot with his badges and patches for sale. There was no doubt he was an icon. So too was his famous custom FJ Holden Hearse that had been around the scene longer than most street machiners. The FJ, called Hump Mecca Hearse, remains one of the most winningest vehicles in modified car history amassing many awards during its show life and through many different guises. When we lost Pat, many thought the Hearse was never to see the light again, but thanks to a dedicated crew, that’s no longer the case.

The Hearse was on display at the Summernats before the team at Canberra’s CIT tackle the restoration. There’s been plenty of companies donating parts and pieces needed to complete the project, but the team need plenty of funds to redo the murals and also the chrome-work. There’s a Go Fund Me page set-up where you can help out by donating anything you can afford – whether It be one dollar or a thousand dollars. Make a donation and be a part of street machining history! Check it out at www.gofundme. com/restoration-of-pats-hearse There’s a Facebook page also dedicated to the cause 6 where you can see lots of pics of the Hearse from throughout its illustrious life and eventually, there will be live feeds of the construction as it happens. The rejuvenated Hearse will be unveiled at MotorEx in Melbourne, May 2020.

WHOOPS, MY BAD…

I incorrectly spelt the name of the Photographer who sent the pics in for the Springnats. I credited Karstormz Photography and it should have been Karstomz Photography. Be sure to check out his FB page for more Springnats pics and other events covered!

WILLOWBANK RACEWAY JOINS KENDA TIRES 660 DRAG RADIAL SERIES

The team who stage the hugely popular Kenda Tires 660 Drag Radial series have announced that due to the sup- 7 port offered by Willowbank Raceway, there will be three stand-alone events held at the Raceway in 2019. This will be Radial racing only on a radial prepped track! It simply doesn’t get any better than that for what is proving to be the fastest growing bracket in Drag Racing! The dates to book in for are March 2nd, June 29th and September 21st. The organisers are still confirming dates for Benaraby Raceway and Sydney Dragway when we were finishing up this issue. This year is going to be big for Radial Racers!

What’s Happening BL AUTOMOTIVE TURNS 21!

Twenty-one years is a long time to be in business, especially when you’re building performance engines. But at the recent BL Automotive Christmas Party, Big Leo ended his 20th year in the same location, pumping out lots of horsepower of the years. 2019 will mark the 21st year of BL Automotive engines powering some of the toughest street and strip engines in the country. With customers all over Australia, it’s no surprise that Leo has been so successful for so long. Check out his new website for more info and contact details – www.blautomotive.com.au 8

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Have Your Say! ISSUE #7 THE BEST YET!

Hi Paul, Thanks for letting us know that Issue 7 had arrived – and a day early too! Wow, what a great issue. I have never seen so much event coverage in one magazine before! And the cars were fantastic – especially the big block HJ, one of my favourite cars of all-time and this one was just superb! Keep the Killer stuff coming mate, looking forward to Issue 8 and beyond…

Andrew C via Email.

G’day Paul, Just finished reading Issue 7 from beginning to end – awesome! It seems Killer Rides is building a big reputation, congrats! Can’t wait to see what 2019 has 10 in store for a great magazine! Merry Christmas to you and those that make Killer Rides a great read.

Allan W via Email Dear Paul, You’ve excelled with this latest Issue of Killer Rides.

There was so much jammed in there to read, I couldn’t put my iPad down. Thanks so much for all the effort you put into the magazine each month, and my mates and I hope it’s around for many years to come. All the best for 2019, I’m sure you’ll be busier than ever. Keep the good stuff coming.

Lance T via Messenger.

Thanks everyone for the kind words about Issue 7.

Like you, I am happy of how the last Issue for 2018 turned out. There was four or five times where I had to add more pages just to cover the cool event stuff that was sent in. So now its 2019 and we’ve got another year ahead presenting as many killer cars, events and features as we can. Hang on tight, the ride has just begun…

Got something to say?

Send it to paul@killerrides. com.au or message us from the Killer Rides Facebook page.

PRO-TOURING FOR LIFE!

G’day Paul and Team, I’ve always loved the whole Pro-Touring concept and whilst some may think it’s just a current trend, so too was Pro-Street and it’s still alive and kicking!

The beauty of a Pro-Touring build is that you get the style of the older car, all the new-car technology in the driveline and it 100% user friendly, any time, any place. Does it get any better? That ’57 Chev wagon you featured in Issue #7 was an absolute Killer Ride – love it!

Terry H via FB.

SILENT BUT DEADLY

Paul, What a great article on the Tesla-powered ’49 Merc! Just goes to show, that even though we may be heading in that “electric car” direction, we can still keep our old cars and just repower them into the future. I’m hoping though that by the time that is imposed on us, the conversion pieces will become more affordable. I like the idea of 400+ horsepower in a quiet, efficient car. Bring it on…

Ivan K via Email G’day Ivan, Love it or hate it, this IS the future of motoring. You can kick and scream all you like, but at the end of the day, when this will be the only way you’ll have to get around, we’ll all just have to suck it up and join the masses. I’m hoping it’s still 50-years off so I won’t have to worry about it…lol.

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Hi Terry, I agree with you, Pro-Touring is here to stay! There’s many cars being built in this style and it’s easy to understand why. I will always love the outrageous Pro-Street style of car, but if you’re determined to build a regular “drive anywhere” car, you really have to consider the Pro-Touring deal.

FALCON TOUGH

Hi Paul, I was so happy to see Peter Nusser’s Falcon Ute featured in Killer Rides.

As soon as I saw the cover, I went straight to that feature first. I too am building an XR Ute, but doubt it will ever be as impressive as Peter’s.

Actually, it was after seeing a couple of pics of his Ute on Facebook, that I went searching for my own project. I will have to settle for a single carb small block Windsor but will definitely be mini-tubbing the rear and adding big and little wheel combo. I’ll send through some pics when we get started. Keep up the great work with the magazine.

Helen J via Email HI Helen, I’m happy that you’ve got to see Peter’s Ute and hope it provides some inspiration for your build. Nothing wrong with running a single carb, it will save you from forever looking over your shoulder wondering when you’ll get defected for the exposed engine hardware. Would love to see some pics too…

MARCH 9th & 10th 2019 Mount Panorama Bathurst

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- Show N Shine - Heads Up Go To Whoa - Autokana - Grab A Flag - Trade Sites - Super Sprints- BURNOUT SHOOTOUT and MORE. 

For Entrant Forms or For More Information See www.autofest.com.au or Call Mobile 0417 511557

Showtime!

To have your event listed here, send details to paul@killerrides.com.au

JANUARY - 2019

13 - NSW KIller Rides / Illawarra Street Scene Coffee and Cars Catch Up Bunnings Albion Park Rail 7am-9am Phone Paul - 0432 795336 20 - VIC 4th Northern Car & Bike Show Cole Reserve, Pascoe Vale sconroy@powercor.com.au 20 - NSW 37th All American Day Macarther Square Shopping Centre Campbelltown www.mustang.org.au 25-28- ACT CRAKK Hot Rod Run Capital Country Holiday Park Canberra crakkrun@gmail.com 26-28 - VIC Vict. Hot Rod & Cool Rides Show Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton www.hotrod.com.au 26 - NSW Narooma Moor Cars & Bike Show NATA Oval, Narooma www.naroomamotors.com 26 - TAS Wheels, Wine & Dine St Helens, TAS eastcoastcarclub@outlook.com

FEBRUARY - 2019

02 - VIC Kaniva Lions Club Car & Bike Show Kaniva Recreation Reserve facebook.com/kanivacarandbikeshow 03 - TAS Huon Aquaculture - Wheels in the Park, Heritage Park, Geeveston Marlow - 0417 881838 10 - NSW KIller Rides / Illawarra Street Scene Coffee and Cars Catch Up Bunnings Albion Park Rail 7am-9am 08-10 - NSW Coasters Hot Rod Coastal Cruise Edgewater Caravan Park, Port Macquarie www.coastershotrodcub.com.au 10 - SA Corvettes Rock the Bay Wigley Reserve, Glenelg www.corvetteclubofsouthaustralia. com.au 17 - VIC All American Car Display & Man Cave Alley Gembrook Recreational Reserve emeraldrotary.org.au 17 - ACT Canberra Mustang Show Vikings Park, Erindale, ACT canberramustangshow.com.au 24 - VIC Craigeburn 5th Annual Car, Truck and Bike Show Craigeburn Central, Central Park facebook.com/Craigeburn-CarTruck-and-Bike-Show

MARCH - 2019 08-10 - NSW Bathurst Autofest, Mt Panorama www.autofest.com.au 10 - NSW KIller Rides / Illawarra Street Scene Coffee and Cars Catch Up Bunnings Albion Park Rail 7am-9am Phone Paul - 0432 795336 10 - NSW 3rd Finley Show and Shine Finley Showgrounds Email: southern.riverina.vmc@ gmail.com 10 - QLD Dubs on the Hill Picnic Point, East Toowoomba

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JULY 13TH & 14TH, 2019

ILLAWARRA INDOOR HOCKEY CENTRE,UNANDERRA Just 10-minutes South of Wollongong

15-17 - VIC Chryslers onthe Murray Gateway Lakes, Wodomga Rod Taylor - 03 57222993 17 - VIC 11th Dandenong All Holden Show Greaves Reserve, Dandenong rotaryendeavourhills.org.au 17 - NSW Kool Kruisers 10th Charity Car Show Liverpool Catholic Club 31 - QLD Power Up Show and Shine and Swap Meet NSA Sports Fields, Burnett Street, Nanango 31 - VIC Rotary Club of Belgrave Car Show Ferny Creek Reserve, Ferny Creek www.belgraverotary.com

For More Information, Please Contact Paul 0432 795336 - paul@killerrides.com.au

Dare to be Different

BREAKING

Wanting to do something different, the team decided early on that this build was going to be diesel powered, but just not any garden variety diesel smoker – this one was to use the 6.7- litre twin-turbo Cummins engine that has been tweaked and tuned

by Gorilla Performance to produce a staggering 1500hp at the sizeable wheels.

n o i t i d a r T

Twin-turbo Diesel power puts this unique hot rod Cuda in a league of its own!

Weaver Customs in the USA pride themselves on delivering custom craftsmanship, creativity and dedication in every build they do. The are best known for talking ordinary cars to the 16 extraordinary. Case in point, this 1970 Plymouth Cuda.

Wanting to do something different, the team decided early on that this build was going to be diesel powered, but just not any garden variety diesel smoker – this one was to use the 6.7litre twin-turbo Cummins engine that has been tweaked and tuned by Gorilla Performance to produce a staggering 1500hp at the sizeable wheels. Featuring forged internals, dual fuelers, a custom intake and a little nitrous for good measure, the engine screams performance! The compound turbo system sees a smaller turbo unit feeding the much larger secondary turbocharger. Industrial strength injectors feed enough fuel to keep the fire lit.

A built and manualised 48RE trans with TH400 output shaft sends the power through to the full custom fabricated rear end where it’s up to two huge tyres mounted to the 20x15 Forgeline Dropkick wheels to try to get that power down.

More often than not, there’s two massive footprints left down the road…

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A custom mix colour called Axalta covers a highly modified Plymouth body. The reshaped bonnet was necessary to cover the engine hardware that just wouldn’t squeeze under the bonnet and the front end scored a Nascar-style front spoiler. The side skirts have been redone and the drip rails restyled for a cleaner look. But the bodywork didn’t end there. The front and rear windscreen have been flush mounted and believe it or not, the roof has been chopped but still accommodates the factory dimension glass! By the way, all mods are done in real steel, not fibreglass! The body sits on top of a state of the art, Roadster Shop chassis, over which the body has been channelled.

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The interior can only be described as hardcore! There’s lots of painted steel used in the construction of the race-car like interior. The dash has been hand fabricated and angled towards the driver with an array of AutoMeter gauges added along with a comprehensive Kicker sound system. What material has been is done in leather, including the seats and door trims. This would have to be one of the most radical Cuda’s ever built, anywhere.

Check out the video and get the lowdown from the car creator himself.

By the way, all mods are done in real steel, not fibreglass! The body sits on top of a state of the art, Roadster Shop chassis, over which the body has been channelled.

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Coming Attractions

r e t s a M CRAFTSMEN

Many people would know of the XBOSS Falcon that took on the World’s Best in the USA and then steamrolled the competition at every show in Australia, but do they know the team that helped create that monster?

Greg Maskell has been a hard-core street car guy for as long as I can remember – and I’ve been around the scene for 35-plus years! I remember his tough, blown, Fairlane-fronted XR Falcon Ute standing out amongst the crowd at the Summernats. Whilst his own car was a driver, he ventured into the unforgiving world of show cars with a couple of memorable builds, namely the reworked purple XF Falcon pillarless coupe dubbed PSYCHO and the smooth HQ Monaro owned by Karen Keves from Adelaide. Both cars won many awards during their show life and proved that Maskells Customs and Classics were a force in the industry. As far as XBOSS is concerned, the Falcon arrived in the workshop needing the body work finished off. The boys then did the gaps, laid on the colour and handled the fit up. The rest is history…

You don’t often see HD Holden’s used as a base for a full-on build, this one will be one of the best!

When taking on a major build, the only way to go is to take the body back to bare steel.

High-end paint jobs are Maskell’s specialty. Any colour, any style catered for!

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This pic shows the variety of cars in the shop at the moment. There’s everything from stock Mustangs to a major resto on an early XT GT Falcon, a slick ’57 Chev Nomad, full-tilt HK Monaro and much more!

‘69 428CI FACTORY DRAG PACK MUSTANG REASSEMBLY

UNDERCARRIAGE DETAILING ISN’T A PROBLEM

REWORKED ENGINE BAY WITH V8 TRANSPLANT

BLOWN INJECTED PREMIER WILL BE KILLER WHEN DONE

Like many of us, Greg lives and breathes custom cars. And through his Maskells Customs and Classics business based in Shepparton East, Victoria, he gets to create rolling pieces of artwork on a regular basis.

He has formed a team of master craftsman who all excel at the highest level in their chosen field and each member of his team put their heart and soul into each project knowing that their customers will only ever be happy with the highest standard of workmanship.

The workshop is currently full of the next generation of cool cars to be let loose on the scene with a variety of styles and build requirements happening from street elite drivers to full tilt show cars and faithful restorations. The team can handle it all.

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C A ATFR V A E A L IL O E A G B U L E E

NROEDW UCTS

P Greg’s team don’t take short cuts. They know that to do the job right, means stripping the car back to its bare bones and that takes time. And as they say, time is money… So it comes as no surprise to see that the builds currently happening in the workshop are all high-end jobs. And when these are completed, there’s a long list of jobs waiting to get into the shop to be started.

If you want quality work done right, give Greg a call on (03) 5829 1232 or check out the work already completed on their website – www.maskells.net.au or jump onto their Facebook page for regular updates on what’s happening in the workshop.

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Shaping a better Australia

JUSTIN SMITH - VK COMMODORE - WORDS / PICS - PAUL BECK

MAKE MINE A While the rebuild on his tough Camaro was slowly taking place, Justin Smith needed a horsepower fix.

Then along came a half-finished VK Commodore…

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DOUBLE Justin is a hardcore car guy. He works hard at his job, and plays even harder. He also enjoys a challenge and when this partially completed VK Commodore presented itself, Justin took up the challenge to finish the Brock-replica and in the process, give himself something wild to drive on the street whilst waiting for the Camaro to be completed.

Justin’s mechanic and long-time mate Rob Risteski at CA Motorsport was entrusted to finish the build with the idea’s both him and Justin worked out between them. The basics were there, they just needed tweaking or in some cases, manufacturing. Either way, when completed, this was going to be one tough VK.

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If one turbocharger is good, then surely two is better, right? And if you’ve got two big ones, you might as well let the whole world see them!

If one turbocharger is good, then surely two is better, right?

And if you’ve got two big ones, you might as well let the whole world see them! The Commodore already had part of the LS3 engine in place and the two Turbonetic’s turbo’s were bolted into place, but nothing was plumbed.

“If the turbo’s hadn’t already been mounted, I probably would have had them sitting below the bonnet line and out of sight”, Justin explained. “But because the hard work had been done, we decided to leave them as they were.” Asked whether he had encountered any problems with the boys in blue, Justin grinned as he told us he’d had plenty of looks from them, but no hassles as yet. But he was waiting for that day to come. “it’s only a matter of time,” he laughed…

The turbo’s feed an almost factory-spec 6.2-litre LS3. The most noticeable change is the custom intake and plenum which plays host to a 102mm throttle body and 1000cfm injectors. Other non-factory additions include a custom grind cam, gapless rings, Aeromotive fuel pump, Bosch coil packs and the twin, 3.5-inch exhaust system. Everything else inside the engine is as per the factory spec sheet. Call27 ing the shots now though is a MicroTech computer.

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On the dyno, the boys got just two runs in on the day due to a few minor issues, but did record 688hp at the rear tyres.

Not a bad effort for a mild tune and an essentially stock LS3! Justin has assured us that they aren’t finished with the engine just yet so expect that figure to be considerably higher sometime soon!

(1) (1)That’s one full engine bay! The essentially stock-internal LS3 gets its power from the two Turbonetics turbo’s and custom intake. Built by Rob at CA Motorsports, the engine has so far made 688rwhp on a mild, safe tune. Expect more from it soon.

(2) Both Turbo’s are mounted high for maximum air flow and of course, to show them off! (3) The coil packs are relocated to the firewall where they are easily accessed. (4) Judged by many as the toughest looking Commodore, just got tougher!

(2)

(3)

(4)

A full-manual two-speed Powerglide has been adapted to the LS and is fronted by a 4000rpm Dominator converter.

The box passes the horsepower down the driveshaft to the sheet-metal 9-inch diff squeezed in under the mini-tubbed rear end.

In behind each 20-inch FR Simmons wheels (8.5” on the front and a whopping 12.5” where it matters the most!) sits a massive disc and multi-spot calipers all from K-Sport. The custom Wilwood remote Master cylinder lives in the boot beside the enlarged wheel-arches and fuel cell. Adding to the reworked underside are Strange shocks, K-sport springs, heim-joints and a custom four-link set up.

Formula Blue is probably the most popular colour for the VK Commodore, made famous by one Mr P. Brock who introduced the colour on his SS Group A VK way back in 1984. Forgetting about the reworked bonnet for the time being, the body and paint (complete with the associated decals) is a tribute to those HDT cars from back in the day. The front spoiler, open-grille and low-line rear wing take you back to a time when carbs where controlling your cars diet, not yours.

bon-fibre centres) makes them much more obvious and really shows off the width of the rears!

Like the body colour, the interior is also a throwback to the Brock/HDT days with the Scheel interior fitted to the VK. The blue/grey trim flows through to the original door trims with the factory dash , console and steering wheel from the Group A also fitted. But that’s not to say it’s entirely a resto inside.

The manual shifter is nowhere to be seen, and in its place sits a Hurst QuarThis car had already been fitted with ter-stick attached to the ‘Glide underthe sunroof when Justin became the neath the tunnel. owner and the wildly shaped bonnet was all but completed too – a neces- Back before electronics were used run sity to feed bucket loads of air into the your engine, Brock would have had no two turbo’s jutting proudly from the need for a MicroTech digital dash – but engine bay. As they say, if you’ve got Justin does, so its mounted in front of where the factory analogue dials used 28 them, flaunt them! to be in full view. Overall, the interior Originally, the wheels were black, but isn’t a bad place to be on a regular the switch to white (with white car- basis.

(1) From the rar, those 20x12.5” Simmons look even bigger! They still struggle trying to get the power to the pavement though. (2) The factory dash has been blocked from view by the MicroTech digital dash that controls 29 everything including the lights and indicators. (3) If Justin was to cruise without the bonnet, this is what his view would be filled with! (4) The original VK SS Group A interior has been fitted to give this car a little history lesson. Dubbed “the Blue Meanie”, the VK Group A was the monster that really put Brocks name in the limelight.

(2)

(1)

(3)

(4)

(1) When lit up, the MicroTech dash displays all the vital information to keep Justin informed on what is happening in and around that twin-turbo LS3 engine.

It looks cool too... (2) On the street, the VK cuts a fine line. It’s tough without really pushing the boundaries too far with those defect-weilding types. (3) If those turbo’s hadn’t already been mounted, Justin would have hidden them from the publics view. But where’s the fun in that?

THE MEANING BEHIND THE PLATES! When I first saw the IMORTL plates fixed to Justin’s VK, I thought it had a meaning towards Brock being immortal. That’s not the case though.

In fact, the plates meaning has nothing to do with the car at all! You see, Justin has had a few “incidents” during his time driving cars with a couple of big hits amongst them. He reckons if he was a cat, he has probably used up 7 of his 9 lives. Hence the IMORTL plates…

(1)

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(2)

(3)

The front spoiler, open-grille and low-line rear wing take you back to a time when carbs where controlling your cars diet, not yours.

Since completing the build, Justin has had plenty of seat time and has taken the Commodore to a few events including the Queanbeyan All Holden Day where he scored Top Car Overall and backed that up with Top Standard Paint and Top 10 at the Springnats in Shepparton.

This year he has plans to put some more miles on the LS3, attend a few more events and maybe even take part in Drag Week – but before he tackles that event, there will be a few necessities added including a roll cage and parachute and no doubt a couple of hundred more ponies…lol.

By the time that is all done and dusted, Justin’s blown Camaro will be coming along nicely and if he can find a painter to do the job at hand, it may even be ready to rock and roll as well. For now though, Justin is content to cruise, show and eventually race his version of Brock’s VK Group A. Projects like this don’t happen without good people involved and Justin would like to thank Rob at CA Motorsport, Robbie Jnr and Steve Petrovski for their combined involvement and also a big shout out to “Digs” for selling him the car in the first place…

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BUILD PARTNERS Phone (02) 62975522 www.camotorsports.com.au

Jake Myers - Burnout Champion!

I have at th g in th e on d an e lif y m l al rs ca h ug to nd “I’ve been arou tang us M y m hy w ’s at Th . ity al qu on e is om pr m co learned is never to ” o! to r ca ur yo r fo lls ve Lo on ST SI IN s! ng is fitted with Lovells Spri

www.lovellsauto.com.au

THE

THE HEMI HIDEOUT - HOUSTON, TEXAS

Pics - Greg Ball / Hemi Hideout

Words - Paul Beck

t s e l o o C s d l r o W MAN CAVE

On the outskirts of Houston, Texas lies a massive building filled to the hilt with collectable Mopar’s, Neon signs and more. Its name? The Hemi Hideout!

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The Hemi Hideout is the brain child of John Hovas, whose passion for all things Hemi started when his Dad bought him a 1970 Dodge Superbee. John cruised that car for years until he was forced to sell it due to marriage, family and mortgages getting in the way.

Fast forward many years, and after several successful business ventures, John managed to replace his beloved Superbee with an identical car, and then another, and another, until there was simply no room left to house them all. And that’s when construction on the amazing 21,700-sq. ft building started.

Johns love of Dodge and Plymouth Muscle Cars from the late 60’s and early 70’s is obvious with many pristine examples scattered throughout the building. But its just not about the cars at Hemi Hideout…

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In total, there’s 24 of the most desirable Mopar vehicles ever made in John’s collection surrounded by more than 600 vintage porcelain and neon signs – all of which carry a story within itself.

Everywhere you look there’s something interesting.

Your senses come alive when you enter the building with around 1200 different neon and lighted signs all screaming for attention! John reckons he has room for three times that amount. The signs are all collectable and date back to the early 1900’s such as the Dodge Brothers Dealership sign that required just a little restoration to make it look brand new.

In total, there’s 24 of the most desirable Mopar vehicles ever made in John’s collection surrounded by more than 600 vintage porcelain and neon signs – all of which carry a story within itself. Everywhere you look there’s something interesting. Whether it be one of the cars, the signs or the petrol bowers placed strategically beside the buildings inner frame work – which in itself, is a work of art. There are also restored Tractors and Motorcycles on display!

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Your senses come alive when you enter the building with around 1200 different neon and lighted signs all screaming for attention!

The building also houses a complete 1950’s style diner, soda fountain and state of the art kitchen. Add to this a staging area for live entertainment, a BBQ pavilion and outdoor Western style bar and fireplace and you have the World’s most impressive man cave!

The Hemi Hideout is not just a car and sign collection. It’s also a fully-operational function centre that you can hire for any kind of event.

Whether that be a company gathering, Christmas Party, Wedding Reception or Birthday party, the Hemi Hideout can make any event memorable with their inhouse planners well versed in making all event runs faultlessly.

Quite simply, there is no place like the Hemi Hideout. If you ever find yourself in Houston, Texas, make sure you make plans to visit the Hemi Hideout.

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TOUGH

LUCK 43

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After cutting his teeth on a street-smart VN Commodore, Steve Tickner found his ideal car for sale. And it was closer than he thought…

STEVE TICKNER – 1967 XR FALCON SEDAN WORDS & PICS – Paul Beck

Steve had been admiring this Falcon cruising around his suburb and thought just how cool it was, not knowing that eventually, it would be sitting in his garage.

When a mate told Steve, “that red Falcon is for sale on Gumtree”, he couldn’t believe it. What was more unbelievable was that upon contacting the owner, turns out he was the father of one of Steve’s daughters best friends and he lived just a couple of streets away! Call it fate if you like, but this car was always destined to be Steve’s.

The body, paint and interior is essentially how the car was delivered to Steve.

Though it did have mirrors bolted half way down the front guards which Steve took an instant disliking too. Dave Cornford from DRC Group handled the task of removing the mirrors, file finishing the guards and adding the GT-spec mirrors to the doors. The quality of Dave’s work speaks for itself.

It was the Monza Red paint that grabbed Steve’s attention the first time he saw the Falcon idle by, and with the paint in great shape, there’s been no need to do any work other than keep it detailed. The white stripes compliment the 20x7 and 20x10 Simmons and the polished stainless trim surrounding the Falcon offsets the body colour perfectly.

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44 Open any door and you’re greeted by lots of white vinyl that covers the factory seats and door trims and the restyled dash. Gone are the factory gauges with more accurate AutoMeter items occupying the space. A smaller, billet steering wheel replaces the bus-sized wheel, it too has been covered in white vinyl. As for the stereo, Steve reckons the tough Windsor provides enough good tunes…

More often than not, more cubes will result in more power, so with the previous engine making around 500hp Steve was eager to get this one finished.

Speaking of the engine, this is one area that Steve has updated. When he took over ownership of the Falcon, there was an angry 347ci small block providing the power. Whilst the engine sounded tough and went well, a continual overheating problem forced Steve to go looking for a solution to the problem. Being a mechanic (that now works in the mines), pulling the engine apart was never going to be an issue.

With the heads removed, Steve spotted a couple of pin holes in the gasket which was the cause of the heat problem. After purchasing some shiny new AFR 220 alloy heads, the intention was to bolt them on and keep motoring. But Steve wanted more. More cubes and more horsepower…

A new 4-bolt Dart block was purchased and when kitted out with the crank and rod combo gave Steve a new capacity of 363 cubic inches. More often than not, more cubes will result in more power, so with the previous engine making around 500hp Steve was eager to get this one finished.

Forged pistons wrapped in JE rings soon joined the mix as did a Lunati solid roller cam and lifter combo. The cam has a nasty idle and lets everyone with half-decent hearing that Falcon isn’t the old grocery getter is started life as.

A single Pro-Systems 950cfm carb sits high above the engine thanks to the Edelbrock Super Victor intake and carb spacer to help the air and fuel mix. The extra height forced the air cleaner through the bonnet to get lots of fresh air.

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The new-spec Windsor was masterfully pieced together by Matt Scala and is good for in excess of 600-horsepower! It’s well detailed and certainly looks impressive when the bonnet is lifted.

Backing the stout Windsor is a trans-braked C4 trans that is fronted by a 4000rpm TCE converter, with gear selections provided by a B&M shifter.

Down the back is a shortened 9-inch diff built by Daniel “DOGNUT” D’aran who also did some other underside fabrication. The diff houses 4.11-gears, a full-spool and 35-spline billet axles. It’s about as tough as they get and should always be able to handle anything Steve and the 363-cuber can through at it. Pedders shocks are fitted to each corner with King springs helping out on the front and Calverts where the power is unleashed. The ever-popular disc and drum braking system remains in place.

What was more unbelievable was that upon contacting the owner, it turns out he was the father of one of Steve’s daughters best friends and he lived just a couple of streets away!

With plenty of beachside cruise areas available, Steve and his family take the Falcon out as much as they can. Which Steve was quick to add “is still not often enough!” And whilst cruising the car is what its all about, Steve is keen to drive up to Sydney Dragway to see just how well the Falcon handles the quarter mile. With the combo now powering the XR, there’s every chance Steve has himself a genuine 10-sec street car. Time will tell…

With plenty of beachside cruise areas available, Steve and his family take the Falcon out as much as they can. Which Steve was quick to add “is still not often enough!”

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Steve needs to thank the follow people for having played a part in the build. Firstly Bobby Stojanovic who originally built the car, Anthony Tyrrell for sorting out the engine combo and specs, Matt Scala for his patience in built the engine, Daniel D’aran for the rear end and fabrication work, Oak Flats Muffler Men, BG Engines for the dyno, Jason at TCE Converters, Dave Cornford at DRC Group and Tickners Automotive in Oak Flats for the use of the workshop whilst all of this was happening. The car simply wouldn’t be as good as it is without the help these people offered. Now, to find more time to hit the road with the family…

BRIGHT IDEA

2018 BRIGHT’S ICONIC ROD RUN - PICS - VINCENT DE ROSSI - WORDS - PAUL BECK

Staged by the Bright Rod & Kustom Club Inc, the iconic Bright Rod Run is one of those must do events – if you can find some accommodation…

2018 marked the 28th running of the run, which sees all manner of vehicles converge on the small tourist town on the fringe of the snowy mountains.

Being held in November each year, the town comes alive and is the perfect backdrop for having fun in custom cars. For entrants, the only stipulation is that your vehicle must have been made prior to 1977.

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The emphasis is placed heavily on cruising and having a great time with modified cars. The town is filled to capacity with all kinds of cool cars, all eager just to idle around town...

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Hundreds of cars and thousands of people travelled from all over in 2018 to take part in the Bright Rod Run, which left accommodation scarce at best.

In the early days, this event was open to Pre ’48 cars only, but after a number of years, the event organisers decided that the event needed to expand and now it’s open to everything made prior to 1977. The extended entry base means a greater diversity of vehicles making the trip to Bright each November.

The emphasis is placed heavily on cruising and having a great time with modified cars. The town is filled to capacity with all kinds of cool cars, all eager just to idle around town to show off their goods to those people who have found a spot to kick back and enjoy the passing parade.

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2018 marked the 28th running of the run, which sees all manner of vehicles converge on the small tourist town on the fringe of the snowy mountains.

WINNERS ARE GRINNERS! Best Rod

152 - Ashley Ayling AIK 197 - Orange 5W 32 Ford.

Best Classic

376 – Lenny Bunalaturi – 91869 - HT Premier Wagon

Best Custom

047 – Mark Bonanno - 00715M - 1965 XP Falcon

Best Muscle

351 – Sergio Ciccotelli - HMI 420 - Plymouth Cuda

Best Rat Rod

166 - Ian Thomsen - ARO 348 – Ford F6 1951 Green

Best (almost) Vintage

211- Rod Hatfield 1535-SR 34 Ford Green 56

Best Original

481 – David Richards – 05849-H HK Monaro Cream

Best of the Rest

730755-H - HX GTS Monaro Yellow

Best Club Display

Southern Hot Rod Club

Policemans Choice

154 - Brue Rhue - U4RIA Ford 34 Coupe Gold

Presidents Choice

370 – Joe Xuerub 22416-H - XB Ford Coupe Yellow

Peoples Choice

17 – David MAIOLO – COOL 41 – 1941 Willys Coupe Orange

Best in Show

436 - Laurie Grima – PRO-556 - 1956 Chev 210

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Apart from the cruising around town on the dedicated cruise circuit, the Bright program also includes a Show ‘n’ Shine (held on the Sunday at the Bright Football Ground), Pin-Up Competition, Swap meet, lots of Live Music a d Poker Run and plenty of traders on hand.

Hundreds of cars and thousands of people travelled from all over in 2018 to take part in the Bright Rod Run, which left accommodation scarce at best. So much so, that I know of people who were staying in Albury and travelling quite a distance each day to be part of the event.

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I have my name down at several places in Bright hoping to get somewhere to stay in the town (or close to it) for the 2019 event. Like thousands of others before me, I too want to take in this Iconic event. I guess time will tell…

“NO ONE KNOWS YOUR There’s so many great events staged right around the country, and getting to them all is damn near impossible. But time after time, all I hear is, “you have to get to Bright!” Well, this year I am determined to get there, even if it means making the trek in from as far away as Wodonga.

P A S S I O N L I K E S H A N N O N S.”

Having said that, I have my name down at several places in Bright hoping to get somewhere to stay in the town (or close to it) for the 2019 event. Like thousands of others 60 before me, I too want to take in this Iconic event.

Shannons insurance is for motoring enthusiasts just like you, with features like: n Choice of repairer n Agreed value n Multi-Vehicle & Multi-Policy discounts n Limited Use & Club Plate cover n Laid up cover n One excess free windscreen claim per year n Total Loss Salvage options n Home Contents Insurance including $10,000 enthusiast cover for your collectables & tools n Towing & storage costs as a result of loss or damage n Pay by the month premiums at no extra cost Call Shannons on 13 46 46 for a quote on your special car, daily drive, bike or your home, and speak with a genuine enthusiast.

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JOHN THOMPSON - 1933 SPEEDSTER COUPE - PICS & WORDS - PAUL BECK

Doin It

TOUGH!

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When John Thompson started the build on his unique ’33 Speedster, he had a firm plan in place. Even though the trend has changed to more traditional styled Hot Rod’s, Thommo has stayed true to his original build them.

The problem you face when building a highend custom car to current trends is that though trends can change rapidly, and if you’re planning on a multi-year build, you’d better be prepared to either continue on your chosen path or stop the build and follow whatever trend is flavour of the month. Thommo, thankfully, had gone too far to change his ways. His ’33 Speedster was going to be tough. Don’t like it, he couldn’t care less!

Already the owner of a traditional-styled ’33 Ford Tudor, which he has owned for over 25-years, Thommo wanted something different for his new build. Having seen the Speedster bodies on offer from Rats Glass Bodies and knowing they aren’t as common as your run of the mill three-window Coupes, the decision was made to bring one in from the US and get cracking on the build.

The body was sent to Rod City Repros where the boys set about building the custom chassis for the Speedster body. Overall, the chassis was 4.5-inches longer than what they are used to making in their jig to suit the unique style of the Rats Glass body.

Before copping the same colour as the body, the chassis was fitted with an independent front end and modified Corvette independent rear. Aldan coil-over shocks feature on each corner as do disc brakes and multi-spot Wilwood calipers. At the time of ordering the body, the trend was to add big diametre wheels, so Thommo ordered a set of 18x8 and 20x10-inch Boyd billet rollers to compliment the style of build he was chasing.

Whilst many may think this style is no longer relevant, take a look at the profile of the coupe and tell me this would look better with 15-inch wheels!

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In a scene where the ’33 and ’34 Ford three-window coupe is in abundance, it’s quite refreshing to see a swoopy coupe like this.

(1) Orange, orange everywhere! It’s almost a citrous overload! Thommo always wanted to have the interior match the body colour and he got exacty that! Even the fuel cell is wrapped in leather. (2) The 18-inch Boyds wheels on the front compliment the body colour and work in with the stainless grille and billet headlights to break up the Orange.

(3) Forget about adding the bonnet! Once the hole is cut for the blower and twin carbs, there would be nothing left to latch down. And besides, when you’ve got a blown big block up front, you want the world to see it in all its glory! (4) Its the little details that 65 make the difference when building a car of this calibre. In amonsgt the orange leather on the front seats hides the electric window switches.

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

Thommo always wanted a blown engine and what better engine to add a blower to than a big block Chev? OK, maybe a Hemi, but you’d have to sell your first born to finance that build! The Chev started with 454-cubes, but thanks to the Dart block having the bores opened up and fitted with a Lunati crank and rod combo, the capacity now sits at a respectable 540ci. A pair of Patriot alloy heads complete the long engine.

(1)

Now at this stage, Thommo could have bolted on a single Holley carb, added a bonnet and sat back and thought, “That looks cool!” But he wanted tough, so a 6/71 Weiand Blower topped with two 850dp Quick Fuel carbs was the order for the day. Nothing screams performance more than a blower hanging through the bonnet. Speaking of which, there wouldn’t have been much of a bonnet left so Thommo decided again fitting one at all.

(1)The uncluttered interior is pretty spacious for a coupe.

Using a column-mounted shifter helped increase the leg room around the now bare trans tunnel. (2) Purchased when the build first started, the 18” and 20” Boyds Billet wheels were three times the price they are now. Still, they suit the style of the Coupe perfectly. (3) Nothing screams for attention more than a polished blower and two carbs sitting A complete ICE ignition system puts the fire in the big block’s atop a big block! (4) The AutoMeter gauges each perform belly and after the spark ignites, a pair of mild steel headers send multiple tasks to keep Thommo up to date with the latest the gases out the back through a dual 3-inch system. On the dyno, happenings.

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the engine produced around 800hp on a mild tune. That’s more than enough power for Thommo to enjoy and keeps the engine package reliable for regular driving.

(2)

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A built Turbo 400 auto backs the blown big block and sends it rearward to the custom-built Corvette independent rear end – one of just three such units built by the team at Rod City Repros.

In a scene where the ’33 and ’34 Ford three-window coupe is in abundance, it’s quite refreshing to see a swoopy coupe like this.

It’s smooth and stylish, yet is about as far left of centre as you can go. From the angle of the grille, to the stretched front with its filled sides and no bonnet and severely lowered roof line, the ’33 Speedster body is a head turner.

There was a considerable amount of work to get the fibreglass sorted and ready for paint – another painstakingly long period of time which saw the coupe move around a bit to get the job done right. With the body working tools finally finished with, Thommo turned to Matt J to lay on the custom PPG “Carrot Gold” paint to the body, chassis and associated components.

Inside, it’s a continuation of the body colour with Orange lather added to the custom bench seat, roof lining, door trims and floor. The polished tilt steering column is topped with a billet wheel which is also covered in, yep you guessed it, Orange leather! To keep the floor space uncluttered, Thommo decided to use a column mounted shifter to select the gears. The dash house just two round AutoMeter gauges, with both offering multi-functions. Again, the minimalistic approach is a winner.

(3)

(4)

Those with a keen eye would have spotted the electric window switches mounted into the centre of the seat for easy reach and a cleaner look. And just for good measure, there’s a pair of lap seat belts, again in Orange. The interior, like the outside of the Speedster is bright and when going for a cruise, dark sunglasses are a preferred option!

You don’t just slap together Hot Rods of this calibre. They take time, care and money – lots and lots of money. Thommo knew what he was in for when he first decided to tackle a project of this magnitude.

He knew what he wanted and it was going to take as long as it had to, to bring his dream into reality. The build period was a bit longer than he expected. Actually, it was a lot longer than he expected. From the time the body arrived until the day it scored rego, some 14-years had passed. It just goes to show that if you’re passionate about something, you’ll do whatever it takes to make it happen.

With that said, Thommo has been making noises about parting company with the low-slung coupe. If you’ve got a bucket load of cash laying around, give him a call – 0435 295347. It’s not going to be cheap, but damn its oh-so-cool!

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Thommo always wanted a blown engine and what better engine to add a blower to than a big block Chev? OK, maybe a Hemi, but you’d have to sell your first born to finance that build!

Thommo wants to acknowledge those that had a hand in the build process through-out the years. They are: first and foremost, my wife Carol for her patience and understanding; Matty J for the paint; Trim by Shaun for the interior; Les Rinnie and Arthur Gobbal for the body work; Perfection Automotive for the engine build; Kane Fattorini, Phillip Hopkins. This build is dedicated to Thommo’s late friend Lisa Monahan “who got me to start it in the beginning.”

This page is for all ASRF related happenings and information and will become a regular page in Killer Rides with input from thise within the ASRF. If you have something to add, email it to paul@killerrides.com.au or send info and images via our Facebook page.

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Thommo, thankfully, had gone too far to change his ways. His ’33 Speedster was going to be tough.

Don’t like it, he couldn’t care less!

For more information Please contact Lyndon Lewis 0417 752738

Those not making the trek to Maryborough for the Nationals are invited to take part in the Easter in the Hawksbury event.

Staged by the Macquarie Towns Club at the Clarendon Showgrounds, the low key event is all about having fun with Hot 71 Rods. For further information, contact Joe or Linda Farrugia on (0414) 770423

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Don’t forget to check out regular updates at www.asrf.org.au

NO EXCUSES #1 HEAD’S UP DRAG RACING - DECEMBER 1ST - BALLARAT AIRPORT - HOSTED BY RADIAL LIFE PICS - Lauren @ Xposed Photography - WORDS - Paul Beck

R U O Y P E E K

!

S E S U EXC

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Proving that the Radial Drag Racing movement is evolving in leaps and bounds, a heap of tough cars headed out to Ballarat Airport for the staging of the first No Excuses Heads-Up Radial Drag Racing event sponsored by World Advertising and run by Radial Life in conjunction with the Ballarat Drag Racing Club.

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By all accounts, the first Radial meet held on the airstrip was a complete success. The crew from the Ballarat Drag Racing Club are to be commended on the way the prepped the track, and essentially ran the meet. There were people setting personal best times on the somewhat sticky airstrip surface.

The classes were determined by the tyre size – can’t get any fairer than that.

If you overpowered your tyre and got beaten, then your tyres are obviously too small and as the event suggest, there’s just No Excuses…

Essentially there were three classes – 235, 275 and 325. Each group attracted plenty of competition, all eager to score the bragging rights at the end of the day. Let’s check out who won what!

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The first event was a complete success for all involved.

Around 1000-spectators came out to the event to show their support and see some fast, close racing on the day.

There was also a variety of other awards on offer including Promoters choice that was awarded to Daniel Pantelic’s Mazda RX4. The Fastest Ford trophy was presented to Bassem Taha who bought his FG Falcon all the way from NSW and ran a best of 6.20. For the Holden guys, the Fastest Holden award went to Kai McPhee who ran a best of 5.66 in his VC Commodore which also happened to be the fastest pass of the day!

Other awards included; Fastest 6 cyl - Jason Ruby S13 Silvia 5.69, Fastest 8 cyl - Kai McPhee VC Commodore 5.66, Fastest 4WD - Jason Ruby S13 Silva 5.69, Best Burnout - Jason Ruby S13 Silvia and Quickest NA - Adrian Cassar VL BT1 V8.

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WINNERS ARE GRINNERS TUNERS EDGE 235 CLASS

1st Anthony Didonato Toyota Soarer 2nd Ari Pegios VZ SS Commodore

REFINED CAR DETAILING 275 CLASS 1st Matt Brame LH Torana 2nd Brad Kelly VZ SS Ute

GRIMM INDUSTRIES 325 1st Jason Ruby S13 Silvia 2nd Sam Elhaouli LH Torana

The crew from the Ballarat Drag Racing Club are to be commended on the way they prepped the track, and essentially ran the meet. There were people setting personal best times on the somewhat sticky airstrip surface.

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Of course, no event can happen without the support of great sponsors and this one was no different. To the naming Rights sponsor, World Advertising, thanks for taking the leap of faith and supporting the First No Excuses Drag Event.

Thanks also go to the category sponsors; Tuners Edge (235 class), Refined Car Detailing (275 class) and Grimm Industries (325 class).

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Essentially there were three classes – 235, 275 and 325.

Each group attracted plenty of competition, all eager to score the bragging rights at the end of the day.

Other sponsors that also helped out with the event were Race Parts Melbourne, Beat the Heat, Glossworks Paint and Panel, Shine on Metal Polishing and Fabrication, Pro Shine Car Detailing, Torqueline Garage, Adelaide VL DNA and Preston Wheels and Tyres. Thanks to you all!

The first event was a complete success for all involved. Around 1000-spectators came out to the event to show their support and see some fast, close racing on the day. And although only 47 of the pre-entered 70 cars turned up to race, this gave the those that were ready to race, much more 80 track time and even allowed for some call-outs!

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The classes were determined by the tyre size – can’t get any fairer than that. If you overpowered your tyre and got beaten, then your tyres are obviously too small and as the event suggest, there’s just No Excuses…

For the Holden guys, the Fastest Holden award went to Kai McPhee who ran a best of 5.66 in his VC Commodore which also happened to be the fastest pass of the day!

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Planning has already begun for the 2nd event with some changes being made to the event to make it even more enticing for racers. An announcement will be made soon! The guys are also looking at adding more prize money as well! So, when entry forms become available, make sure you get in early to secure your sport at the second No Excuse Radial Drag Meet bought to you by World Advertising and Radial Life. Bring it on!

138 DUNSTERS LANE, CROOM, NSW 2527 20-minutes South of Wollongong

The organisers wish to send out a massive thank you to the Ballarat Drag Racing club. Without their professionalism and dedication, the event simply would not have run as smoothly as it did. Big thanks also goes to Aaron Mackley, for doing an outstanding job on the PA all day. Aaron is more familiar with the Burnout Scene but did a great job entertaining and informing the crowd on the day. Rumour has it too, that he is considering doing some Radial racing in the near future…allegedly…

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Of course, no event can happen without the support of great sponsors and this one was no different. To the naming Rights sponsor, World Advertising, thanks for taking the leap of faith and supporting the First No Excuses Drag Event.

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MOBILE 0418 431518

HISTORY

BRIAN BENNETT - HQ HOLDEN 1-TONNER WORDS & PICS - PAUL BECK

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Found languishing in a shed for years, the ex-C&V Performance Tonner is set to make a comeback – nitrous big block and all!

Brian Bennett grew tired of racing his 6-sec Supercharged Outlaws Dragster after a string of transmission breakages and went looking for a tough street car that was capable of mixing it with the best on both the street and strip.

In particular, he was looking for a one-tonner, and after asking some people in the know if there was anything available, he was told about a HQ tonner located in a Maroubra.

When he arrived at the house and opened up the garage, Brian couldn’t believe his eyes. There it was. Covered in ten years of dust and sporting four flat tyres. It was the iconic C&V Performance one-tonner that was, back in the day, the toughest one-tonner around. Then it disappeared. The chances of Brian finding it left to deteriorate in a suburban garage, would have been one thousand to one. Call it what you like, but fate decided Brian was to become the new owner. Eerily, Brian had previously spent some time working at C&V (1) Performance as a mechanic.

(2) (1) The 572ci big block is good for around 850hp aspirated. Flick the swicth on the nitrous though and its considerably more! (2) The isolator switch for the battery is located next to the left side head lamp. (3) The big block has two nitrous kits on offer. There’s the basic plate system and a direct-port Fogger kit for that extra punch when needed. (4) Those two-tone blue stripes make this one-tonner instantly recognisable to anyone who has been around the performance car scene since the mid 80’s.

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(3)

(4)

When he arrived at the house and opened up the garage, Brian couldn’t believe his eyes. There it was. Covered in ten years of dust and sporting four flat tyres. It was the iconic C&V Performance Tonner that was, back in the day, the toughest one-tonner around.

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The tonner always had a stout, nitrous big block in it, so Brian decided to pay homage to its history and build up a similar engine package to put back in. Starting with a Merlin 3 block, Brian pieced the engine together using a Crower 4.5” stroker crank, 6.8” Oliver steel rods, CP forged pistons and a Crane solid roller cam and lifter combo. With a capacity of 572 cubic inches, the tough bottom end was the perfect foundation.

A pair of Pro-Flo prepped Edelbrock alloy heads were soon to join the short motor, along with a Merlin “X” intake manifold and single, 1150cfm Dominator carb. Custom headers take care of the gases and dump into a dual 3-inch exhaust system. Providing the spark to light the big blocks fire is an MSD 7AL ignition system. If the expected 850hp isn’t enough, there’s a couple of shots of Nitrous (both plate and fogger systems) to call on when needed. That should be more than enough to get the Ute moving at a rapid rate once again…

A Bill Taylor-cased Powerglide is mated to the fat block and uses a TCE 5000rpm converter to get the revs up quickly when that green bulb flashes. As you’d expect, there’s a narrowed 9-inch diff under the tubbed alloy tray which houses race-ready 4.56-gears and 31-spline axles.

Being a straight-line performance car, the suspension set up isn’t what you’d call fancy, but it is functional. Up front, there’s a pair of 90/10 shocks whilst the rear 90 uses modified leaf springs and Koni shocks.

Working with the parachute to pull up after a run is a HQ disc and Ford drum braking combo. A Wilwood master-cylinder makes sure the brakes work when the pedal is jumped on. The familiar Cragar wheels have been retained and measure 15x4.5” on the nose and a massive 15x15” where to power gets sent to the ground.

The Tonner had been hidden away for so long, that the dust settled on it had disguised the colour of the paint. Once removed from its previous hole, Brian gave the HQ a hose down, but it was obvious the body and paint were going to need some work. At that stage, it could have been given any colour, but this is the C&V Ute, so Brian decided it was time for history to make a comeback.

The cab and front end were treated to a new coat of black paint, with the C&Vspec two-tone blue stripes added by Conrad Jones at the Sign Shop.

Inside, is all business. The race-themed interior includes a pair of RPM seats, Simpson harness belts and a full roll cage. A MOMO steering wheel sits ahead of a full-alloy dash that houses a few important AutoMeter dials, even more important warning lights and a panel of switches. The interior will never win a Top Interior at a show, but that’s not what it’s built for. Horses for courses for sure…

The tonner always had a stout, nitrous big block in it, so Brian decided to pay homage to its history and build up a similar engine package to put back in.

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The build period has been a labour of love for Brian and it’s a (1) road he has travelled down many times before. The HQ is far from being the first car he has rebuilt, having previously occupied the driver’s seat of the already mentioned Dragster, but also a 7-second, nitrous-big block Walkinshaw Commodore and an 11-sec street version of the same car.

With the tonner, he wanted to return to his roots of racing a street-style car that requires minimum upkeep but provides maximum fun. With that said, the HQ made its reappearance onto the scene at Summernats 32 with plans already in place to attend such events as Powercruise during 2019 too. But (2) primarily, Brian is itching to get back onto that 1320ft of bitumen at Sydney Dragway. And how cool will it be to see that car make passes down the quarter once again?

Brian wants to extend a big thank you to the following people for their part in bringing the Tonner back to life. They are; Paul Sant (Pro-Flo), John Coolbanis (CB Performance), John Rigatus, Big Leo (BL Automotive), George, Steve, Conrad (Sign Shop) and my wife Melia for being a bigger rev-head than me…

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(3) (1) The big block engine looks even fatter from above with the single , 1150cfm Dominator carb , shall I say, dominating the view!

(2) The 15x15-inch Cragar wheels are shod with impressive 33-inch tall Mickey Thompson treaded tyres . Obviously these will be swapped for slicks when the racing campaign begins later this year. (3) It’s all business from the rear view of the tubbed tonner. The big rubber, parachute, twin-nitrous bottles and tubbed tray all lead to one impres93 sion - this is one bad Mother of a pickup!

THE HISTORY

With the tonner, he wanted to return to his roots of racing a street-style car that requires minimum upkeep but provides maximum fun...

In the mid 80-s, Con and Vic Elfes opened C&V Performance, a Sydneybased performance workshop that, as history now shows, has built some of the toughest street and strip cars in the country. Whilst in the early stages of their business, the brothers had two, one-tonners built – a street and a strip version. Both looked the same and both ran nitrous engine combos. From the early days racing at Oran Park on the 1000ft track, the Tonners helped make C&V Performance a household name within the performance car fraternity. Brian will continue to campaign the familiar street-tonner as much as he can. Stay tuned on the progress…

MEAN k a e r St 94

TYLER ROBERTS – VE VALIANT SEDAN WORDS & PICS – Paul Beck

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As a 15-year old, Tyler Roberts purchased this Valiant with the intentions of building himself his first car. Eleven years later, that Valiant is about to hit the drag strip in anger!

Pristine is not a word you’d use to describe Tyler’s Valiant. Tough? Hell yeah. A little rugged around the edges?

For sure. Built with a Purpose? Definitely…

Before we get to the hero of this car – the wild 225ci slant-six, let’s talk about the elephant in the room. That colour. Well, the bottom half to start with. There’s no way to sugar coat it. There’s no candies, no pearls and definitely no custom mix to speak of. It’s, well…Brown. To be more precise, Berger Brown. Although the Mopar paint controllers in the 60’s came up with some killer colours, Berger Brown is not one of them. Covering an aging body that has had a harder life than anyone living in the Bronx, the colour stayed simply because changing it would have taken money away from the most important thing for Tyler – extracting as much horsepower from the six-pack as he could.

The roof, well, that’s another story. The car had lived a considerable amount of time on the side streets of inner-city Sydney, ferrying the then owner to and from questionable deals done in back alleys… Being out in the weather meant the Berger Brown roof was showing bad signs of fading. A tongue-in-check comment from a mate about painting the roof in heavy metal flake resulted in what you see here. The taillight panel also scored the same colour. Love it or hate it, it certainly stands out! The parachute and adjustable rear wing are necessary for Tyler to get down the quarter quickly and safely and give the Valant a race car look – a long way from its humble beginnings as a family hack.

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Moving inside, it’s about as minimalistic as you can get. The factory interior is long gone and is probably now landfill somewhere. Tyler simply has no use for any other seat other than the lightweight Kirkey that puts him in front of the steering wheel. Just rear of that Sparco wheel sits a Microtech digital screen that feeds Tyler all the vital information he needs during each pass down the quarter mile.

There’s a mass of roll cage fitted for obvious reasons and a carbon fibre panel stretching across the insides of the passenger doors that holds all the electronics needed to light the slant six’s fire and keep the spark burning bright.

Like the exterior, the Valliant’s internal space is all business. If it’s not needed to get the old girl down the strip as quickly as possible, then it simply got removed and tossed in the bin marked “never to be used again.” So, all of this gear would be pointless if Tyler had just slotted a stock engine into the engine bay. Thankfully he didn’t, opting to build the mother of all slant-sixes!

It’s obvious that Tyler wanted this Valiant to be something a little left of centre. Ok, maybe a lot left of centre, but you get the idea. The plan of running a turbo and EFI 225ci slant-six wouldn’t have been the first choice for many people. In fact, probably no one else would have gone down that road, but that’s what makes this Valiant a stand out. It’s all about daring to be different!

Tyler built the six-pack himself, knowing full well that the supply of parts that he needed to build the most extreme slat six ever, were going to be hard to find, if not impossible in some cases. Never the less, he was up for the challenge.

The cylinder head is a cast iron factory unit that has been given the full treatment by Andrew Sanders and sits on top of a grout-filled factory block. But its inside that block where things get interesting.

Tyler added a factory forged crank and mated it with Carillo rods, forged JE gas ported and coated pistons and JE Pro-Seal rings. The cam and lifter combo are solid items with the cam having a 600-thou lift. Other items used to complete the long engine include a custom crank girdle, 98 billet main caps, an Avaid external oil pump, Meziere water pump and a custom baffled and gated sump. Pretty serious stuff!

If the long engine is serious, then the bolt-on accessories are down-right hard-core. Induction wise, the Aussie Speed long-runner intake manifold plays host to no less than six Bosch ID2200 injectors, a Shaun’s Custom Alloy intake “elbow” and a 102mm Holley Sniper EFI throttle body.

The single most important part under the bonnet is the SX300 Borg Warner turbo charger. Mounted on a Maven Performance Billet mount, the turbo has a 70mm billet wheel, 1.05AR T4 housing that dumps into a 3.5-inch stainless dump pipe. A Turbo-Smart Pro-Gate 50 is added and controlled by a Microtech C02 booster controller.

Firing the stout six-pack is the job for ECU through the six LS-coil packs mounted to the inner guard and a cranktrigger. And once the spark is ignited and the big bang happens, the gases are sent out to the world via a six-intoone stainless headers system that exit through the passenger front guard.

It’s obvious that Tyler wanted this Valiant to be something a little left of centre. Ok, maybe a lot left of centre, but you get the idea.

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At the time of doing the shoot, Tyler hadn’t had the engine on the dyno, but they are expecting big things from the relatively small cube six cylinder. “We are hopeful of around 600-650hp from the set-up we have. Just how long it lasts is anyone’s guess,” Tyler added.

The rest of the driveline consists of a 904 Torqueflite that has been rollerised and fitted with a transbrake, billet everything and an SDE converter. The diff isn’t a nine-inch! Tyler opted for a strengthened Borg-Warner 78 to take the brunt of all that horsepower. The rear end features 3.5-gears and 31-spline billet Moser axles. The entire driveline has been pieced together to be used and abused on a regular basis.

100 In behind the black Weld Magnum wheels sits a fairly basic suspension and braking arrangement. The factory torsion bar front remains in place and is fitted with Gazzard Bros Afco shocks. Wilwood discs provide the stopping power on the front. Down the back, there’s a pair of split mono leaf’s, Gazzard Bros’ Afco shocks and BA Falcon Discs.

Tyler, his Dad Brett, brother Liam and best mate Joey have spent around two years on this build – its third re-incarnation. Of course, there are other people involved and Tyler wants to say a big thank you to Jon Blanch from Microtech, Andrew Sanders, Scott Cortina from Gazzard Bros’, Aaron from APM and Mario Milleto from Rocket for helping to source parts. Tyler also wanted to say a special thanks to his wife Michaela for her patience whilst he plays cars with the boys.

So, from here there’s just a few more things to tidy up before the Valiant hits the strip in anger. We’ll be sure to let you know how it all goes…

Before we get to the hero of this car – the wild 225ci slant-six, let’s talk about the elephant in the room. That colour. Well, the bottom half to start with. There’s no way to sugar coat it. There’re no candies, no pearls and definitely no custom mix to speak of. It’s, well…Brown.

BUILD

PARTNERS

www.gazzardbrothers.com.au gazzardbrothers@hotmail.com

Scott - 0416 753 011 / Paul - 0402 579 450

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Killer Pic

CRUISING

! n i a R e In th

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It’s only a little bit of water! Larry Larson couldn’t care what the weather was doing when he took part in the Hot Rod Drag Week in his nasty Nova! Here’s proof that you can cruise a genuine 6-sec Street Car in any weather!

SAVING THE BEST JAF’S LAST CRUISE

PICS – JOE CRISPIN / WORDS – PAUL BECK

For Last

For 16 years, Jaf’s Last Cruise has been the only way to see out the old year with thousands of like-minded mates in their cars.

Make no mistake about it, the South Australian car scene is flourishing. It’s a hot bed of tough street machines, big-blocked American Muscle Cars and lowriding Classic cruisers. Yes, most of them roll on satin finish Centerline wheels, but the variety of the cars on the road is staggering. Traditionally, the cruise was held on the last possible night of the year with a day off for most the next day. With that falling on Boxing day a few times, many were keen for it to remain on that day. So for now, it’s boxing day.

Now affectionately known as Jaf’s Last Cruise, the event started as a few mates getting together via an SMS message. That first cruise 104 ended up with 300 cars from around 80 messages. As with any gathering of that size, the Police were in attendance as well, but instead of hassling the group, they helped disperse the cruise from the K-Mart Kurralta Park carpark.

The cruise outgrew that venue and moved to K-Mart in Port Adelaide where there was much more room to use as a starting point.

This served the cruise well for a few years, but with the popularity of the cruise gaining momentum, a new starting point was sought when the numbers exceeded 600 cars!

West Lakes became the new meeting place, and by now, the cruise had gained much more exposure and cars were travelling in from other states to take part. But, after Boom gates were installed, the cruise once again, went looking for a new place to begin the cruise from. The cruise then moved to Tea Tree Plaza, where the massive carpark (one of the largest in SA) offered enough space…or so they thought. A few years back, that area was not only filled to capacity, but also overflowed into nearby Civic Park and Modbury Triangle Shop areas. That meant that over 4000 cars had turned up for the cruise creating a certain amount of chaos for the organisers. This year also saw a change in SA shopping laws which saw the start of Boxing day trading, which put paid to the use of any shopping centre carpark for the meeting point. Through a friend of a friend, the guys were given a phone number of a guy who had a phone number to contact the ex-Holdens site management. A deal was done and the 2018 starting point was sorted.

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The cruise route runs along the most popular part of Adelaide to cruise, the coastline. People now line the road side along the route to watch the cars cruise past, many set up with a BBQ and esky to create a great atmosphere. The main organiser, Andrew Staples, said they purposely promote for people to watch from the sidelines to ease the congestion at the starting point.

Those interested, can then join in at any point to take part.

The finishing point at Marion easily accommodates the number of vehicles taking part in the cruise each year and never provides any hassles. There were issues with motorbike riders limiter bashing and fools exhaust popping scaring little kids, but thanks to the power of social media and the SA Police, these minimal problems have been eradicated over the years.

Jaf’s Last Cruise has now grown into becoming one of South Australia’s largest modified car events, if not, the largest! There’s no discrimination between brands on the cruise either, everyone is welcome to attend. It’s 106 also a Charity event now, with all funds raised on the day being donated to needy organisations.

107 The SA Police have been involved for many, many years now and we have worked together on routes that work and minimalise any traffic delays. They change light sequences and assist with entry/exit when needed. As with any modified car event of this size, there’s bound to be a defect or two and 90% of owners have acknowledged that they knew the risk and cop it sweet.

This year was the largest police presence seen at the cruise. They attend to keep an eye on unruly behaviour, and there’s always a minority who want to act like clowns and ruin it for people having a sensible good night.

Jaf’s Last Cruise has now grown into becoming one of South Australia’s largest modified car events, if not, the largest!

The cruise has always been free to attend and the organisers have just worn the minimal costs over the years. Around $3000 was raised this year for Containers of Hope. A group who send 40ft containers to places like schools in Kenya. They’ll take any donations, but the organizer told the group about a college in Adelaide that replaced and their desks and chairs. They packed them all up and shipped them to Africa so kids weren’t sitting and writing in the dirt.

Sponsors also played a part in this year’s event to help cover the costs, including Toilets and security. The guys want to offer many thanks to Shannons Insurance, AMA Security and Adelaide Motorsport Fabrication for their support. The Street Machine Association of SA are also now a part of the event and helped out with volunteers and being on their calender, it was cover by insurance also.

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Make no mistake about it, the South Australian car scene is flourishing. It’s a hot bed of tough street machines, big-blocked American Muscle Cars and low-riding Classic cruisers.

With temps pushing 40deg on the day, understandably numbers were down at the start with (only) 1300 cars meeting at the start. There would have been more than this parked along the route with deck chairs, BBQ’s with lots of them joining us at the Marion shopping centre end point.

This year’s cruise was literally organized in under a week and simply wouldn’t have been possible without some amazing people offering to volunteer to help - many in the searing heat to marshal cars and sell drinks. A big thumbs up to those great people as well as Andrew’s friends to help out leading up to, and109 on the day! Andrew wanted to single out his partner Meegan for her part in making the cruise happen. An event this size doesn’t happen by itself, it takes a group of dedicated people to put together and Andrew wants to thank you all. Bring on 2019’s Last Cruise!

Window Shopping

BOOSTane – HORSEPOWER IN A BOTTLE

BOOSTane makes it easy to convert your regular pump fuel to a much higher octane, all from the safety and convenience of a small bottle in your boot area whenever you need it. Some older cars need it for poor detonation others want the Horsepower benefit. Whatever the reasons, it’s never been easier to treat you ride with the fuel it deserves. In most cases, gains of up to 116 Octane have been seen. Distributed within Australia by the team at Ziggys Design Driven, BOOSTane is the easiest way to unleash your engines horsepower potential. Contact Ziggy now on (0409) 737710 for more info or jump onto the BOOSTane Australia Facebook page for more info.

GET FUELLED UP AT SPEEDPRO

Roo 99 is a cost-effective, unleaded replacement for Avgas & PULP 98.

Compared with other 100 octane racing fuels that only have a Motor Octane of 89. Roo 99 has a Motor Octane of 93.5, this fuel will keep your engine safe while making maximum power on the track.

Power Gains: Roo 99 will give you up to 3% more power than AVGAS. Tuning Tips: For maximum power, VP recommend a fuel increase of 1-3%.

Homologated with Motorcycling Australia for use in 2019.

110 Motor Octane Research Octane Specific Gravity RVP Oxygen Content Fuel Type

93.5 99.5 0.712 6.7 3.7% Unleaded

This space is reserved for those companies that advertise within Killer Rides. To have your products shown here, call Paul on (0432) 795336 or email: paul@killerrides. com.au to discuss your advertising needs!

SHRINKER STRETCHERS FOR ALL BUDGETS FROM METALMAN TOOLS

AUSTRALIAN MADE COILS SPRINGS FROM LOVELLS SUSPENSION

Whether you want to lower your street car or improve the handling on your tow car, Lovells has the suspension upgrade for you! Lovells have 111 been the leaders in suspension ugrades since 1930 with their all Australian made coil and leaf springs. Lovells springs are used in many of Australia’s legendary Performance cars including Burnout Masters Gary and Jake Myers Mustang’s and Peter Fitzpatrick’s multi-Summernats Grand Champion FC Holden.

Metal Man Tools are now offering 3 Shrinker Stretcher models to suit all metal fabricators budgets. Firstly there is the smaller bench mount, lever operated units sold as a pair for the home builder and also the sturdy foot operated stand that can be added to the bench mount units (shown in the picture) and the professional unit for the serious home builder and larger volume fabricators. All models come with both shrinking and stretching jaws and are extremely effective and easy to use although the foot operated units do make the larger work pieces easier to manage by freeing both hands to

hold the work.

For more information or a catalogue and price list on these or the many other products from Metal Man Tools simply phone 0447- 406980 or email sales@metalmantools.com.au or check out their website www.metalmantools.com.au

So when you need to replace your suspension, do what the champions do and use Lovells Automotive Systems components. To find a stockist near you, jump onto the website; www.lovells auto.com.au

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