FAMILY FIRST

BUILDING THIS TOUGH, PURPLE, BARRA-POWERED VC VALIANT HAS REACQUAINTED THE PETERS CLAN WITH THEIR CAR ENTHUSIAST ROOTS

The build of this stunning Barra-powered Valiant was very much a family affair

NATHAN Peters’s race-spec Barraswapped VC Valiant was borne from a want to bring his tight-knit family even closer together. “My parents, daughters and I have been around the drags our whole lives; it’s part of us,” Nathan says. “So in mid 2017 my dad Peter and I felt that it was time to get back on the track and to other events, instead of being spectators.”

Father and son were keen to build a ride worthy of cutting decent quarters while also being a turn-key family cruiser that would hold its own in the show arena. Nathan has owned the VC for two decades but it’d been off the road a while. An epic comeback was planned – this time it’d be stripped bare then finished to a superior standard with a bunch of fresh driveline upgrades.

At the project’s core is Ford’s venerable Barra six, and there was sensible reasoning behind the decision to bolt it under the bonnet.

“To swap out the 225ci slant for a smallblock Chrysler was about $30,000, for around 600hp at the flywheel,” Nathan says. “But my old daily, a slightly modified BA Falcon Series II Turbo, made nearly 500hp,

plus I could drive it everywhere. And as Dad and I are both Ford and Chrysler men, we said to each other: ‘Righto, let’s do it.’ So yeah, adding a Barra was going to upset a few purists but it’s 2019, everyone is putting LS in everything, so why not?”

A mate at a local Ford dealer gave them a good price on a new F6 turbo long motor, which they’ve kept relatively stock. Only the turbo and head acquired upgrades, while the lot will run on a flex fuel arrangement. Behind they’ve added a stout manualised Reid TH400 with 3500rpm converter and a transbrake, feeding down to a Competition Engineering sheet-metal nine-inch.

While it may look like an easy enough fit, slotting a Barra into a car that’s over four decades old and of another make was never going to be straightforward.

“After the dummy fit of the motor, the sump was notched out to go around the VK Commodore steering rack,” Nathan says. They also strengthened the K-frame and uprated the brakes before sending the project out for the heavy lifting.

“Johnny at Monro Racecars did his magic on it, he has amazing talent,” Nathan says.

ADDING A BARRA WAS GOING TO UPSET A FEW PURISTS BUT IT’S 2019, EVERYONE IS PUTTING LS IN EVERYTHING, SO WHY NOT?

John fabricated the engine mounts and trans crossmember, re-shaped the trans tunnel, notched the firewall and built the fuel cell and swirl pot. Underneath, he attached sub-frame connectors, moved the rear leaf springs inside the chassis rails, fabbed the exhaust and set up both the fuel system and suspension. Up front, John altered the radiator support for the intercooler and added the obligatory ’cage in the cockpit.

“Johnny put in a lot of time and effort,” Nathan says. “Once a week we’d go over the build and there weren’t any dramas because of the good communication between the three of us.”

Lee Bloom from Real Dyno Performance also proved to be another great help during the build. Yet the project’s true strength is the sense of unity and purpose that it provided for Nathan and his family.

“Throughout all of this I was also going through a separation with my ex-wife,” Nathan reveals. “I have my daughters fulltime. It’s been a massive process for us and I think that building the car has helped.”

Nathan’s daughters, 14-year-old Shinae and seven-year-old Sienna, were in the shed, right beside their dad and grandfather every step of the way. “Everything was run past my family for the final decision; it was fun to do it together,” Nathan says.

While the end result could have easily been marred by so many opinions, instead it’s very cohesive thanks to John’s abilities along with the Peters clan’s tight vision. This involved going the extra mile, such as respraying an already tidy paint job.

“A few tiny humidity blisters had come up

JARED AND THE BOYS AT MATHESON STREET PANEL AND PAINT STRIPPED THE BODY BACK TO BARE METAL; WE DIDN’T WANT TO REGRET NOT REPAINTING IT

ONCE IT’S TUNED WE’LL RUN LOW BOOST AROUND THE STREETS, THEN WIND IT UP AT THE TRACK – WE’RE ALL VERY EXCITED

from having the car sitting around. And as the HOK Pavo Purple formula had changed, blending the paint job wasn’t going to look right,” Nathan says. “So Jared and the boys at Matheson Street Panel and Paint stripped the body back to bare metal; we didn’t want to regret not repainting it.”

Jared and his team then tidied up some old repairs before skilfully laying on the sparkling hue.

“To get it finished, Dad and Mum also helped me financially – I couldn’t have done it to this level without them,” Nathan smiles. And the proud family are already receiving accolades for the imposing Valiant, recently taking out Runner-up Top Sedan at Willowbank’s 2019 Mopar Sunday show ’n’ shine.

“It hasn’t even been on the dyno yet,” Nathan says. “Once it’s tuned we’ll run low boost around the streets, then wind it up at the track and hopefully get some good numbers – we’re all very excited!”