PUMP UP THE VOLUME
FOR ADAM NAGY, CUBES ARE KING, SO HIS STUNNING LX TORANA HIDES BIG AMERICAN GRUNT
An Ss-styled, Papaya Orange LX hatch, fully engineered with a tough fatty? Don’t mind if we do
FOR over half a century, the Holden Torana has captivated the hearts and minds of Aussie revheads like almost nothing else. And like many of his generation, Adam Nagy’s love affair with Holden’s gutsy little giant-killer can be traced back decades. “I’ve had Toranas and HQS since I was 16, and I’m 45 now,” he says. “Without exaggerating, I’ve owned two or three hundred of them!” One highlight of Adam’s back catalogue was a Holden 355-powered LJ Torana he campaigned in the mid-90s, which reliably put down mid-10s on pump juice and survives to this day in Queensland. “My partner Kim didn’t appreciate doing a few hoops and a fairly lengthy powerskid in the LJ,” Adam laughs. “She won’t get in the car with me now!”
Adam, who is the owner-operator of Tyrepower Melton, snagged this LX hatch from mate and drag racer Matt Forbes in January 2020. “He bought the car about six years ago, but he only drove it a few times,” he says.
A considerable amount of work had already been performed on the car when it came into Adam’s possession, including a fresh lick of Papaya Orange paint courtesy of Fast Lane Speed Shop’s Daniel Cassar. Most importantly for Adam, there was a big-block Chev donk already nestled between the chassis rails.
Installed, engineered and registered in the LX back in the 90s, the 468-cuber (which Adam refers to as a “baby one”) was put together by Simon Hollingworth, chief of Ballarat’s SJH Race Engines.
A 4340 crank is hooked up to H-beam rods, which in turn push SRP forged pistons. The cam is a mechanical roller, and the heads are World Performance alloy items. A Holley 850 double-pumper carb supplies pump 98 fuel via an Edelbrock Super Victor manifold. The whole shebang is kept firing happily by a full MSD 6 ignition system.
I’VE HAD TORANAS SINCE I WAS 16, AND I’M 45 NOW. WITHOUT EXAGGERATING, I’VE OWNED TWO OR THREE HUNDRED OF THEM!
ACCORDING TO ADAM, WEDGING A BIG-BLOCK INTO A DIMINUTIVE TORANA IS A SURPRISINGLY SEDATE AFFAIR
Black stuff circulates through a Melling pump, which pulls from a High Energy sump modified to fit within the Torana’s confines.
A fully manualised, forward-pattern Powerglide handles shifting duties, with a transbrake and sizeable 5200rpm stall converter. “It’s not an all-out race converter,” Adam points out. “So I can bring it up to 1500 or 2000rpm and just cruise along.” The tailshaft is a hefty custom-made 3.5-inch unit that turns an N-case nodular nine-inch diff with a Detroit Locker and 3.9:1 gears. This was one of Adam’s own additions to the build, put together by Chris’s Differential Services. Power reaches the wheels via 31-spline billet axles in Hq-pattern. Stoppers up front are Wilwood four-spot discs, with venerable HQ drums bringing up the rear.
Though it’s yet to see action on a dyno, Adam believes the Chev is spitting out about 750fwhp. The motor previously lived in a ’68 Camaro, which was sent down the quarter to the tune of 10.20 seconds. Now that the mill is in a considerably lighter vessel, Adam is confident the hatch is capable of lazy nine-second passes with some on-track R&D.
According to Adam, wedging a big-block into a diminutive Torana is a surprisingly sedate affair. “Believe it or not, they pretty much just drop in!” he laughs. The original steering arms and knuckles required some tweaking for clearance, and some minor trimming of the front of the chassis rails’ lips was also performed. “With the way this one is set up,” Adam says, “it’s actually easier to change the plugs than it would be with a Holden V8.”
ADAM IS CONFIDENT THE HATCH IS CAPABLE OF LAZY NINE-SECOND PASSES WITH SOME ON-TRACK R&D
While the bones of the LX have remained largely the same under Adam’s custody, he has added some of his own touches, which he describes as “turning a 90s car into a modern one”. High on the agenda was breaking up the Torana’s monochromatic bodywork. “There was just way too much orange; there was just no other way to describe it,” Adam recounts. “The blackouts and decals break it up really well.
“I’ve redone the interior, too,” he continues. “It was a sort of camel colour when I bought it and it was all wrong.” In its place went period-style Slate and Golf Ball trim, as well as an LX SS tiller. A few performance touches round out the cockpit, including a B&M Pro Ratchet shifter and Auto Meter gauges tucked under the reverse cowl.
Despite owning the hot hatch for barely a year, Adam’s long-time buy-sell MO means he’s already preparing to say adieu. “By the time this magazine comes out, the car will be up for sale,” he promises.
If you’re in the market for an original, unmolested Torana driven only by an old lady on Sundays, this probably isn’t the car for you – but we’ll let what’s printed here speak for itself.
In the meantime, Adam’s already plugging away at another project, a tubbed HQ GTS sedan: “With a pump-fuel fatty, of course!”