BREAKING COVER

THE COVERS WERE PULLED OFF 23 NEW BUILDS IN THE GREAT MEGUIAR’S UNCOVER AT STREET MACHINE SUMMERNATS 36. HERE’S THE LOWDOWN ON EACH ONE

ONE of the undoubted highlights each year at Street Machine Summernats is the Great Meguiar’s Uncover, where a slew of brand new, never-beforeseen automotive masterworks are unveiled to the public for the first time. Thursday evening at ’Nats 36 saw the covers pulled off a monumental 23 new builds, and we were front and centre in the Elite Hall to witness it all.

DALE MILLICAN – HR HOLDEN UTE

SOUTHERN Rod & Custom built this belter of an HR ute for Dale Millican. United Speed Shop sorted the undercarriage in conjunction with Chassisworks Australia. There’s an LSA underneath the bonnet, hooked to a Powerglide and 9in. The interior is by Option Auto Trim, while the Southern lads handled the body and paint.

“This isn’t our normal sort of build,” said SR&C’S Shane Rowe, pointing out that he usually tackles American stuff. “If somebody came to me 20 years ago and asked me to build one, I would’ve said it’s not worth the money, but that’s changed!”

Dale’s stoked with the build, having always loved the HR ute bodystyle. “I’m gonna go to Bunnings and pick up some timber after this!” he joked.

CHRIS SCHEMBRI – HT MONARO GTS

CHRIS Schembri’s droolworthy, Sebring Orange 1969 HT Monaro GTS houses a stonking 8/71-blown 403ci LS in the engine bay.

Chris bought the car from Summernats 21 Grand Champion Rob Godfrey, before stripping it down to nothing over six years, unpicking skins to start the project with less than what the factory shells came out with. It was then up to Wayne from Grima’s Garage to make Chris’s dream a reality.

Underneath, the beast has been mini-tubbed, with a modified tunnel housing a TH400 that runs through to the 35-spline 9in rear. It rolls on Weld V-series fronts and beadlock rears, with Wilwood brakes all ’round.

JOE BAUER – DODGE CHARGER R/T

JOE Bauer’s blown ’68 Charger R/T combines ample brawn with a ton of class, packing a monster Victor Bray-built 604ci Keith Black Hemi that pulls over 3000hp!

The roof was extended and given a 2in chop, the front was stretched 2in, and 4in were added to the rear to fit the huge, 22in-wide rear rollers.

Adding to the old-school cool is a pair of grafted ’69 Charger tail-lights, a fully fabricated chassis, custom fourlink, and a twin 6in exhaust over a floating sheet-metal diff.

Joe put all that to the test when he competed for Grand Champion – and won!

JASON MCKENZIE – 1967 CAMARO

JASON Mckenzie bought his Camaro over 30 years ago. It gradually morphed into a 350/350-equipped burnout machine, competing with the best of ’em until a heartbreaking blow-up at Kandos ended its career in 2005.

In 2013, Jason finally started collecting parts for a rebuild. The car was pulled down to no more than a turret and firewall, with just about everything else being replaced with new bits.

BG Engines was called upon to build a blown 489-cube big-block, currently good for 1045hp on 9psi through a Powerglide and Bosnjak Engineering 35-spline 9in.

ANTONIO RANIERI – HQ KINGSWOOD

ANTONIO was just 19 when he bought his HQ Kingswood as a rolling shell. He was super hands-on throughout the five-year build, with plenty of help and support from his brother-in-law Jonathan.

“It was originally just going to be a 350, but we got the last-ever LSA crate motor for sale in Australia; it has three years of warranty!” Antonio said.

Inside, a GTS rear bench and Recaro fronts continue the black-and-yellow theme, courtesy of Michel of Complete Auto & Marine Trimming in Rockdale. “My vision was one thing, but he’s taken it to a whole new level,” Antonio enthused.

ZORAN MARKOVSKI – VK COMMODORE

ZORAN Markovski joined forces with Cain Balzer from Xtreme Fabworx to create this VK Brock Blue Meanie. Cain’s exemplary handiwork is evident all over the car, from the extensive rollcage to the precision carbonfibre and sheet-metal work.

The three-quarter-chassis build houses a tough, twin-turbo, billet 427 Noonan LS built by Advanced Performance Machining. That’s backed up by a TH400, 10in diff with custom rear set-up, and Billet Specialties 16x16 rears to keep it glued to the track.

MARK CARUANA – HK HOLDEN

MARK Caruana’s 1969 HK sedan was bought four years ago with the original 13,000 miles on the clock, but there was no way the factory donk was lasting long in this beast. The new 440ci small-block Chevy that now sits in the smoothed engine bay was built by the legends at Proflo and pulls over 700hp.

Getting that stonk to the ground is a manual Turbo 400 with a 5500rpm stall, and a custom braced sheet-metal 9in with a 3.5:1 Truetrac centre suspended by a four-link.

The undercarriage looks extremely tidy in satin black, while the body got the full treatment from Sebastian Desisto before being painted in a custom two-tone mix by the team at Macarthur Autobody.

Building the HK with family and mates was the highlight of the build for Mark, and he’s keen-as to do as much driving as he can, including hitting the track at Autofest.

ANDREW DODD – 1935 FORD COUPE

BUILT for his daughter’s formal, Andrew Dodd’s ’35 Ford coupe spooked him by rolling forward on its own at a show, and later caught fire at 100km/h with his whole family inside!

It sat unloved in the shed for a while after that, until his daughter kick-started the rebuild process by pulling it apart. Built on a fibreglass Rodz North body, it runs an injected Dart 400 Chev combo paired to a TH700 four-speed with Haltech management.

Andrew got it all back just two weeks before Summernats, following an 18-month stint in the workshop. “I’ve got 99 per cent of it sorted now,” he says. “It’s got a lot of history to it!”

CHRIS & MICK BONELLO – VL COMMODORE AND XW FAIRMONT

SIMON BONELLO (SM, Apr-may ’97) and his business Ground Level Panel & Paint have had a hand in countless Summernats builds, but this year it was personal, with his son Chris and brother Mick debuting a VL Commodore and XW GS Fairmont respectively.

“Chris did the bodywork, the tubs and all the welding [on the VL]; all I did was the final prep and laid the paint on,” Simon said. “It’s got 275 radials, Weld wheels and a tough turbo six, and Chris can’t wait to drag-race it. It’s great that he’s following in my footsteps.”

Mick’s XW isn’t quite as drag-spec, but it’s no less stylish, resplendent in its factory-ordered Diamond White and Mist Gold trim, with a 302 Clevo up front.

TIM MCDONALD – XY FALCON

IT WOULD hardly be a ’Nats unveiling without a Proflo Performance build or two, and Tim Mcdonald’s XY is a corker. We featured its 1000hp, 8/71blown Windsor in Mill of the Month (SM, Jun ’23), and the rest of the car is finished to the same high standard.

“The car was my dad’s; I bought it off him when I was 16 and restored it with him,” Tim explained. “I had it parked up while my daughter grew up, but when Dad got ill, we decided to take it to [Proflo] to throw a blown 427 in it, but ended up doing the whole car. We lost Dad during the build, so the car is a tribute to him.”

JAMES BULLIONS – MAZDA R100

BUILT by RAR Embossed, James Bullions’s incredible and super-rare Mazda R100 features a full custom chassis and body drop, with bits of Series 4 RX-7 gear matched to an R154 ’box. The PP 13B is all-billet, which James reckoned will be good for 300hp in naturally aspirated form. “It’s unbreakable for what it is; probably good for 11,000rpm,” he said. “It’d run sevens if I turboed it.”

A Nexus R5 controls everything, and there’s a MOTEC C1212 dash in the custom interior. “It’s got a full render of the car that rotates, just like the Gran Turismo garage!” James said of the dash display.

The rear arches have been lengthened by a modest 15mm to handle the 20x10.5in Simmons rims, with a 17x7in pair up front.

WESTERN STREET & CUSTOM – LX TORANA

JEFF Mccarter of Western Street & Custom in Richmond, NSW sorted this LX Torry build over the past five years or so. “It’s been built as an A9X lookalike; at the same time, we’ve put modern running gear in,” he explained. That entailed a 6.2-litre LS3 topped with a Harrop 2300 blower, paired to a TKO fivespeed manual. “The customer loves his manual cars,” Jeff grinned.

There’s also an IFS set-up and airbags on each corner, melding all the coolest parts of 80s and 90s street machining with 21st-century grunt and finish. “That’s what the customer was brought up with,” Jeff said of the Recaro seating and custom-widened 15in Hotwire rolling stock. “There’s nothing wrong with billets, but when it’s Hotwires on a Torana, you can’t ask for much more!”

THOMAS MCMANAWAY – DATSUN B120 UTE

WHEN Thomas Mcmanaway was watching Summernats clips at home two years ago, the urge to build a serious car bit him hard. He jumped on Gumtree with partner Hannah to find something suitable, and spotted a rough B120 ute tucked behind a Fergie tractor in a farmer’s shed.

Spot On Performance & Fabrications sorted heaps of chromemoly tubing and helped wedge the 427-cube Dart mill in the front, which wears a 10/71 blower and Big & Ugly hat. “I don’t just want a one-use car,” Thomas explained. “If it can do burnouts, why can’t it do drag racing?”

ADAM CLEARY – 1951 CHEVY PICK-UP

ADAM’S taken a slightly different approach for his newest ride than he did with his 1957 Buick coupe (SM, Jun ’18), but it’s certainly no less epic!

His ’51 Chevy 3100 pick-up dubbed JEKYLL wears a patina finish matched to some seriously high-end chassis and driveline work. The Proflo Performance team started with a Roadster Shop chassis, fitted it with airbags and a 9in rear, and stuffed a 403-cube twin-turbo LS up front that’s dripping in bronze Cerakote to match the 22x8.5 and 22x12 Schott rolling stock.

Of course, the panelwork hasn’t been left un-massaged, with a fully fabbed bay. Inside you’ll find brown distressed leather and Fueltech digital gauges, plus speedboat-style decking in the tub.

GARY ROSSER – WB ONE TONNER

RESCUED from a wrecking yard, Gary Rosser’s Tonner was treated to a comprehensive rebirth at Zelukovic Smash Repairs. The 383-cube Holden donk features a Scat rotating assembly, Edelbrock heads and a solid-roller bumpstick, plus a 6/71 blower and twin Holley carbs.

A Hughes TH400 and 31-spline 9in handle the unspecified grunt, and it rests on Mcdonald Brothers and Viking suspension. Outside, it wears Kindig-it handles, a composite tray, and custom-hue ‘Gazberry’ paint.

EDDIE & YOUNAN KHAZI – XE FAIRMONT

THIS epic Barra-powered XE Fairmont Ghia was built by brothers Eddie and Younan Khazi. They form a great painter/panel beater team and have paired up for many past projects, including their epic tunnel-rammed XE Falcon, WRNING. This current build might be their best yet, with Elite-level finish and power to spare.

“We’ve been building it for four or five years as an after-hours project,” Eddie said. “We’ve always wanted to enter a car at Summernats! It’s got a tough Barra with lots of billet components, ESP trim, and the colour is the factory Satellite Brown. My brother and I wanted to build something we could enjoy that would also showcase our workmanship, so it’s not a show car; it’s just a really nice street car.”

LEO MORTAKIS – VY MALOO

WE RECKON the VY Maloo is one of the toughest-looking cars HSV ever turned out, and Leo Mortakis agrees! He’s been a regular in the ’Nats unveil hall over the past couple of years, first with his rad Valiant hardtop and then a retro LX sedan father-son project. This year, however, he jumped straight to the 21st century with this Maloo build.

The LS1 runs a big VCM cam and all the internals to keep it happy, and is fed by a 102mm throttlebody via a sheetmetal manifold and requisite cold-air intake. Pleasingly, Leo’s stuck with the T56 sixcogger, too. Complementing the aggro Maloo bodykit is a smoothed, Falcon-style bonnet bulge.

CHRIS COUROUZOU – ZD FAIRLANE

CHRIS Courouzou’s a long-time chrome-bumper Ford fan, so when he found this K-code ZD Fairlane 11 years ago, he jumped straight into a pro street toughie build. “It’s the gentleman’s GT,” he said of the factory 351 Cleveland, a/c and sunroof-equipped car.

The matching-numbers Clevo now wears a tunnel ram and twin Holleys for a rad look, and the factory air con has been replaced with a neater Vintage Air set-up. There’s also a four-link to hold the 9in diff, and Chris has covered the big body in its factory-specified Vintage Burgundy. As for wheels, it rolls on Weld Pro Stars and 325-wide rear rubber.

MONIQUE O’GARR – EH HOLDEN WAGON

MONIQUE O’garr’s EH wagon has to be one of the longest-running projects to be unveiled at this year’s ’Nats. Monique’s been a car nut since her teenage years, doing her first mechanic’s course at 16, and she’s had this wagon for over 30 years!

It ran a 186S and RT104 Corona ’box in its early days, but that’s now been replaced with a supercharged Buick 3.8 paired to a T5 – a super-engaging combo that should be ideal for some weekend fun. The floor and undercarriage has been heavily modified, and you’ll find a four-link and mini-tubs out back to help accommodate the Billet Specialties Dagger wheels.

The interior is just as varied, using Honda Prelude seats, a ’57 Chevy-based dash and Dakota Digital gauges.

It’s all been done as part of the O’garrs’ Portland-based business, Pro Street Performance, and Monique describes her hubby Rob as being in the vein of Chip Foose, having built everything from Aussie panel vans to stretched Jag limos!

ROBERT GORGIEVSKI – XW FALCON

ROBERT Gorgievski purchased his 1970 XW Falcon two years ago off legendary engine builder Frank Marchese of Dandy Engines. Rob worked alongside Frank to bring the build to fruition, with the latter’s input on the styling crucial to the end result.

Rob has kept the GT replica as close to concours as possible, having taken it back to bare metal, replacing every nut and bolt, and repainting every factory marking. Frank has worked his magic on a new Arrow-block 434 Cleveland topped by a 950cfm APD carb. Rounding out the driveline is a Protrans C10 ’box with a 5000rpm converter, and a 31-spline 9in with billet axles.

The body colour is a slightly altered version of the factory hue, paired with a Parchment interior, and it’s all tied together with the addition of a wind-up sunroof.

TONY RIPEPI – ’34 FORD

TONY Ripepi and his family have ticked heaps of boxes with their ’34 Ford coupe. “It’s ’caged, it’s chopped, it’s tough,” they laughed. “It’s a street car, and we’re just looking to have fun with it!”

There’s a blown, twincarbed Cleveland providing plenty of eye candy and mumbo, while the rear is packed out with huge Indy Champ-style wheels and fat Hoosier rubber for epic stance.

Originally a 90s build, it recently copped a full refresh and flow-coat in PPG goodness.

ASHLEY BELL – XA FALCON

IT WAS great to see the covers drop on Ashley Bell’s 1972 XA Falcon. Ashley bought her dream Falc three years ago as a sixcylinder, one-owner vehicle from Tassie, but she and her partner Michael Stivala have completely transformed it since then.

The new 351 Clevo in the bay was built by 2022 Summernats Grand Champ Jason Mansweto and features billet dressings, while a C4 and a shortened diff back up the extra grunt.

The car is painted in the original Wild Plum, while the interior also copped a must-see overhaul.