American Muscle Cars on the Murray: 15th May

American Muscle Cars on the Murray... Someone has got to think of an acronym for that, AMCM? Works for me! AMCM is a Tri-club meeting combining American Muscle Car Club, American Car Club ACT and the 60's Muscle Car Club of Victoria, with People travelling from Sydney, Melbourne and everywhere in between.

On Saturday the group did an observation run out to Bellbridge, then did the Granya gap road loop then headed back into town. The locals know this as our "nasho park run", a perfect piece of road for spirited drives though some beautiful undulating curves that's not too far from home.   

On Sunday a more laid back approach is taken, with a Show and Shine in QE2 Square Albury. 

Murray Art Museum Albury (MAMA) provides a nice and somewhat ironic background at times. 

The central location of the show allows people that might not normally attend car shows to take in the hard work that has been put into these cars.

Bonus Images: 

When Wide, Isn't Wide Enough. Rhys Quirk's 2008 WRX STi.

Its been an unseasonably warm Autumn here in Wodonga, so shooting gorgeous cars like Rhys's 08' Wide Body  STi has been made rather easy weather wise. Living a short 25 min drive from the historic town of Beechworth is a blessing this time of year as well.  So where better place for shoot!

Every angle of this car is aggressive, made even more so by a set of bolt on flairs pushing the track another 2" wider. 

Beneath the flairs sits a stout TE37SL 18-9.5 +20 offset with federal 595 RS-RR semi's 265/35/1 ALL AROUND! No settling for staggered fitment around here, the white and greens a really nice touch (although admittedly hard to keep clean). 

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Inside the wheels sit custom painted poison green Brembo Calipers hugging DBA 4000 T3 Rotors Via Ultima RS pads. Much needed stopping power to pull up all 260 killer wasps! 

Under the bonnet we find a fully forged EJ257 with air being forced into it via a Blouch Dom xtr2.5 turbo via a Process west top mount and Cold air induction kit. Rhys runs a GFB Duel port BOV and to keep the oil where its supposed to be a GrimmSpeed Re-circulation kit. Fuel is taken care of via 1300cc injectors fed by a DW300 fuel pump. Did I mention e85? Flex tuned to run Jesus juice or 98 pump fuel. 

The original idea was to go with a red theme throughout the car but as soon as the green Brembo dawned the car a different path was chosen. Remnants of the red engine bay doesn't look bad still, giving the bay a different contrast to the rest of this carbon clad STi. 

Inside we find all the standard STi options. Rhys ditched the standard Silver trim and decided a Hydro-Dipped carbon look, the center gauges where the air vents are a nice touch as well, matching the red interior light theme. 

Something interesting I found is the in the center console, being able to switch between boost settings at the turn of a dial, making cruising a breeze and having that little extra when needed for those spirited drives!       

A closer look at the MSR triple gauge holder and 3 Shadow Pro 52mm gauges monitoring oil pressure, boost, and water temp. Wile the standard Sat nav system monitors Average fuel and Acceleration.

 Carbon fibre side skirt extensions, rear canards, Sti front lip extension together with the aftermarket APR air ducts and Varis wing complements and sets off the over exterior look of the car.  

Its very hard not to notice the 3' full turbo back Ark Grip exhaust system. With a price tag of close to $3500 its likely to be the only one imported from the states in this country! 

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The Stance is provided by MCA blue coilovers with Whiteline strut and sway bars keeping cornering under control. Whiteline Rear Caster kit and control arms keeping the geometry in check. 

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After I'd finished the shoot (I had a flash failure) We stood back and just looked at the car for what seemed like forever, every line and modification adds to and enhances the visual experience. 

Thanks for reading! I hope to bring more posts like this to the site with a deeper look at local cars, I hope everyone enjoyed it :) 

Specs List:

Engine specs: Fully forged EJ257 Blouch Dom xtr2.5 Turbo, 1300cc Injectors, DW300 Fuel Pump, Process West Top Mount inter-cooler Process West Cold Air Intake Kit, GFB Dual Port BOV, 3' Full Turbo Back Ark Grip Exhaust System Flex fuel Tuned e85 - 340kws 98 - 260kws. Flash tuned Stock ECU

Handling: MCA Blue Coilovers Whiteline strut and sway bars, Whiteline  Rear Caster kit Whiteline  control arms

Brakes: Brembos-Poison Green, DBA 4000 T3 Rotors, Intima RS pads

Body: Factory STi wide body, Varis Wing, APR Carbon fiber side skirt extensions, APR rear canards, Sti front lip, Factory STi wide-body flares APR air ducts, APR exhaust surrounds

Interior: Factory STi Race Seats, Hydro-dipped carbon Fiber Interior Garnishes , MSR Triple Gauge Holder, Shadow pro 52mm gauges: Oil Pressure, Boost, Water temp, Factory Sat-Nav.

Wheel spec: TE37SL 18-9.5 +20 offset with federal 595 RS-RR semi's 265/35/18

Bonus Images: 

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VicDrift Winton Practice Day April 17th

17th of April saw Vicdrift attend Winton Motor Raceway in North East Victoria for their first event this year. Over the Christmas/New year the track had been resurfaced, the whole layout now has a lot more grip and issmoother all round. We also saw a couple changes to the front straight:

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Unfortunately ripple strips have been placed at the start of the green area that will bust your rims and associated suspension with ease. So this was a no go zone.  

The variety of cars at practice days is always something that surprises me every time I attend. Since the demise of CAM's Super Six racing Category Glen found it easier to throw his 250hp Ecotec powered Commodore around the track, picking up the drift lines very quickly and by the end of the day it was a real pleasure to watch!  

Interesting to see was a Rwd converted subi out attacking the track! And with a little more practice could have it down. Can't wait to see this drivers progression in this chassis.  

Waz & Catherine out to put on a show, it was battle practice as per normal.  

Ned Coulston proving he's still got it! With a fresh tune the 32 slayed tires like never before! Picking up a couple of major sponsors on the day to help get him to rounds. He will be one to watch.  

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Just starting to be a popular choice are Holden Utes! Timmy Ceely makes easy work of flowing nature of Winton's turns. 

With the new surface more dirt has been tucked in to fill the inside areas on the turns. Undershooting a corner on the main straight saw very thick soft dirt completely cover the track, being over an inch deep in some parts the Winton staff could use all the help they could get. Choonga  (VicDrift president & all round good guy) and Michael Neilsen walking down to give them a hand to keep the day flowing and the drifters on the track! 

Over all it was a great day out getting covered in dust and rubber, I certainly cant wait for the next one! 

Bonus Images: 

VITS- Volkswagen Auto Group Show Albury, April 24th

I had to start with admitting openly that I don't know as much about this automotive subculture as I would like.

Once a year VITS (Volkswagens In the Square) Is held In Albury NSW, with cars buses and hatchbacks come from all over the country to show of their rides.

The Show is split into 2 half's. Air cooled. 

And  more modern Water cooled Cars

Digging the Rat style! 

Cricket anyone? or maybe a surf? This just reminds me how far the closest beach is! 

Over the other side of the show things were looking a little closer to the ground... 

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Corvette wheels? Sure! 

Just Wow. 

Not as crazy but another neat example.

The grass in the park was so nice I thought about hugging it as well! 

Old school flair... 

Mixed with new school power! 

Bonus Images:

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Albury Wodonga & Districts Car Club Rapid Lap Dash, 3rd April.

3rd Of April saw our local club run yet another successful event at the Barnawartha Tafe/Deca. The facility was built as part of Motorsports Training Australia and we are very spoilt to have such a place to hold events!  
For More information Check out http://mta.wodongatafe.edu.au/motorsport-park.aspx

As far as grass roots car clubs go we are extremely lucky to have such a facility to run events at! 

Signing in and doing the appropriate paperwork was made super easy this round with a full functioning online entry system now working on the AWDCC website. There were 50 spots available for the day and they all sold out in the week before the event! 

Time to get ready! Ben puts on his race suit before piloting  his R33 GTR to a 0.55.71 in what he describes as his slow GTR! Madness! Cannot wait to see his R32 GTR back at the track having broken the front transfer case at a previous track day.

Jake Lucas hitting the track for the first time in the morning, blowing the cobwebs out of his sr20det powered beast.

 Jake ended up putting down a sub 1 minute time with a 0.59.7, he was extremely pleased with himself.

Max Seaton's R30, a car that has changed hands on the Albury Wodonga border a couple of times now, each owner putting their unique touch/modification on it! Will be interesting to see how it changes in the future. 

Struggling for rear end grip Max still managed a very respectable 1.06.6`

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A good variety of cars were entered on the day. Tom Rillea picked up his Falcon for $500, stock NA Auto, proving you really don't need a hole lot of money to have fun.

I enjoyed seeing this Bug out on track, some air cooled goodness eating up the asphalt! I didn't get a chance to go and see the owner to find out any details but hopefully its out next time and I can get a closer look. this quick VW  pumped out a 1.00.7

Cringe worthy moment as Dave Payne finds the dirt in his Ke26 long roof. Fun fact: their isn't a sticker on this car! All the sign writing has been done the old school way with a brush, cool as! 

Mark managed a 1.0.78 in his FG GT, with a brilliant whine coming from the factory supercharger.
I had a bit of a moment standing out in the middle of the track, thinking how far Australian cars have come only to be cut short after 2017, I guess we will be seeing a lot of Mustangs getting around the next few years... 

The Rapid Lap dash rounds are sponsored by 

Rapid Performance
Arnold’s Fruit Market
Engine Masters Australia
North Eastern Oil Distributors

For More Information on these days please visit: http://www.awdcc.com.au/ 
or find Albury Wodonga & District Car Club group on facebook! 

Bomus Images: