CREAM OF THE CROP

PAUL FAVA'S HK MONARO BLENDS BASE-MODEL CHARM WITH LS PUNCH

- JACK HOULIHAN

THOSE in the drag racing fraternity are likely to know Paul Fava for his exploits in KILLAQ, his LSA-powered HQ Kingswood that's partial to a serious wheel-lift once in a while. While the 1000hp Quey is perfect for mauling quarter-miles, in early 2020 Paul found himself wanting a more road-friendly ride to cruise around Victoria. I just wanted to have a good, tough streeter I could take to car shows, do a bit of drag racing in and just enjoy, the Echuca bloke explains.

As car markets fell into chaos in March 2020, Paul made his move on this HK Monaro. At the very start of COVID, business people started going, 'Shit, I've gotta sell some stuff because things are gonna get real bad, he says. As you know, everything then went the opposite way - it went through the roof instead! But a few people shit themselves at the start, and I jumped on it then.

It was an astute decision, but while the Monaro was in reasonable shape, it wasn't quite to Paul's style. It wasn't my cup of tea, and it needed a resto, he says. The paint was all blistering, so we took the paint off and did a bare-metal respray.

Shepparton's Matt Taylor sprayed the car in its factory-optioned Kingston Cream, a tint offered on run-of-the-mill HK coupes. In a world of GTS-coloured builds, it stands out from the crowd. You don't ever see [this colour], Paul says. It's a factory 186 car, so I wanted to keep it along that path with a bit of a spin.

Aside from the paint, other body mods include a smoothed engine bay and mini-tubs out back by MTS Custom Fabrications. Paul gave the chassis rails some minor surgery too, moving the rear spring hangers inward to accommodate the new set-up.