LAPS OF LUXURY

RICCARDO PONTONIO PLANS TO RUN LAPS AT DRAG CHALLENGE 2023 IN ONE OF THE SLEEPIER ENTRANTS LINING UP FOR THE EVENT - A 1980s MERCEDES WAGON WITH AN LSA AND TWIN TURBOS!

- KIAN HEAGNEY

RICCARDO Pontonio has long been campaigning his LSFKNX VK Commodore (SM, Mar '20) at Drag Challenge. That car entered the Seven-Second Club at DC 2022-¹23 earlier this year, and has a PB to date of 7.56@181mph.

Running a car at the pointy end of the DC field is a stressful exercise, so for his next build, Ric wanted to take a more relaxed approach. "I just wanted a nice, simple cruiser for the next one, so we can spend more time having fun and hitting the beers than fixing the bloody thing!" he says.

That brings us to this 1984 Mercedes-Benz 230 TE wagon, which is in the final stages of construction before its deadline of Drag Challenge 2023, 10-14 October. Ric purchased it as a stocker with the original four-pot, and the initial plan was merely to slap an LSA and Turbo 400 in the car for a simple DC cruiser. As you can see, that plan didn't last very long.

"I just didn't trust myself," says Ric. "I knew I'd want to turn it up at some stage, so the engine builder and I decided to ditch the [LSA's] blower and go with twin turbos."

Still using an LSA as a starting point, the lads at Frankston Engine Centre gave it a renovation with some Lunati rods, Diamond pistons and a Brian Tooley Racing (BTR) Stage 3 turbo camshaft. The crank and heads are still stock items, and replacing the LSA blower is a BTR intake manifold.