WHEN Ditch Jones unveiled this very HR ute way back at Street Machine Summernats 20, it made a big impression on the scene with its wild body mods, blown Holden six-pot and grey-over-yellow paintwork. Nearly two decades later, the ute still lives on, now in the hands of proud custodian Craig McKenzie, who’s put a modern spin on Ditch’s original vision to recreate the HR as a repeat elite-level show winner.
We’ve relived the story of Ditch’s original build of the car a few times now (SM, Apr ’07 and Yearbook 2022), but if you missed any of those, here’s a basic recap: Ditch wanted a stand-out show machine, so he commissioned Drago and Rob Ostric from Sefton Concept Vehicles to undertake the extensive body mods you see here, along with fitting the blown six-pot.
As for Craig, he has a habit of finding and restoring old show cars, including the Auto Salon-famous Green Ghost Nissan S14 200SX that we featured in our May 2022 issue. “I have a lot of respect for older stuff, and I believe a lot of them can still compete with the top stuff today with just a bit of work,” he says.
Knowing that, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Craig snapped up the HR as soon as he spotted in on the market. “I found it on [Facebook] Marketplace in Sydney at a car dealer. I bought it sight-unseen and then had it brought down,” says the Victorian. “It wasn’t in the best nick, and no one wanted it, but I was at Summernats in the hall when it got unveiled all those years ago, so I knew its potential.”
This story is from the July 2023 edition of Street Machine Australia.
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This story is from the July 2023 edition of Street Machine Australia.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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CHALLENGE ACCEPTED
ARBY’S EFFORTS TO IMPROVE HIS VG VALIANT’S 60-FOOT TIMES YIELD PROMISING RESULTS IN THE RUN-UP TO STREET MACHINE DRAG CHALLENGE
ANIKA HODGES
THE CAR DROVE INTO OUR SHED AS A CREAM 202CI VC AND DROVE OUT AS A SILVER CAR WITH A 355 V8
STAGE FRIGHT
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THE Ummmal SUSPECT
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FULLY UTILISED
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CHALLENGE ACCEPTED
ARBY’S EFFORTS TO IMPROVE HIS VG VALIANT’S 60-FOOT TIMES YIELD PROMISING RESULTS IN THE RUN-UP TO STREET MACHINE DRAG CHALLENGE
PEOPLE POWER
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BAD TO THE BONE
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THE CHALLENGE IS REAL
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