FACTORY VISION

WHEN YOUNG TOM DECIDED TO TACKLE A FRESH PROJECT HE WANTED SOMETHING DIFFERENT. HE SUCCEEEDED NICELY

- GUY ALLEN

What possessed me to tackle a GTS-R ute tribute? Maybe I was high at the time... Jokes aside, it's been a few years since I've done a build, and I wanted to do something. My previous one was a full body-off resto of an HQ. I was about to build a Blue Meanie or similar, till I went to a car show and there are nine of them there and the only difference was white, silver or blue, auto or manual and what size Aeros they had.

As much as I love the cars, I didn't want to do something that's been done to death and the reality was you could probably buy one for less than it would cost to build it, and with a lot less effort! Then I bought a wagon (a manual V8 VR) with the intention of doing a GTS-R tribute, then along came the ute. For me, a ute is useful. If I had done up a wagon, I'd be reluctant to throw toolboxes in the back. Then the trim costs are phenomenal. And working out what or how to do a rear wing was an issue. I don't necessarily like the wing, but it has to be there.

Why do a GTRS-R? It's something that's worth building a replica of that hasn't yet been done to death. There seem to be a few sedans coming along but I've never seen a ute version.

And it was a bit of a challenge. I'm a stickler for detail.

The 5.0lt engine had a fairly straightforward rebuild. It's been bored out and given a decent cam. The heads are pretty standard, while it's running Pacemaker headers and an exhaust. The five-speed transmission (a Getrag with hydraulic clutch) was good, though my father and his friend helped out by machining up some new bushes so the shifter wasn't flopping around. We fitted a short shifter - I'm not that keen on them, but the centre console is different and I didn't have the same throw that you normally would. Out back is the standard LSD.

I considered going to a six-speed transmission, but could not see the value in what was going to cost at least another $8000.