When it comes to buying a car with modifications in mind, most people opt for
either a sedan or if feeling particularly patriotic, a ute. This usually means
the poor old wagon is left out in the cold and feeling unloved.
However, investing your time and effort into a wagon gives you two major advantages. Firstly, in a sea of Commodores a wagon will stand out as something a little different and the longer wheel base and that wide open space in the rear provides a hell of a lot more room for speakers. When said wagon ends up in the hands of someone with a bit of experience modding cars, you just know that extra space will be put to good use.
Prior to the wagon, David lists his highlights as being owner of 2 ZL Fairlanes, a Daimler Sovereign S3 which he would probably still have if it wasn’t for the costs in keeping it running and a N12 Nissan Exa Turbo which found it’s way into both Hot4s and In Car Entertainment magazines.
The VN Executive Wagon joined this eclectic collection purely on impulse. In need of a daily driver, when this car came up as a genuine one owner with full log book history it was too good to pass up. After all, you wouldn’t expect the previous owner-a member of the HRT pit crew- to not have taken care of it!
Daily’s never stay untouched in David’s garage for long. “I never planned to spend much on it, but I was made redundant at my last job, so I had spare time to browse Ebay. Then I got a bit carried away with the spending” he says Doing most of the work in his own driveway after work also cut down the labour costs and it’s this that David is most proud off.
A VX Clubsport bottom half kit and the almost mandatory VN Group A bonnet bulge were added whilst the paint was stripped and the panels prepped for paint. The first choice of colour was the BA Falcon Blue Print Blue but with so many people going that direction, a less common Mazda 6 Blue was chosen. Applied by his brother, the slightly darker blue works well against the green highlights that fill the recesses around the car- most notably the fog light moulds in the front bar.
With the panels taken care of 19” Tak Legend rims were selected to fill the guards and the suspension replaced with Dobsen Super Lows paired with Ultra Low shocks to give it the required stance. Blue walls- a popular mod in a rainbow of colours- add a bit of bling to the Nankangs Under the car features a computer controlled neon set that can play a number of programs and ensures the car gets plenty of attention when on show.
An internally standard VN Series 1 V6 provides the motivation and gets some help from the 70mm throttle body, VS cold air intake and reprogrammed memcal. The six spins the wheels through a reworked automatic to provide firmer, quicker shifts. A 2.5” sports exhaust with turbo muffler provides the note. Apparently it’s enough for now- but with this car it’s perhaps not how many horses it’s putting out, but how many amps that alternator can provide.
A heavily modified interior (we’ll get to that later) is home to a comprehensive audio set up and is sure to keep any passengers amused. A JVC 7” TV/DVD unit is installed into the dash which in turn provides signal to two Jaycar 4 channel amps and two Kicker 750watt mono-bloc amps. While the mono-blocs give the two 12” Kicker L7 subwoofers their punch, the Jaycar amps make sure the 3 pairs of 6.5” component splits and 1 pair of 6x9s, all from Soundstream, ensure there’s plenty of highs and midrange along for the ride. As a nice touch, two 4” speakers are mounted in the roof lining and receive their cues from the head unit.
A graphic equaliser, 1 farad capacitor and 2 gauge wiring keeps the system providing its best. With sound quality being the main aim, 64 square feet of sound deadener was installed in the doors and under the carpet to keep any out side road noise outside of the car. As an added benefit, it also works as a thermal insulator and adds extra comfort when out cruising.
And there’s plenty of extra comfort.
What started as a brown Executive interior which David confesses he could not stand, and got the arse within a month of him owning the car turned into a display of what can be achieved by delving into the Holden parts bin. In its place first came a grey dash, VR Berlina seats and VN S pack door trims.
But it just wasn’t enough and when a wrecked VR caprice came up, it was the perfect donor vehicle. From it, the dash, complete interior, woodgrain radio surround and console, chrome inner and outer mouldings as well as door handles were salvaged. David opted for VN Calais front seats while a VR Berlina S2 wagon provided the rear. To tie them it all together, black leather was used in the retrim with double blue stitching and HSV logo embroidery on all four to give it a custom touch.
The standard roof lining was removed and moulded to a VS Series 3 Caprice which has the added advantage of containing stereo controls, rear interior lights and provisions for the 4” speakers. We’re told only two wagons in Australia feature this particular mod. New charcoal carpet and underlay help round out the interior.
In current form, the car has won awards as voted by forum members at Street Wagons, Auto-Pilots, Beast Club show n shine and Aus Commodores and looks set to have a good showing in our very own Car of the Year competition. But as is usually the way, there is still plenty left ahead of the car with David currently searching for a VR Caprice front end to really set it apart from the crowd. It doesn't end there, with talks of a five litre finding its way between the strut towers and an XR8 bonnet bulge currently on the table to make MEANVN just that little bit meaner.
Words by Mick
Pictures by David |
