JAMIE McKAY

1970 HT HOLDEN MONARO GTS

FEBRUARY 2016

IT WAS back in 2007 when Jamie McKay realised his boyhood dream of purchasing a factory 308ci GTS Monaro. But with great Monaroness comes great responsibility, and Jamie felt that the GTS essence shouldn’t be messed with; his HT sports black stripes on classic white with factory houndstooth interior, just like it did in 1970.

Of course, being a 37-year-old coupe, it required a rebuild, which Jamie wasted no time in undertaking, sending the Monaro to Bodyz By Nick in Ballarat while he scoured the countryside searching for the absolute best parts he could find. “I actually purchased five bootlids before I found one Nick was happy with!” he admits.

Although it retains a stock look, the custom improvements are small but thorough: “I shaved the writing off the new stainless bolts throughout the car; even where you can’t see!” Jamie explains, with just a hint of crazy. More obvious are the front panels that include a smoothed front stone tray with all surplus holes deleted.

It might have been five years before the painted shell left Nick’s shop, but when it did, it was perfect. “Nick works by himself as he’s so fussy; he won’t let anyone help,” Jamie says.

And despite the half-decade wait, once the GTS was home, it was a runner in a scant six weeks. James Melmoth from Melway Competition Engines had plenty of time to build up a stonking 400ci Chev, starting with a Dart SHP block and adding a bunch of sick bits to build a reliable 585hp donk that is happy on tank fuel.

Driving through a fully manualised T350 to a nine-inch down back and finished with a sinister set of black Weld Magnums, the Monaro looks ready for the strip, but that’s not the primary concern. “I wanted to run it occasionally, but the most important thing was to be able to take it for a cruise with my family,” Jamie says. Mission accomplished.