Tim Laidler made a name for himself when he debuted his insane, 2100hp, blown big block-powered HSV VL SV88 at MotorEx last year..

In our feature on the car in the November 2023 issue of Street Machine, Tim revealed that, despite the VL’s jaw-dropping looks and finish, he planned to take the pearler of a machine on Drag Challenge, removing the enormous blower and hat for the road legs.

Well, Tim did make it to Drag Challenge 2024, but in a different VL – a 1987 Calais, which he’s campaigning in the PSR 9.5 Radial class. “This is my first Drag Challenge, so this car is here for me to get a feel for the event. Then I’ll bring the blue [SV88] next time,” he says. “But seeing what Adam Rogash and the lads are doing to keep their big-block alive is an eye-opener, so we might have our work cut out for us with the blue car.”

Tim has owned the burgundy Calais for around 12 years, and it’s running a stroker 383 Holden V8, based on a VT block. It sucks air and fuel through a pair of Holley 750 carbs, and the TBS 6/71 Roots blower crowning the mill is something we don’t see all that often at Drag Challenge.

All up, the package is good for 844hp on 16psi, sucking down E85 both on road and track for the duration of Drag Challenge. The car was set up for both 98 and pump E85, but the lads found they’ve had to run full ethanol on the street to keep a lid on temperatures. “She was getting a bit warm, so it’s just an easier way of keeping it cool so we can keep going,” Tim says.

Completing the driveline is a Turbo 400 and a sheet-metal nine-inch diff, with a pair of 275 tyres under the tubs putting the shove to the ground.

Coming into the week, Tim’s PB in this VL was 10.6@136mph. “We’re starting to reach the limits of the Holden stuff I think, but we’re still aiming to hit the 9.5 target of the class this week,” Tim tells us.

He handed in a best of 7.12@98mph at Mildura’s eighth-mile after the first proper day of racing at DC 2024 (day one at Calder Park was cancelled due to track conditions), before setting off on the near-400km mandatory road route to South Australia for racing at Dragway at The Bend today.