First published in the April 2026 issue of Street Machine

“This is my pride and joy, a 1980 XD Fairmont. She was pretty rough when I bought her, but she had all the goodies and just needed a bit of TLC.

“After three months of collecting parts for it, I got her on the road and started cruising and going to car meets, getting a fair bit of attention.

“But I wasn’t happy with the way she looked, so I decided to give her a full resto.

“Adicted Performance had done bits and pieces on the car along the way, so I went in to discuss with them what performance I wanted out of it.

“That led to the 408 stroker it now runs, backed by an FMX auto with a 4500rpm high-stall converter; the combo made 585hp at the fly.

“Then I found a resto place that was highly recommended, and gave them the car to deal with the bodywork and paint, but that turned out to be a complete nightmare!

“I wasn’t happy with the finish and nearly lost interest, but I knew I had to move forward. So, Prestige Autobody in Box Hill sorted out the black-outs, front bumpers and side mirrors, and properly repaired a rust spot that was missed by the previous resto place.

“Inside, RK Upholstery took care of the factory-spec Fairmont Ghia trim, and the front seats are EB items converted to Scheel-style buckets.

“The car rolls on 15×3.5 front and 15×8.5 rear Center Line Auto Drags.

“It’s been a long haul to get her to this stage, but as they say, good things take time. I’m totally over the moon now with how she looks, sits and sounds.”

Want your pride and joy featured in the mag? Just send some photos of your car (minimum file size 2MB each) and a few details of what went into the build to [email protected].