First published in the November 2025 issue of Street Machine

“This is my 1974 Mazda 1300 sedan. This car has been in the build for over five years and is my absolute everything.

“I bought this project as a way to help me through my mental health issues during the COVID lockdowns, which were then in full effect.

“It started off as a bare-metal shell, fully stripped inside and out. I decided to paint it in DNA Spilt Blood red, sprayed by local painter and bodywork specialist Mitch Brown.

“After getting her back from paint and panel, I got straight to work on installing the immaculate, complete interior I managed to source for it.

“Engine-wise, it started off with the original 1300cc piston motor and three-speed automatic, but I replaced all that with a naturally aspirated, 1.3L 13B bridgeport rotary, built by Selectmaz, mated to a five-speed manual from a Series 4 RX-7.

“I got some help from Nasser from Monster Performance in Sydney. To be safe with the law, the car is fully NSW engineered for all the modifications.

“It runs and drives beautifully, and snaps a lot of necks when it cruises past.

“The 3in exhaust gives it such a nice note – it draws more attention than a Justin Bieber concert!

“What really makes the car special is that I was able to build it with my older brother Ryan, who is a mechanic. His knowledge and passion for cars helped and guided me through the whole process; he supported me through every step and kept me enthusiastic on the build. I couldn’t have done it without him.”

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].