Young Gun: Kale Carter's V8 VS Commodore S-Pack

While photographing Nathan Marshall’s gorgeous ’57 Chevy, we discovered that his 16-year-old stepson, Kale Carter, has a super-cool VS Commodore as his first car, with a V8 and manual to boot! We had a chat to him about the car and his plans to build some wild early Commodores.

First published in the April 2025 issue of Street Machine

It’s a nice VS mate! How did you come to own it?

Well, Nathan and I were looking for cars, and because he’s a Holden man, I don’t think I’d be allowed to get anything else! We were about to go and buy a VL, but the night before, the seller got cold feet. So, Nathan found this 1995 VS, and after chatting to the owner, who’s a mate of his, he said it sounded like the perfect car.

Nice! What work had been done to it?

It’s originally a V6 auto S-Pack, and the seller used the running gear from an SS for the V8 and manual. The interior is from a ClubSport, and he put the VT SS front brakes on it as well.

There’s plenty of 90s Commodores getting around on Simmons rims with a rolling diameter large enough to enter a monster truck show, so it’s refreshing to see Kale’s example wearing 18s all ’round

Is the Iron Lion a stocker?

It’s got a cam and heads, and the exhaust was dumped at the diff when we got it, so we put on a rear muffler to make it a bit more legal. It’s good fun to drive – goes all right, that’s for sure!

Thanks to new power-to-weight rules for probationary licence holders in Victoria, this basic 304 V8 is now legal for P-platers! Kale’s Ls and Ps have fallen at just the right time for him to lap up the V8 life as a young tacker

How much of an influence has Nathan been on you getting into cars?

Oh, massive! When he first came along five or six years ago, I was obviously a lot younger and into my footy. The ’57 was a project, but he had a VB Commodore with an LS1 swap that was cool, so that got me into the early Commodores a fair bit.

Although you’re still on your learner’s, have you done many events or cruises with it yet?

I’ve done a couple of local car shows and a cruise on Australia Day. I only turned 16 recently, but I’ve already logged over 40 hours of driving, and we’ve been using the VS as much as we can. It’s been good fun so far, and a mate just got himself an FG G6E, so we can cruise when we’re on our Ps in a couple of years.

What are your plans for the VS?

I’m not quite sure yet. Nathan and I have spoken about potentially doing some kind of supercharger, but that’d be a fair way off. I’ve got a few ideas, but it’ll be a nice weekender for now.

Any other cars you’d like to add to your stable, or builds you’d like to do?

I’d love to do an LS-swapped VB or VH Commodore. I just love those early Commodores; they look tough. And with Nathan having had the LS1 car when I first met him, that’s obviously made me a fan of the idea.

The HSV Enhanced badge on Kale’s VS recalls the peak of GM-H dealer customisation. While this one was fitted after the fact as a nod to the ClubSport interior, back in the day you could option a basic Executive with the full 185i HSV engine package from new

We hear you have a trade as well?

I dropped out of school at age 15 to do my carpentry apprenticeship. Right now, my parents and a few mates help get me to and from the job site, but we just got another VS V6 to use as the daily when I get my licence to get me around.

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