Matt Turner’s EFI big-block VG Valiant Pacer

Almost 30 years in the making, Matt Turner’s big-block VG Pacer is finally snapping necks on the street

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Photographers: Nathan Jacobs

When Matt Turner told us he found his VG Valiant Pacer in the long-defunct Trading Post paper, we realised this 440-powered, street-and-strip toughie has not been a short-term mission. “As a kid, my parents had Valiants, and I bought this as a 16-year-old with the big-block in it,” the now 44-year-old says. “A mate of mine found it, and it was a rust-free body, so it was a very good base.”

First published in the September 2024 issue of Street Machine

Matt couldn’t drive the 440-swapped car while on his Ps, so he bought a Charger to cruise around in while the Pacer went for paint and mini-tubs with eventual two-time Red CentreNATS Grand Champion Brent Murray (SM, Mar ’16). That was back in 2000, and work, home ownership and general life duties put the Pacer on the back-burner not long after. “I’m a glazier by trade, so there was only so much I could do myself, and it’s not like there was a manual you could look at – everything had to be modified,” Matt says. “I felt like I was going backwards with it.”

Decades later, Matt made a first-in-a-long-time trip to Chryslers on the Murray, where he got chatting with mate Will, who enquired about the Pacer. “I told him it was still in the garage, and that I really needed someone who knew their stuff to help out, and sort of take control and guide me,” Matt says. “He put me onto a guy called Garry Harrison at Modern Hemi Developments. I took another Valiant to him, and I could see he was the man for the job. I asked if I should keep the big-block, and he said, ‘Now you’ve got it, you might as well build it!’ The rest is history, and it ended up down at his factory.”

Garry tore the 440 down, renovating it with Scat H-beam rods and SRP pistons. A high-rise single-plane intake wears a Holley Super Sniper EFI set-up, pushing 98 into Trick Flow alloy heads, with a Comp solid-roller calling the shots. The engine has been centred in the bay, making room for custom tri-Y headers and three-inch pipes. “To be honest, there’s no weak link in the car – Garry wouldn’t let me put any in,” Matt laughs.

Hanging behind a 4500rpm Dominator converter, the 727 auto is one such beefy unit. Also built by Garry, it features a Cope Racing Transmissions reverse manual valvebody, Drag Sprag, extra clutches and billet servos.

“The Val’s making 650hp, which is plenty for me,” Matt says. “I’ve never had a car with this kind of power, and I’m still getting used to driving it – the car means too much to me to disrespect!”

Underneath, there’s chassis bracing aplenty, along with Wilwood front discs and Elko Performance rack-and-pinion steering, which helped the Pacer slide right through the engineering and rego process. “It was finished and engineered last year,” Matt says. “I took it to VicRoads to be registered, but then it had to be stripped again.”

Through no fault of Brent’s, 20 years of the VG collecting moisture under a car cover in Matt’s garage hadn’t done the purple paint any favours. “That was a little bit heartbreaking after finally getting it on the road after all these years, and a bit of a tease to only drive it for three months,” Matt laughs. “It got done pretty quickly, though – I started stripping it in the garage myself, and then it went to Adam Guglielmi, one of Garry’s contacts in Geelong, who painted it in custom House of Kolor purple.” Garry then cooked up and applied the orange ‘440 PACER’ striping for a colour combo rarely seen on Valiant hardtops. “Purple was a bit of an ‘in’ thing back in 2000, and I still love the colour,” Matt says. “There’s not another one out there like it, which is great.”

The interior is mostly conventional Pacer stuff, as per Matt’s Mopar taste, though he had Corinne at All About Trim dress some 770 seats with Pacer-pattern trim. “The Pacer seats are quite high, a bit like a Charger seat, and I prefer the low-cut style,” he says. “You can just see the headrests over the doors from the side.”

The car has been officially finished for about six months, a mere 28 years into Matt’s ownership! “It’s been a while,” he jokes. “The next thing is to get it ready for the quarter-mile. I’m not chasing times; I just want to have fun. I see guys come back from racing with big smiles, and the car is built to handle it!”

If it’s not obvious by now, Matt’s dedicated to his first car, come hell or high water. “I don’t have kids, so the car is like my kid,” he says. “I never felt like selling it, but sometimes you think there’s so much work and so much money involved, and you ask yourself if you’re ever going to finish it. Now that it’s done, it’s unbelievable!”

MATT TURNER
1970 VG VALIANT PACER

Paint:Custom House of Kolor Purple
ENGINE
Brand:440ci Chrysler big-block
Induction:Holley Super Sniper
Intake:Trick Flow high-rise
Heads: Trick Flow
Camshaft:Comp solid-roller
Conrods:Scat H-beam
Pistons:SRP
Crank:Stock 440
Oil pump:Melling high-volume
Fuel system:Aeromotive 340lph pump
Cooling:Custom radiator, BA Falcon thermo fans
Exhaust:Custom 2in tri-Y extractors, twin 3in system
Ignition:MSD 6AL, Pro Billet distributor
TRANSMISSION
Gearbox:727 Torqueflite
Converter:Dominator 9.5in 4500rpm
Diff:9in, Truetrac, 31-spline axles, 3.9 gears
SUSPENSION & BRAKES
Front:Heavy-duty torsion bars, Viking coil-overs
Rear:Calvert split mono-leaf springs, Viking shocks
Brakes:Wilwood discs (f), XE Falcon drums (r)
Master cylinder:PBR
WHEELS & TYRES
Rims:Street Pro 007; 15×4 (f), 15×10 (r)
Rubber:Nankang Cross Sport SP-9 195/70R15 (f), Mickey Thompson ET Street R 275/60R15 (r)

THANKS
Garry Harrison at Modern Hemi Developments; Adam Guglielmi for paint and panel; Jake at Streetclass Fibreglass for the bonnet; Corinne at All About Trim for the interior; and for their help and support throughout – you know who you are.

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