One of the hardest and most frustrating aspects of any project car build is having to rectify the decades of sins committed by previous owners before you can enact your own vision. Fortunately for Paul Vavitis, he’s owned this beautiful VL Calais Turbo since it was brand new, at the tender age of 10!

First published in the June 2025 issue of Street Machine

“My parents said that if I promised to finish my VCE, they’d buy me a car there and then,” he explains. “This was 1986, and the VL Calais Turbo commercial was playing on TV. It left such an impression, I knew I had to have one.”

Once he was old enough to get behind the wheel, Paul somehow managed to avoid the usual P-plater tropes of distasteful mods or seriously injuring the car at the hands of his youthful enthusiasm. “It did get a little bit rough around the edges back in the day – blue ignition leads, blow-off valves and shit steering wheels,” he chuckles.

But it was Paul’s brother, Zac, who lit the spark for Paul to begin turning that first car into the 1100hp showpiece it is today. “After I got my Calais, my brother wanted a VL too, so my father bought him a Turbo SL,” he says. “He sold it a few years later and always regretted it. He told me to never to let go of mine, and to build it as best I could. A few days later, he passed away in a car accident.”

Determined to honour his fallen brother’s wishes, Paul has had the car in a constant state of evolution ever since. It first broke cover just over 10 years ago as a tough street car with custom-trimmed VE GTS seat foams (at a time when those cars could still be bought new at the dealership), Simmons wheels, and a stout single-cam turbo engine. It was more car than most people could ever dream of owning, but Paul knew he wasn’t going to leave it at that.

“I’ve owned the car long enough to learn that fashion comes and goes, and that new technology becomes available,” he says, hinting at the impetus for the VL’s latest rebuild. “For example, we used to have to polish everything, but now it’s possible to plate a lot of the parts.”

Accordingly, the staggered Simmons wheels and just about everything that bolts to the outside of the RB30 was sent off to be chrome-plated, resulting in a deep, lustrous shine that’s easy to maintain – which was definitely a consideration given that Paul is likely to roll the Calais out of the garage for a blat around the block just about every day!

The single-cam six-banger was part of the reason Paul fell in love with the VL back in the day, and he’s never thought to change it. “Back when I built the car, billet blocks and cylinder heads were only for race cars, and I’ve never been tempted to do a twin-cam head either – I don’t like the look of them,” he says.

The VL doesn’t suffer for lack of big-dollar bits, though. The standard-stroke forged motor is matched to a CNC-ported head, with a Plazmaman intake manifold on the cold side balanced by a PSR 7982 turbo atop a 6boost manifold on the hot side. On E85, and through a Powerglide and nine-inch, the RB engine still manages to get 1100hp all the way to the rear wheels.

Speaking of which, the 22×10 Simmons rims out back are one of the car’s latest upgrades, and while the tubbed stance gives the car a very tough and modern look, we’re sure the wider wheels also help tame some of that four-digit power. Psidup Fabrications shortened a nine-inch and tubbed the rear to fit them, hanging the hardware off a four-link matched with AFCO coil-overs. “The wheels are the most important part of any build, I believe,” says Paul.

Just as timeless are the Scheel seats in the cabin, which were the choice for HDT’s hottest models back in the day. “The VE GTS foams were new and exciting, but they were too big for the VL. As soon as I went back to the Scheels, I knew I’d made the right choice,” Paul says. The whole lot is trimmed in beige Nappa leather – the same stuff used in Bentleys, no less, and another nod to the similarly hued leather the car was optioned with from the factory.

Astoundingly, despite the race-ready driveline and the astronomical power figure, Paul says the Calais is simply his vision of a tough street car. “A rollcage was never an option; it’s not a race car,” he insists. “Taking this car out on the street often is my thrill, and every time you drive it, you’re guaranteed to get someone giving you the thumbs-up!”

Paul is confident he’s now lived up to the promise he made to his brother and can’t see any further mods in the VL’s future. He’s determined to pass the car down to his son, also named Zac in his late bro’s honour. “My parents got this car for me, and now I’ve built it for my son,” he says simply. There’s a beautiful sense of closure to that.

PAUL VAVITIS
1986 HOLDEN VL CALAIS TURBO

THANKS
George Lyras at KB Prestige & Restoration; Richard Schembri at Instyle Custom Trim; Dylan McMahon at Gold Class Detailing; CK Automotive; Psidup Fabrications; Quikbitz; my wife Helene Vavitis and my family for their constant support.