With no experience but big vision, Peter Barrett is transforming a $1200 Dodge Kingsway into a wild home-built custom thanks to a Lexus LS400 donor. Here’s his brief story.

First published in the August 2025 issue of Street Machine

“With no build experience but a desire to create something different, I made a $1200 eBay purchase and dragged home this ’51 Dodge Kingsway.

“Then, while looking for a V8 Commodore donor car, I stumbled upon a cheap Lexus LS400 with 91,000km on the clock for $3200. Given they have the 1UZ V8, I thought the Lexus would be a perfect donor car for the Dodge, and with the unwanted parts from the Dodge and LS400 sold off, I’d basically got my money back.

“I’ve chopped the Kingsway’s roofline 75mm, smoothed the body and changed the bonnet to forward-tilt, and the Lexus gave its engine, transmission, seats, wiring, instrument cluster, steering column, wiring harness, cruise control, fuel tank, transmission tunnel, front seat mounts and rear seat base.

“It’s dumped on Air Ride airbag suspension, using a shortened four-link rear end, while the independent front end has Castlemaine Rod Shop drop spindles and power steering. Brakes are 300mm discs and calipers all ’round, and it will roll on billet wheels with deep-dish rears.

“Still not sure what paint colour to go with, but so far, it’s all been built in the shed at home.”

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