In between gearing up for Victoria’s first-ever Drag Challenge Weekend, we’ve been thrashing hard to button up our April issue. And boy, was it worthwhile!

The incredibly sanitary engine bay and interior you see on the cover belongs to Nathan Giunco’s superb XE Falcon, fresh from its debut at Street Machine Summernats 34.

The rest of the car is equally gorgeous, with a huge amount of subtle custom work everywhere you look. It’s no slouch either; this combo will make well over 1000hp once tuned, and you bet Nathan will be sending it on the strip.

Steve Santos built a pretty sweet birthday present for his dad in the form of a turbo slant-powered AP5 Valiant. Yes, you read that right. The tough cruiser features a leaning tower of power with a force-fed twist.

Prefer your streeters even angrier? We’ve got a pair of murderous, road-going blue sedans, both from 1971.

The Roppo’s Garage crew put together this super-tough XY Falcon, packing a Pro Stock-style donk that’s sure to land the car in the low 10s as it screams to an 8000rpm redline.

On the other side of the great divide, there’s Supercars engine builder Warren Eustace’s stonking HG Holden. Under the bonnet is a retired, 90s-built V8 Supercars mill, reassembled by Waz himself with just enough tweaks for it to handle street duties.

Phil Bartolo proved his doubters wrong when he jammed a healthy Clevo into the confines of an XP hardtop engine bay, and we’re glad he did! Now in its second build, the Falc oozes old-school cool with a gorgeous finish to match.

HRs don’t come much tougher than Jason Pellett’s Nardo Grey example, thanks to an LS1 transplant and some top-notch smoothing work. The kicker? It was all done in Jason’s shed.

While Drag Challenge Weekend kicks off in Victoria, suss out Glen Finegan’s 1100hp ’69 Camaro. It began as a humble DC build, but Glen’s since gone above and beyond – almost to the point of the car being too damn nice for Aussie roads.

On the topic of events, they’re finally back in full swing across Victoria and beyond. The annual Picnic at Hanging Rock bounced back after a 2021 cancellation, throwing open the gates to hundreds upon hundreds of ripper rides. Survivor cars, restored metal, modified toughies and random oddities all turned out in droves.

The Tuff Mounts Holden Drag Nationals also went down a treat, with a new format seeing action spread across two days. Look no further for your fill of Lion and Lion-powered activities!

Stateside, multi-talented man of action Povi Pullinen rides along for yet another huge drag-and-drive event. Sick Week was dreamed up by Hot Rod Drag Week champ Tom Bailey and Aussie SM legend Luke Nieuwhof, with 2021 marking its inaugural running.

Aidan Donald of Aidan’s Design & Illustration is back with yet another cracking render concept in this month’s Expression Session, this time built on the ubiquitous HQ Monaro. He’s taken a different approach to most, transforming the Quey into a carbonfibre-covered, GT3-spec missile. It’s a killer look we’d love to see in the flesh!

There’s heaps more in the April 2021 issue, including a great look at AFL hero Charlie Dixon’s Drag Challenge-ready CV8 Monaro, a chat with Rick Dobbertin about his iconic Pontiac J2000 pro streeter, and a stunning 615ci HT GTS drag car. And that’s not even getting into some awesome engine builds, impressive reader projects, and more.

You’ll find it all in the April mag, out now!