N
OTHING says ‘nanna car’ quite like
a stock Toyota Corolla painted plain
white – except in the case of Nathan
Patterson’s example. His KE30 started
off exactly this way, but was turned into
a 550rwhp V8-powered tyre-melting
monster. And this transformation began just
two months out from Summernats 31!
Nathan’s plans for the small sedan – named
THELMA after its original owner – changed
radically in the lead-up to Summernats when the
boys from the US-based 1320Video YouTube
channel needed a car to skid at the ’Nats.
“Originally the Corolla was going to be a
tough street car with the Nissan SR20 turbo
four-cylinder out of my Top 60 ute LOWLUX,
and I was going to turn the HiLux into a skid car,”
Nathan says. “But I was mucking around with
the guys from 1320Video, and they got stuck
without a car for Summernats, so as a joke I
said: ‘Why don’t you skid mine?’ My partner and
I were due for our twins to be born and we had
them in the first week of the build, so it was just
an insane time; I can’t believe we did it!”
Not only did Nathan and his crew build a car
that blew the belts off the rears, it also landed
a spot in the Summernats Top 60 Elite Hall
alongside all the best show cars in Oz. Thismeans the detailing and quality of finish is up
there with the best, although there isn’t much
original Toyota tin left underneath.
Fitting a 6.0-litre L98 where 1200cc lived was
just part of the challenge, as much of the original
floor and spindly rear end had to be relocated
to the bin. Shawn from Karnge Kreations built
a full ladder-bar rear end and tubs.
“We realised we needed to tub it, then Shawn
started cutting, and cutting, and cutting!”
Nathan laughs. “The tub work inside the car was
smoothed and painted by Dapto Smash, and
the trim was designed to go around the tubs.
Realistically it should have been a slapped-
together skid car, but I’m not that kinda guy,
and neither are the people who worked on it.”
Even though THELMA has been built to skid,
Nathan still had Dapto Smash Repairs paint
and detail the undercarriage, smoothing it to
perfection. He also had all the chrome blacked
out for a more contemporary look, before
Darren at Queen Street Customs took to the
cabin to bring it into the 21st century.
“Dapto Smash basically built the whole
car,” Nathan explains. “The owner, Trevor, and
his family were involved in so many ways to
get it done, and their professionalism and
workmanship is mind-blowing. Imagine if theyhad a year to build a car! Their attention to
detail sometimes does your head in, but have
a look at the end result.
“Trevor’s brother Sean runs Dapto
Mechanical. He fitted the engine and running
gear, and plumbed the car at Dapto Smash,
plus much more – his hours in the car were
massive. There was not much the Dapto
Smash and Dapto Mechanical team didn’t do,
and if it needed to be done, then we all got
together and made it happen.
“I also have to thank Rohan and Scott from
Rocket Industries. They played a massive part
in the build and also were one of the major
sponsors, so almost every part is from Rocket.”
The L98 Gen IV V8 was put together by
Warspeed Industries from St Marys, Sydney,
as one of their Burnout Special-spec combos.
Topped with a Holley Hi-Ram intake wearing
twin Aeroflow throttlebodies, the angry L98
rocks SRP pistons and Callies rods, a Comp
Cam 235/243° bumpstick, and is controlled by
a Haltech Elite 2500 ECU. Up top, the factory
rectangle-port heads have scored stainless
valves, dual valve springs, and a trunnion
upgrade kit.
“I spoke to Troy at Warspeed Industries and
told him I wanted to abuse the car at everyIT SHOULD HAVE BEEN A SLAPPED-TOGETHER SKID CAR, BUT I’M NOT
THAT KINDA GUY, AND NEITHER ARE THE PEOPLE WHO WORKED ON IT