Holden VC Commodore

The team comprised Andrew Csaszar and friend Russell Morton.

The car was built out of a VC Commodore SL/E bodyshell and fitted with a new 5.0-litre V8 engine purchased from HDT. The engine was fitted with a VK 5-litre police manifold and 4 barrel carburettor.

Andrew, a spray painter, painted the car and it closely resembled the later VH series.

Andrew bought a bunch of parts from friends which he fitted to the car including a T5 5-speed gearbox, tailshaft, differential, springs and Bilstein struts and dampers. It turned out that these parts had been stolen, and were believed to have been from Peter Brock's VK Group III prototype car. Andrew was later charged with receiving stolen goods.

For the race they fitted a 60 litre boat fuel tank in the boot and connected it to the main tank with an electric pump.

The also fitted Irmscher alloy wheels, which were borrowed from Russell's car.

Worried about damage to the car if they were to hit a kangaroo, Andrew installed a metal frame between the grille and radiator.

They started in fourth place and took an alternate route to avoid the police along the Calder Highway. This was about 100 km longer but they were able to drive flat out.

Despite their start position and the longer route, they were the first to arrive at the Berri checkpoint.

In South Australia they were pulled over by police and the followed for some distance. After some time with the police behind, Andrew raised the speed to 130 to 140 km/h but they did not stop him, and eventually turned around.

They went through the Port Augusta police roadblock without being stopped.

They were leading across the Nullarbor and could hear Kovacs/Walsh following and asking the truck drivers on the CB radio how far behind they were.

At Caiguna, Western Australia, the police arrested Russell, claiming that he had been tracked by air at 180 km/h. Russell was taken in the back of a police car on a five hour journey to Norseman, with Andrew following behind, forced to travel at the speed limit, and struggling to stay awake. The Kovacs/Walsh Holden was also stuck behind unable to pass.

At Norseman they lost another half hour while Russell was bailed out, and then were able to continue on in the race.

They weren't sure how many teams had passed them but were surprised to catch up with Kovacs/Walsh at the Albany checkpoint, who were struggling to find the checkpoint, where they talked briefly. Several police cars were present there and effectively escorted both teams towards Fremantle.

Andrew says that either out of boredom or perhaps being lost that he and Russell turned off and took another route to the finish.

They were the second team to arrive and, after factoring in their starting time, they were the fourth fastest team.

They stopped 3 or 4 times for fuel, the car having a range of up to 1,500 km. They stopped at Berri, Port Augusta, the WA border and probably Norseman. They ate in the car while driving but stopped for occasional toilet breaks.

When testing the car prior to the race Andrew says it was capable of 240 km/h, but during the race they usually cruised at 200 to 210 km/h, which was around 4,100 rpm.

Russell later went back to Norseman and appeared in Norseman Magistrate's Court and was fined $250 and banned from driving in Western Australia for three months.

Because of the stolen parts the car was taken by an insurance company and auctioned to recover costs, with Andrew to receive a certain percentage of the sale price due to how much of the car was his. However, Andrew was able to bid on the car and he bought it back.

They car was later sold after it was returned back to its original 4.2-litre, 4-speed manual SL/E specification. Andrew used the Brock parts on subsequent Commodores that he owned.

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