This Impreza rally car was lucky to only just clip the orange cone on the inside of the corner and not take out the lot of them. Taking that inside line with enough power to get up the hill is a tricky one. Often people would take too much speed into this corner and occasionally drop a wheel on the exit.

That infamous Hyundai Lantra! “Yeah its three wheeling” aggressive in style and like a bull in a china shop Christopher smashes times on the track.

Exactly one year ago this Levin was at the very same event and in 2013 the car does not look any different. Although this is a front wheel drive Levin it was getting around the track very smoothly with little under steer.

There are some people on the track that are not afraid to use their handbrake on the tarmac and Christopher is one of them. Keeping up momentum on this track can be hard especially when your pushing a small four cylinder up lots of hills.

Upon arrival this Escort had a 4 wheel swap over from rally dirt tyres to a smaller diameter set of slicks. I couldn’t believe how small these wheels were; they looked like go kart wheels!

With smaller wheels on John’s Escort he had some extra pep in the acceleration department. This combined with soft suspension makes for some wicked corner speed and wheel stands!

Launching out of corners like a ballistic missile this Escort was making light work of this track. With a talented rally driver behind the wheel it was easy to see that this car was putting down some fast lap times.

This Celica hit the track later in the day and with its GT4 castrol WRC livery everyone was watching it go round.

Haunted Hills has many interesting corners. This downhill section can often catch people out because it s easy to carry too much speed into it and run off.

Another car that was at last years Christmas break up was …. Celica. It’s always a joy to see this car pumping around the track. I would like to see more of these on the track but sadly this is the only one I have ever seen on a track.

This VH Commodore was very unpredictable. Every third or forth lap it would bust out a full noise drift style lap. With smoke and wild throws into corners I’m surprised this old girl didn’t flip.

Talk about a smile! It’s not what you drive it’s how you drive it! This little ke20 had plenty of battle scars and by the looks of things had also done some serious kilometres.

The Chrysler Lancer is not your everyday Lancer. Although this looks similar to the 2000 gt lift back Celica it was made two years after the Celica and had considerably less styling than the Celica of the time.

My favorite thing about this car is the horse emblem on the steering wheel. It is so pimp! Not to mention the crazy array of sunken dials right across the dash.

It’s great to see more women on the track these days even if they are scaring the shit out of their mothers.

Surprisingly there were two ford esscorts at the track and both were pushing it all day long. Although these

It was great to see the CCRMIT club again they definitely have not lost their passion for racing. Apparently this will be the last time the CCRMIT Christmas break up will be held at the haunted hills race track and that makes me sad because it is one of those events i look forward to every year.
Thanks for reading,
Grant

So what is HWY? it is a car and bike enthusiast club that is rapidly growing in size! Since november 2012 the group known as HWY has been creating a new type of car meet scene. One that does not discriminate on car or bike type and the best thing it’s open to all! The major difference with this car club is that it’s a Charity organisation.


One of the most impressive attributes of HWY is the regularity of its meets, nearly every Friday its on!
i was shocked to see such great classics on display especially driven by “P” platers.

Yes sticker bombing is still alive and well. I like the fact that there are a few people keeping it alive within the scene.

Probably one of the most scariest cars of the night, it arrived full of people and every one in the car was wearing a mask. With many gas masks and other crazy masks, i thought this may turnout to be a drive by shooting but luckily i was wrong.

Did i mention that the nights theme was dress up! You cannot really tell from the photos yet there were plenty of school girls and onesies. It also was great to see such a collection of skylines together in one place.

Such a clean restoration and attention to detail. This is a great looking package that really did make people stop and take notice.

There were a few 86’s in attendance but this one really caught my eye! with these simple mods this 86 is totally transformed and now really stands out amongst the sea of cars.

Two very iconic cars just happened to be siting next to one another. If only my car history looked this good!

Sex spec style seems to be one of those things that has not left the scene yet. Is sydney to blame? im not sure but i respect the amount of tuck this commodore gets on its airbags.

The General Lee’s dark cousin made an appearance, its one car that i really didn’t expect to see at this car meet.

One mad little e30 that looks like it has had a bit of track time over its life.

It seems that all the NA supras are finding homes, surprisingly not the only supra on the night i saw about 4 in total which is good considering that they are really not as popular as they once were.

The R34 GTR is one of those cars that most JDM fans dream of owning at one time or another. So glad to see one at a local met like this.

Nissan has come up with alot of new cars lately but none have had as much character and ionic lines as the 370z. The design really does give that Datsun look in a modern way!

Although HWY meets are 70% / Holden / Ford i did manage to find some gems among the rough.

This one of the cars i wish i would of had as a “P” Plater, tough, fun to drive, with plenty after market parts. The s13 is a real trooper!

Now for something different a Hearse you say? well their ain’t many Hearse’s up for sale! so if you want one you have to create one. The movement of creating modern Rat Rods and throw backs is a very interesting concept and like all things evolution is always around the corner.

Oakleigh Masters was a great location for the meet. Even know the police did know of the event they still made several laps of the carpark to make their presence felt. Everyone still had fun, the growing community of young car lovers really look forward to events like these and not even the police car dampen their mood.
HWY really is changing the car scene for the better. With so many events and fundraises planned we at Grip Shift Slide will defiantly attend more of these great events.
Want to find out more ? hit up HWY FB Group or their new forum -> http://www.likehwy.com.au/
Thanks for looking,
Grant

Its that time of year again, the hanging rock classic car show has one of the biggest car shows of the year, the amount of cars on display is incredible.
knowing that so many cars would be attending i decided to arrive at hanging rock early, even before i got there a mini car show of its own had sprung up, the main BP truck stop before hanging rock was absolutely full of car clubs pre-meeting before the event.

What is a car show without a classic Holden Ute, this one had a fair bit of custom work, the bonnet boob wasn’t to everyone’s liking but most people did admire the immaculate paint work!

With the rising popularity of Magnus Walker the old porsches are showing up everywhere! there was at least 15 of these beauty’s on display.

The Porsche 356 is one of those cars that just has so much character and presence, the shape is so unique and bold.

This car looks like it is straight out of that old english TV show Heartbeat, the Austin A30’s where very popular back in the mid fiftys.

Mercedes never built a ute for the australian market, but this one of a kind W114 Mercedes-Benz really impressed a lot of people. The custom fabricated back window looks factory because it is so well engineered. Sitting nice and low on airbags, this is one ute that definitely shows the mini-truck kids how it is done.

Would the DeLorean have been forgotten if it weren’t for the movie back to the future? Im glad that this is a car that will not fall into the shadows and be forgotten. Being loosely based off the Lotus Esprit, it is a shame that the company never got to make any other models than the DeLorean.

So fresh So Clean Clean, i just cant believe how immaculate this engine bay is its ridiculous!

Dafaq! yeah that’s right its rabbit man, some of you may know of this guy and some will not! He is often seen at ford shows and other classic car shows with his pimp rabbit. Who brings a full spit on a total fireban? Im not sure but the CFA told them off several times, until the no BBQ rule was enforced later in the day!

This thing is so rare! Its the first time i have ever seen one, i just cant believe they made a coupe version of the toyota crown!

Your not an aussie car lover if you don’t like the SLR 5000! pick a colour any colour!

Not all the classics are standard, check out this custom extra large front intake on this Shelby.

So many Shelby Cobras! in one place!

The Viper, such a strange car in person the curves and lines are very odd, it is a truly massive car!

Probably the cleanest Ford Roadster Hot Rod at Hanging rock, simple and not super flashy. Its a shame that there where not many Rat Rods at the show but we hope to see some next year.

The 1970’s Torino is not the type of car you normally see on the road that’s because its an import from america, why didn’t we get such things in Australia? maybe its because Crysler was to much competition at the time and the charger was so damn popular.

This is one of the only Ford Roadster Hot Rods i have seen with a cool old school racing paint job complete with period correct stickers.

You many have seen this at other hot rod shows, its is one unbelievable piece of machinery and it has airbrushing that actually suits the car.

Ok im going to be honest i do not know what type of car this is but it is very unique and cool.

The 80’s saw allot of sports cars, one of the more affordable ones is the corvette, with is sensible clean look it was the choice of many middle class business men.

This car just has so many bold lines! its a second gen Ford Fairlane from america, just look at all the exterior detail, cars these days do not come with any crazy trims like this!

The Toyota 800, this thing is awesome, its kinda like a mini 2000GT. Very ahead of its time and only a very limited amount where made, the main competition for this car was the honda s500, im a big fan of the toyota 800 because i have a strange liking for kei cars.

The interior of old cars have so much more class than cars of this current generation.

Corolla GT E70 that’s right its pretty much a two door version of the ke70! i wish they made more of these to take pressure off the ae86.

The First generation Ford Fairlane, just as magnificent as it was back in the day.

Inside its nothing but a buffet of chrome and style.

This was not the only GT40 in attendance we counted at least 3 around the place and all had there own individual character.

This third gen Toyota Corona looks tough, with its bright white wall tyres, these small sedans from the 60’s are great!

Sneaky sneaky, 90% of the cars are pre 1986, how did this get under the radar? it ok because we love skylines!

Yeah i bet you all know what this is? but did you know this is one of 5 cars built for Gone in 60 seconds, yes that right they built 5 and on the day chose one to film. Originally purchased from america for $70k the owner has been offered over $200k for this car!

Yes i climbed the rock! yet by the time i got around the whole show and then made my way to the top, half of the cars where gone! Every year this show just gets bigger and bigger, there are so many cars it becomes a bit of a blur by the end, but there is always two or three stand out cars that you remember after the show. Another year and another hanging rock show, still the years biggest car show to date, with over 1400+ cars!
Big thanks to our Guest photographer Brendan from BlackTop Images, http://www.facebook.com/BlacktopImages
Thanks for looking,
-Grant

There have not been any real JDM meets this January, yet the Classic car and Hot Rod scene seems to have an event every weekend! So i drove to Drysdale to check it all out.


Upon walking in i was greeted by this customized ford coupé Hot Rod, the black wire wheels really set this car off nicely not to mention the great decals.

This 1960’s Chevrolet Impala really looks the part out in the arid landscape of Drysdale.

The Ford xp falcon is one of those underrated classic cars, it doesn’t get much attention at shows but damn they are nice.

Not your every day mustang, this may not appeal to most but it is refreshing to see a mustang other than the super popular mid 1960’s mustangs.

Now this is my type of car, small light and all kinds of crazy!, its a lotus 19, well that what it looks like to me, i may be wrong. If this is in fact a Lotus 19 it is extremely rare even if it is a remake.

When you see trumpets like these and the logo on the rocker cover you know this belongs to the Ford GT40.

The Moke is one of those cars, with military styling inspired by war times, the 1970’s saw these cars on every street corner and now it is a gem to catch a glimpse of one.

Recently a new corvette was born and the keyboard warriors of the internet kicked up a huge fuss about its tail lights, its many vents and styling cues. If the internet existed back in the 1960’s do you think people would have said the same thing about the stingray?

All i could think about when i saw this was mad max! such a tough car!

When you look at these cars side by side you can see the similarity in design but they are both very different cars, today if you did a similar comparison i would bet that the cars of that era would stand out as completely individual cars unlike some of today’s designs.

The GT40, a car that demands attention, people who know nothing about cars and have no interest in them are just suddenly dawn to it like moth to a flame.

This is just one of many fantastic corvette stingray coupés on show.

Everything in these early corvettes has so much character, this has to be one of the best looking classic dash set ups.

The simple lines on this Ford XP Falcon Squire Wagon are one of its most redeeming features.

The Austin Healey, one of the biggest models of the Healey range, these are very popular as a weekender or just as a start for many classic car collectors.

I like this Hot Rod, it doesnt shout look at me i demand attention, it is just nicely done and very clean too look at.

This had to be one of the most impressive Hot Rods at the show, everything had been custom built and the amount of chrome on this car was intense.

Staying with the chrome theme, this Holden HG Premier sat with a lot of other shiny Holdens of that era.

The 1945 4WD field Ambulance has to me my favourite of the whole show, i have never seen such an ambulance, it is so scary you would think you were being taken to hell not hospital in this thing.

Down away from the main football oval a small group of cars gathered and quickly filled almost all of the car park.

Found this little mx5 hiding in the car park, this is the first time i have seen one with a carbon bonnet in Victoria.

The Ford Capri of the 1970’s has so many style references to other very successful cars of that era like the Mercedes-Benz SLC and Celica Liftback 2000 GT.

Many of the cars on show are cars that have lived in and around Geelong for over 40 years this show gave many the chance to show off their pride and joy. With so many Classic cars shows on lately, this will not be the last time you will see classic cars on GSS, why? because there is twice as many classic shows as there is jdm / modern car shows.
Thanks for looking,
Grant

It has been almost a decade since the last Geelong speed trials, the Geelong revival is the reinvention of this great event. It has returned in bigger and better fashion. With a motor show, sprint and gala dinner, held over two days along the beautiful Geelong waterfront.

Since 1956 this event has captivated young and old. It has seen its fair share VIP racing identity’s, Sir Jack Brabham, Stirling Moss, Bob Jane, Glen Seaton, Mika Hakkinen, to name a few.

Upon arriving i was greeted by a large group of mini car shows scared all along the shore line, up until the start line of the sprint track.

Some fantastic cars were on display, this has to be one of the cleanest fiats of the show, love the classy lines of this car.

I found this very yellow lotus 7 enjoying the sun.

Many more classic cars had grouped to form there own little show cases, this MG had prime position and lots people stopped to admire its unbelievable condition.

The fiat 500 never looked so good, these wheels set it off and make it look like a real life toy car. But this little toy car is the real deal, its the Abarth version.

In the pits the first thing to catch my eye, was these classic touring cars, in the eighties, these two dominated the scene and the mountain.

Some people needed a little helping hand to get there cars started, lucky many had a large pit crew to help out.

Im not completely sure what a PJC-2 2008 is but apparently this is it! a custom built car, mainly used for track events and club racing.

The classic mini, getting a quick fix before getting back on the track.

Slammed type 3, not your normal track car, but it was great to see a car with such character out there mixing it with the big boys.

There were plenty or replica and real cobras on show, with so many cobras together it was hard to see any difference.

These controls may look boat like, but back in the day this is what the dash of most cars would have been like.

What is a classic car event with out an e-type Jag? They always look so good and to date i have never seen dirty one.

A MG montlhery midget, it is not only a show car but also it has seen some serious time on the track.

With so many chances to mark his territory, this little dog had unfinished business and did not want to leave.

That classic shape! and those bold lines! you know it could only be 328GTS Ferrari

With more curves than a woman, this ultra rare classic car drew a lot of attention.

So many cool old school wood grain interiors around i felt the need to go black and white.

Soaking it all in, were these two blokes enjoying there morning coffee and the many cars on show.

You may recognize this car from regular rob roy hilclimbs, the Lancia Lambda Special is one large monster of a car.

This was one of the most unique cars on display in comparison to everything else

A true old school touring car, from the days when touring cars had some variety and were good to watch un like today’s v8 controlled layout. Thankfully the introduction of Nissan and Mercedes might make things a little more interesting.

This is one of only a handful of hot rods in attendance, most of these were scattered around the shoreline mixed in with many other classic cars.

Graham Alexander’s Evo was equal fastest on Saturday along with John Major in his R32 GTR, recording a time of 11.8 seconds over the quarter mile run.

A Custom built Diasio D962, i have never seen one of these before and it is almost like a small lemans style car, the best bit is its powered by a twin rotor.

Not to forget the bikes at the event, this is one of the more extreme side-car style bikes with no much to hold on to.

What i love about this event is the variety of cars, it is absolutely huge with over 200 cars across two days of racing.

Once a race class have raced on the track they are made to return on the same road, from here you can see the slight bend and incline they have to negotiate on there way to the finish.

The RED BUS racing team put on a great display, all of their cars were looking fantastic and many people stopped to have a closer look at the many fine cars they bought to Geelong.

Dont let the Showroom condition fool you!, this was one of the fastest cars to race on the saturday and the only other Nissan that came close to its time was the GTR VSpec 2 N1 2001 driven by Serge Alexander.

At the end of the straight you are forced to turn hard left and this makes for some interesting late braking.

Pit lane was almost as long as the whole track, with so many people walking around the pits it took a fair amount of time for all the cars to get on the track for their sprint.

Of the mazda’s entered into the sprint, this was my favorite, the paint job and the overall condition of this car was impeccable.

Here is another view of the cars returning to the pits, the Fiat X1/9, yet another favorite of mine because of its unique look and sleek lines.

Considering it has been at least a decade between the last Geelong sprint, this event has come together with military precision. With a massive crowd in attendance, it would have to be one of Geelongs biggest events of the year. We cannot wait until next years event if this is just a taste of things to come.
Thanks for looking,
Grant