ORIGINALLY purchased by his grandparents as an everyday family car, Brett Midwinter’s 1984 VK Berlina is anything but that.
Founding member of Mount Gambier based motor sporting enthusiast team Senselessinc, Mr Midwinter said he has had a passion for motor sport from a young age.
“It is something I have always been interested in,” he said.
“I have had multiple vehicles over the years that I have rebuilt for motor sport events.
“I previously owned an old Commodore wagon that I gave a complete overhaul – making a normal car into something completely senseless – that is how I came up with our team name.”
The Berlina is now Mr Midwinter’s pride and joy, with many years spent building it up.
“Once I got the car from my grandparents, I started playing around with the engine and I could not help myself,” Mr Midwinter said.
“The car started off with a six cylinder engine and from there I have changed it a number of times.
“It has had a 308ci V8 engine, different stroker motors, basically anything to give it as much grunt as I can.”
With a current best drag time of 7.6 seconds on a 1/8 mile and an output of 500 horsepower, the Berlina has definitely matured from its early days.
Currently the VK is broken down due to a blown up engine, but Mr Midwinter has plans to reinstate the vehicle to its former glory.
“It blew up on me, which was pretty disappointing,” he said.
“But the crowd always seems to love seeing engines blow up and fireballs shooting out so I guess it would have been pretty entertaining for them.
“For the moment I am thinking of ways to get the best out of the car for future events.”
Mr Midwinter said he hoped to debut the car’s refurbished engine during next year’s Mount Gambier Autofest event.
“It is going to be a whole new beast next time the public sees it,” he said.
