Johnny Habib Has Single-Handedly Rescued 30 Aussie Muscle Cars

First published 31.7.23. Updated quotes from Johnny.

The Iconic Blue Torana

Johnny Habib truly is one of the elder statesmen of Australian Drag Racing, and one of the sport’s finest ambassadors. His iconic blue Torana embodies the professionalism and sportsmanship we all want to see in Drag Racing, and has remained competitive in several different guises, in several different racing disciplines, from the days of the APSA to radial racing and even No Prep, all the while campaigning a single carby-fed big block V8 to show that high tech’ gadgetry hasn’t totally overrun the sport, yet.

The LH Torana

Johnny’s LH has been kicking ass and taking names for years, and is shockingly simple. The chassis remains largely unmodified, so too the bodywork, but jammed between the chassis rails is a whopping 572 cubic inch big block Chev’. Behind that, a 2-speed Turbo 400 fronts a 9in diff’, and if Johnny really wants to test the tractive efforts of those big rear slicks, he can shove up to 400hp worth of nitrous down the Chevy’s throat with the push of a button.

Johnny’s passion for Aussie muscle cars extends beyond that of just the Torana, and when he’s not spinning spanners on his first love, he can be found lovingly restoring classic Aussie muscle cars in the carport at home.

I started restoring SLR Torana replicas, because Toranas are a big part of my passion for cars,” he explains" 

After the fifth one I promised myself I was done and I’d never go through another resto’ again, but here we are years later and I’ve restored thirty Aussie muscle cars!” he laughs.  

Torana SLR 5000

Amongst the models lucky enough to have been painstakingly restored by Johnny, it should come as no surprise that Toranas dominate the ranks. The General’s finest mid-sized muscle car has been joined by a few HX and HQ GTS and even an XY GT!

Far from a Facebook Marketplace rattlecan resto’ flip job, every single one of Johnny’s cars are torn down and given the full treatment. Check out our article titled Restore Rare SL/R 5000.

I probably lose money on most of them, it’s not about making a buck for me,” he admits. 

“I’ve built a reputation - they’re all built to a really high standard and I warrant all the mechanicals. I build them all as if I’m building them for myself - well enough to live on for decades more,” he continues, with his passions for the cars evident in his voice.

His latest project is of particular interest, and may just be the rarest car to ever undergo a Johnny Habib resto. 

I’ve found the ultimate Aussie barn find!” he enthuses. “It’s a one-owner, genuine L34 four-door, one of only six made in this particular colour,” he continues with a giddy enthusiasm. We’ll bring you more on that special restoration in a future article.

What’s more remarkable is that Johnny is entirely hands-on throughout the whole process, handling the disassembly and complete reassembly at home in the family car port. Some take a little while longer fixing any rust and in the bodywork stage.

Some of the cars put up a real fight the whole way along and others just come together really nicely… 

there’s no better feeling than getting them home from paint, fitting up the wheels and tyres and letting the car take on its personality.”  

A testament to his passion for the classics, Johnny admits that there’s some he wishes he could have kept. 

I think about keeping every single one of them! There’s a couple in particular that I regret selling, but as soon as I finish building them and share them to Facebook they’re typically gone within a couple of weeks,” 

he smiles. Not that the Habib family garage is lacking any Aussie muscle eye candy, with Johnny’s Torana race car sharing the space with a 500hp Torana sedan and a highly-desirable hatchback!

For our top 5 Australian Muscle Cars of all time, click here.