Show King: Custom HR UTE

Photos by Ben Hosking

Ditch Jones’ heavily customised ute would have to be one of the most famous HRs in the country, wowing show goers for over 20 years. Ditch has been working hard to get the HR into a position where he can finally relax a little and put some kilometres on the odometer and the time has almost come for this dream to become a reality.

To understand the importance of this milestone we first have to rewind a bit, back to when Ditch and the HR first crossed paths. Back then the ute was largely original but still a trophy winner, with Ditch picking it up recently refinished for the princely sum of $6500 in the mid 80s.

A Canberra local at the time, Ditch was there for the birth of Summernats and regularly left the ACT behind the wheel of his HR to attend shows all over the country. Ditch was dedicated to driving to each event he entered and because of this, the ute slowly became a little tired.

It was at this point, around 7 years ago, that Ditch dropped the HR of at Sefton Concept Vehicles (SCV), bouncing ideas off Drago Ostric that would eventually form the extensively customised show stopper you see before you.

Over the next four years, the SCV team went to town and Ditch reckons there are easily 100 different body mods in his ute alone, without counting the scores of modifications to be found inside and underneath the car.

The wheelbase has been stretched 100mm to properly centre the front wheels in the guards, the front wheel arches were raised 35mm to offer better steering travel and the sills were extended by around 35mm – a mod’ that makes the car look lower and just a little chopped.

Still on the body, the side glass and window frames have been deleted and both front and rear screens are flush fitting, with the front glass coming down further than stock. The rain gutters were shaved, as were the doors that are now suicided. Up front, the bonnet was extended to the windscreen with the cowl removed and re-fabricated underneath with custom billet hinges.

There are dozens more body modifications that could be listed but the HR isn’t just a combination of its fancy panels, with the original chassis binned and replaced with a 3/4-chassis and a tubular front end. Ditch tells us that this front end could house any power plant he chooses, although we get the idea that the yellow menace will forever be powered but the oddball Holden six tucked away under the bonnet.

Based around a 3.3L 202ci six, the engine has been rebuilt with a sturdy bottom end to cope with the boost supplied by the Fisher 4/71 blower that hangs off the side.

Drago and his team had to move the engine and gearbox back 100mm and down 65mm to accommodate Ditch’s desired 4in blower belt, resulting in a sump that sits flush with the floor pan and a custom Garlits injector hat that peeps out in an unorthodoxly off-centre position.

Truly masters in the art of metal fabrication, SCV also created the entire interior out of steel. Inside the cabin you’ll find a swoopy design that completely disguises the ute’s 44 years.

Teal micro-suede covers the modified Cobra one-piece seats as well as the false floor panels, custom door trims, rear bulkhead and intricate roof panel that many have not seen.

There’s no question that the ute set a new benchmark when it hit the show scene a few years back, with consecutive Top 10 spots at Summernats 20 and 21. While these prestigious accolades mean a lot to Ditch, he has always planned to race and cruise the HR, a plan that is now coming to fruition.

Rolling on some new Air Ride airbags to ensure the cleanliness of the undercarriage, the HR is ready to roll and ditch admitted to us during the shoot that our driving shot represented the first real driving he’s done in the HR since all the new suspension work!

With the maiden voyage over and done with – and the ute passing with flying colours – let’s hope those original plans to race and cruise the HR finally come true.