A 'sleeper' can be an absolute hoot to drive. Just imagine pulling up at a set of traffic lights the meat in a HSV and STi sandwich. The drivers of the two mean machines look at each other across your plain white bonnet and start revving up. The lights turn green, the boy racers glance at each other once more before you obliterate their view and tear off the line with a flurry of wheelspin. You're gone. Score one to sleeper!
If you like the idea of playing the underdog - and who wouldn't? - here's a list of cars that'll provide endless fun. We'll unveil some off-the-shelf factory sleepers and fill you in on a few killer conversions that are guaranteed to stir up the heroes in hotties!
Factory Sleepers
Volvo 850 T-5 Wagon
Of all cars on the road, the Volvo has the most staid image - and nothing says dentist-sterile like a Volvo wagon!
If you really want to go about the place bursting people's bubbles, you need look no further than the Volvo 850 T-5 wagon. Barely distinguishable over lesser model Volvos - aside from unique alloys and a T-5 badge on the rear - the killer Volvo is a real poison pill at the traffic lights. Its 5-cylinder DOHC intercooled turbo spits out 166kW and channels it through the front hoops; it's not a great combo for neck snapping launches but, once there's traction, this Volvo is g-o-n-e. Zero to 100 clicks comes up in just over 7-seconds and the quarter mile hovers around 15.4-seconds (in the 5-speed manual version).
In the second-hand market in Australia, you can easily pick up a T-5 wagon for AUS$25,000 - AUS$30,000. That's around the same price as a two-year-old white sales repmobile. Not only do you get a lot of grunt for your money, the Volvo is solidly engineered, very well appointed and - of course - safe. Many of the later models come with SIPS (side impact protection system) airbags and superstrong B pillars.
Without question, the T-5 wagon is a killer car for society's most twisted freaks. People like us!
Commodore VT Series 2 LS1 Executive
When you pull up alongside a VT-series Commodore, it's instinctive for those of us who have been stung before to check out the front guards for the telltale 'Gen III' (Holden marketing speak for the LS1 V8) badges. It's the get-back-dude message for anyone who's driving a car slower than 15-flat over the quarter mile. Many of these freaks in plain clothing cars (the Executive is the base-model Commodore in Australia) were sold into police fleets with either six-speeders or autos, and sans wheel trims. The autos - mostly white ones, although there were a few coloured cars for undercover highway patrol work - are more common.
If you really want to stir up Porsches and turbos, you can buy a plain-wrapper looking VT Series II 5.7 Commodore and rip off its Gen III tags. The only remaining giveaway that it isn't a rep-mobile 3.8-litre V6 is the tell-tale oval exhaust outlet. But it doesn't matter - by the time Boy Racer sitting next to you at the lights realises what exhaust tip you have, you're gone. Cutting big-bark Corvette performance off the leash is as easy as stabbing the right pedal. It's even worse when it's a V8 wagon!
Beyond the factory's 220-225kW allocation, the LS1's power is just waiting to be unleashed. Don't forget, this engine in its home US market is GM's premium performance engine with upwards of 250kW. Bung on a few breathing mods and you'll have 14-second - or quicker - supercar performance without the wings 'n things. Throw a cam at the valley and a tune at the PCM and you've got a 12-second blinder that'll throw out around 320kW and get 9 litres per 100km on a trip... if you care.
In Australia, the first of the LS1-powered Commodore Executives (the alloy Chev LS1 replaced the ageing Holden all-iron V8 in 1999) are worth mid-AUS$20s.
Peugeot 406 SV
Another Euro to keep the opposition on its toes is the Pug 406 SV. The 406 series is a wonderfully balanced, brilliant riding vehicle but, unfortunately, ninety percent of 'em are powered by the 100kW four-pot or the 82kW turbo diesel. If you want performance, go the 406 SV 3.0-litre V6.
The SV what?
Not many people know about the Peugeot 406 SV. Only modest numbers have been sold since its 1997 Australian release and, today, you'll find no problems scooping up a cheap one second-hand. Under the bonnet, the SV packs a 3.0-litre, DOHC, 24-valve 3.0-litre V6 capable of 144kW at 5500 rpm and 267Nm of torque at 4000 rpm. (It's actually a very similar engine to that used in the Citroen XM and the later Xantia). Note that current model 406 SV - if you can afford one, at around AUS$54,000 - puts out 157kW and 285Nm.
The early 406 SV in 5-speed manual form is an easy low 8-second 0 - 100 sprinter - and it's not the sort of car that you have to pray that you get the launch just right. No, it's not an absolute tear-away machine, but it's a very attractive, practical and luxurious sedan that's capable of keeping the majority of non-turbocharged or V8 haulers at bay.
If you ever get to drive one, you'll see what we mean.
Falcon EF 4.0-litre 5-Speed
Like the Commodore Executives that are its opposition in the Australian marketplace, the 4.0-litre straight six EF Ford Falcon (circa 1994) is common as muck and is never regarded as anything special - truth is, however, it's quite close to the straight-line performance of the contemporary sports model XR6 and it's more than a match for the big-brother XR8!
With its then-new Computer Torque Control dual-stage induction system, the base-model Falcon GLi 4.0-litre six eases out some 157kW at 4900 rpm and 357Nm at 3000 rpm - just 7kW and 9Nm short of the 'awesome' Tickford-tuned XR6. It's no surprise, therefore, that the base Falcon 5-speed is only around half a second slower to 100 clicks than the XR6 - the cooking model takes about 8.0 seconds, compared to 7.5 in the Tickford variant.
And the 5.0-litre Mustang-engined XR8 of the same age? Well, its test times were quoted at 8.2-seconds - slower than the 5-speed poverty pack!
With XR-rivalling straight-line performance, the standard EF 5-speed Falcon is ripper value - you can pick up a decent one for under AUS$9000. Trouble is, you have to actually find one. They're rare due to the fact - like the Commodore - most of these cars were sold into the fleet and rental markets. And, of course, that means most of them - about 95 percent - are autos.
Of course, things don't have to remain standard. One of the easiest ways to cut times in Falcons is to install lower ratio diff gears - say of 3.45. In fact, that was one of the ways the XR6 managed to trounce its big brother XR8 - the factory installed 3.45 diff gears as standard. If you want an extra 30-odd percent power, you need hand over only AUS$3600 at Jim Mock Motorsport ["Promise Delivered"]. This buys you what is marketed as the DEV 4 kit, which comprises extractors, exhaust, intake mods, camshaft and adjustable timing gear - enough to push out an impressive 155kW at the back wheels (still running on normal unleaded and perfectly streetable). Despite their numbers, these straight-six Falcons don't have much of an enthusiasts' aftermarket following. Rob Herrod Motorsport is about the only other company making a quid out of tuning six-pot Falcons.
But, with some money spent on go go gear, you won't mistake a 155kW ATW Falcon for a taxi - that's for sure!
Sleeper Conversions...
1JZ/2JZ twin-turbo six into Toyota Crown
It probably goes against some kind of religion, but we've always had an urge to drop in a 1JZ or 2JZ turbo (both truly awesome engines) into, ahem, a mid-80s MS123 Toyota Crown Royal Saloon.
Repent, repent, repent.
The Crown Royal Saloon has all the flair of a pair of beige underpants but, with a 206kW twin-turbo Japanese supercar six stuffed under the lid, we're talking serious sleeper appeal. Bolt up a fat exhaust, high flow intake and force a bit more boost through a headlight-to-headlight wide intercooler and you're looking at a 13-second sleeper - traction permitting.
The conversion to JZ power should be no more complex than many other conversions. Factory fitted with a 2.8-litre 5M-GE straight six, there is plenty of underbonnet length to fit the new motor, but we'd expect a lot of fiddling with mounts and, perhaps, manifolds. Aftermarket management would probably be the best way to go, because integrating a half-cut loom into the rest of the Crown body harness would be a monumental challenge.
Dynamically, the Crown is a bowl of jelly - improved springs and dampers will help the issue, but don't ever expect to be competitive in motokhanas. On the other hand, when you're not ripping apart Subie WRXs, Nissan GTS-Ts and V8 Holdens, you can sprawl back in the big seats and ask a mate in the back to pass you a cold can of your favourite brew out of the (standard fitment!) rear fridge...
A 13-second Toyota Crown - could there be more of a sleeper?!
Anything into Volvo 240-series
My goodness. Two mentions. The humble Volvo is never seen as anything particularly racy - so why not pick up a 1970-80s 240-series 2.3-litre Volvo (the rear-wheel-drive model) and plonk in, well, any number of engines. We've seen Chev, Holden, Ford and Lexus V8s stuffed under the nose as well as a VG30DET Nissan six worth 190kW in standard form - a fairly sizeable gain over the 85kW standard serve! Oh, and don't forget a plethora of Volvo Turbo hardware, if you want to keep the DNA strands intact..
Laugh? So do we when we hear someone - who's game enough to admit it - talking about how he's just had his doors sucked off by a Volvo.
Fabricated engine/gearbox mounts will be required - easy - in addition to a custom tailshaft, but the huge engine bay and trans tunnel means most other brand engines and gearboxes go in without too much drama. In fact, in Australia, it's not too hard to find a core of nutters who will happily sell you a front crossmember modified for your choice of V8 engine mounts. Interested? Send us an email... And check out www.jagsthatrun.com for some more sickly mouth-watering Volvo mumbo info.
The stock Volvo diff is seconded only by some Ford truck diffs for strength. It should last almost forever. The taller V6-spec ratio is the one to get. We'd also advise upgrading the suspension (four coils and factory adjustable for camber and caster at the front) and add some decent brake pads - the standard braking hardware (especially the V6-spec vented fronts) is quite powerful, with four-wheel discs and twin-piston front callipers. Mounting later-model 700 series hardware isn't too hard, either.
Despite their age, it's quite easy to pick up a mid '80s Volvo in good nick. Five grand in Aussie peso should get you an immaculate one-owner car without a scratch on it. If you really want to be a sick puppy, get a wagon. All were built tough-as-nails and, thanks to the mums and dads who usually own them, they're rarely thrashed. In fact, they're barely driven over 45 km/h.
But we'd soon change that!
4A-GZE into Toyota Tercel
The early '90s Toyota Tercel (aka Corolla SR5 wagon) is the sort of vehicle you can imagine a retired couple loading shrubs into the back of on their country property. We'd prefer to the think of the Tercel as a something of a drag racer!
In standard form, the AWD Tercel is a bit of a turtle - its 12-second 0 - 100 time is hardly the stuff dreams are made of. Rip out the original 76kW donk and drop in the 4A-GZE (perhaps with a few mods to fit) and you've got up to 123kW available under your right foot. But why stop there? (Um - one reason... the trans is a bit fragile. So you wouldn't want to hammer it tooooo hard...)
Add a big exhaust, high flow intake, a monster intercooler and maybe replace the standard blower for the larger unit off a 1G-GZE motor. With boost screwed up to 12 - 15 psi you'd have to be talking 150-ish kilowatts.
This level of grunt in an AWD Tercel would surely get you into the mid-high 14s!
EA82 Turbo Into Beetle
The Volksie Beetle needs no introduction - there's plenty of Porsche-eating hottie 13 and 14 second street monsters out there - but we must introduce you to the concept of dropping in a Subaru flat-four turbo engine.
Due to the short length of the Beetle's engine compartment, there's not a lot of choice for those looking for a transplant - you're limited to either a rotary or another flat-four. Probably the easiest and most reliable option is to go for an EA82 SOHC 1.8-litre turbocharged Subaru RX/Vortex engine. These little beasts are dirt cheap at the wreckers and, with some traditional bolt-on power-up mods, can easily be made to churn out 120 or more kilowatts.
The conversion is reasonably complex - you'll need custom engine mounts, an adapter plate to mate to the 4-speed and some of the engine compartment panels require alteration. We've never seen the EA82 motor imported as a complete half-cut, so you'll also need to go down the path of programmable management.
It's all worth it in the end, though. Depending on mods, we predict an EA82'd Beetle should power down the quarter mile in the 14-second bracket - and be totally reliable.
With machines like this lurking, you should never become complacent at the traffic lights!
