Highball 11: Cars And Coffee At It’s Finest

Car enthusiasts are a rare bunch. In everyday life, you’re lucky to come across another one but every now and again at the Bosch HQ in Clayton, they gather in droves. Like a moth to flame or whatever analogy you like to use, Highball Cars And Coffee attracts petrol heads from all over the place across all generations. It’s become a mecca for car enthusiasts in Melbourne, showcasing the exotic, weird and flat-out insane vehicles that spark passion and imagination. It doesn’t matter if you bring a VW Combi, a Nissan Silvia or a Lamborghini Aventador, you are welcomed as another enthusiast who appreciates the motor car. All kinds of stuff turned up to the biggest event in the show’s short history, illustrating the rich culture of Melbourne’s car scene once again. Highball 11 had everything and then some, so it’s time to quit stalling and put things into gear. Oh sorry, I meant high gear (see what I did there?). Anyway, let’s get going.

I got into the event at about 9:30 and it was already filled to the brim with cars. The first that really got my attention was a black Dodge Challenger Hellcat – a muscle car that spits in the face of environmentalists with a supercharged V8 engine producing 707HP. The power and the presence is absolutely unmistakable from this piece of American iron, especially next to some small French hatchbacks who’d probably scoff at such excess. The Renault Clio and Megane are well known to provide fun driving experiences with a bit of practicality. Speaking of which, the Volvo 850 wagon is very practical with space for your family and your dog. Unlike the old cars produced by the Swedish automaker, which were considered to be conservative and only driven by geography teachers, the 850 was a properly cool car that’s gained a cult following in recent times. Next up we have a line of BMW M cars spanning 20 years, with the E46 M3, E92 M3, F80 M4 and the M2 being featured. Seeing such a congregation is rare to say the least.

One thing that surprised me was the amount of new C8 Corvettes on show. Chevrolet’s flagship sports car has been an integral part of it’s repertoire for almost 70 years, and I don’t think that’s going to change anytime soon. What makes the C8 soo significant is the fact that it’s now mid-engined after being a front-engined car for the previous 7 iterations. Funnily enough, the idea of a mid-engined Corvette had been toyed with for years by GM, with many prototypes being produced. Only now has the concept been realised in a full production model. Sitting below that is a Ferrari 488 Pista, the most hardcore of the 488 models you can buy for the road (there is a track-only 488 Challenge). It follows the lineage of the 360 Challenge Stradale, 430 Scuderia and 458 Speciale so you know that the car will go up in value. Then there’s the new Lotus Emira, a model that promises the same driving thrills as the Evora in an even more compelling package. With the option of a manual gearbox and 2 different engines (supercharged 3.5L V6 and turbocharged 4 cylinder from AMG), it’s sure to please a lot of driving purists in this era of EV’s and hybrids. If you want something a bit more spicy, you should consider the Porsche 911 GT3RS as your next purchase. The model you see here in 991.2 guise is as sharp as they come, making it a favourite amongst those who love to thrash their car on a track day.

The Nissan Silvia S15 was the last S-chassis car produced by the Japanese brand more than 20 years ago, but that hasn’t diluted it’s character or popularity, particularly as a drift car. The one featured here doesn’t look to be drift car, but it still gets a solid “cool” from me because it hasn’t been modified to oblivion. The next car in this post, a Ferrari SF-90, is the current top dog in Ferrari’s line-up. It has a turbocharged V8 and a hybrid system which combine to produce a whopping 986 HP. Coupled with all wheel drive, this car offers some truly insane performance figures. It may not have the same drama as a V12 Lamborghini but it’s still going to rip your face off. Now for two of my personal favourites. The Honda Accord Euro R is a hotted up version of the standard Accord Euro, with a Civic Type R engine from the period dropped into it. The car is a cool little sedan that I’d be happy to own. Then there’s the Ford Mustang Boss 429 – the best looking Mustang ever built in my opinion. The stance and the aggressive styling give it a distinctly macho vibe.

I eventually got to a quiet area after following a Nissan Skyline GT-R R34 down to a vacant space. This specimen in Bayside Blue was equipped with some aftermarket wheels and what looked like a few more rather light modifications. It was never a poster car of mine but when they’re modified well, they’re great. Unfortunately, the silence was broken by the bellow of a wild bull with an equally wild body kit being chased by a crowd of young men. I couldn’t stop laughing as this Aventador came towards me. Moving further along, I get my first proper look at the new BMW M2 parked next to a BMW M3 Touring. The second generation M2 has grown in size and packs an even bigger punch from it’s turbocharged inline 6. On the other side we have a VW Combi Westfalia campervan. Westfalia converted many of these buses into proper campervans back in the late 60’s and 70’s for the travel bugs who wanted a life on the road.

Now let’s rattle off a few bulls from Bologna. The Lamborghini Countach stunned the world when it debuted in 1974, combining style and mechanical engineering like never before. I don’t know if this is true but apparently “countach” is an Italian swear word that someone at Lamborghini used to describe the design. The car that turned up to this show was an LP5000S with the iconic flared wheelarches. The Countach lasted up until 1992 before being replaced by the much more modern Diablo sitting right next to it. That car was idolised by many kids in the 90’s, especially those who had access to the original Need For Speed games. The VT variant with the pop-up headlights is my favourite Diablo because it just looks like a proper supercar that will kill you if you aren’t careful. One Lamborghini that doesn’t get a whole lot of attention is the Espada – a weird 2 door grand tourer that looks more like an oversized hatchback than a coupe. Due to this quirkiness, I can’t help but get excited whenever I see one. Then we have the Huracan Performante, a certified poster car for people of my generation. This variant of the V10 Lamborghini kicked up a massive fuss when it launched, pioneering some new aerodynamic devices that would later make it’s way to the Aventador SVJ. Amazingly, the Performante isn’t even the fastest Huracan – that honour goes to the STO, or Super Trofeo Omolagato.

I thought it’d be a massive injustice to leave the current Ford Mustang out of the equation in this post, so here’s one of the most extreme examples modified by RTR. RTR, or Ready To Race, is Formula Drift legend Vaughn Gittin Jr’s own aftermarket parts brand that specialises in Ford products. According to one well-informed fella, it’s one of 9 built by the man himself. Another modified car which many would recognise from Fast And Furious Tokyo Drift is the Veilside Mazda RX-7. The body kit created by the mad people at Veilside dramatically alters the look of Mazda’s rotary sports car, almost to the point where it’s unrecogniseable. It always makes a statement wherever it goes, which is in direct contrast to the small Lancia Delta HF Integrale. It may not look like much but car enthusiasts like myself know the significance of this rather unassuming vehicle. It’s the homologation special of the all-conquering rally car that won several WRC titles at the start of Group A era. Below that we have a Toyota Supra parked rather precariously and a regular, rear drive Nissan Skyline parked up next to it. These two cars are often driven by young men who want to live out their tuning car fantasies from childhood.

To round out proceedings I’d like to put a spotlight on a few more interesting rides. The Honda S2000 is highly regarded as one of the best handling sports cars to ever come out of Japan, complete with a high-revving engine akin to the cars it paid tribute to in the S600 and S800. The Porsche 356 Roadster was a 50’s icon for the well-to-do, but this one looks to be beefed-up replica which will no doubt blow the doors off the original. Following that we have a Suzuki Cappuccino, one of only a few “sporty” cars from the Kei car segment. This pint-sized sports car doesn’t produce much power but it’s tiny footprint makes it very enjoyable in tight spaces. The modifications put on the example here adds some aggression to this cutesy vehicle. It’s like an angry kitten. Anyway, the final car that I’ll feature in this write-up is a big red Mustang that’s definitely built for drag racing. How can you tell? Well it’s got thick rear tyres and a big bulge in the bonnet courtesy of a reverse cowling. It means business and I had to get a photo of it before I left.

If your car wasn’t featured, don’t fear! Take a look at this gallery right here.

What a totally wild day that was. A big thank you to Martin (@___martyparty___) and the entire crew at Highball for putting on another fantastic show. I also want to give a few shout outs to Carter (@850_visuals_aus), Fabio (@fab_garage_au) and King Ng (@spekky11). Last but not least I’d like to thank Kyle for being a great mate.