Sydney's Rev Heads Remember When the Krispy Kreme Carpark Was King

For decades, Sydney's rev heads have met up at a Krispy Kreme carpark in Liverpool. It's a place for people to park, pop their bonnets, pump their stereos, and throw a lot of acronyms about.

Traditionally, the biggest meets have been held on the last Saturday of each month, sometimes hosting thousands of cars. But despite having almost 35,000 likes on Facebook, the event page has been inactive for months. Some suggest the page has been shut down by police. As they point out, cops have been known to block the carpark's exit and issue defect notices to anyone driving a modified car.

Despite this, there's still a regular turnout for people who see the Krispy Kreme as a social pillar. At the end of October we went down to get a taste of the scene, and to find out if it's dying.

VICE: Hi Bob, tell us how the monthly meets have changed over time?
Bob: Oh man, the meets are not like they used to be. There used to be a lot more people here; you couldn't even park in the place unless you got here by 4 PM. It was nothing to see 3,000 or 4,000 cars at an end of month meet. But now they've changed the entry to the car park and they just recently closed off the bottom end where the gates are.

What are the cops like?
Normally the police were very good here. But I believe the police have been here about three weeks ago and they defected a few cars, which always deters people from coming back.

How much did you spend on the ute?
Mate I don't even know, maybe 40 grand. But it's not even near finished yet.

And how much is it worth now?
Oh probably about 20 grand (laughs). That's the way it works. It's insured for $18,000 at the moment but it's hard to say, it's only what a person wants to spend. And me being different I had to have a Japanese ute.

Have you ever lost your licence?
Yeah, in about 1974. Then I lost it more recently when I ran out of points but only for three months—that's just general wear and tear though.

Wear on tear on the licence?
Yeah, well I got my licence when I was 17 and I'm 64 now so that's not a bad effort I reckon.

Hi Adrian, how long have you been coming to these car meets?
Probably since around 2000, since I got my red Ps. I used to drive around being a bit of a hoon when I was younger. I love it, I love coming here and making new friends.

So these car meets are a bit of a social event for the western suburbs?
Yeah man, and a lot of the people who come here now aren't from this area, they travel from North Sydney, South Sydney, East Sydney, everywhere. They all come here because they know it's a car hub. People have been coming here for that long; it's evolved into a massive festival.

And has it changed a lot since the early 2000s?
Yeah, there used to be 2,000 or 3,000 cars back in those days but now there aren't as many. Whether it's the police issues or how they've designed the car park or the strict regulations on hoons and racing, I don't know, all those things might have affected it. I think people are too scared to bring out their nice cars because they don't want them to get impounded or defected.

Do the people who come to these events get targeted by police?
The young kids do, but the older people are fine. They're respectful and they're nice and they're not going to be idiots on the road. But sometimes you get these young P platers doing burnouts and being silly in front of everyone. I mean, I still do burnouts, I don't care, but I do it in a place where I'm not going to cause harm to anyone.

Have you seen a lot of burnouts around here at past meets?
Back in the day they used to just throw oil on the road and we used to do a burnout and the cops would come and just tell everyone to go home. But now they'll actually block it off and defect every single one or tow their cars out of here. Back then they'd threaten to take you home to your mother and you'd prefer to pay the fine but a lot has changed. Money wise, to have your car towed and pay for impounding fees has become too much.

Do you ever race?
Not anymore, I sold my car and bought a motorbike. I've got a little group of about 30 or 40 blokes and we just go cruising on weekends on our Harleys.

Hey Adel, how long have you been coming to car meet ups?
Well I've been in the car scene for a long time but I stopped for a bit because I lost my licence. I've been back for 3 months now.

How did you lose your licence?
Well, you know, when we have cars like this… speeding. I lost it for six months.

Are you representing a crew?
My crew is called "Most Wanted." We took it out of the game Need For Speed: Most Wanted. We're trying to get lots of different coloured cars in our crew, like neons and stuff. It's not something criminal, it's just fun. There are a lot of crews around.

And do you guys race each other?
Nah, nah we don't do that. Well, we do it sometimes but we do it on the low low, you know what I mean?

I do. And how much did you spend on your car?
I bought it for $2,000 and it was a good chase. So far I've spent about $12,000 and I'm building an engine for it, which is going to cost about $5,000. People have offered me $20,000 for it but it's worth more than that.

So do you come to the end of meet every month?
Not just that. We come here every Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night. I love it here.

Hi Katrina, did you come all the way from South Australia for this?
No, I've just come from Leppington tonight.

Are you promoting a crew or a brand or something?
Yeah, we've got sponsors. I've got a spotlight sponsorship and a sound system [sponsorship]. So yeah we get free product by going around to all different shows and promoting their brand.

Do they give you money too?
No, just products, but the sound system is worth $15,000.

Do you get pulled over a lot having such a conspicuous car?
No, I've always had positive feedback from police officers about it.

Do you think that's cause it's pink?
No, I think it's because I'm not an idiot when I'm out on the road. I follow road rules and I'm not out there showing off. I've never lost my licence.

Hi Alan, How long have you had this car for and how much money have you spent on it?
I've had it for six years and I couldn't put a definite figure on it but it's about $130,000.

How much is it worth now?
To me it's worth $130,000 but no one will insure it for that much. I'm not going to tell you how much they offered me for it.

How did you manage to afford to spend $130,000 on a car?
I was in the military for 28 years.

So what's with the name Demonic?
Well I was talking to the ex-missus on the phone one night, and it was a particularly nasty phone call, and I hung up the phone and said to myself, "That bitch is a demon." So that's where it came from and then we went to work with all the demons in the paintwork.

Is the car community pretty tight knit?
It can be very tight knit but as soon as you start introducing groups and clubs you start getting these Hitler-style dictatorships. As soon as you bring politics into it, that just ruins the whole thing.

Does it get competitive?
Oh yeah. There was country ute that was winning every competition—Bundy Spirit it was called—and it was in a locked shed on a property. People broke in, stole it and burned it. That's the sort of competitiveness you can get.

Heavy. Do you spend all your time going around to car shows and meets?
I do now that I'm retired.

So is the car game a popular hobby for retired people?
Nah mate, basically if you're an enthusiast you're in the car game. It doesn't matter if you're 15 or 55—and I'm 55. It's all about the enthusiasm and the passion for it mate. It's not about who's got the most money, it's what you can do with the passion and what you can afford.

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