It doesn't sound like a Corolla...

Having just recently read an article from a Canadian magazine about Q-cars, it rekindled a few memories and also a rather timely, if somewhat eclectic Christmas wish list.

Before we go any further, a Q-car is a vehicle whose appearance belies what's under the skin.

The name Q-car is predominantly an American term, yet in Australia there isn't really a widely accepted naming convention for such cars or motorbikes - so for the purposes of this article, we'll stick to Q-cars.

The name Q-car was derived from Q-ship, which was a term the Allied Navies used in World War I and II to describe 'civilian' merchant ships kitted out with massive artillery.

The weaponary would be hidden from view and this allowed the Q-ships to sail relatively close to enemy fleets.

Apparently, some 10% of all U-boats were sunk by Q-ships, which brings us to Q-cars: Are 10% of all road skirmishes won by Q-cars?

The first Q-car this scribbler ever witnessed was in the mid-80s. An inconspicuous early-70s model Toyota Corolla rolled up beside my 1979 Ford Falcon XC I was driving at the time.

It looked just any other Corolla: Bicycle thin tyres, puke yellow paintjob and it was rather dirty to boot.

The givaway was the 50-metre rolling burnout the small car performed - we thought we could dust the little Toyota with ease. Obviously this wasn't the case...

While we never discovered what was lurking in the engine bay of that Corolla, it was a vehicle suited for a specific driver.

The typical Q-car owner wants power, but doesn't want head-turning - and often thief-attracting - cosmetic modifications, such as fat alloy wheels, massive front and rear spoilers, flashy two-PAC paint jobs or cut-away bonnets.

The only givaway in most Sleepers, as they're sometimes called, might be a twin-exhaust system or a drop tank.

More recently, a rather lame-looking late-70s Mazda RX-3 pulled up beside us at the traffic lights. Only it wasn't packing the standard issue 12A rotary engine.

As the lights flashed to green, it's stubby tail dipped, the wheels squealed momentarily, and it took off like a rocket. Soon after (during the gearchange, one assumes) two loud pops were heard, obviously blow-off valves.

This suggested that it's powerplant was not an ageing 1.2-litre mill, but a twin-turbo variant of the rotary, more likely the 1.3.

Q-cars are often banged up old HQs, packing 400+ cubic inch engines, or Suzuki Swifts using nitrous injection. The average Q-car is more of a rarity here than in the States, but comes from any era, any make and even any model.

We've even heard stories of Subaru Brumby's being fitted with late-model WRX motors and the like. If you have any stories or have seen an interesting Q-car, let our Motoring Editor know. Email: feann@webwombat.com

Web Wombat Q-car Christmas Wishlist

Barina V8 The ultimate Barina: 8 gears and V8 grunt.

Falcon V12 The "hidden" V12 trick works a treat.

Six cylinder New Mini Short wheel-based Mini with 3.2-litre inline six.

3.6-litre Mazda 6 With a little German engineering, anything's possible...

'Wankel' Audi A3 Putting a different spin on an old favourite.

'95 Civic V6 One of the best ever Civics gets a couple of extra cylinder.

Datsun Sunny 'Boxer' Pull the 1.4, and whack in a 2003 Subaru turbo jobbie, with VVT for extra giggles.