1:43rd Scale Australian Car collection

[monkeysarefun]

21 minutes ago, GWR-fan said:

 

Close.  The 2850 was the 173 cubic inch motor.  The 179 was a much earlier motor from the early 1960's (later became the 186).  The 2850 motor was available in the six cylinder Torana and it made the car fly.  It was not unusual back in the early  1970's for my neighbour to exceed 100mph as we travelled along Heathcote Road to Liverpool Speedway in Sydney for the night time speedway racing events.

Yes you are right, I wasnt thinking straight!

 

I had an LJ with a 2850 in it originally. I did eventually  replace it with a reconditioned  202 which was a backward step in many ways.

 

 

I did once hit 100mph in it but had to back off straight away because the bonnet popped up, which did explain to me  at least why so many "hotted up" Australian cars had chrome bonnet pins fitted, I'd always wondered about them up until then!

Edited September 20 by monkeysarefun

[monkeysarefun]

7 hours ago, 40 058 said:

Turns out it’d been low on oil so the owner topped it up. Right up! He said it was coming out of the filler cap so he assumed that was enough!! 

The bloke who lived next door to my parents when I was growing up did exactly that - we knew something had happened due to the language his father was using on him on the other side of the hedge. They were recent arrivals from Northern England so much of it was hard to understand but we got the idea.

 

He had a Datsun 1200 which he loved modifying but really shouldn't have been given access to tools because he was totally clueless.

 

Other highlights included filing the electrode on his sparkplugs down to almost nothing then attempting to saw a slot down the length of what was left because he'd seen an ad in a magazine for "racing sparkplugs" which had twin electrodes which he tried to replicate, and spraypainting the lenses of his headlights with black paint to try to get the "tinted headlight" look that was popular at one point.

 

That only lasted as long as his first night time test drive, for obvious reasons!

Edited September 20 by monkeysarefun

[monkeysarefun]

Time  marches relentlessly  on and my next monthly order has arrived.

 

This order contains two cars of such Australian Cultural Significance that they deserve a separate post each. In fact, I'll probably do this one then have a bit of a lie down and gather my thoughts before doing the other one.

 

First up is the XA Falcon GTHO Phase 4.  Intended as  a replacement for the XY GTHO Phase 3 that was in last months order, this is a Mythical Beast, the subject of legend because its development was abandoned  due to media induced public outcry  about "supercars" being put in the hands of the general public. By then  3 race cars and one road car had been prototyped  as part of Fords programme of development that was meant to culminate in its entry in the Hardie-Ferodo 500  at Bathurst in October.

 

For  those who do not reside in this neck of the woods, it may be difficult to understand how huge the annual Bathurst race  was down here, as both a sporting event and as a  major promotional tool for the car manufacturers. I'm basing this pretty much on my own recollections as a 10 year old back then, but the annual race was one of the top 3 sporting events here, along with the Melbourne Cup and maybe the Sydney to Hobart yacht race. Racing drivers were household names, equal to  our cricketers of the time when it came to   national  recognition. Race Day was a major television event, the Sunday papers had a wrap-around cover on the day that detailed the race, the drivers and so on. People held parties and BBQ's to gather and watch it on tiny black and white tellys.

 

ANd it was a spectacular thing to watch. The track itself is demanding enough today, and that's with cars with the latest technology, on a track that now has concrete safety barriers on the hair-raising bits at the descent from the  top of the "mountain" - in the 70's more than one driver went over  the edge. 

 

This lap gives some idea of the topology and the narrowness of parts of the track, it must have been mental battling 40 or 50 other cars with drum brakes, heavy steering etc.

 

 

 

 

Top Gear loved to gild the lily by claiming the race was some kind of mass brawl between Ford and Holden fans, which while there was massive rivalry and much crowing by the winning supporters was not quite a civil war. But it was extremely important for manufacturers - mainly Ford and Holden, to score a Bathurst win. The saying was "Win on Sunday, sell on Monday" - a Bathurst win would guarantee increased sales. 

 

Bathurst back then was a Production car race, so to enter a car the manufacturer had to sell a certain amount (that number could vary from 200 to 400)  of identical cars to the average man on the street.  This fact became a sudden concern of the Sunday Papers once they discovered that Ford was developing the Phase 4, capable of 160mph, and claimed to be "The fastest 4 door car in the world". To combat the incoming Ford , Holden’s Torana and Chrysler’s Valiant Charger which were previously six-cylinder engine powered, were going to get V8’s. The 1972 Bathurst race was going to be the ultimate clash of the supercars..  The idea that anyone could walk into the local car saleyard and  drive away in one of these set the media into a shock-horror headline frenzy.

 

 

 

In the week that followed, everyone – politicians, radio talk-back programmes, TV and the print media – jumped on the bandwagon to condemn these ‘bullets on wheels’ Bathurst ‘Super Cars’.  Talk-back radio exploded with indignant callers, all furious that 18-year-olds who had just passed their driving tests and with barely any driving experience, could potentially get their hands on the fastest 4-door car on the planet.  

 

The government responded by first attempting to come up with legislation banning powerful cars capable of speeds over 130mph , but when this proved to be overly-complicated announced instead that they would not buy any government fleet cars from manufacturers who sold these cars to the public.

 

That did the trick! 

 

 

 

The body in charge of motor-racing now had to come up with a solution that allowed the manufacturers to still develop their racing arms, so changed the homologation requirements.

 

For the 1972 Bathurst race, the 1971 cars were wheeled back out and from 1973 more modifications were allowed on cars racing at Bathurst. That same year, the race was extended from 500 miles to 1000 kilometres.

 

SO what happened to the "supercars"?  In fact Ford was the only one of the three that had progressed as far as creating actual prototypes. All four of these  found homes with either private owners or race teams and change hands for astronomical prices, although they rarely if ever come onto the market. The last one that did sold for $1.75million  (£906,000) back in 2021.

 

 

So - finally.... to the model!

 

This is a beauty, probably the best one yet - although I am not a skilled photographer with my camera phone, it is almost possible to do a double take to see if its a model or the real thing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While taking the pics this other Aussie cultural icon came to check it out!

 

Edited September 28 by monkeysarefun

[railroadbill]

Very realistic pics, also the wall edge and "road" edge merge very well into the real background. That would have been some car!

[monkeysarefun]

Now to another high mark of Australian Motoring Design, or perhaps Australian Motoring Marketing - The Holden Sandman Panelvan!  (Also available as a ute....)

 

IN the late 60's and early 70's American surfers drove around in customised commercial vehicles similar to the  Bedford van but cooler because they were Chevvies or whatever.

In contrast Australian surfers had to rely on old station wagons or the occasional VW Kombi..  Holden saw an opportunity so in 1974 took a base-level Holden Belmont panel van, swapped in some features from the Monaro such as seats, dash and  GTS guards. Added some 70's style graphics and sporty wheels, optioned it in leery colours like orange and lime green  and the Sandman was created.

 

They cost a fortune these days, 100 - 200k for an authentic one, but since salt air and young drivers accounted for many of them, there are now more replicas built on bog-standard panel vans than originals.

 

Earlier this year Wheeler Dealers added to that number:

 

 

They do mistakenly refer to it  as a "Surf Wagon", a term that was never used here, maybe they were mixing it up with its other common nickname "The Shaggin Wagon".

 

Many were customised and included interiors that featured love heart  shaped bulkheads, mattresses and Austin Powers - style 70's decadence like shagpile carpet, velour, cocktail cabinets and mirrored ceilings..

 

 

 

 

Holden did nothing to distance itself from this debauchery and in fact released publicity shots  of their own:

 

 

 

The Sandman was discontinued when the Commodore replaced the HZ Kingswood in 1980 but when I was looking for my first car in 1982 there were plenty available second hand, including  customised ones with air-brushed murals. One particular example I remember seeing at a South Sydney caryard had some kind of fantasy mural which featured a buxom young amazonian style lass, while along the back of the tail gate was the airbrushed name of the van  - "The Seducer" (These vans were given names by their owners , much like a canal boat!). I did not buy it...

 

When I'd go to the drive-in back then I'd often get parked behind a panel van or two. They loved to back into their space so they could watch the movie sitting on the tailgate. This meant that the upper part of the tailgate was swung up, blocking some of the view of the screen  for the cars behind.  Occasionally  the tailgate would go down for 10 minutes or so, proving that the fears of parents of teenage girls when one of these turned up to take their daughter on a date were well founded.  I'm not aware of how many current  40 - 50 year old Aussies owe their existence  to the Sandman, but it would be lots I reckon.

 

Both Ford and Chrysler attempted to get a piece of the action with The Sundowner and The Drifter respectively, but the Sandman is the one that has stayed in our collective consciousness.

 

The model is of an HZ version which was released in 1977. It has toned down graphics which is a bit of a shame, the Sandman logo is pretty iconic, but other than that it is a very decent attempt and a worthy addition to the collection and a reminder of how much fun Australia was in the 1970's!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 1 by monkeysarefun