Articles by David Fitzsimons

Instead his fire-breathing 1982 Brock VH Commodore SS Group 3 beast is among the elite in the local muscle car world.  Micallef bought the car near-new in 1983. The VH had done just 3000km and was snapped up by a fan keen on high-performance machinery."I always wanted a performance car," he says. "My dream was an XU-1 or an A9X Torana but I happened to be in the right place at the right time and I bought it."Since then the car has undergone major improvements while still retaining its original exterior looks.  As built, the red SS Group 3 came with its stand-out black wind-splitters on the mud-guards and its long, sleek bonnet scoop.  Out the back it boasts a subtle wing and distinctive black bumper lining.The car was built at the height of Peter Brock's customised Holden Dealer Team Special Vehicles road car business.  He started it to provide road-going specials to the Holden dealers who were supporting his racing activities.Brock started with the earlier VC model and those HDT Commodores, like Vince's VH model and the later Group A VK models, have become collector's items. Brock's team's conversion of the hottest Commodore into an even more special beast as sold was a pretty hot item in its day.But Micallef sought to go a step further.  "I have customised it to my liking." he said. "There's nothing that I haven't improved on the car."  Underneath the skin his work included bumping the engine output to more than 500hp, installing an American high-performance Tremec TKO gearbox and adding racing-standard brakes and suspension set-ups.And the car has also been re-sprayed to improve its lustre."I just want it to be perfect all the time."  And it has all proved worthwhile.  Micallef paid $20,000 for the car and with the modifications it is now nudging $100,000. Over the past few years he has entered the VH in shows, where it has excelled.At the last Holden v Ford day show in Sydney in 2006, Micallef's machine won the best HDT and best model of its year and made the top 10 finalists.  And the whole project has been a family bonding exercise as his sons have become involved with the car.  "My wife used to use it as a daily shopping car. She was careful where she parked it though," he says.One of his sons  took it to the Eastern Creek dragway where it achieved an 11-second pass over the old quarter-mile (400m).  "It keeps the family together, it keeps the boys together," he says.  Micallef now uses it only for shows and occasional club runs.He has now owned it for 26 years and it has been his only performance machine.  Which is unlike many owners whose cars we feature  who have swapped and shuffled their collections around over the years.

"You can pay $70,000 or $90,000 for say, a new Audi and no one notices you," he says. "But you can go out and spend $20,000 on an MG and people are waving at you and saying hello. Everyone wants to stop and talk to you. They all know someone who had one over the years."Colwell owns a 1971 MGB Mark 2, complete with the four-speed electric overdrive gearbox. "It's bright red of course." he says. "I purchased the vehicle in 2007 from a couple at Pyrmont (Sydney). "They had owned the vehicle since 2001 and needed to sell due to parking issues," he says. "MG 146, the registration plate was on it. Lucky I'm not a Kiwi."Colwell says: "At the time I was not in a position to take on a restoration, so I purchased this car in good condition, and proceeded to make it better. "I have tidied the vehicle and added my own touches, such as the new chrome wheels and chrome grille, without destroying its ability to be reverted to original.""Preserving the breed is paramount on classic cars. Only ever do things that can be easily undone. "Parts are readily available for these as they are a popular model both here and overseas, and internet is making it easier than ever to source parts."He says he enjoys Sunday drives with his wife. With the roof down he says it's a pleasure cruiser. Colwell says he has loved the MG style since he was young. "My sister's boyfriend turned up in a beautiful Primrose Yellow 1969 MGB Mk 2. "I was in total awe of this sports car for playboys."He bought his first MG when he was 18 and eventually sold it to TV motoring show host Peter Wherrett. "He turned up with his trademark cap and took the car for a spin and the deal was done. The vehicle was purchased for his son." Since then he has swapped between MGs and the other British iconic car of the 60s, Minis.He says Minis are driven by everyone from the wealthy to the worker, but the MG has a different image. "There's a playboy image, a bit of snobbery that goes with the MGs." "Having the roof off and the sound. The MG has a sound all of its own. Most people will tell you that's what it's all about, the sound."And the sparkle of the wheels. The chrome-wire wheels on it attract people's attention." Although the MG is British they were assembled in Australia up until 1972. About 9000 MGBs were made here. The wide appeal of the MGs have seen their value fluctuate over the years.Colwell says he bought the car for $16,000 two years ago, but the people he bought it from paid $21,000 for it back in 2000. Now he says good cars are selling for well over $20,000. "It comes down to how many of them are around at the time." When he was shopping around he saw several in poor condition."When I saw this one I was surprised. This one was restored. It was a fair to medium job." Now Colwell's interests are switching back to Minis. If he can convince his wife, who loves the MG, he is looking to sell it to fund his next project. " I have found a rare ex-NSW Police pursuit Mini Cooper S MK2 and it's now undergoing a major restoration. I will go the whole hog on it. "As I have said to others, I'm investing my super in my Cooper." " So I will be selling the MGB, however this may be a decision I live to regret. Only time will tell."

Honda's latest luxury people-mover may boast a heap of clever features inside yet it's what's under the bonnet that puts it ahead of previous models, and indeed many rivals. Over the past 15 years Honda has produced several market-leading Odyssey models.Each one has been praised in turn for its practicality, space to fit up to seven adults and looks that Honda has even marketed as being sexy. Which is pretty amazing, considering people movers are generally regarded as boxy vans at worst and useful family haulers at best.The main hurdle to previous Odysseys is that they have all tended to drive on the sluggish side. The various four-cylinder engines have been handed a major job to haul all that weight plus all those people. There certainly has never been spritely acceleration, lively get up and go or a boy racer feel about the Odysseys, and indeed most people movers.The one exception in the range was the short-lived six-cylinder model of the second generation that is still a sought-after used car for families unable to afford a new one. But that has changed with the new fourth-generation model released earlier this year.Honda has re-worked the 2.4-litre four-cylinder to up the power from 118kW in the previous version to 132kW. Considering it is such a big car the power and acceleration is noticeably better than before. Having said that the five-speed auto gearbox is unchanged but there is no suggestion of it hunting for gears as some of the previous models have done.Inside the styling is all about function and practicality for large groups of passengers. Having four children I have always needed such size and as they have become older needed the leg room. Most seven-seater 4WDs have useless rear leg room and it has generally been only the more expensive Chrysler Grand Voyager and Toyota Tarago that beat the Honda for space.The cheaper Hyundai iMax effectively wallops the Odyssey for internal space but it really is aimed at businesses rather than families. Instead for just under $50,000 the Luxury Odyssey offers leather treatment, wood grain, plenty of space and solid performance.The middle row seats, now with three lap-sash belts, after years of Honda having only an outdated lap belt in the middle are easy to move to suit whatever configuration of seating you want.They slide forward while the back seats fold down to give you enhanced luggage space. Rear passengers have separate air vents and a good view. Adults can easily sit here without feeling as they are about to swallow their knees. The other bonus in such a car is plenty of storage space. There are cupholders, large door storage space and a bin in the dashboard near the driver.Between the front seats is the handy flip-up console which is great for holding phones, sunglasses etc. It is a glaring omission from some other people movers. Storage space behind the rear seats for groceries and luggage has always been a compromise in seven seater cars but the flexibility of being able to fold away the third row of seats when they are not needed creates a virtual cavern.Around town, where the cars will spend the bulk of their lives, the Odyssey is an ideal hauler for school trips and sporting events with ease of access to all seats. On the open road it is a very comfortable cruiser including when climbing hills.Road noise reduction has improved over the generations and now is comparable with other cars of the same price range. People don't buy people movers out of choice. You can buy some pretty impressive sports cars and sexy sedans for this money. You have to need to regularly haul more than three people to have any desire for them.But what the Odyssey does is provide a climate where such driving is pleasurable and comfortable. The styling, created by lowering and flattening out the design to become sleek and elongated rather than boxy, goes a long way to enhancing the feeling of pride in driving such a car.Most major carmakers, except surprisingly Holden and Ford who have instead opted for the traditional wagon and AWDs such as the Territory, have people movers on the market in Australia. Some are van conversions, others are packed with luxury and therefore an extra cost, an increasing number are diesel to benefit families looking for economy and there's also the smaller movers which have third-row seats strictly for small children.What sets the Odyssey apart is its ability to take some of the best out of each of these styles to create the best all-rounder in the segment. The bottom line: extra performance enhances an already strong package

No one knows how many were made, originals are hard to tell from fakes, only seven are known to remain and it also created the first allegations of cheating in the Bathurst-Phillip Island 500 car race. The Morris Sports 850 is an enigma today for car fans.It appears that it was not an official BMC car, rather it was a go-fast kit that could be added by a few dealers or bought over the counter for the home mechanic to spec up his standard 850. But the kit came with BMC's blessing.Apart from badging, special triangular bonnet and boot stickers and a chrome grille and exhaust tip the real improvements were under the bonnet. The big trick was twin carburettors that combined with a changed manifold, free-flow exhaust and a new muffler to enable the engine to breathe better than the standard model.So much better that a magazine road test in 1962 showed the car achieved a 0-100mph time an incredible nine seconds better than a standard car and the maximum speed went up seven miles per hour (11km/h).There were no changes to the suspension or braking, it was all about increasing engine performance and looking sporty. Top speed from the little 848cc engine was just under 80mph (128km/h), a frightening thought today considering the small brakes, lack of any of today's safety features and the condition of the roads back then.The AMSA magazine report concludes: "This is the first time that any Australian company has produced a low priced modified car for the enthusiast whose family responsibilities prevent him from buying a sports car. We feel he will be duly grateful and, with that 790 pricetag in mind, definitely interested."One man who is definitely interested today is Sydney mini fan Robert Diamante who owns one of the rare Sports 850s. He says he first saw one at a car show 17 years ago and had been interested in buying one since.All that changed three years ago when he heard about a car for sale on a farm at Forbes. "We found the car sitting under a tree. It hadn't been registered since 1981.""When I saw the badge I said this has to be mine. I paid $300 for it. It needed a bit of work. It was banged in the back. Their sons had been using it as a paddock basher."Diamante says he stripped the car down and spent about 12 months carefully rebuilding the rare little machine. He says the farmer from Forbes, who died several years ago, was the original owner of the car. He had worked for the Sydney BMC dealer P and R Williams who sold and fitted the kits and bought the car from them.In fact he bought two. Diamante says the first one purchased in 1962 was later stolen and he replaced it with the identical late-1963 model car that Diamante now owns.This car has twin exhaust pipes which he says is unusual. That also indicates that the 850 Sports kits were not totally standard. Options and features put on the cars since the kit's inception in 1962 (or 1961 depending on who you talk to), have varied.The car's racing history is just as interesting. Neil Johannnesen is a name forgotten in the annals of Bathurst-Phillip Island 500 history yet he was the first to race a Mini in the event.He brought an 850 with twin carburettors to the 1961 event. But when the officials accused him of cheating he produced a telegram from BMC claiming the modification was legal.The car was ordered off the grid and his team had to replace them with a standard carburettor from a spectator's Mini. When a rock later smashed his windscreen he took a replacement off the same Mini and continued.The officials protested that move as well and he was disqualified, only to be reinstated in last place. But the speed Johannesen's 850 Sports had shown did not go unnoticed. People began to consider the little Mini as a force in racing.Five 850 Sports models competed the following year and just five years after Johannesen's controversial debut Minis swept to the first nine positions outright at Bathurst in 1966.The little bricks have become legendary and Diamante loves driving his, with just 42,000 miles (67,500km) on the clock. He says: "It drives so smoothly. It's no rocket ship but it goes alright."

Jackson remembers Brock's Bathurst glory days fondly and he was trackside for some of the great man's wins. So, when the chance to pick up a rare original Torana similiar to Brock's early cars came up Jackson couldn't resist the temptation. Having said that, its not exactly the same. Brock debuted a six-cylinder LC Torana at Bathurst in 1970 but it had a larger engine, a lot more tweaking and two less doors than Jackson's standard 2600 four-door sedan, but there's enough left to keep the sentiment strong. "I'm an extremely staunch Peter Brock and Torana fan" he says proudly. "I've always loved Toranas, the style, the character. They handle really well, they're comfortable and they're easy to work on." Jackson is involved with both the Lion's Pride Holden and Sydney Torana car clubs where he rubs shoulders with fellow Torana fans. The LC was the first of the Australian-designed Toranas. The earlier models were re-badged Vauxhalls from England. Nearly 75,000 LC models were made between September 1969 and early 1972. He is only the second owner of this white LC since it left the yard at Loders in Caringbah (Sydney) way back in 1971. The car stayed in the same family for nearly 40 years. Jackson bought it three years ago when old age and fading eyesight were restricting its loving owner from driving. She swapped the Torana for an electric scooter. "The lady who owned it wanted someone to look after it. She wanted the car to be kept in the original condition. "Her daughter said they had some young people come to look at it but when they asked "what are they going to do with it, they said they were going to paint it another colour and put a V8 in it." But Jackson's vow to preserve the LC won him the day. Despite its age the car has done only 61,00 miles (98,000km) on the clock and has been garaged for all of its life which accounts for it being in remarkably good original condition. "It runs beautiful," says Jackson. "It hasn't had much use." When he got the car it only needed the three-speed auto transmission serviced and the radiator core replaced. While the paintjob had some minor dents and scratches and had faded to a yellow off-white colour he didn't want to respray it. Instead he had it repaired, the scratches painted and the whole car was then buffed to bring up the colour to its original sheen. Inside the car the red upholstery is also in remarkably good order. Exposure to the sun has created some marks on top of the back seat but he has covered that up. While the car is far from concours condition it is an authentic representation of how it looked when new 38 years ago. The car is on historic vehicle plates and he only drives it to car shows. "I take it to car shows so people can enjoy it as it was." he says. "Some of them have driven similiar cars in its day or have had such cars in the family." And Jackson has even found a Holden lion mascot to go with the car to display at shows. When Brock and Co sat on the grid at Bathurst all those years ago the faithful Holden mascot, Roary the Lion, was with them to rev up Holden fans and upset Ford and Chrysler supporters. Jackson's Torana will be on display this weekend at the All-Holden Day show at the Hawkesbury Showground opposite the RAAF base at Clarendon. It starts with a swap-meet today and expands into a car display show tomorrow. Organisers say the show is one of the world's biggest displays of Holdens. Money raised will be donated to charity.

Formed in respond to Ford's factory backed campaigns at Bathurst and Phillip Island throughout the 1960s team manager Harry Firth united two young bucks in Peter Brock and Colin Bond to begin an extensive and highly successful operation that carried Holden's racing hopes throughout the 1970s. Back in 1969 the pair debuted for the team in V8 Holden Monaros - the largest cars the HDT would race at Bathurst. Bond swept to victory with Tony Roberts and the Monaro legend was cemented in fans' memories forever. And while you associate the brawny, muscly Monaro with V8 power the road-going version also came with a milder six-cylinder engine. Now they are a virtual rarity on the road due to the ravages of time however one example has lasted in the hands of the original owner, the proverbial little old lady who only drove it to church on Sundays. Actually, she only drove it in later years weekly to visit her sister, but incredibly in 40 years it has clocked up less than 48,000 miles (77,000km). Her nephew Tony Weekes is now selling the car on her behalf at the Shannons auction at the MotorEX show at the Sydney showgrounds at Homebush Bay on Sunday. The HT Monaro 186S Coupe is obviously less powerful than the V8s (108kW compared to 138, 156, 179 and 223 in the various V8 engines) but it did come with stylish features including GTS wheel trims and the original De Luxe radio. Weekes says the Spanish-red car has been registered throughout its entire life. He says his aunt bought it new through then Holden dealers Stack and Co's showrooms in William St in the city. "She's the only one who's ever driven it. She was still driving it when she about 80." He says it has been stored under cover in her garage for the past few years but now it was time to sell. Weekes says his aunt had strong emotional ties to the car and wanted it to be cared for. "It's a sad thing, leaving the garage. "She wants to sell it to people who would want to collect them. People who understand the importance of it." He says: "There weren't many 6-cylinders and that's what is so rare about it." "It needs to be restored. Its the original paintwork from 40 years ago. It's pretty well all in original condition." The Stacks sticker is still on the car and even the original AM radio still works. To prepare for sale Weekes has had the car serviced and says it drives well. "It's like driving a brand-new car. It's only done about 1000 miles a year over all that time." Weekes says the stylish looks of the car have stood the test of time. "There's something simplistic about it and something interesting about it. Its pillarless." Inside, the sandalwood upholstery is in good condition.

It's not just on the bodywork, its on the wheels, the bumper bars, the grille and even the engine is painted blue. But then this is a unique car. Essentially its a 1965 Ford XP Coupe with the original dashboard. But that's about it for originality.The front end is from the earlier XM Coupe, the 5-litre V8 engine is out of 10-year old AU Falcon, the doorhandles are off a HQ Holden, the gearbox is from an XY Falcon and the wheels have been specially produced, down to even getting the same shade of blue paint as the rest of the car.And that shade, Aegean blue, comes from a 1991 Ford Fiesta. Beaumont first saw the coupe featured in a car magazine 13 years ago and quickly fell in love. "I was very keen on the car even though I'd never seen it."Some time later he discovered that his local mechanic owned the car and had undertaken the five-year restoration of the coupe. "He said it was a labour of love. I asked what does it owe you. He said, `oh, $40,000."When it came up for sale three years ago Beaumont settled on a sale after a quick test drive. "I'm almost 70 years of age, I don't have much money, I have lusted over a convertible or a car without a roof."The keen motorcyclist says he sees the convertible as a much safer form of fun motoring than riding a bike. "It has a V8 in it. I love it. I think the whole thing has been done fairly eccentrically. It's got HQ Holden door-handles and the front end's from an XM."He says the paintjob has been overdone but he likes the colour. "There is much that could be done to improve the appearance but its an absolute hoot. It's a real head turner. "I don't mind the madness of it. It's the only one of its kind in the world."Beaumont says it is lightweight and very powerful though the steering is heavy and the suspension is solid. "The suspension is so hard you could drive over a 50-cent piece and tell whether it was head or tails."The convertible has a white vinyl foldaway roof but it's rarely seen. "It looks crap when its up. It doesn't match anything and the profile is all wrong." He says the car came into the previous owner's hands after being sold to him by actor John Jarrett before the restoration.Beaumont says the car was then basically a standard XP Coupe but it had a non-standard V8 engine and was riddled with rust. "It was an absolute horror but it had perfect sills."It was a survivor car that was getting very, very close to the knacker's yard. It had a feint heartbeat and out of that this suave Frankenstein monster was created." Beaumont says that after the conversion the car's old V8 engine was like a "boat anchor."It was noisy and heavy and extremely thirsty on fuel, drinking up to 30 litres per 100km. The current engine was put in to produce much more respectable figures of about 12-l/100km.He says that immediately after buying the car it developed a series of problems that cost him a lot to fix. "Everything one by one failed over a six-month period." It ranged from the clutch to the brake master-cylinder. So, how do you value a 44-year old one-off Aussie street machine that has a stunning on-road presence? "I paid $20,000. It owes me 30 with what I have put into it. "If someone offered me $30,000 I'd probably accept it."

Not all people movers are the same. You may think that they can be simply lumped together as the family bus or van that people with a lot of kids need to buy. The sort of car that would never be anyone's first choice. Well, as someone who has driven most of them, through both need and interest, I can tell you they're not.They roughly fall into four categories. There's the small, such as the Kia Rondo, Toyota Avensis, Renault Grand Scenic and Citroen C4 Grand Picasso which really should be considered five-seaters given the lack of real rear legroom and even smaller cargo areas.Then there's the mid-range, the ones whose ads boast of sex-appeal such as the $40,000-plus range including the Honda Odyssey, Mitsubishi Grandis and the Dodge Journey. In that size too falls the popular Kia Carnival. Above all that are the really big ones. There are the luxury machines such as the up to $77,990 Chrysler Grand Voyager and the Toyota Tarago.Somewhere in that mix sit the people movers that started life as vans including the offerings from VW and Mercedes. And then there's the Hyundai iMax. It's one of the newest people movers on the market and it's no shrinking violet.At $39,990 it combines both the price range of the smaller people movers and the van-like conversion capability of the larger movers. And this one is big. So big that the aerial smacks the roof of underground carparks, so big that the driver sits high enough to nearly eyeball bus drivers, so big that the huge rear door is a wrench to open and shut and so big that you can almost walk through it.But it is also so big that it offers heaps of luggage space in the rear even when the third row of seating is in operation. That's something very few people movers, and basically no SUVs that offer third-row seating can boast.The iMax as tested is a basic machine. Essentially it is a commercial vehicle likely to be mainly used as a company shuttle or by basketball teams needing head room and walk-through space. But as a family van, as tested as a holiday escape machine on the recent long weekend, it lacks a lot of the features seen in comparitively priced cars. The huge gap between the two front seats cries out for a console where you can put cups and mobile phones etc. Honda's Odyssey has for years boasted a neat fold-away tray for this space.Sat-nav and indeed even a display screen with trip information such as average fuel use etc is also missing here. On the steering wheel where cars half the price have push-button controls the iMax just has holes where the controls should sit.Around town road noise is seriously noticeable. There's distinct rattles from the sliding doors as the car hits potholes and Sydney's damaged roads. It sounds like a van or a minibus, not a car.Having said that the improvement in road noise is significant when it escapes the city and hits the highway. But this leads to a new problem. The 2.5-litre 125kW diesel engine is reasonably quiet on startup and on the open flat road, but not when hills are encountered. Laden with two adults and four teenagers and their luggage, it roars when it sinks through the automatic five-speeds of the gearbox up decent hills.Surprisingly the revs don't climb significantly as this happens, indicating there's plenty of torque (392Nm) in the diesel power plant but it is noisy.Apart from independent front and rear air-conditioning and the CD/radio player there isn't much else as far as interior features go for your $40,000.Cloth seats with only manual positioning are standard. This is particularly annoying for the driver who constantly feels as though they are sitting too high. You feel as though you are sitting too upright, which only serves to enhance the idea that you are driving a mini-bus rather than a car.There is a wide-range of options including even a fridge but as a standard unit the car lacks a family-friendly feel.Fuel economy in the diesel runs around 10L/100km and it does boast a big (75-litre) tank meaning we didn't need to even think about visiting a petrol station in our four days away.This is the sort of car that will prove ideal only for a niche of the market. Hyundai boasts that is significantly cheaper than its true competitors but comfort and features are also important.If you don't need to seat eight large people and their goods on a regular basis there are plenty of more suitable options available on the market today.THE BOTTOM LINE Fit for a purpose that will suit only a few families but a lot more companies.Hyundai iMax CRDi Price: $39,990Engine: 2.5-litre/4-cylinder turbodiesel 125kW/392NmTransmission: 5-speed autoEconomy: 9.8L/100km (claimed)Body: 5-door wagonRating: 70/100Rivals Chrysler Grand Voyager: 75/100, from $57,990 Honda Odyssey 78/100, from $43,990 Kia Grand Carnival: 74/100, from $39,390 Dodge Journey: 73/100, from $36,990 VW Caravelle: 72/100, from $50,490

From the day a Gippsland farmer approached Ford with a wish that they create a car he could drive to church on Sundays and take the pigs to market on Monday there's being a grand devotion to the body style locally.Utes have come in all shapes and sizes, from the whopping 5-metre long Holden Crewman to the array of small Asian models over the years. They are worshipped at their own muster at Deniliquin every year and put to work and play in both the country and now in the city.Sydney's David Falzon is one of the devoted. He has owned five different Datsun/Nissan 1200 utes and says he has finally settled on the one he's going to keep. His 1985 Nissan 50th anniversary model has had a relatively cosetted life. When he bought it 18 months ago it was a one-owner still in good original condition."(They) only used it to go down to the tennis club. It's only tennis rackets in the back," Falzon says. But at least it got driven, totalling up about 60,000 kilometres. Falzon has spent several thousands of dollars sprucing up the car to ensure it is now in excellent original condition. So much so that he won't drive it in case it gets damaged."I've never driven the car. It's a shame that I can't drive it, but I don't want to get stone chips on the bottom. "It's not registered. The plan is to keep it in storage."Falzon says he has received a considerable offer to buy it but he has no plans to sell. He says he has been a fan of the little utes for years. "I've always loved them. It's small, it's compact. I've had five of them. I said to my wife the next one I buy will be the one I keep. "And this one has got no rust."Falzon says a major reason for keeping this one is the high standard of its originality. "Ninety-eight per cent of them are modified. To have one of them in original condtion is very rare."Falzon says he bought the car in fair condition. Since then he sourced a heap of new parts, some of them from Japan, to restore the car. "It just needed sprucing up."He says the car was basically rust free thanks to it being coated in a wax at the factory when new. "They rusted up quite easily. They are such a flimsy car."It has been repainted in a striking coat of its original red scheme. Falzon says the utes were popular in their day, outselling the equivalent Datsun/Nissan sedan model. "They were very popular. They were the best seller out of the 1200 models. "I got told that if you bought a Kenworth truck you got one these for free. That's what I was told, I don't know if its true or not."As new in 1985 the two-door ute sold for $7865 and was powered by an 1171cc four-cylinder engine. It weighed only 1320kg.They have proven favourites with street car modifiers over the years with many receiving far more powerful engines transplanted into the lightweight chassis.The Nissan 1200 ute was first seen in Australia back in 1971 when it wore a Datsun badge. That car was imported from Japan with the same size engine as the last cars 14 years later.In the same vein as the much-missed Subaru Brumby and even the current Proton Jumbuck the baby utes have carved their own niche in Aussie motoring folklore. 

A whopping 260,000 were sold in Australia from 1953 to 1977 and most of them were assembled or completely made here. Herbie the Love Bug, the car star of several family fun movies of the 60s and 70s was probably the most famous but the car that began life in Nazi Germany has had a life of its own. The new age VW Beetle currently on sale has failed to capture the public imagination on anywhere near the same scale. But that's probably a reflection of just how strong the affection for the original car has been. One such fan is Sydney man Carl Moll who owns an original-condition 1973 1300 Beetle. Moll uses the car as a family driver and as his children have grown up that have begun to appreciate historic and rare values of the rear-engined machine. "I've had always great interest in the car." he says. "I think its the history of them. They are becoming rarer by the day. "They are fairly unique, they are air-cooled," he says. "They are definitely a head turner. "When I park it and come back there's people looking at it. The kids say. `There's a punch-buggy." Moll says the Beetles have proven great survivors due to their "robust, basic nature. There's still plenty of them out there. "You realise there was 21.5 million of the things built." He bought the car in original condition from a mechanic back in 1998 and scored the car's original papers with it. Moll has had it maintained in original condition ever since. "It's absolutely stock original." He says it has been refurbished, received fresh painting and interior work including the head-lining and repairing the seats but all the work has been done with the aim of keeping it original. Moll says the 36-year-old car is still a pleasure to drive. "It's no problem to drive in traffic. It keeps up. The only thing it doesn't have is the braking system of the modern car. It doens't brake as quickly." He says it has a top speed of about 100km/h. "It's not the sort of car you go around thrashing," he says. But Moll says the unique nature of the rear-engine Beetle is a feature of its drive. "You can feel a lot of classic points about it." The club and the event celebrate an illustrious history for a brand that was built out of the German war effort. After the war the British took over VW production and the Beetle was soon being mass-produced around the world. They were first assembled in Australia in 1954 at Clayton in Melbourne. Nissan and HSV have later built cars on the same site. Local content increased with the use of Australian metals, glass and components. By the early 60s VW was second only to Holden in car sales in Australia, outpacing Ford. The company switched from full manufacture of the cars in Australia to assembling parts supplied from Germany in 1968. It all came to an end in 1976 as Japanese imports were proving too price competitive and more modern than the Beetle. World-wide production of the Beetle continued up until just a few years ago in Mexico. Though componentry had moved on, the same basic body design from 50 years earlier was still in use and the legend lived on. The VW nationals will be held in Sydney this weekend.