Upper Middle Petrol Head:

The UMPH editorial team nearly got a loose theme going at December, 2022's, Classics by the Beach, with a few links and parallels between some of the cars on display.  That almost-theme could've been stronger, mind you; it would've been more obvious had the chief photographer not nattered away several opportunities and let a couple of the exhibits get away before he could snap them!  The writer-in-chief could've and should've chased a few leads up, too. Almost Theme #1:  This stunning Ford Customline is nicely complemented by the equally beautiful example of GM's Chevrolet Bel Air shown a few pics further down the page.  As both cars hail from the USA during the same era, it's not unlike lining up a couple of contemporary Ford Australia and GMH products from any given decade - an XA Falcon and an HQ Holden, for example - and seeing where they're similar but  how they differ . It's probably reasonable to say that the styling of each of these American ...

Where do I begin?  Of all the rotary Mazdas, the RX2 is - in my humble opinion, at least - the very pinnacle.  The coupe version, as shown here, is the creme de la creme! That's a biggish call, I know, so please indulge me.  The RX2's predecessor in the Aussie domestic market*, the R100 coupe of 1968 to 1973 - what Mazda might've called the RX1 but strangely didn't - was a real screamer that isn't without charm.  However, its looks might kindly be described as "cute" rather than beautiful. The model that followed and for a time ran in parallel with the RX2, the RX3, probably enjoys the greatest following of any of the 1970s' Mazdas.  Like the RX2 and RX4 that debuted in 1972, the RX3 was offered in Australia in two- and four-door form. The RX3 is a more "muscular" design than the RX2, with pronounced rear haunches, smaller rear side windows and more aggressive front-end styling.  It's also slightly smaller, apparently being only a bee...

ooo OOO ooo The Galant, ready to board the SPoT (visible in the background).   I’m a huge fan of the self-driven road trip.  Buses, trains and planes are all well and good if you’re happy to surrender your freedom to set schedules and and inflexible routes, but there’s only one way to be the captain of your own ship - by which I mean car - and that’s to take your own.   If it’s a 47 year old Japanese classic, even better! 41,905k, ex Hobart.   It has been a while - a mere 31 years - since the Galant last saw mainland Australia.  However, the old girl has proven to be a great little tourer over the past three decades, having regularly been road-tripped up, down, through, across and around the island state of Tasmania, clocking up many thousands of kilometres of reliable service.   The Great Ocean Road, Victoria, has always been an attractive  route and a destination in its own right.  South Australia’s Kangaroo Island, accessible via the Southern O...