Upper Middle Petrol Head:

This Series II Toyota Supra is an example of the first edition of that model available in Australia.  It is, in effect, a six cylinder version of the smaller four-pot Celica with a longer front end to accommodate the physically larger engine, and a slightly wider stance. There was an earlier version, known in the Japanese market as the Celica XX , but it was not commercially available in Australia.  It also featured a six cylinder engine and a longer bonnet. Even though the earlier XX edition was never officially imported to Australia, there was at least one white version in Hobart, Tasmania, although UMPH hasn't seen it for a while.  Like the Series II shown here, the XX was based on the lift-back variant of the Celica and was not available as a coupe. Supras are regarded by many people as a grand tourer - a GT - rather than a sports car.  It has been suggested that they were introduced as Toyota's answer the the hugely popular Dat...

Tasmania's capital city, Hobart, in the southern part of the island state, has several highly regarded specialist vehicle workshops.  Owners of Fiats, Lancias and Alfa Romeos are well served by Steve Caplice at his Fogarty Automotive facility, while Eurotech, also in Hobart itself, and Bocchino Motors, in the northern suburb of Moonah, also have solid reputations for their work on Italian cars.     When it comes to British vehicles, most Hobartians in the know would recommend David Short for everything from maintenance to full rebuilds.  Whilst David is best known for his work with MGs, he's also quite at home servicing other marques from the Mother Country like the Triumph estate seen elsewhere on this blog ( https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7165367970551834236#editor/target=post;postID=5791010291009256166;onPublishedMenu=overview;onClosedMenu=overview;postNum=4;src=postname ), right through to Rovers, Jaguars and classic Minis.   The m...

The XD Falcon and Fairmont  range was produced by Ford Australia from 1979 to 1982.  This particular example, the more up-market Fairmont model, bears a Transport Tasmania rego label showing a build date of 1979, making the car 37 years old.  It's in very good nick for a car of that age. Like the XA, XB and XC series that proceeded it, the XD was an all-Australian design that departed from the earlier Falcons , Fairmonts  and Fairlanes that took their engineering and styling from America.  However, there were some stylistic similarities - Ford's 'global face' - that linked them to other vehicles from that maker - the British Granada being one example (please see below). This British Granada does not share mechanicals or body panels with Australia's XD Falcon range.  However, there are sufficient similarities in styling to demonstrate Ford's more homogeneous 'global' look (internet image).  The XD continued Ford Australia's run ...