Mr Beard's Adventures in Bridport (aka the 2023 Shannons Show 'n' Shine)

First, there was the late 1960s / early 1970s Super Roo range of Australian performance-orientated Ford Falcons, Capris and Escorts. Then there was the Super Rhino, which, as far as we can tell, was an option available on Aussie-built, South African-delivered XY GT Fairmonts. Super Rhinos were, in effect, Super Roos rebadged for the South African market.

Now some clever bugger has made made a Super Barra - barra being short for barramundi, a tropical Aussie game fish - as well as being the codename for the six cylinder petrol engine range powering the Falcon and Ford Territory from 2006 to 2016*. The result is a stunning lime green Barra turbo-powered XW Falcon wagon featuring XW GT side stripes and bespoke Super Barra decals, in lieu of and clearly based on the original kangaroo and rhinoceros versions.

As you can see, the car is a riot of '70s-inspired colour and pays a very tidy tribute to the GTs of the era. Mind you, it might be that the original also needs to give its restomodded reincarnation some respect, given the cars' respective power outputs: 290 BHP at 4,800 RPM from the GT's 351 cu Windsor V8 versus anything between 322 HP at 5,250 RPM to a whopping 436 HP at 6,000 RPM for the turbo-charged versions of the Barra**!

To be fair, we can’t say which engine has been fitted to the Super Barra - Wikipedia lists six turbocharged variants (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Barra_engine#Turbocharged_Petrol, accessed 13 JAN 23) - but there’s no doubt that the Super Barra is no pale imitation of the car that inspired it! It must be an amazing drive!

It wasn't all cars, cars, cars at the 2023 Shannons Show 'n' Shine, though; there was also this gorgeous Riva power-boat, as well as a number of nice motorbikes. But to be honest, 95% of what was on display at the Bridport site on Tasmania's north east coast were cars, which suits us at UpperMiddlePetrolHead very, very nicely indeed!

We can tell you that this tidy-as HZ ute has a mere 34,000 k on the clock and that, other than a brief stint in NSW, it's always been a Tassie car. How do we know this? Please see below.

We're not doing much further commentary on this event, other than to say that the range and quality of the display was excellent! The pics - taken by roving correspondent Mr Beard - tell the story, anyway. Please enjoy!

These two hot rods are so cool, I've given them their own soundtrack! https://youtu.be/7wRHBLwpASw. Go on... . You know you want to! (I guess this might be considered commentary, too.)

U M P H

(uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.co.au.)

Photos by Mr Beard.

* We know you know this shit. However, not all our readers are Aussies, so please excuse the egg-sucking lesson.

** Acknowledging that BHP accounts for frictional losses, whereas HP doesn't, and that this results in the former always reading as lower than the latter ***.

*** The Super Barra is still precisely one metric shit tonne gruntier than the XW GT!

EJ or EH Holden? (Up-dated December, 2022)

EJ or the later EH? Several years ago, I posed the question: Can somebody please explain the difference between an EJ and an EH Holden ute or van? The response at the time wasn't overwhelming, so I did a bit of Googling and ferreting through my photos and came up with my own rough guide to EJ and EH identification. Sedans and wagons are easy to tell apart ; the EH's vertical rectangular tail lights are a dead give-away. However, the workhorse versions of both models share the rear-end treatment of the earlier EJ, making it harder to identify one from the other. No super obvious hints here. Or here ... . It turns out that the main clues are in the placement of the front H O L D E N lettering and GMH lion emblems, the style of the radiator grille and the width of the vents in front of the windscreen, with all EJs - sedans, wagons, utes and vans - having one combination and the EH line-up having their own . So what exactly are those diffe

Vick Auto Prima Fiat X1/9 Brakes: An Owner’s Assessment

At the end of 2022, I fitted a set of Vick Autosport Prima front brakes to my mildly worked 1.5 litre Series 1 Fiat X1/9 . I was fortunate, having picked them up at a very, very reasonable price, brand new but surplus to the needs of a fellow X1/9 Australia member who had imported them from the US. The kit included: New single pot callipers , new vented rotors (standard X1/9 front rotors are smaller, non-vented items), DOT approved stainless steel brake hoses, and all the necessary mounting hardware. They are a value proposition, being particularly well priced compared to other manufacturers’ packages - even at RRP - with everyone I’ve spoken to saying they’re made to a high standard, too. Here's a link to a piece that I wrote about them at that time, including some costings: https://uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com/2022/11/the-x19-gets-prima-brake-upgrade.html . Initial Assessment: I was a little underwhelmed by the brakes' performance, finding that although they had a tiny

Random # 301: Nanna-Spec KE36 Corolla

Once upon a time - six or seven years ago, actually - there was a lovely pale yellow GC Galant station wagon getting around Hobart. It was totally nanna-spec; its paint was umarked, the chrome work and hubcaps were immaculate, and its very original interior was pristine. Then someone stuck feathers in its dashboard. Next, the windows were adorned with Tibetan prayer flags. And a hubcap went missing. And the the rear bumper was pushed in, mangling the bodywork behind it. And a mudguard got dented. And rust set in. I fear for this sweet, innocent KE36 Corolla. Somebody please save it before it's too late. Nanna needs you to do it. U M P H (uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com.au.) Photos by GlamRock.

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