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My XR started it's life as a factory V8 Falcon 500; one of the first Australian made V8 Falcons. And being a 1966 model, it actually pre-dates the 1967 XR GT. By the time I bought the car however, it had been turned into a GT 'mock up' - except it ran a 351 Cleveland, a 4-speed toploader and a nine-inch diff with rear disc brakes!
The XR was bought from a friend of my brother's in early 2001. He had been using it as a daily driver, so it was a little tired but still pretty quick! The previous owner to my brother's friend had done most of the work - stripped the car back and resprayed it in GT Gold and fiitted the new drivetrain. On the inside, the car featured XY GT seat trims, an aftermarket (Saas) steering wheel, Hurst Indy shifter and he also changed the rest of the interior trim to black. The exterior however was all XR GT including stripes, badges and wheel trims.
It wasn't easiest car to drive. The standard Falcon (20:1 ratio) steering was heavy at low speeds, the brakes although 4 wheel discs weren't the best due to the standard XR master cylinder and booster. But from point-to-point it was a quick car! The cam would kick in at about 2,500rpm and went up to 6,000rpm. Actually it drove better on the limit and high in the rev range, mainly due to the big bore (4V) heads and Edelbrock Torker manifold.
Although it wasn't in the best condition, the car still surprisigly turned heads - maybe due to it looking like an original XR GT on the outside. But with the sound coming from the extractors and twin system, it certainly grabbed attention.
Being my first 'classic' and second-hand car, in hindsight I probably made a mistake buying it. Although I was looking for a classic car at the time, this car required too much money to be any good. I guess that's the trap for young buyers - there's always more to a car than how it looks. and as my dad always said, second-hands cars mean second-hand trouble!
My plans for the car changed from when I first purchased it. Originally I was going to strip it back down and respray it in Gallaher Silver, just like the promotional cars from the '67 Bathurst race - complete with red stripes. but with soo many GT mocks about, I then thought about restoring it back to it's original 1966 condition - as it was a factory V8 Falcon.
But in the end, it just would of been a waste of money. So I sold it in pursuit of an original GT.
November 2004
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