A Queensland jigsaw comes together - 3

I have belatedly added yet another photo of the convertible because I just noticed the lack of inner guards. I'm not sure if this is significant to what Peter was talking about in his text in yesterday's post.

A Queensland jigsaw comes together - 2

Here are Peter's photos of the convertible taken in 1995. Refer to the previous post for the text.

Remember a few months back we talked about at least 5 different sports conversions and each one had a vastly different approach to the other. Well here's another different version. It is the only other one that I know of that has used Roger Trethewey's approach and retained that distinctive Mark 7 rear shape. The difference lies in the bootlid which doesn't come all the way to the back, providing a lip which is a good place to put the badge I guess.

A Queensland jigsaw comes together.

It was in April last year that I first heard from Matt Jenkins who was asking whether anybody knew any history on the Mark 7 he had acquired.

He wrote:-
Hi John,
I am writing this to take the opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Matt Jenkins. I live on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, originally from SA.
I recently bought my first Bolwell, a MkVII coupe (it came with another Mk VII convertible and many spares.....)
I have been very interested in RS2000 Escorts for 10 years and still have 2 of them, both coupes. Having owned a few V8s I have always wanted to get another one, however the larger cars do not interest me, so that left the usual V8 into Capri, XU1, Cortina, Escort......(well the Escort WOULD be fun!!)
Then I met a Bolwell owner 5 years ago who has become a very good friend.
Over time he became aware of just how badly I wanted to get a Mk VII coupe (I think it became annoying!!)
So anyway after contacting a few that have been for sale and looking at ANYTHING I could, I have finally found my car!!
Since getting my car home I have been very busy carrying out the plans I have had for a long time now.
So far the new tubular chassis, Windsor engine, T5 gearbox, jag diff and brakes are all done. As I said I have been busy!
I would like to find out some history of my cars. I bought them from Mark Williamson of Brassall, Queensland. He never had them registered, however I have some old rego certificates. They show a VIN or ENG NO R9757B and another certificate showing 179F104012.
Also previous owners are : Russell Bevis (1995), Charles R D Barham (1978). These are names that the cars have actually been registered in.
I am not sure which number is for which car and also what the build or chassis numbers are as there is nothing in the engine bay of either vehicle....... any other info on the past and identity of these vehicles would be of huge interest to me, is there any register that will have these details???
I look forward to meeting other Bolwell owners and finding out more about your club.
Matt Jenkins

At the time we discovered very little and about all we would be able to tell Matt was that it is very likely that there were never any chassis numbers in the first place and the 179F prefixed engine number indicated that the engine was a 179 cu. in. motor from a HD Holden as opposed to an EH which had an M prefix for the 179.

Since the pictorial series, Graham Nichols has been in touch to get Matt's email address for mail-outs and Peter Marr has come up with the following:-

I think I might have a bit of info on this car. I think it could be this one. (Pics B022-B026) (see below) I took these in Toowoomba in Qld in 1995. The owner at that point was Brett Elbourne I think. I later heard that he had sold the car.
The other pics (A038 - A043) (I'll post them later) belonged to another bloke up there whose name I can't recall. He had the sport conversion done locally by a boat builder/repairer. As you can tell from the pics, when they were taken, he was in the process of fitting a turbo to the Holden 6. Some time later he called me trying to locate panels for it as he had lost it when the turbo had come on boost and put it sideways into a pole.
Still later, I had a call from a bloke in the RAAF up there who had bought both of these cars plus I think he said he had also bought a Mk.7 shell that was floating around up there. It was just a shell with no internal panels which I reckon someone had taken moulds off the outside of another car to make this shell. The RAAF bloke might even be Matt Jenkins. At the time he did tell me his name but I have since lost the paper I wrote it on. (you know how it is LOL).
Looks like it will turn out to be a nice car.
Regards,
Peter Marr

Datsun 260C for sale

This is a Datsun 260C coupe. Until the rego ran out last year it was the everyday driver. It badly needs some TLC, like the rust done and a paint job and the interior tidied up. The mechanical bits are OK. It was my intention to restore it because it was so nice, but I can't do everything and as I look around there are projects everywhere. Maybe there's a Datto enthusiast out there that's as keen as I was. They are pretty nice cars and fairly rare. I'd like to get $500 for it and I will throw in my 280C sedan for spares. My phone number is 0413 226 009 and email is vidstud@gmail.com

A shed full of GTs

One of Chris G's friends sent him this with the following comments -

Attached are pics of some GTs that were found in a shed behind a pub in South Africa. These are GENUINE GTs however the GTs that were made for South Africa were badged as Fairmont GTs.

In some of the pics you'll also see what looks like a HT Monaro. This has the same body, interior, etc as the Australian Monaro with a few monor differences and was badged as a Chevy SS.

These are true pics as well, not just some random email going around. The yellow and blue GTs have been sold already.

The Matt Jenkins Mark 7 restoration pictorial part 4

For the moment, here's the last of this series. These 3 pictures are no less interesting than the previous lot and , in fact, display a radical departure from convention in the bodywork department.

Later on I'd like to delve into the history of Matt's car for him.

The Matt Jenkins Mark 7 restoration pictorial part 3

Here's a few more.......

The Matt Jenkins Mark 7 restoration pictorial part 2

The next four photos...............

The Matt Jenkins Mark 7 restoration pictorial part 1

In April last year we heard from Matt from the Sunshine Coast who had just picked up a pair of basket case Mark 7s after searching for one for about 5 years. He was going to build the Bolwell of his dreams and it looks like he's doing just that. So far I have 14 photos of progress on the car and they make very interesting viewing. Because they take so long to load up at the moment I'll do a few at a time - it'll be a bit of a saga. I think when Matt originally wrote to us he was searching for some history on his cars and I'm sure at the time that we put the word out (to no avail I think) but I can't find any record of that which makes me think that it may have been on the old forum. I went searching on the internet for it but it looks like it's been completely removed now. Anyway, I might have another look at the history aspect after we've done all the photos.

Meanwhile, here's the first of the pics and I'll share some excerpts from a couple of Matt's emails to let him expain the progress on the car (which is considerable).
"I have come a long way with it. It is now looking like a car again after major re-engineering."
"The brains behind the engineering is George May at Racecraft in Qld. I met George about 6 years ago and he has had so much time for me with the build , allowing me to work full time with him on my car in his workshop.....even letting me stay back at night and lock up when I am done".
"It would be good to get some comments on the build and maybe some helpful advice or ideas. I am a new Bolwell owner and was born after the cars were built, so any information is appreciated."
"I wanted to document the build for myself as well as each step of the machining and engineering that George has done, including chassis, fabricated front arms, steering arms (eliminating bump steer), coil-over suspension setup, narrower jag rear, steering, engine mounting etc. etc. ......"

Vents for the bonnet of a VP SS sedan

Obviously it's not only Bolwell people who read this blog. Here's a young person, Kelly, who has written in asking for advice on underbonnet airflow for his VP Commodore. I'd better be careful when I say "young person" but based on what takes place around where I live, I always think of VNs and VPs as manditary equipment for younger drivers. In Kapunda, when someone turns 16 or 17, they automatically acquire a VN V8. Most of them lavish TLC on them and are extremely proud of them. There are exceptions, and when the next one rolls over I might be in for a new set of mechanicals for a Nagari project. Anyway, I digress as usual. I thought I would print Kelly's email here for all to read, to invite comments from people with far more knowledge than I have.

Hello John,
Sorry to bug you.
Wondering if I could get some advice for my Commodore?
I noticed a huge difference in engine temperature with a bonnet open, but unfortunately you can't drive bonnetless on a government road :)
My car doesn't overheat, but being a usual v8, it runs almost half on the guage. I'd like to get the air out quicker as there is no way for air to escape besides underneath.
I've read a bit on aerodynamics and wouldn't want to cut a hole in the wrong place - and I don't have many tools to start right now. Do you have any advice on where I should put the vents?
I atteched a rough picture of the front to show you how there's no ventilation.
Thanks for taking the time to read, From Kelly.

More NZ craftsmanship part 2

Here's the remaining 3 photos.

More NZ craftsmanship part 1

From Dave Hamlin again has come:-
"ANOTHER CAR FROM THE SAME STABLE"
"This car is all hand built like the last one but an absolute beautiful car.
Hope you enjoy the craftsmanship".
Well I certainly do. It appears to be a Jaguar XKSS which was the road-going version of the D-type. Jumbo Goddard had one here in Australia.