Hi all,
I suspect this is the same guy that dropped by my house some time ago, which I mentioned on the Chat forum under "Another Aussie Commer"
http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6489
It would seem that aside from the other projects he has, the main reason would be the problems that he discussed with me that he had been having with our NSW Road & Traffic Authority. They weren't prepared to re-register the bus as it wasn't fitted with the original motor, regardless of the fact that he has old rego papers showing that it had been registered in NSW previously by them with this engine fitted. These bureaucrats do my head in. Wouldn't it be refreshing if the authority that handles registration etc where actually interested in car/motoring rather than just public servants who drive less than 3 year old Kia's or Daewoo's. I was recently renewing my licence, when an argument broke out between one of their "helpful" staff and a lady in her 70's with her daughter in her 50's. The staff member was asking for proof of Australian Citizenship and wouldn't accept the lady's driver’s licence issued by them that she'd held for 50+ years as proof. I got better when the daughter pointed out that their family originally travelled to Australia on the First Fleet in 1888 and was asking how much more of an Australian citizen she needed to be!!!!
Just to fill you in on the Holden Red motor conversions. They were very common in the 60-70's, the most common being in Series 2 & 2a Land Rovers. The motors ranged from 161 to 202 cubic inch, but the 186 was the favourite. The motors were very low tech, but had a heap of bottom end torque and generally ran for ever. Other conversions that I have seen or read about include Humber Super Snipes, Triumph 2500 saloons and even the odd Stag, Wolseley’s, Austin’s etc.
Generally it was much much cheaper to convert to a Holden Red Motor than try and rebuild the original and the fact that the original motor might have been a 4 cylinder was irrelevant. In the late 60's my sister drove an Austin A50 which she bought off a friend of hers. He had a Torana GTR XU1 186 Holden motor shoe horned into his Frog Eye Sprite, he called it a Sprolden, drove it to work Monday to Friday and raced it on Sundays. I was about 10 years old then and went for numerous rides in it. It was insane fun, most of her friends had mad cars in those days and has had alot of influence on my motoring life and attitudes to modifications.
Sorry having a flashback!!
Yes it's a very nice bus and hope the new owner makes themself known here when they buy it and can find someone at the RTA that understands the vehicles history and that it’s nothing unusual or threatening to society.
Cheers Stephen
