Greg Morrison from Forbes has been a Valiant fanatic ever since owning a VJ 4 door sedan as his very first car. He’s collected a few Valiants over the years but this is one of his favourites and certainly the rarest in his collection.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It’s a 1973 VJ Valiant two door Hardtop. Greg’s car is build number 48 of 1280 VJ hardtops produced by Chrysler in Australia and what makes it rare is that it is one of only five factory built with a manual gearbox.
It’s a Regal with a 265 hemi six cylinder motor and the D20 option four speed manual gearbox. It’s been a long road to completion but Greg can finally enjoy it now.
He bought the car as a bare shell about 25 years ago when he came across it in a very poor state on a farm near Condobolin. The history as he knows it is that a lady in Condobolin had originally owned it for many years before she sold it to a couple of characters who regularly drove it back and forth between Condobolin and Cobar.
The story goes that on one such trip the big Hardtop broke down and they parked it under a tree on the farm and legged it all the way to town. Apparently they just forgot to come back for it and it sat for years and years gradually deteriorating ever so slowly. That’s where Greg came in. After he bought it, he sat on it for a long while gathering bits from all over Australia.
In around 2006 the restoration began taking about two years. Greg did most of the mechanicals himself and then had somebody complete the body work and paint. It was originally Limelight Green but Greg finally decided on black with a set of 18 inch polished Showwheels – seven inch up front and nine inch at the rear.
He admits like most of us that he really should get the big coupe out more often, finding that once a month is typically as often as it gets a run to town. “Now that the car is complete I plan to keep it forever” Greg said, “and who knows , maybe one day it’ll be Matilda’s car.”
Now that the car is complete I plan to keep it forever
Greg is one of a growing number of Forbes members of the Central West Car Club which is based in Parkes but has members throughout the Central West and beyond.
To find out more about the club you can follow it on Facebook or search the website at www.centralwestcarclub.com.
The club meets on the first Wednesday of each month at 7:30pm at the Parkes Leagues Club for members and guests.