Brett Preisig has an interesting car which was probably a very common vehicle in its time but seldom seen these days.
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He has recently purchased a 1956 Vauxhal Velox utility. I caught up with Brett and his wife Sharyn at the Gnoo Blas classic car show in Orange last weekend and they told me a bit more about their ute.
I asked Brett why a Vauxhall, and he told me that it all started with a Bedford ute.
"I inherited a 1950 PC Bedford ute from my brother when I was just 12" Brett said.
"It was so unique - it had suicide doors and a side hinged bonnet which was common for its time and that really got me hooked."
Bedfords and Vauxhalls came from the same beginnings being manufactured in the UK by Vauxhall Motors which was ultimately owned by General Motors.
I inherited a 1950 PC Bedford ute from my brother when I was just 12
- Brett Preisig
"I revived the Bedford from its previous life as a paddock basher and owned it for a number of years.
"After the Bedford, Sharyn and I owned a Vauxhall Wyvern sedan but our thoughts of restoring it were interrupted by family and other life ventures" Brett said.
As Brett describes it, "the Vauxhall virus lay dormant" until last year when he bought the Velox ute that he has today.
He discovered it for sale in Stanthorpe and after a few enquiries he trailered it home and pretty quickly had it on the road again.
"The older couple I bought it from had owned it for only a few years so I'm still trying to source a bit more of its history" said Brett.
The Vauxhall Velox is a 2262 cc 6 cylinder motorcar as compared to its similar bodied Wyvern which had a 4 cylinder engine.
Brett's is a 3 speed column shift manual and was one of the first E model Vauxhalls to feature wind up windows.
The previous models had push up sliding windows.
Brett's gradually been tinkering and learning more about his Vauxhall.
While it's not a fast looking car by any means, a couple of Brett's favourite features are the 'Speedbird' bonnet emblem and the 'SuperVelox' badges on the rear spats.
"Somewhere in its lifetime it's had a few rough repairs and has been repainted a non-original colour" Brett said "so I hope to tidy it up a bit and just get it reliable enough for some regular driving."
Brett has recently joined the Central West Car Club to enjoy the company and the shared knowledge of some like minded car enthusiasts.
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