Solved NIC#956 - Terry Scully hotrod (Fiat 500/Ford 292ci motor)

[nicanary]

Who built this car, and in what year?

[nicanary]

Experts?

[richard cuyler]

Lovely! British?

[nicanary]

Lovely! British?

No.

[D-type]

From the Southern Hemisphere?

[nicanary]

From the Southern Hemisphere?

Yes.

[tobytwirl]

South America?

[nicanary]

South America?

No.

[Mogul]

Aussi V8 power?

[nicanary]

Aussi V8 power?

The car was built in Australia but I think the engine was from elsewhere.

[tobytwirl]

It is Terry Scully's 1969 Fiat 500 rod powered by a stock 292 Ford Customline V8 with twin carburettors. The front suspension is Morris Minor (!) and the nosecone from a Lynx FJ.

[Mogul]

I don't think it is, it is indeed a Terry Scully rod, but the in 1968 rebuilded rod you mention. The chassis was heavily modified, it was lengthened & lowered overall. The bodyshell, sectioned by 10 inches, shortened by six and chopped by two inches in the rear. At the back, a customised tail extension housed '60 Falcon tail-lights. Lowered over the hand-made 14-gauge mild steel chassis, it provided a tiny rear cabin. For the finishing touch, the front of the car was equipped with the nose from a Lynx open-wheel circuit racer.
Looking at it, the Minnor front axle was also lost in the rebuild and replaced by an indipendend suspention.

[nicanary]

Now I have a minor dilemma - tobytwirl correctly identified the builder and basic details about the car, and Mogul added more information.  I would have locked the puzzle for the first answer, but we now have all the answer. One point each I reckon.

Apparently the building began in 1965 but the car was substantially rebuilt and restyled in 1969. It originally had a sidevalve V8 but the Customline unit was installed during the rebuild. I am unsure whether the engine was Australian, but I would guess it was made in the USA.

[Mogul]

Tobytwirl piped me through the post, I found the builder without seeing his answer. When I asked if it was Ausi, I had a hunch it was the Scully rod. I saw the reply when I wanted to post my reply after some research, I noticed that the posted reply was not fully correct....
I think I saw somewhere it was a 289 Ford OHV engine, weather American or not.... Ford also produced in Australia for some time, so it could be Aussi Ford.
Attached the car with the Morris minor suspension.
After the rebuild the car was fitted with a fantastic nose and back end!

[nicanary]

Thanks for the extra information Mogul. I hadn't bothered to find it myself!