Pioneer hot rod resto
Rodders with a keen interest in the history of locally-built hot rods will instantly recognise this machine as the rod built by Dick Bushell, which he wowed the crowds with on its debut at the Sydney Hot Rod Show in 1970. Aside from being a high quality build, what made Bushell's channelled 1933 coupe significant was the fact that it was one of the first to use the then modern Ford 302 V8 engine, which had debuted with the 1968 XT GT Falcons. In an era when flathead and Y-block V8s were the norm, the small block 302 was something very different, complemented by an Isky cam, lifters and rockers.
Bushell also fitted out the all-steel coupe with a swag of other GT components, which came from the same wrecked XT GT Falcon as the engine. Channelled - about five inches - with no roof chop, Bushell's coupe was very much in the popular style of the late 1960s, as was its fitment of a 1932 grille to the 1933 body. This very Australian trend was also applied to Lynn Arrowsmith's "Vagabond" 1934 coupe, another landmark hot rod. Along with Bushell's car, Arrowsmith's Dodge-powered rod was a star of the scene in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In the early 1970s, Bushell sold his car, with the new owner continuing to take it on the show circuit, before the coupe took on a new life as a drag car in the 1980s.
Fast forward to 2000, and Adelaide hot rod owner, builder and enthusiast Rod Henderson was helping a mate build his car. As payment, Rod's mate shouted him a trip to the Cleveland 'Un-nationals' up in Queensland. While there, Rod spent time with the Graffiti Street Rod Club, where his brother-in-law is a member. At a club function one evening, he was told about a 1933 Ford coupe for sale in the area. Rod was looking for a new project at the time and the '33 sounded interesting, so he arranged to view the vehicle. A no-show from the seller didn't dissuade Rod, who bought the car - sight unseen - and had it freighted to Adelaide.
It's worth noting that before purchasing the car, Rod wasn't aware of its history. However, soon after it arrived, Rod and fellow enthusiasts noted its distinctive features and made the Bushell connection. Those features included the bobbed and rolled rear guards, disc brakes, diamond-quilted seat and the overall quality of work on the channelling and firewall. Despite this, the Bushell coupe's best days were well behind it. The original 'Vermillion Fire' red body had been repainted black, the seat was beyond saving, and it was rolling on a set of rock-hard Mickey Thompson slicks. A 302 still occupied the engine bay, but given the passage of time and its use as a drag car, it's unlikely it was still the original. The car was a runner, but according to Rod, it needed a lot of work, and a lot of things on it just weren't 'right'.
Despite its rough condition, the coupe's history was one of the factors that convinced Rod to rebuild the car as authentic to its original configuration as possible. Having built a number of hot rods in the past, Rod knew what was ahead of him, but was pleasantly surprised at just how easy the car was to work on. He put this down to the quality of the work originally done by Bushell. Back then, these cars were driven regularly, so were built 'overstrength', with correct metal thickness in all the key areas, correct bracketry and the channelling done to a professional standard, which goes some way to explaining how Bushell's coupe has managed to survive for more than five decades.
Stripping back to bare metal further revealed the quality of the body, which was then prepped and repainted in black by Grant Robinson in Adelaide. Rod and Paul G went over the chassis, reworking the ladder bars, fitting a new stainless steel front end and adding Rod Tech stainless steel shocks all round. The original 1960s GM supercharger was refurbished by Phil Air, with Phil Taylor doing some extensive machine work to ensure everything fitted as it should. The aluminium firewall, which extends all the way under the car, only needed repolishing, while the raised floor and bobbed guards needed just light refurbishing.
Years of garage storage meant that most of the interior trim was salvageable. Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for the seat, so Wayne and Jeff's Trim Shop in Wingfield, SA, was given the task of accurately recreating the original white vinyl diamond-quilted pattern. Some small pieces of trim had to be remade, but surprisingly, the original headlining - another part taken from the wrecked GT Falcon - was good enough to be re-used. However, extracting it without damage proved to be one of the fiddliest parts of the project. The door cards only needed cleaning and a bleach to make them as good as new, while all the dash trim was also reusable. Rod chose to fit modern glass all round as one of a number of safety improvements on the coupe.
Around halfway through the build, word had got out amongst the rodding community that the Bushell coupe was being restored, and Rod received a very attractive offer to sell it. As tempting as it was, Rod knocked back the offer. This deep into the project, Rod had developed a lot of affection for the 1933 coupe and wanted to see it built - and finished - the right way. This included making sure it was authentic to its era as practically possible, including the retention of distinctly Australian body details, like the rear window join.
When it came to rolling stock, Rod hit the project's only real snag. A set of Cragars he already had from a past build would have suited, but Rod felt they were too 'modern' and didn't fit the authentic 1960s 'bigs and littles' (big rear wheels and small fronts) look that would best suit the car. The choice was made more difficult by SA state licensing requirements of the period which required street rods to be "in track", that is, the distance between the centre of the front wheels had to exactly match those of the rears. Despite checking hundreds of different wheel styles, both here and overseas, Rod couldn't find wheels that were either right or legal, so eventually he made the decision to have a set custom made. Ian Splatt (of Dragway wheels) was given the task, and created a set of 6 x 14 inch front and 8 x 15 inch rear five-spoke wheels to a design rendered by Rod's son. The billet centres were CNC milled and pressed into alloy rims. Despite being a VERY expensive part of the build, Rod doesn't regret the decision to go for a set of bespoke wheels, as they sit well with the car. The width of the rim also effectively hides the disc brakes. To match them, a set of Avon whitewall tyres were imported from the UK.
Overall, the rebuild took two years of pretty intense work. Rod has taken it to a couple of Street Rod Nationals, including the 20th in Geelong this year, the Victorian and Adelaide Hot Rod Shows, and other events. Rod told us that each time he takes this car to an event, he meets up with an old school enthusiast who remembers the Bushell coupe when it was new. Thanks to these contacts, Rod knows a lot more about the car now than when he started, and has got a better understanding of just how few of these rods are still around. Through conversations with other rodders, Rod reckons only around half a dozen of these authentic channelled hot rods are still in existence today. With another hot rod project in mind (which should be a stunner, by the way), Rod decided to sell the 1933 to fund the new build. The asking price is $65,000 ono for a piece of rare, genuine and immaculately restored hot rod history.
