History
Purchased new by my parents on 15 May 1975 from Fairbairn Chrysler in Coffs Harbour, it was the first Centura sold by the dealer. A VE Valiant was traded in on it. I learnt to drive in this car and virtually maintained it from 1980 when I qualified as a mechanic. It is still pretty much as bought except for an engine upgrade in 1992 to a DF engine numbered 4.0lt after a radiator hose let go and cooked the 3.5lt. At the same time I had to repair the beginnings of rust in the front chassis rails (a definite weak spot in the design). A set of 7" jelly bean mags were put on in the 90s but unfortunately the original steel wheels and GL hubcaps were stolen from the place they were stored.
In 2009 I cut a significant amount of rust out of the front panels and started collecting parts for a running restoration. I have since replaced the carpets and headlining as well as the front end bushes and fitted VG pacer headers after the original exhaust manifold cracked in half . A 4.3lt is currently getting the rebuild treatment to replace the now fumey 4.0lt. Next on the list of things to do is to replace another section in the driver's side chassis rail and then back on the road again. It still has the original paint but the vinyl roof was replaced following a hail storm back in the 90's which cut up the vinyl. There are a few hail dents but they are repairable without replacing the original paintwork. As it is, it is a survivor car and hopefully I will find a DF coded 3.5lt again in the future to put it back to the original factory powerplant. This is one car I will never sell as my 8 year old grandson says he wants it....
Modifications
As noted in the History, the only modifications from standard are the wheels (7" jelly beans), a 4.0lt (soon to be replaced with a 4.3lt) and the Pacer headers.
