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Published on 23 April 2020

Madmuz, I like that your dream car is attainable; even if you don't have the cash currently to be able to buy that one! I have to add to this thread, as I've got a few dream cars (how can you have just one?). I've always hankered for an LX Torana SS A9X or a VL Commodore SS Group A SV, but sadly I missed the boat on either of these. As I entered my 20s about 20 years ago, I started to get into old-school Japanese cars. They're all very cool, but it was the Belletts that ended up following me home. I started with a sedan or two, then an unrestored but tidy enough, 1-of-122-sold Isuzu Wasp (Bellett ute), added a rare Florian to the collection and a 1-of-1-in-Australia Isuzu Unicab (like a Jeep, but RWD only), however that's a full project. Amongst all this, I bought a Bellett GT. It was heavily modified with a G200W EFI twin cam and given SA's club rego rules at the time precluded modified cars, I ended up selling it back to Victoria and buying a genuine JDM Bellett GTR from Japan. Certainly a dream of mine; the engine is currently out and it needs some work, although I did drive it around for a couple of years before parking it up. I should concentrate on that, but there was another Bellett that eluded me; not only from an availability perspective as this variant wasn't sold here, but simply from a existence perspective. The Bellett Express wagon, based on a Wasp chassis rather than being based on the Bellett sedan, weirdly, appeared in almost NO contemporary photos in Japan. Modern Isuzu meets show multiple Bellett GTs (plenty of GTR clones too) and a few sedans, however the Bellett Express wagon was just non-existent. My mate found pics on Instagram of a pair of them in Japan; one looks like it needs a resto and the other is clearly parts. They are parked together, so I assume they are owned by the same guy. The only other pics I found were in Indonesia. Isuzu didn't really have a big foothold in Indo; or anywhere for that matter, so the 2-3 Express wagons I saw in Japan were a mystery. A year or so ago, I touched based with an Aussie living in Bali who does restos on local Holdens and Kombis, then sends them to Australia. I even went to Bali to see him, however the timing wasn't great; his mum got sick and he had to fly back to Perth at the exact time I'd booked to go over. Doesn't matter; he contacted me, told me to go to his house and take his flame-job HJ Holden six-banger for a cruise through the maniacal Bali streets...so I did! Fast forward a couple of months and lo, what does he find for sale in Java? A Bellett Express wagon. Relatively original, full of rust, engine removed but still with the car. All important parts there such as tail lights, bumpers and chrome (all different to sedan or ute).... missing a grille, one of which I have sitting in my shed. So... I bloody bought it. THEN the COVID-19 pandemic hit.... so the car is still there and my man is getting some metal work done to it. He's used plenty of body shops before that do good work; it's not hard to source and you get what you pay for in Bali. Quick freshen up for a few hundred bucks will yield a car made of bog and hope. A few more will get some relatively good work done. So I'm taking the risk, as I can't afford to give it a $50k makeover when it lands here. So here is my weird dream car; a c1965 Isuzu Express. One of six I've ever seen outside of brochure photos (I have two complete brochures on the Express; go figure that out)! Now all I need is a Bellett 1600GT Fastback...and a 2-door sedan. Then I've got the whole set!