62 replies to this topic

[REDA9X]

The proof is right there in the existing cars.

The problem with asking people about cars from 35 years ago is...well it's 35 years ago! How good are your memories from 35 years ago?

[REDA9X]

Yes we do

[REDA9X]

Quite a few cars still exist. I won't go into what cars and numbers as there is some conjecture over some of the cars floating around.

[Potta]

Yeah I can imagine it would get a bit messy.

 

Lots of money involved when talking about these cars.

[xu2308]

LXSS350

How hard could it be there are only 33 of them, get a Bathurst guide for 1977-1978-1979 and count the A9X entry's for the 77,78,79 race and add a few spare ones for the big teams etc, couldent be to hard one would think

[REDA9X]

Unfortunately, filling in those gaps is how a couple of people have managed to manipulate the system and eliminate cars so they can slot in and claim they have a car thats missing from the list. Theres one in particular thats rumoured to be popping it's head up.

[REDA9X]

I would suggest the reason would be fraud when trying to sell something that is not what you claim it to be. Anyone can paint a car up, ad some welds and things and display it as the car, but once you try and sell it and profit from it then you have an issue on your hands.

probably why they are not up for sale all that often...  The truth would hurt many an asking price.

[derrin71]

Surely not ALL A9X race cars were GMP&A bodies. Wouldn't some of them been simply A9X's built up from road cars bought from dealers.

Weren't some of the 4 door ones simply upgraded L34's?

[REDA9X]

No, not all A9X's that were raced started as one of the 33 shells.

I have covered it before but basically this is how it goes.

GMP&A race shells. Hatchback only, 33 rollers. These were made specifically for race teams.

GMP&A shells. Replacement for any LX Torana hatchback or sedan. Any team could buy one and modifiy it to A9X specs. All A9X race sedans were done this way unless they were upgraded L34s. Eary hatches were done in this fashion too, the first Morris hatch is a good example.

Road going A9X. At least two teams used road cars to race.

Road going Torana (SL-SLR-SS etc). The first HDT hatch was a road going SS converted as was Harrys road car which served as the prototype. The hatch in one of the threads here painted like a HDT car but in blue is another example.

Upgrade your L34 to A9X specs. One of the best examples is the Brock L34 which later became the Cooke car.

Unfortunately LXSS350 when looking at these things, you just can't tell some people though. I've looked at heaps over the years and there are plenty of fakes.

[Tyre biter]

Red,

Genuine question and merely being nosy;

How do you tell the difference between a GMP&A 'race shell' and a GMP&A 'replacement shell' so far as tags go?

Do the tags depict what is what, or is it down to the shell having the A9X mods or not?

Cheers, TB

[TerrA LX]

^ basically, as has been discussed many times before, one shell GMP&A shell is an A9X, the other replacement shell has standard Torana aka SL & SS chassis.

[a9x868]

Red,
Genuine question and merely being nosy;
How do you tell the difference between a GMP&A 'race shell' and a GMP&A 'replacement shell' so far as tags go?
Do the tags depict what is what, or is it down to the shell having the A9X mods or not?
Cheers, TB

craig
as far as i know the gmpa race shells may be devoid of any unnecessary components as in exhaust hangers etc!
normal lx V8 use a different style exhaust hanger as in bracket and rubber to the A9X which has double sided hooks
welded to the body and commodore style rubber hangers
have only ever seen one of these replacement gmpa a9x body's
believe all plates only say gmpa on
the body plate

[REDA9X]

I don't think you will find too many owners of genuine cars willing to post photos of that. Too many dodgy people out there

[Potta]

HI Guys,

 

Just doing some research for a video and came across this for sale ad.

 

https://www.justcars...dan/JCFD5040701

 

Clearly this is not a hatch, but the ad does state that there were 11 GMP&A sedans and 41 Hatchs built in 1977.

 

Is this incorrect info or is there another reason why the number would be different to the 33 GMP&A Hatchs that is generally accepted?

 

Not trying to make a big deal out of it and not trying to stir anything up, just thought it was interesting and knew that if anyone knows why the numbers stated are different, it will be you guys.

[Shiney005]

Yeah Craig, there were more than the number that was bandied about for years. The first GMP&A race shell was an L34 built for Bob Forbes.

As far as A9X's were concerned...

33 hatch rolling bodies

11 hatch bare shells

7 sedan rolling bodies

4 sedan bare shells

 

Then there were the cars built up by the teams with similar modifications.   Then there were the GMP&A shells built to replace standard ones.  I always found it amazing just how much trouble Alan Grice had to find a shell in 1979, when over the next ten years "spare" shells seemed to be turning up everywhere.