1971 Bolwell Nagari - today's tempter
Locally-made sports car features Ford Windsor V8
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Bolwell Nagari is as close as this country came to making an exotic sports car.
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Bolwell is one of those names which has persisted in the Australian manufacturing landscape over several decades, attached to numerous products. It is, however, most famous for its wild locally-developed sports cars.
This MkVIII Nagari is the most desirable, powered by either 302 or 351ci Ford V8s. You could prevously buy the car as a build-yourself project (MkVII) and, eventually, as a factory-assembled machine (MkVIII). Overall production numbers for the latter were very low - said to be 118.
The car created quite a stir in its day (1970-74), but timing proved to be unfortunate. A raft of crash-testing and design standards were being introduced across the world, which were very expensive to meet and beyond the reach of the fledgling enterprise.
A second-generation car, the MkX, was shown in 2008, with a compact two-seater body and powered by a 3.5lt Toyota V6. That model struggled to get off the ground in serious numbers, it's cause undoubtedly hurt by the fact it was launched about the same time a global financial crisis hit.
The car advertised here is a 1971 factory-built machine which the seller says was initially put together as a show car. Paint has been restored back to its original silver and it's running the original Bolwell wheels.
The mechanicals include a 302 Windsor V8, four-speed Toploader manual transmission and independent suspension all-round. Braking is disc front and drum rear.
Located in Vic, it's priced at $79,500.
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