Looking back through the Unique Cars classifieds
Triumph GT6 Mark 3 – Advertised October 1991
The GT6, for those not familiar with Triumph’s E Type in miniature, arrived in 1965 and stayed until 1973. They didn’t sell well in Australia because the only way to get airflow through the cabin was to drive with the windows down and rear hatch wide open. Mark 3s appeared in 1970 and are the final version, with less alarming handling than earlier cars and Stag-style sheet metal around the tail. Approximately 13,000 were sold, mostly to the UK where good cars top £20,000 at auction. Downsides are the elevated bumpers which were required for compliance in the USA.
Then: $12,500. Now: $35,000-40,000
Armstrong Siddeley coupe utility – Advertised April 1992
Upper crust British brands didn’t bother building ‘utility’ vehicles for home consumption, but those Colonial blighters would buy anything that carried the family up front and livestock behind so we got the Coupe Utility.
More pre-emptive and interesting and included as the ‘spare’ vehicle is the four-seat Station Coupe, which was a forerunner to the Dual Cab utes of today. Siddeley pickups seldom appear anywhere anymore, so current value is a guesstimate using data gathered back when the Armstrong-Siddeley brand last appeared in our annual Value Guide.
Then: $4750. Now: $15,500-18,500
Ford Galaxie Country Squire – Advertised May 1996
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To legally carry the same number of people as this immense North American Ford you would today need a Landcruiser Troop Carrier. In 1964 though, the Galaxie was wider than any other US-built model and didn’t struggle at all with its task.
In addition to being 2.03 metres wide (six foot eight inches in the old money) the Country Squire was 5.3 metres long and easily accommodated three rows of passengers plus luggage. Squires that came to Australia were generally destined to become hearses but this one kept its plasti-wood trim and seems to have survived very well in civilian service.
Then: $23,990. Now: $40,000-45,000
Vanden Plas Princess 1100 – Advertised September 1986
If during the 1960s you had visions of owning a Rolls-Royce but could barely afford a BMC 1100, then maybe the budget could stretch to one of these. Coachbuilder Vanden Plas must have been desperate for cashflow when lending its name to an upmarket 1100 and producing the leather and timber trimmings at its London factory, but lots were sold. 1100 versions totalled 16,000, plus more than 27,000 of the slightly faster 1300.
A few sold locally and this looks like a nice survivor, however most were Hoovered during the 1990s by Japanese collectors who at one point were paying $40,000.
Then: $5000. Now: $16,000-20,000
Reader’s One That Got Away:
Datsun 1600
Benjamin Thomas
My university buddy drove a white 1600 daily in the early 2000s, it was a stunning car, complemented by a set of 14-inch hot wires and manual gearbox. When we graduated he offered me the car for $5k but I was after something with a turbocharger, I would love that car today!
From Unique Cars #475, February 2023