C-YA-LATER ALLIGATOR! – TERRY & PETA HEANEY 1956 FORD VICTORIA
If your definition of “Living the Dream” is hitching up the van to your classic and heading off on some trans-Australia jaunt, then you’re going to be mighty jealous of Perth-based Terry and Peta Heaney. With an almost period-perfect matching combination of a 1956 Ford Victoria and ’60s-era caravan, plus a truckload of enthusiasm, they’ve just spent six weeks in August and September touring five states, taking in the sights and spending quality time with friends and relatives along the way.
“We’ve pretty well just winged it,” said Terry when we asked about their schedule, or lack of it. “We’re fortunate enough to have friends right throughout Australia.”
One can’t help but admire the well-presented package, and Terry and Peta’s bubbling personalities are perfectly suited to it. There’s no such thing as a quick fuel stop, with curious folk always wanting to chat, and the Heaneys are generally happy to oblige.
Terry’s got a long history with old Fords, fiddling with ’70s Fairlanes, Customlines and even a ’65 Ford Thunderbird. He’s also a member of WA’s ’49-’59 Ford Club. “Peta’s into it just as much as I am, she loves it all,” says Terry, adding that there’s a ’35 Ford pickup at home in the garage awaiting rejuvenation.
They’ve owned this ’56 hardtop for around seven years, but it’s a vastly improved car from when Terry first purchased it from Melbourne. Relying on a friend’s assessment, he bought the Vicky sight unseen, but unfortunately, on closer inspection it fell well below his expectations. “I stripped it right down to nothing and started again. It was still a good starting point,” says Terry.
Terry’s rebuild included cutting out the firewall and replacing it with a right-hand-drive example, along with adding a Jag front end, power rack and pinion, rebuilding the 351 Windsor and slotting in an AOD overdrive. Body-wise the car was good, but Terry had a spare rear cut which he was able to use for some minor repairs. Good friend Ed Parker was called upon for the critical fabrication work.
All but the most extreme GM enthusiasts would admit that Ford really had their act together in 1956, so externally Terry didn’t mess with the styling aside from tweaking the colour slightly from the original Peacock Blue. Inside, however, he’s made numerous tasteful mods which could easily be construed as factory to the unfamiliar eye. Our favourite is the chrome-laden 1965 Ford Thunderbird bucket seats, split by a T-bird console of 1960 vintage.
“With the big thick split bench, it separates you from the people in the back. We go out with a lot of other couples, so this is nicer, it’s not ‘them and us’,” reasons Terry.
He’s also extended the luxo theme into the rear with a more shapely back seat featuring a fold-down armrest from the same-year Crown Victoria, installed extra trim to the door cards, headliner and parcel tray, and added a whole bunch of tricks you need pointed out before you notice them.
The van is a 1967 Modern, which Terry inherited from his Aunty Rona and Uncle George a few years ago. “They bought it when I was just a couple of years old. They used to go gold prospecting as a hobby, and they would take off for a couple of months at a time. It was full of red dust when we got it; in fact, it probably still has red dust in it! I cleaned it, painted it and fixed the roof, but basically it’s still as it was.”
Terry and Peta’s extended vacation has seen them take in Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and up to Brisbane, before heading back down south of Sydney where they followed the coast road into Victoria. It’s there that the car remains for now, the couple having returned to Perth for Terry’s role as a Marine Engineer in the Merchant Navy. They’ll both return to Melbourne in November to take in selected car events before making the long haul home. Make sure you say gidday!
BY GAVIN KELSO. FULL FEATURE CRUZIN #193
