Down Under, But Not Down and Out
When I saw the 1974 XB Falcon panel van owned by Kerri Underwood of Brisbane, Australia, I thought, “Why wasn’t this vehicle also made in America, or at least imported here?”
Underwood’s van is unlike the old driver-forward Volkswagen vans or American minivans, aka “mommy mobiles.” It’s definitely not a chunky and clumsy full-size van. The Australian panel van looks like a Falcon utility (aka pickup) with a truck bed cap, but without the bulkhead. Meanwhile, the interior is like a station wagon.
Underwood’s panel van was built as part of the third generation of Falcons. The first two generations were American Ford Falcons transplanted in Australia and modified to meet the needs “Down Under.” The third-generation Australian Ford Falcon was designed by Jack Telnack and engineered in-house for the Aussie home market at Ford’s headquarters in Campbellfield. The XA Falcon was available from 1972 to 1973 and the XB Falcon lasted from 1973 to 1976.
The 1974 XB Falcon is a slightly retouched copy of the XA model.
The clip, or nose, looks like a 1971 Mustang while the grille is reminiscent of the 1970 Plymouth Barracuda. The side has a Coke bottle-shaped mid-section. There is a full-body-side crease with the lower and upper section of sheet metal slightly bulging out and meeting at the crease. There is also a lower character line starting at the front bumper and ending at the rear bumper, going over both wheel openings and the rocker panel.
The “B” pillar of the Falcon utility and van have the same shape as the 1966 Ranchero roofline, and the van’s front shape over the windshield slants at the same angle as the windshield. The sides are about a half-inch
indented in from the beltline, and the C pillar is vertical. In the back are two barn doors with windows. The Falcon’s hardtop-type doors are shared with the Falcon utility and panel van.
Life with an XB Falcon
“The van was first bought by a Mr. J. Sutton from T. Fossey Pty, in Tamworth, on 17th May, 1974,” Underwood said. “My dad purchased her six months later at a dealership in Brisbane.” When bought, there were blanked-out side panels to prevent curious eyes from viewing the cargo.
“My family enjoyed hunting and camping,” Underwood said. “We’d go out to a friend’s property in Tenterfield every fortnight (two weeks) rabbit shooting. Dad would throw a heavy canvas tarp over the van to make a leanto. We camped rough, cooked over an open fire, but we loved it.
“As time went on and my sister Cathy came along, dad welded roof racks, bug catchers for the windscreens, a wind deflector across the back, and a bull-bar in front, which is essential in Australia. Dad popped in a XA limitedslip differential for traveling across the boggy paddocks.
“Dad always bathed the van in fish oil and old sump oil every six months, which seems to have kept her in really good condition,” Underwood continued. “There was a serious lack of airflow. Eventually, dad installed a sliding window on the driver’s side. I have vivid memories of sitting in the back through hot summers surrounded by the smell of wet dogs and fish oil.
“My sister and I were always on a mattress in the cargo van. But as years went on and seatbelt regulations got stricter, Dad bolted a set of bus seats to the rear floor. The seats were so high that all we saw was the hood lining.”
“Mum continued to use the van as her daily driver in the ’90s until 2000, when they decided to get a more fuelefficient car. She hit a few kangaroos in her travels, but never been in any serious accidents. Dad put the van up on blocks, not wanting to part with her.”
Choosing restoration
“We had a good friend of my dad’s; he and his son had always planned to restore a car together, but when he
passed away from cancer, the opportunity was lost. I decided that I was not going to let that happen to me.
“Dad is a great mechanic and always worked on the van. He knew her inside and out, and we spent every weekend working on her. My dad had a dance with prostate cancer — now gone — and double knee surgery. Dad and I removed the motor and sent it to our mechanic to be reconditioned, including pistons and rings. The water pump was seized and replaced. We put in a larger radiator.
“We stripped the car and had some rust to deal with. Our first panel person just sprayed an undercoat over the original paint. We lost the best part of a year. Our second choice was recommended, took ages, and we got a call to rescue the car as the business was going bankrupt! The paint isn’t perfect, but its shiny and workable.”
There is a new roof liner that runs the length of the van. The bench seat is black cloth, but was originally vinyl.
“All Car Interiors in Windsor did that work,” Underwood said. “We got Brisbane Auto Glass to install all the glass for us. There was time-consuming work that Dad and I did, such as the fuel tank, and plastic welding the grille. Called Russell and Chris from Majestic Vanners for great advice.”
Underwood’s van has a 250-cid, six-cylinder engine that produces 155 hp and is mated to a three-on-the-tree manual transmission.
“The car is easy to steer and turn when moving,” she adds. “Everyone looks at you, because you are driving a big green lump! Her paint is the original Tropicana Green.
“She has a heater, but no air conditioner, which can be a bit hard during the summer when we get 115 degrees Fahrenheit.”
Although the XB Falcon had a hard life and isn’t the most comfortable vehicle, there was no chance Underwood’s family was going to sell it.
“A guy knocked on dad’s door and offered him $2,000 for the van, as is. Dad might have $2,000 in his pocket today, but the time we spent together restoring her is something we both treasure. I’ve
kept bumps in the rear wheel arches on the inside for sentimental reasons.”
The XB Falcon looks great today, but the process to bring it back to beautiful condition wasn’t always easy.
“It’s been a rough ride,” Underwood said. “I’ve been ripped off and needed police intervention to reclaim my parts.”
Now Kerri, her husband, their two daughters, and her father and mother, all enjoy the van together, just as they did when it entered their lives.