The Many Faces Of The PDL Mustang

[Steve Holmes]

This is a photo collection I posted on our Roaring Season Facebook page recently, showing the many different changes the great New Zealand racing PDL Mustang went through during its long career.

The car started life as a 1970 Boss 429 road car, one of just 499 built that year. It was stolen not long after it was first sold, and recovered soon after, though the thieves had removed its motor and gearbox.

New Zealand car dealer and race car driver Paul Fahey took a trip to the US in late 1970 to purchase a new race car, to replace his highly successful Alan Mann Racing Escort FVA/C. His first choice was an existing SCCA Trans-Am car, but when he found none fitting his requirements were available, he began looking at other options. In the Los Angeles Times, he spotted a stolen/recovered 1970 Boss 429 Mustang that was to be sold at a theft recovery auction. He attended, bid on the car, and won the auction, paying just $500 for it.

Next, he arranged with fellow Kiwi Ron Butler, to go through the remains of the recently closed Shelby Racing workshop at LAX, and bought up the huge stockpile of Trans-Am Mustang and Ford endurance sports car parts that remained. He then had everything shipped back to New Zealand, where the Mustang was converted into a race car.

The new Mustang made its race debut in November 1970, painted up in Cambridge cigarettes colours. Fahey ran the Mustang in its debut season as an allcomer car, using his Escort as his championship contender, with which he won the 1971/72 NZ Saloon Car Championship.



Photo by Allan Cameron

[Steve Holmes]

Following the 1971 season, Fahey sold the Mustang to PDL Electrical Industries owner Bob Stewart. The car would be run by the relatively new PDL Racing Team, but with Fahey staying on as driver.

For the 1972 championship, the car was repainted schoolbus yellow, much like the Bud Moore factory Trans-Am racers. The team won the 6 litre class in the 1972 championship.

[Steve Holmes]

Following the 1972 season, the PDL team got an invite from Bob Jane to attend a series of Trans-Tasman sedan races in Australia. At the time, the Mustang had been torn down for its winter rebuild, so was hurredly put back together. Unfortunately, the Australian adventure was highly unsuccessful, with the motor being damaged in private testing just prior to the first event.



Photo by Perry Drury

[Steve Holmes]

The 1973 championship got off to a shaky start, with the Mustang suffering several mechanical failures, and the relationship between Fahey and the PDL team became strained. Fahey had been quite outspoken about his disappointment of the car. In early 1973, when the championship was only half-complete, Bob Stewart called Fahey to his office, and announced the team would no longer require him.

Local Christcurch single seater driver Graham Baker was asked to fill the seat for the remainder of the season, with the Mustang repainted a magnificent custom green, with intricate lace and fade work. Impressively, Baker was on the money virtually from the start, and even more impressively, the Mustang remained reliable throughout the remainder of the season, which resulted in several race wins, including a dominant performance at the Bay Park Easter meeting where Baker took a clean sweep of all three races.



Photo by Mike Feisst

[Steve Holmes]

For the 1974 season, the Mustang was repainted once more in a custom pink, with more fade and lace work. Baker agreed to run the full season with the car.

Some of the mechanical gremlins of the previous season returned, and the championship was ultimately won by Jim Richards in his new Sidchrome Mustang. But on the weekends the PDL machine ran clean, Baker was hard to beat.



Photo by Allan Cameron

[Steve Holmes]

Following the 1974 season, Baker made the decision to return to his first love, single seaters. His place was taken by the hugely successful production car racer, Leo Leonard. Leonard adapted to the fast and powerful Mustang immediately.

The PDL Mustang was given its biggest rebuild to date, with the brilliant engineer Rick Deihl joining the team. He moved the engine back in the chassis for better weight distribution, and massively stiffened the car, while local metal fabricator Robin Officer crafted a set of beautiful box-style flares. It was repainted once more, this time in a beautiful metallic two-tone blue, designed by Glenn McIntyre.

Although the team only ran a limited campaign in the 1975 season, the PDL Mustang was a front-runner each time out, and Leonard finished the championship 3rd in points.



Photo by Rick Deihl

[Steve Holmes]

PDL used the Mustang to great effect as part of their advertising.

[Steve Holmes]

By the time the 1976 season came around, the Mustang was beginning to show its age against tough new opposition, including Jack Nazer's Jim Stone designed and built Chevy V8 powered Vauxhall Victor, and the impressive new tube-frame Chevy Monzas of Allan Moffat and Red Dawson that first appeared at the Bay Park Christmas meeting, in December 1975. On first setting eyes on these two new IMSA machines, the PDL team knew the old Mustangs days were numbered.

That said, Leonard won all three heats at this event, after qualifying on the pole.

The biggest changes made to the Mustang for this season were under the skin, notably in a new alloy block motor, topped with Lucas mechanical fuel-injection.

[Steve Holmes]

Leonard battled hard against Nazer throughout the 1976 championship, but the Victor was just a little bit faster at most tracks, and Leonard was having to drive the wheels off his steed to fight for race wins. On several occasions the pair ran into each other, and tensions between the teams increased.

Things came to a head, both for the championship, and the Mustang, when Leonard and Nazer clashed at Pukekohe, late in the season, with the PDL machine leaving the track at high speed, and sustaining heavy damage.

Rather than rebuild the outdated Mustang, the team instead opted to build an all-new tube-frame car.



Photo by Rick Deihl

[Steve Holmes]

With the incredible new PDL II Mustang up and running for the 1977 championship, the old PDL I was straightened up, rebuilt, and repowered (its alloy block motor went into PDL II). It was also repainted, in a similar scheme to PDL II, designed by artists Mike Nidd.

It then contested a limited schedule, in OSCA, as well as selected North Island events. It'd be raced mostly by Dave Baker, although Graham Baker returned to pedal his old racer in the early part of the 1981 OSCA series, before replacing it with the former Brent Bullivant Chevy V8 powered Ford Capri.

The Mustang was then retired, and soon fell into disrepair.



Photo by Mike Feisst

[Steve Holmes]

Although plenty of people knew the whereabouts of the PDL Mustang, few were prepared to tackle the huge and expensive job of restoring it. However, long-time enthusiast of the car, Steve Ross, eventually bought it, and had Roy MacDonald rebuild/restore it for him.

Since the restoration was completed, the Mustang has made infrequent appearances at historic racing events, and Mustang shows, and always draws a crowd of appreciative onlookers.



The end.

[John McKechnie]

Graeme Barnes told me his ex Brent Bullivant Capri had a variety of motors in it, including at one time the PDL motor.
#10 would tie this in with that ownership.

[Jac Mac]

Wrong MacDonald!

Although plenty of people knew the whereabouts of the PDL Mustang, few were prepared to tackle the huge and expensive job of restoring it. However, long-time enthusiast of the car, Steve Ross, eventually bought it, and had ROY MacDonald rebuild/restore it for him.

Since the restoration was completed, the Mustang has made infrequent appearances at historic racing events, and Mustang shows, and always draws a crowd of appreciative onlookers.



The end.

[khyndart in CA]

November 1970. Pukekohe.
The journey was just about to begin for the Paul Fahey Team Cambridge 1970 Boss Mustang.
(before all the bumps and bruises ! )






(Ken Hyndman photos )

[Steve Holmes]

Wow, what a great photo Ken! Thanks for posting. This must be the debut event for this car?

[GD66]

I think it is Steve, I went up from Tauranga to see it get galloped round Puke for the first time.

Have a look at the crowd on the hill and in the carpark for a season-opening national meeting.

A great period of NZ motorsport

[kiwi285]

Great collection of photos. I always thought that it would be interesting to see a series of photos of that car in its various colour scheme. Thanks for doing that Steve. I still love the Cambridge scheme.

Great photos Ken - amazing that they still come out of the woodwork.

[John McKechnie]

My all time favourite colour scheme and still the best looking on this car.- thanks Ken
I was there at its first outing, and it looked so much bigger than Rods Camaro
Is that a Boss Andy sticker on the rear tail lamp panel ?
Also looks like registration sticker on the windscreen, but no plates.

[BMCBOY]

Also looks like registration sticker on the windscreen, but no plates.[/QUOTE]

I notice there was a rego number on the back though!

[Steve Holmes]

Awesome pics Ross! Thanks for posting.