Video Of The Day: Allan Moffat US Testing In 1974

[Steve Holmes]

This amazing piece of footage was recently shared by Allan Moffat, from 1974 when he took his XB Falcon hardtop to the US to use his American connections to help build the car in preparation for that years Bathurst 1000.

This is amazing, with cameos from Mark Donohue, Lee Dykstra, and others. Check it out:

[Terry S]

For info there has just been released an autobiography by Moffat and respectedmotoring writer John SmaiLes.

Very down to earth and includes info not previously known.

Price in OZ is AUD 39.99.

[Steve Holmes]

Thanks Terry.

I'm just trying to remember what car this was. Was it Fred Gibson's XA GT from 1973? I seem to recall Moffat wrecked his XA and so Ford gifted him the Gibson car when they withdrew from racing (as they kept on doing).

[librules]

Thanks Terry.

I'm just trying to remember what car this was. Was it Fred Gibson's XA GT from 1973? I seem to recall Moffat wrecked his XA and so Ford gifted him the Gibson car when they withdrew from racing (as they kept on doing).

According to Australian Muscle Car, issue 28, your memory is right. I had memories of the Gibson car going to Jim Keogh, but Fred got the factory test hardtop (in orange) which he raced in '74 and sold to Keogh for the '75 season. Moff upgraded his car to XA specs at the start of '74 and it went the to US in mid-74 for an overhaul by Lee Dykstra.

That is absolutely classic footage. I presume it was to be part of a longer film if Moff had won Bathurst. He later put out a video of one attempt on Bathurst with the ANZ Sierra. I've only seen it as a VHS video, not on DVD, but it is well worth a look if anyone finds a copy.

[John McKechnie]

So is this car XA with XB bolt on panels and tail lights or proper XB- looks like XA exterior door handles .

[Steve Holmes]

So is this car XA with XB bolt on panels and tail lights or proper XB- looks like XA exterior door handles .

Yes thats right John, its an XA updated to XB sheet metal. This was pretty normal at the time. There were (I think) five or six RPO83 XA Falcon GT hardtops built in 1973 for the new Group C regulations, included three Ford factory teams cars, a car for Bryan Byrt Ford, one for John Goss, etc. The car Moffat and Geoghegan won Bathurst with in 1973 was destroyed later that same year, and when Ford quit racing at the end of 1973 they gifted the second factory team car to Moffat, which he then updated to XB sheet metal in 1974. Thats the car featured in the video.

I'm pretty sure most of the RPO83 XA GT Group C cars were updated to XB sheet metal although when Goss won Bathurst in 1974 his was still in XA guise (or was that a different car again?). I think his reason for doing this was he considered the XA to be lighter in the nose.

The car in the video is the one that was destroyed when Moffat's transporter caught fire in 1975.