IN 1960S Australia, if you wanted to create an impression and flaunt personal success, an American car was almost essential.
The tradition of building local versions of US designs dated back to the 1920s, but the currency-strapped 1950s, saw the proportion of North American car sales fall in our market.
The words ‘North American’ were important, because most of our US-designed cars came from Canadian factories where they were built in righthand drive. They were also sold under Commonwealth Preference agreements, which made Canadian cars cheaper than the same models sourced from US factories.
Corporate and government sales were vital to local survival oflarge American cars. Look at new footage of Federal Parliament in the 1960s and there would be lines of Bel Airs, Dodges and Galaxies awaiting their ministerial cargo.
