Thanks for posting that TDs. That was an era when I really became interested in cars. I remember the Bellett had success as a rally car and also in what was then the Armstrong 500/Hardie Ferodo 1000. That was a great era with the Morris Cooper S. the Hillman Hunter GT, the first of the Datsun 1600, the Falcon GT in 1967 and Monaro in 1968.

I think those early model Wasps may have had a column shift. I recall when some of the taxis used an Isuzu diesel fitted into the Holden body later on in the 70s when petrol prices began to increase. They sounded like tractors driving past. 

I bought  a new Bellett sedan and Wasp ute in 1960's  (Bellett used as family car and also extensively in Club Motorsport ) These were followed by in late '70's by a Chevy LUV (almost identical to a Wasp) then in 1990 another '66 Bellett sedan  (which I still have ) another Wasp and a  '67  Bellett GT. i have also owned and operated Isuzu trucks as well .  Isuzu products have always given me good service - and  I particularly like their diesel truck engines. 

DMax you forgot to include the Prince Skyline GTB in your list of 1960's performance cars ....a Japanese vehicle with "performance " equipment that other companies had not even dreamt of  producing their cars with.(OHC 6 cyl. motor with triple Weber carbies , Limited Slip Diff.- most people had not even heard of one , disc front brakes , 100 litre race fuel tank, 5 speed gear box, finned alloy rear brakes , full instrumentation . ) - all off the Showroom floor in 1964/5 .

KJB wrote:

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Here is one for the Isuzu clan . I built this in 1971 - 1958 Ford Prefect with a mid mounted Isuzu Bellett engine and gearbox - used for AutoX.

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 Hi Kerry...great photos that brought back great memories for me! Used to race  1310cc Cooper S that had 120hp at the wheels,big gear in its day,and good for electronically timed 128.8mph,or over 200km/hr. Had the straight-cut close ratio box. Had to spray ether down the carbs to start it in the morning. Pathetic by today standard, with my present road car having over 400hp  at the ground,but we thought we were pretty quick 50 years ago ! Thanks again.Cheers

iana wrote:

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We had a Landcruiser that had a factory fitted Isuzu 4cyl. motor.
In New Guinea the local paper ran a comic strip each edition, who featured a character called Isuzu-alulu, he was depicted driving an Isuzu ute carrying passengers, and was all centered around advertising for Isuzu.
This was back in the late 70's.

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Hi Ian 

I have several of the Isuzu Lu books from my time in PNG. Very amusing and of course were Isuzu advertising initially a cartoon in the local papers. Isuzu were very well regarded in PNG and gave good service on terrible roads and other duties. The logging trucks working in Madang were all Isuzu 4x4 and 6x6 rigids. Hard workers  

A taste of Isuzu LU.  You had to be there to appreciate how it captured the 'feel' of the place !! Bob Browne was the cartoonist who went on to greater things here.

Hi 

Just another bit of Isuzu history trivia. After the war Isuzu (perhaps called another name then) made Hillman Minx's under licence for quite some years. Might interest those of the old British car tradition. 

http://automobiles-japonaises.com/Isuzu/Hillman/Minx.php

Jaahn

DMaxer wrote:

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I wonder how that came about. Was that part of the old Rootes Group that made English cars Jaahn?

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 Hi DMaxer 

You must be a young fella if you do not know what a Hillman Minx was ??  They were also made in Australia well before a twin cab ute was dreamed about !!

"The Hillman Minx was a mid-sized family car that British car maker Hillman produced from 1931 to 1970. There were many versions of the Minx over that period, as well as badge-engineered variants sold by Humber, Singer, and Sunbeam.

From the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s, the Minx and its drivatives were the greatest-volume sellers of the "Audax" family of cars from Rootes, which also included the Singer Gazelle and Sunbeam Rapier. "

"Already before the war, Isuzu's ancestor manufactured the Wolseley A9 under license in Japan. After the war, the firm adopted the name of Isuzu in 1949 and turned to the Rootes group to restart production. The PH10 is a Hillman Minx MkVII made in Japan. The advantage of English cars is that the steering wheel is on the right, just like in Japan. 

In September 1956, Isuzu released the new Minx , a Hillman Minx Series I Audax body. A station wagon version is called Express. 58,000 Minx are manufactured in Japan between 1953 and 1964.
The Roots group will remain linked to Isuzu until the 1960s since the Bellett GT Coupé from 1963 has a chassis identical to the Sunbeam Alpine". 

Jaahn

Some  pics of my  "early"  Isuzu's   ...my 1967 Isuzu Bellett GT,   my 1965 Isuzu Wasp ute ....(I sold this recently) and lastly my 1966 Isuzu Bellett sedan...