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SUPER RARE FORCE 7 - The 70s Aussie Muscle Car that Never Was!

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  • čas přidán 17. 11. 2020
  • We Feature and Drive one of the 10 Leyland Force 7V remaining survivors!
    Part 2 of the Ray Ikin collection.
    The Force 7 coupe was announced in 1974 but only 10 pre-production coupes survived. By the time of the factory closure in 1974, one Force 7 was already in England for secret testing, Leyland Australia kept one example and finally donated that coupe to an Australian museum with some other components of the P76 production line and the remaining eight coupes were offered for sale to private buyers in an auction after the Leyland Aus shut down.
    At Master of Machines, we love cars, in fact, we love anything with wheels or an engine, from American Muscle Cars to Australian Muscle Cars, Race Cars and Classic Cars of all kinds and even Barn Finds. If it's fast, powerful, restored or hidden away in hibernation then we'll cover it, and in most cases, we'll even drive them!

Komentáře • 360

  • @GlennEverittMasterofMachines

    Check out my once in a lifetime 4000HP Nitro Funny Car drive here. czcams.com/video/b_uYrBNc-a0/video.html

  • @bernsmith6452
    @bernsmith6452 Před 3 lety +14

    My dad Leo Smith was part of experimental at BMC, Leyland. We would have these cars with fibreglass disguises stay at our house before dad would go away to Charleville to test to destruction. I'm biased but he was a genius.

  • @awc900
    @awc900 Před 3 lety +12

    Unlike the Monaro, Charger and Falcon GT, the Force 7 was a hatchback. Had it gone into production, it would've been Australia's first large hatchback being a couple of years ahead of the Torana hatch which was somewhat smaller. I remember reading somewhere that the top of the line Force 7 would likely have been called the Tour de Force.

  • @mael-strom9707
    @mael-strom9707 Před 3 lety +14

    It may be a small V8, but we must not forget the BL 4.4L was related to the Rover 3.5L, which was related to the Buick alumunium small block V8. Our English cousins are still racing them successfully to this day on the track and on the water.

  • @keithwilson1554
    @keithwilson1554 Před 3 lety +15

    My Dad owned an identical blue Targa Florio and I got my Licence in it. It's just as he said better on fuel better handling and more comfortable than Fords, Holdens or Chryslers. On a long straight stretch of Road my Dad decided to overtake a Ford GT and an SLR 5000 doing a bit over 100 m.p.h. he was at 125 m.p.h when he passed them.

    • @gaborgenda9225
      @gaborgenda9225 Před 3 lety +10

      I can relate to your comment..I owned an orange P76 Executive V8..leather interior, factory sunroof..had less than 30,000 k's on it when I bought it...not ONE of my friends with Fords and Holdens, could catch me on the straights or winding mountain roads..it went like a rocket! Sadly, I ended up going through a messy divorce..was offered a really good sum of money for it..and I sold it! I have regretted selling that car ever since ( by the way, I was a firm Ford man..but the P76 V8 changed my opinions!)

  • @spencerevans6950
    @spencerevans6950 Před 3 lety +5

    My old man bought an executive V8 in 74 when I was a kid. We drove from Adelaide to Sydney and back a couple of times with out a hiccup. More room inside than a statesman or Fairlane, loved that car. I do remember him saying Repco had done some work on the heads and exhaust for surprising numbers. Just wonder how it may have gone at Bathurst. Having the best brakes in class, fuel economy and tyre wear. What it may have lacked in straight line speed it might have picked it up in the corners and fewer pit stops. Gess we will never know unless some comparison could be done.
    Great collection Glenn.

  • @michaelheaton3396
    @michaelheaton3396 Před 3 lety +7

    My dad had two P76’s one being a green Targa Florio (1 of 30 I believe). Drove them both back in the day which was fun. My mum worked at Leyland assembly plant around the time they closed up and gave me a souvenir, a Force 7 boot badge which I still have :-).

  • @retromod7525
    @retromod7525 Před 3 lety +5

    OMG, Ray Ikin !
    Former heavy-hitter with the Charger Car Club in Vic (hi Ray) and once builder and owner of a very nice turbocharged Hemi Charger. What a blast seeing him again.

  • @BadApe351
    @BadApe351 Před 3 lety +5

    These cars may not be on most car enthusiast's short list but they were a significant part of Australia's automotive history...
    even more so now that we don't even have an automotive industry - which is an absolute disgrace.
    That Force 7 is as rare as rocking horse shit. Beautiful car.
    Another great one Glenn.

  • @dougcox3990
    @dougcox3990 Před 3 lety +9

    My uncle had an immaculate White P76 Executive V8 Manual with the electric overdrive back in the eighties. Asked him to sell it to me if he ever sold it. He sold it to someone else anyway. Bastard.

    • @GlennEverittMasterofMachines
      @GlennEverittMasterofMachines  Před 3 lety +1

      Bummer!

    • @ldnwholesale8552
      @ldnwholesale8552 Před 3 lety

      No electric overdrive on those things

    • @dougcox3990
      @dougcox3990 Před 3 lety

      @@ldnwholesale8552 You may be right, my memory ain't what it was, maybe it'd been converted, no Executives came with manual trans either, but I remember a four speed floor shift with a small square sliding switch on top of the gearknob. Maybe it was another car...

  • @ricknel76nelson54
    @ricknel76nelson54 Před 3 lety +16

    Very true, they where underrated!
    I was fortunate enough to be able to drive a Force7 in the late 80s. Bold as Brass yellow, V8, 4 speed manual. It was owned by a friend of mine.
    I also had P76s, great car to drive.

    • @itchyvet
      @itchyvet Před 3 lety +2

      L.O.L. Sorry to burst your bubble, Rickne76, my older brother worked in the Chrysler agents in Albany selling these things. You don't want to hear what he had to say about them. He felt so guilty every time he convinced some sucker to buy one. They were a piece of junk.

    • @ricknel76nelson54
      @ricknel76nelson54 Před 3 lety +4

      @@itchyvet
      I knew quite a few people who had them from new and still love them

    • @ricknel76nelson54
      @ricknel76nelson54 Před 3 lety +5

      Chrysler agent?

    • @mael-strom9707
      @mael-strom9707 Před 2 lety +3

      @@ricknel76nelson54 Haha, there's a story in there somewhere... a Chrysler agent calling another manufacturer's car a piece of junk. 🤣😋

  • @21stcenturyozman20
    @21stcenturyozman20 Před 3 lety +10

    I seriously considered buying a V8 P76 new. The ride and handling were impressive compared to the big three junkmobiles of the time. What finally turned me off buying? The terribly cheap plastics - particularly the dash and the switchgear; those completely let the car down IMO. Instead I bought a low-mileage P5B Rover coupé, which was still built with pre-Leyland quality.

  • @PaulinesPastimes
    @PaulinesPastimes Před 3 lety +12

    That was a great drive. Nice to see and hear it and it looks different but impressive. It's interesting to think about the history of Leyland Australia in comparison to GMH. British Leyland in the UK ran out of money and shut down manufacturing in other countries, forcing Leyland Australia to close, a very sad story. General Motors in the USA went bankrupt and had a fire sale of it's assets, killing Saab, selling Vauxhall and Opel and cancelling the Zeta platform project which, effectively, meant the end of Holden, a national tragedy. We seem to be always at the mercy of overseas parent companies when it comes to our cars. Thank goodness there are collectors who preserve these cars for people to enjoy. Cheers

  • @Leosarebetter
    @Leosarebetter Před 3 lety +4

    I had a P76, V8 and they were a magnificent and as you say Glenn, underrated car. So far ahead of their time.

  • @CathodeRayNipplez
    @CathodeRayNipplez Před 3 lety +19

    What an amazing collection. Mr Ikin is a fabulous gentleman who was obviously born with a keen eye for cars.
    I do hope you're going to show us more of his 'shed'

  • @marcpolo7866
    @marcpolo7866 Před 3 lety +3

    Have see this particular car in the flesh and its absolutely stunning. Ray is a fantastic bloke to boot too. Couldn't find a better custodian for this beautiful coupe!!

  • @Jim-ok9zi
    @Jim-ok9zi Před 3 lety +27

    I remember sitting at the traffic lights on what was then the princes Hwy in Morwell in I think around the mid 70s and one of those two door P76s pulled up along side me. I knew how rare they were so I followed it for a while just to have a good look at it.
    Thanks for posting Glenn that was so interesting.
    Looking forward to the next one 👍👍👍

    • @laustinspeiss
      @laustinspeiss Před 3 lety

      Where’s the Princess Highway? I tried looking it up.

    • @Jim-ok9zi
      @Jim-ok9zi Před 3 lety +1

      @@laustinspeiss
      The princes hwy travels east of Melbourne thru a number of towns including Warrigal , Moe, Morwell, Traralgon. Sale, Lakes entrance, all the way to the NSW border. In around the early 90s they built the Morwell bypass.
      So the HWY No longer goes thru Morwell. 👍

    • @laustinspeiss
      @laustinspeiss Před 3 lety

      @@Jim-ok9zi Princess ?

    • @Jim-ok9zi
      @Jim-ok9zi Před 3 lety +1

      @@laustinspeiss
      Your right I’ll blame google
      Should have checked it 🤪

    • @50NewEyes
      @50NewEyes Před 3 lety

      I swear he’s driving around loyang power station????

  • @paulmedlock9480
    @paulmedlock9480 Před 3 lety +2

    Gday Glenn here,s a weird fact
    My dad use to work for leyland in the day, as a mechcanical engineer, he helped develop the p76 and the Force 7. Did not know they existed until 2 hours ago.
    Yep he said all the Force 7 cars were all bright colors how cool is that.
    As you said most car where crushed and in his words a few managed to escape.
    Cheers

  • @bossdog1480
    @bossdog1480 Před 3 lety +4

    We had one when I was a kid and when I got older I was the happy owner of two of them. Probably the best cars I've ever owned and that includes some modern Falcons.
    They were light and went hard and were VERY good on fuel with the lightweight alloy motor.
    I heard there were 72 bodies all up, most were crushed.

  • @sprendergast351
    @sprendergast351 Před 3 lety +4

    Believe me Glenn that little 4.4 goes like a cut cat with ported heads and a 4 barrell holley hanging on top. Helped a guy do one in NZ years ago. Great handling and instant acceleration. We had a few customers had them when I was in my apprenticeship, did a couple of engines as they used to crack piston skirts for some reason. And yes we had a farmer out the back who carried a 44 in his. Cheers Steve.

    • @ldnwholesale8552
      @ldnwholesale8552 Před 3 lety

      Those heads will never flow. They are econobox heads. The reason Mc Cormack had very special heads cast for the 5000. And even then was well underpowered

  • @ZulcanPrime
    @ZulcanPrime Před 3 lety +4

    May the Force 7V be with you always.

  • @robwhite240z
    @robwhite240z Před 3 lety +5

    My dad had two P76 V8 as Taxis in Caboolture QLD . He said that they where so much better then the HJ holden and the XC ford he had. They did not have taxi meters back then and went by distance . while chatting to the customer he would easy sit on over 100 mph on the Bribie island road with out them knowing.

  • @deanbowell7501
    @deanbowell7501 Před 3 lety +8

    First car i ever bought, a mint condition P76 Executive V8 in Country Cream with 30 odd thousand miles on the clock back in the early 90's. My mates laughed at me (they had Holdens & Fords) but always wanted to go out in my car because it was (Anything, but Average) Sadly, trying to get any parts for it was my breaking point & had to succumb to being a Holden Bogan 🙊🙉🙈

  • @stephenberry8658
    @stephenberry8658 Před 3 lety +2

    Great machine. Thanks for an excellent video test. I have a photo I took of my Citroen GS beside a two level car transporter with 5 complete Force 7s in front of the Leyland factory at Zetland in March 1975.
    I had started work that month with Edward Rushtons who were joint auctioneers with Mason Green selling of all the stock plus plant and machinery at the Zetland plant after it closed.
    Interesting to see the few dollars paid for 3,000 P76 front carpets and 2,000 rear carpets, or P76 front and rear ash trays. Steering wheels. Etc.
    My previous 2 weeks starting work at Rushtons was in Darwin 2 months after Cyclone Tracy helping with loss assessment work for owners.
    Amazing times for a wide eyed 22 year old.

  • @peterkirgan2921
    @peterkirgan2921 Před 9 měsíci +1

    My stepfather had 3 p76models & a Marina as well the p76 one was a turquoise targa v8 @the others were 6cyl one brown one orange both had awa push button radios !! Priceless

  • @smiddysmidton8313
    @smiddysmidton8313 Před 3 lety +8

    Crazy rare coupe, there was also a p76 station wagon -probably the rarest Australian car ever.

    • @1971gtrxu1
      @1971gtrxu1 Před 3 lety +1

      I dont think any p76 wagons were actually made, were there?

    • @JBofBrisbane
      @JBofBrisbane Před 3 lety +6

      Two prototype wagons were constructed, one was crushed along with the Force 7s, the other survived.

    • @MrGutfeeling
      @MrGutfeeling Před 3 lety +3

      @@1971gtrxu1 The remaining wagon still lives, I think there is a guy who owns it and also has a Force 7V !

    • @chrisgoffe5048
      @chrisgoffe5048 Před 3 lety

      ..there was one in New Zealand ..a white wagon in the mid 90s always at car shows

  • @vigilante351
    @vigilante351 Před 3 lety +7

    Excellent information Glenn, great to have an enthusiast/owner to be unsure on this Force 7 - which means its VERY rare, particularly with the number produced.

  • @Thunder-cx4yq
    @Thunder-cx4yq Před 3 lety +5

    My dad had a P76 V8 when I was a kid back in 1978. I remember that it was loud and broke down a lot

  • @chisel83
    @chisel83 Před 3 lety +14

    Glenny 👍 there’s a metallic brown force 7 at birdwood motor museum. Been there for many many years. The blue Florio looked nice too.

    • @dougcox3990
      @dougcox3990 Před 3 lety +5

      They have one of the original wooden bucks for the body too.

    • @GlennEverittMasterofMachines
      @GlennEverittMasterofMachines  Před 3 lety +8

      I must get down to Birdwood one day, I've heard it's great.

    • @ldnwholesale8552
      @ldnwholesale8552 Před 3 lety +2

      There was a yellow one there before the poo brown one!

    • @chisel83
      @chisel83 Před 3 lety +3

      @@GlennEverittMasterofMachines the collection has somewhat changed. Gmh took the ej prem - 500k Holden, the hk brougham-1 millionth Holden and the GTR-x. I believe the federal government has stopped gm from shipping the cars back to Detroit

    • @dougohboy5190
      @dougohboy5190 Před 3 lety

      @@GlennEverittMasterofMachines ... nearly bought one , the only thing i was told they had oil leaking problems,,,,,

  • @askannav2094
    @askannav2094 Před 3 lety +5

    The Force 7 is absolutely beautiful.. Noticed there is more than a hint of the Austin Martin DBS in its styling too !

    • @sean640307
      @sean640307 Před 3 lety +2

      Aston Martin.... :)

    • @carrot595
      @carrot595 Před 3 lety

      @@sean640307 definately Austin Martin....(desert boot special?)

    • @tonyhworks
      @tonyhworks Před 3 lety

      @@carrot595 I had a new P76 Super. It was no. 4 off the production line. It obviously got its compliance plate before the name was announced because it was registered as an Austin!

  • @flynn6737
    @flynn6737 Před 3 lety +4

    My Grand dad had a mission brown p76.
    As a kid I thought nothing of it when he offered it to me when I was 15.... I said “no way”
    When I got a few years older and into cars more I’ve been kicking my self ever since.

  • @ondrejhybler9371
    @ondrejhybler9371 Před 3 lety +3

    I had a chance to see 2 of the Force 7s at a Shannons classic at Eastern Creek NSW about 4 or 5 years ago. I've loved them ever since. It's a shame more of these cars weren't made.

  • @davidbayley9588
    @davidbayley9588 Před 3 lety +6

    There was going to be a top of the range Force 7 called "Tour de Force" and some were partially built before the project was cancelled.

  • @murrayedgar4791
    @murrayedgar4791 Před 3 lety +3

    My Dad traded his HQ for a P76. As far as I was concerned as a lucky 16/17 year old who got to drive both there was no comparison; that P76 was heaps quicker, bigger, yet so agile. Fun at the roundabouts on a wet day too. Don't remember it understeering.... Taught me lots about throttle control. Pity the quality of assembly was such crap and the big two ran such a hate campaign during the fuel crisis that it never stood a chance to be fully developed.

  • @davidewhite69
    @davidewhite69 Před 3 lety +2

    I once saw a Force 7 cruising on the freeway heading to Newcastle, same colour as the one in this vid. In the 80s I knew a bloke who had a dozen P76s in his dad's chook shed

  • @68404
    @68404 Před 3 lety +2

    I saw one being driven a couple of weeks ago on the Pacific Hwy at Mount Colah.
    It was one of those "I just saw a unicorn" moments.

  • @hoffhomme7106
    @hoffhomme7106 Před 3 lety +1

    Awesome car really, I had the privilege of driving a Force 7 in 1976, 2 door, Aluminium Alloy V8, 2 door hatch with White interior upholstery. It was designed I believe then to compete against Holden and Ford with Bathhurst as the target competition race. Managed to set up a lets say challenge against a Ford Interceptor Phase 4 and the F 7 slightly pipped the Ford, so who knows what or how well they would haveperformed if the whole Leyland Brand hadn't been shutdown.

  • @decea9380
    @decea9380 Před 3 lety +2

    Great motor. Really good power to weight ratio. Originally made for Buick. Then manufactured under licence for use in Rover, Morgan, MG, Triumph etc. Increased in capacity for P76. Such a shame that Leyland was going broke at the time. Although it was never released, there was also a station wagon version of the P76. At least one was assembled.

    • @andrewmcewan8081
      @andrewmcewan8081 Před 6 měsíci

      Research that engine it was developed so much by rover gm tried to buy back the rights at least twice fairly quickly the look of the engine was the most similar thing about them

  • @gordonb2011
    @gordonb2011 Před 3 lety +2

    When I was a teenager I owned a P76. What a lovely car! It's the car that I miss the most. If It was possible I'd have another one in a heartbeat. Occasionally I have a look to see if any are for sale.

    • @davidrobertson376
      @davidrobertson376 Před 3 lety +1

      Me too. This is like reading my own story, but I have one that is very tatty and would cost me more than I can afford to restore

  • @ivankuljis1780
    @ivankuljis1780 Před 2 měsíci

    Time shows the P76 was a winner. Love the Force 7V

  • @davidsheppard1362
    @davidsheppard1362 Před 2 lety +1

    At last. Somebody who actually likes these fantastic cars !

  • @David-il9zr
    @David-il9zr Před 3 lety +4

    I remember when I was a young teen seeing a P76 racing in the 70's at the Surfers Paradise International Raceway. (which doesn't exist any more.)

    • @robp2831
      @robp2831 Před 3 lety

      I believe that might have been Dazza Eastlake, some might know from the old days of channel 9

  • @007JHS
    @007JHS Před měsícem

    The P76 was at times known as the Rover P8....
    Knew a bloke who had a Force 7... he was forced to sell it in a divorce settlement... It really was a great car.

  • @peterkelly250
    @peterkelly250 Před 3 lety +3

    Beautiful ride. 👍

  • @micko1404
    @micko1404 Před 11 měsíci

    gorgeous car, I've only seen one in real life and I've seen the white P76 wagon about 20 years ago

  • @jasoncannon6897
    @jasoncannon6897 Před 3 lety +1

    Hi Glenn, I've recently been in Hay, out back NSW and passed an old servo ( still open) in the front yard was a brilliant green sandman .
    It took me back .... Dam thing looked showroom new. There out there.
    Keep looking and thanks for keeping the dream alive...

  • @davidcarter4247
    @davidcarter4247 Před 3 lety +1

    Saw one Force 7 in the wild. It was a Sunday in the summer of 1973/74 and it was on the expressway at the northern end of the Sydney Domain heading towards the bridge. Did get to drive a P76 because in a desperate bid to save Leyland the NSW government bought a large fleet of Minis, Marinas and P76s. As a car to drive it was way better than the Kingswoods, Falcons and Valiants that made up the department's fleet. But its finish left a lot to be desired and I exited with blood pouring from my finger after slicing it on a rough edge at the bottom of the dash. In those days the NSW government kept cars less than a year to profit from the resale. The state did not pay sales tax and a one year old car would get an auction price higher than was paid. So the two P76s were soon gone. Not so sad to lose were the two Marinas. 1500cc four cylinder autos, they were only car I ever drove that needed to kick down to second to get over the Harbour Bridge.

  • @kerrgraeme
    @kerrgraeme Před 3 lety +1

    Worked at Repco Engine Development 73/74 when the engine was developed for F5000. 385 HP at 9,500 RPM. Campaigned in the green Charger raced by McCormack from Adelaide against Brocks Beast. Would have been a Bathurst winner for sure with that engine as a base for homologation.

  • @brett174
    @brett174 Před 3 lety +3

    Awesome and underrated car IMO. I seem to recall an article, possibly in Street Machine, about boring/and or stroking these things to be a 5 litre. From my (very limited) memory it made awesome torque.

    • @GlennEverittMasterofMachines
      @GlennEverittMasterofMachines  Před 3 lety +4

      Yes, that's right, they do run them out to 5 litre. In the 70's they also had a pretty serious F5000 open wheeler race engine program using this engine, it may have been with Repco.

    • @johnd8892
      @johnd8892 Před 3 lety +1

      @@GlennEverittMasterofMachines A five litre option was planned for the next P76 update model, as was a 3.3 litre V6 version and station wagon.
      Pin pulled before this happened.

    • @johnd8892
      @johnd8892 Před 3 lety

      Needed more options to cover the market, especially fleets.

  • @angusnz7910
    @angusnz7910 Před 10 měsíci +1

    The guy I right…I’ve heard of them but never seen one. I’m a kid of that era and you were with a ford or a Holden guy…but I always wanted a P76, only 4 headlight front and floor shift…Ide donate my first born for one of those today

  • @BradFord866
    @BradFord866 Před 3 lety +1

    Really good

  • @stevemurrell6167
    @stevemurrell6167 Před 3 lety +1

    Looked good.....sounded even better. Great review on a lost legend.

  • @montinaladine3264
    @montinaladine3264 Před 3 lety +2

    Very interesting video thanks. I had only ever seen pictures of the F7. To see one in the flesh is amazing. That guy was so astute and lucky to come across all these rare beauties. I am rather disappointed though that there was virtually no discussion about the cars themselves. Plenty of surrounding history and the engine mentioned several times, McPherson struts and rack & pinion steering but just a general overview and no details on anything like the engine design itself (OHV OHC?), gearbox, brakes (4WDB's on the Targa?) dash and interior area just a quick glance. Trim and comfort levels? Also no talk of how it felt driving it. What was the steering like? The brakes? Wheels and tyres? How was it more advanced than it's competition? The hidden wipers would have been a good start. How did it feel on the road? What type of auto did they use and how did it feel? Power, torque, responsiveness, vehicle weight in comparison to the Big Three? I'm sure many thousands of Aust car enthusiasts would have liked a lot more detail in this video.
    Also not mentioned was one of the main downfalls of the P76. It had an atrocious build quality. I remember reading reports of cars just 6 months old with poorly fitted trim falling off and the stick-on wood-grain on the dash just not put on straight or curling up in our sun; instruments problems, fuel gauge faulty reading, water leaking problems - all indications of a rushed design and execution. These are things that, no matter how brilliant the design - often last as a sour taste for decades in the minds of people.
    Thanks for reading.

    • @GlennEverittMasterofMachines
      @GlennEverittMasterofMachines  Před 3 lety

      I'd love to be able to put such a car through it's paces to explore it's limits but in reality a careful drive is all we can perform in such rare, expensive and irreplaceable cars, and I'd personally enjoy going much more in-depth as you've mentioned. I enjoyed watching Peter Wherrett's show when I was a boy and he did awesome reviews, just as you have mentioned, exploring the cars limits too. Our biggest challenge is creating content that has broad appeal across many types of enthusiasts, so to achieve high viewer retention across a short and sharp duration, effectively to appease CZcams and their algorithm, so they allow more to see our content. It's a fine line. Thanks for watching though, all feedback is appreciated, and in many cases we can pull from that feedback here and there with a view to applying certain elements where possible and practical within our production time restraints, being a self funded operation.

  • @bmccameron7642
    @bmccameron7642 Před 3 lety +1

    I think I might know this bloke....if he's in Western Victoria on a farm. I wired his shed up and enjoyed a day talking about his collection while we worked.

  • @triggeredleftyvegan6004
    @triggeredleftyvegan6004 Před 3 lety +1

    Looks like the car is living in the Valley!

  • @decea9380
    @decea9380 Před 3 lety +3

    I remember that Mini King at Bankstown had Force 7 Owner Manuals. Wish I has grabbed a few.

    • @jimclarke1108
      @jimclarke1108 Před 3 lety

      He had every model P76, including the Force 7, a wagon . He even had mini utes

    • @GL-xz3xk
      @GL-xz3xk Před 3 lety

      Someone has been reprinting them and selling copies.

  • @hererex
    @hererex Před 3 lety +3

    Was an apprentice at leyland at the time one of the sons of one of the bosses had a really hotted up a 6 Marina very very quick in a straight line used to kill chargers anyway he got hold of a gearbox that was supposed to go into a force seven it was a close ratio box and it was going to go into one of the force sevens for Bathurst so yes they were going to race them.

  • @007JHS
    @007JHS Před měsícem

    The full sized clay model for styling of the Force 7 was...maybe still is... on display at the National Motor Museum at Birdwood South Aust.

  • @PaulWGregson
    @PaulWGregson Před 22 dny

    They are still a great looking car

  • @stephenvelden295
    @stephenvelden295 Před 3 lety +3

    There is a Force 7 in the Car Museum in Whiteman Park in Perth.

  • @markaylott1780
    @markaylott1780 Před 3 lety +1

    The P38 was the 6cyl version. I owned a P76 V8, the engine was brilliant but the body was rusted pretty bad, which was the major problem with them. There use to be a green Force 7 in the industrial area in condell park near bankstown airport NSW. I also saw a yellow one at Albion Park air show obout 2017

  • @BEEER000
    @BEEER000 Před 3 lety

    I used to put my six foot four surf board in the back seat and go surf down the Great Ocean Road. Loved that car.

  • @every1665
    @every1665 Před 3 lety +1

    Just noticed the Force 7 has a bit of Charger fake louver air intake behind the rear side window. Very sexy!

  • @russellhammond4373
    @russellhammond4373 Před 2 lety

    I was there on the night of the auction. A sad day indeed.

  • @geoffhope5379
    @geoffhope5379 Před 3 lety +2

    I use to sell p76’s in 1974 for UK motors fantastic cars particularly the V8 unfortunately theywerepoorly made their quality assurance in factory was poor. If memory serves me correctly Leyland was having a significant union problem and we will never know what went on behind the scenes shame fantastic car.

  • @Steve064
    @Steve064 Před 3 lety +1

    Never new there was a two door I used to borrow my grandparents P76 Plenty of power and from memory we fitted ten people into it once Sorry Grandma !!!!

  • @jimclarke1108
    @jimclarke1108 Před 3 lety +7

    P76, probably better than any Ford or Holden in the day, love to own the beautiful blue Targa Florio, id drive it daily

  • @Circlotron
    @Circlotron Před 3 lety +1

    In early '77 I saw one pull up outside the then milk bar in Sturt st South Melbourne near the corner of Nolan st (now Southbank Blvd). A whole pile of us apprentice technicians from what was then the Telecom Australia training school looked at it just goggle eyed!

  • @bradleywicenciak8005
    @bradleywicenciak8005 Před 2 lety +1

    Forget the Torana , this was the first true hatchback in Straya

    • @johnd8892
      @johnd8892 Před 2 lety +1

      That might be the Australian only Morris Nomad. Close to the first hatchback in the world. 1970. Only the Autobianchi from the Fiat offshoot may have been ahead of the Nomad :
      czcams.com/video/TB-r2JTsTmk/video.html

  • @gashy1000
    @gashy1000 Před 3 lety +1

    Great story, very nice rims on her also.. cheers.

  • @HEMIPOWER604
    @HEMIPOWER604 Před 2 měsíci

    Old Dave Tamoko loved his Layland, I’d did sound nice rolling thru Hikurangi, Rip Dave

  • @snake79068
    @snake79068 Před 3 lety +2

    I worked at Mascot when Leyland closed and watched trucks going to Sims metal with loads of force 7s to be crushed

  • @NoelMockford
    @NoelMockford Před 3 lety

    The Unions killed it off. They made unrealistic demands and Leyland said no. The factory was shipped to Argentina and they made them there for years afterwards. Great cars. I had one in New Zealand.

  • @markcarli8259
    @markcarli8259 Před 3 lety +1

    Thank you. Love your work.

  • @fitzyholden1036
    @fitzyholden1036 Před 3 lety +5

    I remember my old man trading in his 1969 Mercury Cyclone for a P76. I thought he'd completely lost the plot.

  • @petersimpson5859
    @petersimpson5859 Před 3 lety +1

    More than a hint of AMC AMX about it. BL was ruined by infighting and politics but there was real ingenuity behind the scenes, building innovative designs with little budget.

  • @Tommyhearnsrighthand
    @Tommyhearnsrighthand Před 3 lety

    Hidden wipers looks cool

  • @Kingmick58
    @Kingmick58 Před 3 lety +1

    Great car. There was a joke back in the 70's that the British never sold us the 'Bomb'. Some wag replied with "Yes they did. The P76!".

  • @rodneydolman1
    @rodneydolman1 Před 3 lety +4

    Back in the 70s when Leyland pulled the pin Mini king ( wrecker's) in western Sydney had a force 7 and a heap of parts & panel's for that and a wagon

    • @Lepusrabbit
      @Lepusrabbit Před 3 lety

      Correct I remember that as well
      That is where I got my Force 7 manual from

    • @rodneydolman1
      @rodneydolman1 Před 3 lety +1

      @@Lepusrabbit
      Is Mini King still there?

    • @Lepusrabbit
      @Lepusrabbit Před 3 lety +1

      @@rodneydolman1 Unknown as I have been in Victoria for 20 years
      Good memories

  • @simonjkennedy2139
    @simonjkennedy2139 Před 3 lety +1

    Very interesting and educational

  • @pstotto
    @pstotto Před 3 lety +1

    WHY wasn't that Leyland imported to the UK in the 70s???????? I traveled to school on a Leyland bus in the UK in the late 70's. Really fast and good and thumped all the other buses.

  • @cliffm6566
    @cliffm6566 Před 3 lety +1

    Awesome vid, cool car, bet it’s worth more than $6000. today!

  • @michaelcinar1452
    @michaelcinar1452 Před 3 lety +1

    Excellent video well done.

  • @wanetres9723
    @wanetres9723 Před 3 lety +1

    Seen a Force 7 in 1975 crossing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, had only just read about it in a car mag.

    • @nickanagnostou5408
      @nickanagnostou5408 Před 3 lety +1

      I still remember looking at the P76 as a young boy in the 70s and wondering just how many people approved the design...

  • @JohnLee-mq4hk
    @JohnLee-mq4hk Před 3 lety +1

    I saw a green one in a Chrysler parts show room in Thornbury Victoria, It looked fabulous the asking price was $20k but you couldn't drive it on the street.

  • @jimmyjams9048
    @jimmyjams9048 Před 3 lety +2

    drove one to use in the film Trojan Warrior, P76 was actually written into the script.
    Great car to drive, just floated! better styling than the Holdens but not as good as a Valiant.
    I do believe there where some build quality issues and poor tooling for the panels!

  • @JunkerOnDrums
    @JunkerOnDrums Před 2 měsíci

    Interesting car that looks good. Looks like a mix of a Ford Mustang and an Aston Martin :D

  • @MightyMick88
    @MightyMick88 Před 2 lety

    Fletch if I remember correctly, when you purchased one of these new, Leyland gave you a bucket full of nuts and bolts as well as free membership to roadside assist. Come on Fletch.

  • @gregmorley1997
    @gregmorley1997 Před 3 lety +3

    I saw all 10 at the '75 Sydney Motor Show very rare site, the thing that went a long way to killing the P76 range and Leyland was that at the time the union was in a long running fight with the company. The workers were ruining the cars reputation by hanging steel nuts on lengths of string and wire in door panels etc so that they would rattle, thereby giving the impression that the cars were poorly built and were being taken back to the dealerships or sold off cheaply

    • @ghardwick1960
      @ghardwick1960 Před 3 lety

      I went to that motor show and saw the cars too. They were selling bits and pieces from the left over parts bin. I bought a chrome "Force 7" badge that was supposed to be attached to a car. I still have it.

    • @aussiefarmer6012
      @aussiefarmer6012 Před 3 lety +1

      Unions killed Australia.

  • @seanworkman431
    @seanworkman431 Před 3 lety +1

    Sadly those cars were ahead of their time but management did not have a good dialogue with the workforce.
    I worked with a mechanic that apprenticed at Leyland in Sydney, the stories he told were horrific, the lack of quality control being the most significant. I also met a man who was an engineer at Leyland , I was driving a Ford Landau at the time and made a spectacular right hand turn and drifted into a parked position behind his bright yellow P76. He told me that he bought it as part of his redundancy and took it home and stripped it and then rebuilt it. An immaculate example and yes a 44 gallon drum did fit in the boot.
    They also produced some shit cars, the marina a good example but ultimately I think the union disputes lead to poor quality control and thus a downturn.

  • @jerrybailey5797
    @jerrybailey5797 Před rokem +1

    British Leyland could've learned alot from Australian Leyland at the time, though we had the Rover 3500 , which was a good looking car for a 4 door The Force 7 would've been a good
    Car if it could've been imported over here in the UK

  • @geoffpotter8813
    @geoffpotter8813 Před 3 lety +2

    That would have been a contender on the track I would love to see see it happening I'm sure you can do it

  • @coppertop2924
    @coppertop2924 Před rokem

    i know these are rare but its the four door sedan that does it for me, awesome p76

  • @skyislands8887
    @skyislands8887 Před rokem

    Was going to say a orange force 7 was on occasion seen around Coolangatta and south gold Coast, then the comment "I flew up to Coolangatta " must be the one and same. Friends family had 2 P76s 1 was amazing, well built , xdrove and rode, never a problem, the other was the opposite, body and interior was poorly. Electrical faults. They bought another a few years later in the 90s, very cheap, a nice 1 owner car, but not maintained, and fixed it up and offered it to me. I loved it, and the factory green looked great. I like odd or eccentric bikes like BMW's and moto Guzzi, my ex wife wanted a commodore, according to her, my motoring was in my bum!

  • @markhills3922
    @markhills3922 Před 3 lety +1

    Now that's a very interesting car. I knew of the Targa Florio but not the the Force7. It looks like a marriage of the Aston Martin Zagonda front and a Rover P3500 rear. Could it be coincidence that all 3 are british heritage?

  • @Lepusrabbit
    @Lepusrabbit Před 3 lety +1

    Beautiful cars they were remember them well
    Hatchback boot 👍

  • @germanshepherdlover2613

    That dark blue P76 with the Aunger alloys isn't a bad looking car at all. It has a really nice aggressive stance. Clearly more than just a car to transport 44's from A to B.

  • @markbeaver6528
    @markbeaver6528 Před 3 lety +1

    Went to the auction at Sydney, saw all 10!

  • @williamboardman9476
    @williamboardman9476 Před 3 lety +1

    Outstanding !
    A L L. of ......T. H. I. S. . . . .!
    YOU DO THIS SOOOOO EW
    WELL. ! THK U
    EDUCATION 101. !

  • @brucelamberton8819
    @brucelamberton8819 Před 10 měsíci

    I always liked the P76 Targa Floria edition