First published in the November 2014 issue of Street Machine

Anthony Trefilo’s XP ute was one of two cars that Southern Rod & Custom took to Summernats 25. The other was a killer Pontiac Firebird Pro Tourer. Totally different rides but they have one thing in common — they were built as drivers, cars that can be used for more than winning trophies. Here’s a closer look at this simply stunning and undeniably classy XP ute.

“I saw it on the way to a fishing trip back in 2001,” Anthony says. “I had a look at it on the way back, bought it and drove it back the next weekend. It was quite a good car — purple, with an air cleaner sticking out the bonnet, had a nine-inch and a 302 already in it. I’m just mad on XPs — I’ve got a white Deluxe, which was my first car, a Fairmont and the ex-Hillier coupe [SM, Jun ’01]. Maybe it’s because my father came out from Italy in 1965, I don’t know.”

In 2004 the car blew a head gasket and sat around for a year before Anthony decided to take it to Shane Rowe and the team at SR&C. “I always wanted airbags and a decent motor, so I stripped the car and took it down there. Well, I thought I stripped it — when I went back again there was nothing left of it,” he laughs.

That’s how they roll at SR&C: strip it right back and start from a blank canvas. “I basically cut everything off from behind the cabin and made a whole new floor structure that became part of the chassis, a bit like a one-tonner. You end up with a heap of room behind the rear firewall. There’s no traditional floor structure from the cabin back; that was just to give us room to sit the car so low,” Shane says.

“It’s got an AccuAir system in it. We’re dealers for them and it’s probably one of the best computerised systems there is. It runs a dual compressor system at 200psi and that’s mounted underneath the floor, right behind the cabin.”

The whole rear quarter was also removed, which made it a lot easier to work on, but that wasn’t the only reason Shane took to it with a cut-off wheel.

“The side style-lines start up quite wide at the front guards and taper towards the tail-lights. To me it looks wrong, so I put a slight taper in the ute to match into the tail-light. What I did was refold a whole new door skin and a new quarter from one long sheet, then joined it on the curve of the quarter panel. Any time you’re joining panels, the best place to join them is right on a curve because it makes it easier to file and finish.”

A recurring theme throughout this car is that it doesn’t look like much has been done but on closer inspection you realise just how much effort has gone into it. The trick is to make it all work.

Take the overall stance. Sure, it’s got airbags, but a set of ’bags on an otherwise standard XP won’t have it sitting like this. Up front is stainless Rod-Tech independent suspension that you’d normally find on hot rod ’33 and ’34 Fords. It narrows the track slightly but more importantly makes the shock towers obsolete — anyone who’s tried to stuff a decent set of pipes into a V8-powered early Falcon knows how little room there is. But check out the engine bay shots of this — you could fit your whole head down the side of the motor if you were so inclined.

That meant that there were no compromises when it came to making pipes for the oversized Windsor, which uses a Dart block and rotating assembly as a starting point. Brenton at North Vic Engines put the rest of the puzzle together using Edelbrock GT40 alloy heads, an AFI downdraft intake and an EFI system that evokes the classic look of quad Weber downdrafts.

The interior is outstanding. It looks like a run of the mill — albeit very tidy — Falcon ute interior until you examine the details. That dashboard fits like a glove but Holden fans will pick that it’s got an EK instrument fascia grafted in.

“Everyone asked me about that at Summernats. The standard piece is chromed plastic and I didn’t like the look of the strip speedo. I wanted to fit new gauges but I didn’t want them in a flat panel,” Anthony says.

The rest of the dash is pretty much as it left the factory, just with the hole for the radio filled in. A much more powerful Alpine system lurks behind the seats but SR&C used the stock speaker grilles in the dash to avoid cutting into the door or kick panels.

Now check out the seats. Standard early Falcon units? Actually they’re from a ’66 Thunderbird. They’ve grown some extra chrome, have hard shells on the back and were covered with gorgeous red leather by Gavin at Bendigo Trim. The floor got the red carpet treatment too — from a Mercedes — and it extends over a raised transmission tunnel that’s vital in a car this low.

Most utes were poverty packs and didn’t come with armrests, so SR&C fabricated a set. The chrome trim and red leather match perfectly with the seats and the blood red hue complements the rich PPG Mystic Silver paint. It’s a classic combination that’ll never go out of style.

The wheels are also an exercise in restraint. No doubt Shane could have stuffed 20s and 22s under it, but on a car that rolled out of the factory on 13s, the 17×7 and 18×8 Billet Specialties Vintecs are a massive step up, while 235/35 and 255/40 Kumho rubber means there’s still a decent amount of sidewall.

Being a forklift mechanic, it makes sense that Anthony has a ute but it’s unlikely he’ll be hauling propane tanks in the back of this. Everything has been reskinned, panelled and painted to perfection, with a beautiful red Jarrah floor by cabinet maker Anthony Bonocorssi.

With feature cars, we often say that less is more. In this case less is a lot more than you’d ever suspect.

THE BUILD:

1. Anthony thought he had done a good job of stripping the XP prior to delivering it to SR&C but Shane took it a few steps further! Note the radically raised transmission tunnel.

2. The factory strip-style speedo and instruments were dropped in favour of a set of new dials, housed in a — gasp! — EK Holden facia.

3. The tailgate copped a major reworking, with the exterior handle shaved, new hinges and a smooth inner skin.

4. The front bumper was narrowed to tuck it closer to the body. Everything about this car is an exercise in restraint, cleanliness and simplicity but that doesn’t mean it was an easy build.

ANTHONY TREFILO
1965 XP FALCON UTE

THANKS
Shane and staff at Southern Rod & Custom; Con at CAE; Gavin at Bendigo Trim; Dave at Central Auto Parts; Brenton at North Vic Engines; Bono for the rear tray; my family and friends.