WHEN it comes to restoration and maintenance, the dedicated owners of a group of unique vehicles spare no effort, ensuring they receive the highest standard of care.
Born in the great automobile factories of America, these cars, known as hot rods, often left the sophistication of their era for the vastly different conditions of the Australian bush.
George Higgins, now in his 52nd year of membership with the Logan Hot Rod Car Club, has researched the Australian history of these vehicles.
His goal? To understand how and why he and his fellow enthusiasts often discover these special cars – many built around the 1920s and 30s – on remote farms.
“They were where the wealth was,” he said.
“And back then, there was plenty of money on the land.”
Describing the context of car purchases at the time, he explained, “For instance, if there were contract shearers – say four of them – they would pool their money to buy a car to drive out to the shearing shed.”
He believes that if they encountered mechanical difficulties along the way, they would simply abandon the car and move on.
Additionally, he notes that wealthy landowners or graziers would often visit the Brisbane Show in their pick-up trucks, become enamoured with a new car on display, and buy it on impulse – forgetting they already had one at home.
That newly purchased vehicle would then be driven to their property, where it was likely left to sit and eventually deteriorate.
“They never traded cars; they just bought new ones,” he said.
One of the most unusual “bush parking spaces” Mr Higgins has come across was in a creek bed. The discovery happened during a “tin hunt” – a search for abandoned cars – near the Queensland country town of Roma.
“We were given the location by someone we met on the trip, and sure enough, it was exactly where he said it would be.”
Times have changed, though, and these days, you may find the car of your dreams in what Mr Higgins calls the epicentre of the Hot Rod Car Club – the city of Logan, where the majority of the club’s 60-odd members reside.
Now 73 years old, Mr Higgins grew up in the nearby area of Acacia Ridge.
“I haven’t strayed far from the nest,” he said.
A lifelong car enthusiast, he became a motor mechanic and fondly recalls his early days at the Archerfield Speedway, where he raced FJ Holdens.
Reflecting on his journey, he remembers his first hot rod – a 1937 Ford Convertible. However, he considers his first complete build to be a 1928 A Model Roadster Pickup.
“A convertible ute,” he said, explaining that many of these vehicles were modified into pick-ups for use on farms.
Mr Higgins keeps his passion alive through his involvement in Queensland’s oldest hot rod club, the Logan Hot Rod Car Club. While the club originally started as a group of single young men and their cars, it has evolved over the years.
“We are a family club now,” he said. “We even have second-generation members.”
Hot rods are typically American cars – either classic, vintage, or modern – that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed.
