The "Ford Falcon" Special, as built by Brian Mullan.
Paul Mullan has been in touch a couple of times lately, with information about this great little Ford-based special that his late father, Brian Mullan, built for himself. The chassis started out life propping up the body of a Model Y Ford in 1937, and later served as the underpinnings of a fibreglass Falcon bodyshell, one of many such shells that were popular buys in the 1950s and early 1960s, designed to take the Ford sidevalve running gear. More information on Ford 1172 specials can be seen here. Paul has taken over the running of his late father's car, and regularly displays it at classic car events. He kindly sent over the following story and photographs, describing how this skillfully created homebuilt car was designed and assembled.
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Description of the car's build.
There won't be many of us vacating this life, and leaving behind, something
which we created with our own hands, that will give pleasure to those
generations who follow us, but, that is exactly what my late father, Brian Mullan,
of Vow Road in the small County Antrim town of Ballymoney, N. Ireland, has achieved…
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"My father Brian, sadly passed away suddenly on 4th September 2007,aged 67,
but not without leaving his legacy for classic car enthusiasts, and those
who appreciate the dying specialist car building trades, to have as a
reminder of what a talented, skilful and dedicated man he was…
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A mechanic and engineer all his life, my father loved nothing more, than to
be in his garage, working at, or designing something to do with motor
vehicles. In his lifetime, he restored quite a few classics to their former
glory… the most extensive of which were a Mk II Jaguar 3.2, which was
completely stripped and refurbished, and a Mk I Cooper S, which he had
rebuilt completely from a new Mini shell, which he had converted back to Mk
I spec (a real task…)
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The car which I am showcasing today however, is his beautifully created 1937
FORD Model Y Special, 'FALCON'…
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Those of you who know your onions, will of course see, that the car is not
what is commonly known as the Ford Falcon, as it was a fibreglass hardtop…
however, that was what my father originally started with.. (although very
dilapidated..).
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The chassis of the Model Y, was in excellent condition, however, since my
dad intended to build the coachwork himself, he decided to lengthen, and
widen the chassis, using sections from a similar one he had acquired. He
also used these to strengthen the chassis, as the vehicle was going to be an
open top.
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Engine was complete with Aquaplane head, and 1 ¼" SU carbs, which was
completely stripped, rebuilt, painted, and carbs etc polished up.
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Gearbox was stripped, checked over and rebuilt, driveshaft and housing had
to be lengthened due to the chassis alteration, and all axles , suspension
etc, were stripped, rebuilt, and of course, all the components were shot
blasted and painted.
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When the rolling chassis was completed, my dad the set about designing the
body for the car….
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Years ago, himself and his brother Charlie, owned a Riley MPH, which he
always talked about, and the design was loosely based on it….
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The frame work for the body was made from steel, but all the panels,
including floor panels, are aluminium, which he hand shaped, and made
himself..
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Even the air vents on the side engine panels, were cut and shaped by hand,
not pressed out like most are today. The doors were 'suicide doors', opening
from the front, and both sides of the bonnet hood are hinged from the centre
of the car. (brass hinges used).
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The bulkhead too is heavy aluminium sheeting, bent to form the necessary
shape, and the floor is designed to flow any rain water which enters the
car, out the centre where the driveshaft housing exit's the interior.. The
car was intended to be usable in all weathers.
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Mudguards were formed, by purchasing steel trailer guards, splitting and
narrowing them, making them the correct length, and then migging a steel
formed rod, down the centre of each, to form the rib (for cosmetic and
strengthening reasons). The front guards are mounted to the wheel hubs, and
thus turn with the wheels.
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The compartment behind the seating area, houses the fuel tank, and allows
for dry storage of any tools etc.
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Originally my father had a side exiting exhaust fitted, but it was too fumy
on slow journeys, so he made on to exit at the rear.
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He had a few modifications done, to suit himself, as he had a very bad back,
and hip… the suicide doors made for awkward entering and exiting the car, so
he came up with the idea of a removable steering wheel, so he acquired a
suitable boss, and that was that problem solved. Another was due to the car
being so narrow, when he was carrying a passenger, the gear stick was
difficult to manoeuvre, so he designed his own column change, which takes a
bit of getting used to…
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Also, since the car was taken on substantial journeys, he fitted a 'hand
throttle', so as he could rest his hip….
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So in his '37 open top, he had cruise control (hand throttle), column
change, and one of the best immobilisers… (removable steering wheel).
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| Some more clickable thumbnails showing the Model Y based 'special' |
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I think from memory, he acquired the car around the year 2000, and finished
it in 2002, two days before a planned 'around Ireland Run', planned by the
Ford Y&C Register UK.
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The car completed over 1100 miles in ten days, and never missed a beat, such
was the intensity of my dads preparation…
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He has attended quite a lot of runs, with the Y&C Register in GB and the
Isle of Man, helping raise funds for Cancer, Leukaemia Research and
countless other charities.
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His last run out in the 'Falcon', was August 2007, 3 weeks before his
passing, when I drove him, in the car, to Powerscourt Picnic & Run 2007, in
Dublin. It took us four hours to drive down in the pouring rain, but I'm so
thankful that I had the opportunity to have that special time with him..
(miss him so much xx).
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We had a great time that weekend, and he was so pleased to meet up with his
friends from the Register, John Fitzgerald and Sam Roberts. I was invited
back to Powerscourt this year (2008), where I was delighted to be presented
with John Fitzgerald's fathers perpetual trophy, in memory of my dad… it was
an emotion time for me.
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I have acquired a few trophies so far this season, but I cannot take the
credit for them, as all I'm doing is taking the car there…. All credit
should be going to my dad, Brian, god bless him.
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The car will never leave my family in my day, and hopefully for a long time
after that..
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I intend to show it as much as possible, and get my dad the recognition he
rightfully deserves, for having the skill and ability, to build this unique
wee treasure, and put a smile on peoples faces, even when he's gone.
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I really appreciate the opportunity to tell you all about 'The Falcon', and
hope you found it interesting. You can read more about my dad Brian Mullan,
at a website I set up in his memory… www.bmcvcni.com The Brian Mullan
Classic Vehicle Club (N.I)
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Enjoy the pics, and thank you. R.I.P dad xx"
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Thanks to Paul for sending over all this information and being happy for it to be shown here. Click here to return to the 'Your classic car stories' section, here at oldclassiccar.
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