This XE Fairmont Ghia is an excellent original example, retaining its factory “Chestnut” paint and “Chamois” leather trim, making an ideal project for the XE enthusiast. The seller has had this car for less than a year, and having taken on several other projects in that time has decided that several vehicles in the collection must go.
This particular car was built in April 1982, and retains its matching number 4.1 alloy head 6, with 3-speed T-bar auto. The car has travelled a fairly hefty 391,000km, but still runs and drives well, and from a mechanical perspective needs little work to get back on the road. All doors open and close with ease, and panels are straight and accident free. Only the front grille / bumper needs some adjustment.
What struck us most upon inspection of this car is the state of the interior seat trim, and door cards. The seats are in amazing condition other than a small cut on the driver’s bolster – and the need for some leather conditioner on the driver’s seat where it’s showing some signs of discolouration. It appears as if no one has ever sat in the back seat, and few in the front passenger seat. When we inspected the car, we removed the front seat covers for what seemed the first time in decades, exposing the excellent Chamois leather. The roof lining has dropped a bit over the car’s 35 years, with a couple of tears at the rear, and would ultimately need to be stitched / cleaned up or replaced. There is also a crack in the front passenger corner of the plastic console – a new centre console panel can easily be sourced..
Although the paint is faded, a wash, polish and wax would see it turn up quite well on the majority of panels, subject to a few touch ups on the front bumper and grille. Prior to its current location, it is believed the car has been garaged most of its life, and as such has managed to avoid rust spreading to critical levels. Compared to many other XD/XE/XF models we’ve seen, the rust in this car is fairly limited. On inspection of the car we tried to capture the effected areas in the photographs, as best as possible. There are a few spots in the door jams that need attention, the worst of which being a 4cm strip at the base of the passenger B pillar. The other areas look to be isolated and not to have spread more than a couple of centimeters each. There are a few small spots under the mudguard edges, but the underside of the sills look to be reasonably solid other than small spots and surface rust. The roof, boot gutters, and front guards all appear solid, and the only other spot worth mentioning is the windscreen scuttle panel (a small coin sized rust spot), and a 20 cent sized spot on the passenger bulkhead under the hood. The bulkhead is otherwise completely solid.
At $10,500, the seller has advised they are open to offers, and encourages any prospective purchaser to have a closer look at the car. This would make an excellent project to restore as is, or modify to your personal liking from a good base. To contact the seller, please sign-up (it’s free!) and click the “contact seller” button at the top of this page.
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