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WORDS: CONNAL GRACE PHOTOS: ADAM CROYFOR A PROLIFIC CAR BUYER AND PARTS HUSTLER
LIKE WILLY CHAPMAN, THERE WAS NO WAY HIS
DREAM CAR WOULD BE ANYTHING ORDINARY!
Y
ou’ve heard that story about the guy who turned one
red paper clip into a house through simple bartering,
right? Some people have a talent for wheeling and
dealing and being in the right place at the right
time. If the art of hustling was academically recognized,
Willy Chapman would have a PhD in the skill. He’s one of
those guys who always knows who’s got what, who wants
what, and how to arrange a deal that leaves everyone satisfied.
The advantages of this modern-day superpower should be
obvious — Willy can play transactional Tetris to build pretty
much whatever car he wants to. However, despite his abilities,
this mean XB Fairmont has been a long time coming.
“It’s always been in my mind to own a tubbed and blown
Falcon coupe,” he says.
While most people would have either acted on that whim or
kept it as a dream, Willy just kept doing what he does best —
making deals and biding his time until the right car popped up.
Willy has gone through more nice rides than most people
could ever dream of owning — a Ford man through and
through, coolness is the only prerequisite for him to own
something, and he’s had Chevs, Holdens, Chryslers, and all
sorts of American muscle cars over the years. Then he found
out about a certain XB Fairmont coupe.