Rare Spares Blog

Having discovered that his old EH wagon had some 1980s show scene cred, Tim Kress decided to build on it

FEASTING my eyes on Tim Kress’s striking ’64 EH Holden wagon at the Adelaide Auto Expo earlier this year, I was intrigued by the mix of styles on what looked to be a fairly fresh build. Bubble windows; sunroof; flares – oh my!

As it turns out, this wagon has 80s show cred, having been formerly known and shown in Queensland under the name ‘Imperial’.

“The EH has always been a head-turner; I think the fact that it used to have a see-through window in the bonnet caught a lot of people’s eye,” Tim says of the bubble-topped bonnet the wags sported at its show peak. That old bonnet needs a new bubble, but Tim hasn’t ruled out fixing it to run at shows in the future.

And, while some owners may have rebuilt it to that spec, Tim decided he could have his cake and eat it too. He set about creating a neat family cruiser with modern appointments to suit his tastes, while also retaining elements of the car’s history.

“I wanted to keep the sunroof, bubble windows, louvre-vented front guards and flares, while also putting my own touches on it,” he says.

“Create new history and keep the legacy alive.”

And if that’s not interesting enough, the story of how Tim came to acquire the wagon is quite a tale too. In 2005, the then-16-year-old spied the 186-powered EH in the Trading Post. “Dad drove me to see the car and it was in very rough shape, but I didn’t care; I loved it,” he recalls. “I was sold and my dad was sold.”

Everyone was on board the EH train except for Tim’s mum. She reckoned that a Gemi or newer Commodore would be a safer option for her beloved son. Tim begged and pleaded for a week until finally she cracked and told him to go and buy the car.

A year later, Tim took a call from his old man. Not only had his dad spotted the EH for sale at a local tyre shop, the legend had also bought it for his son. “Tears were shed again!” Tim says. “Excited is an understatement; I was in absolute disbelief. Owning this car was definitely meant to be.”

Tim wasted little time in checking out his new possession, and that’s when he spied a few telltale signs of the car’s previous life. “I got underneath and noticed the chromed diff and the word ‘Imperial’ painted on the fuel tank,” he explains.

With a bit of research and the help of social media, he soon learned that it had been a show car in Queensland in the 80s. “Many people remember the car; one in particular knew the old owner and remembers seeing it in car shows in Queensland,” Tim says. “Another bloke gave me his own copy of one of the magazines it was in!”

Adelaide Motorsport Fabrication in Wingfield, SA did the heavy lifting on the wagon early in the process. The crew there put in some serious work to turn its frown upside down, and then worked even harder when Tim and Bec’s wedding date was moved forward three months due to a venue stuff-up.

Adelaide Motorsport Fabrication put in the hard yards to get the EH done on a tight timeline. Up front, they spannered on the 350ci Chev and B&M TH700 before getting it all to fit where much smaller items once sat. While they were at it, the lads also whipped up a custom alloy drop tank and a burbling twin exhaust

The AdMoFab lads wrenched on a 350ci Chev cratey before shoehorning it, along with a B&M TH700 trans, into the EH’s relatively small engine bay. They enlarged the trans tunnel and added a fresh crossmember, Rod-Tech IFS, four-wheel discs, coil-overs and a customised nine-inch. They also whipped up a custom alloy fuel tank and radiator.

Inside, there’s now no hint of the wagon’s 80s show car vibes. Instead, there’s a bunch of fresh, modern fitments thanks to AJ Trim. Tan leather covers most surfaces, including the LC Torana buckets and SAAS tiller. Auto Meter Phantom gauges flank an original EH speedo, while tucked out of sight is a Bluetooth stereo

Once the AdMoFab team completed their end of the deal, Tim cracked on with some of the bodywork himself, before handing it over to Langley Motor Body Repairs to finesse the shapes and lay down the Ford Seduce metallic red, coupled with a traditional white roof.

“It was right down to the wire; I was still installing the sunroof the night before the wedding!” Tim says. “To this day, our wedding day was the most memorable with the car. Once I heard and saw the EH coming up the driveway, the emotions were that of joy, accomplishment, happiness and love.”

It’s safe to say that with so many intertwined stories, this EH wagon is now cemented in the Kress family for the long term. “Everything turned out how I had imagined and I was very happy with everyone involved in the build,” Tim says. “I was tempted to sell the EH back in the day, but I am so glad I held on to it. Now I could never let her go. This car has been a huge part of my life; so many memories over the years – heaps of road trips, beach drives, fast-food runs, burnouts, and I slept in the back more times than I can remember!”

With Tim’s young family now in tow, new memories are sure to be made in this wagon.

PAST DUE
ISSUE #23 of Custom Vans & Trucks features the Imperial wagon as built by Robert Walker. Photos display the then-Dark Carmine Metallic EH sporting a plethora of chrome appointments, including a 192ci bored six with triple Weber carbs swinging off a Warneford 7in manifold. A lush custom interior of leather and velour covered most surfaces. HiAce buckets, a full console and Quadrasonic audio system were noteworthy cabin mods, while the body mods of flares, guard vents, bubble windows and sunroof remain to this day. Tim also owns the old bonnet that sported a see-through bubble, though the perspex hasn’t stood the test of time. Issue #7 of Supercar magazine also offers a feature, providing a great insight into this EH wagon’s glamorous past. 

TIM KRESS
1964 HOLDEN EH WAGON

Paint: Ford Seduce metallic red, white roof

First published in the July 2021 issue of Street Machine
Story by Carly DALE