Gordon Hayes and Grant Hodgson

     Whenever Mad Max gets mentioned these two names seem to appear. And not without good reason.
     
GORDON:     

     Gordon Hayes was the first person to construct a personal use non-commercial replica of the black Interceptor. Gordon actually commenced work on his replica as far back as 1982. His historic meeting with the Melbourne mould maker Errol Platt one Saturday afternoon long ago set the stage for a Interceptor build that would take more than 15 years and the arrival of the internet before it reached it's final stages. However it was in this first meeting with Errol Platt back in 1982 that Gordon commissioned Errol to once again supply and fit the roof spoiler to a 2 door XB coupe. The roof spoiler on Gordon's car therefore came from the original Errol Platt mould used also to make the roof spoiler on the real Mad Max movie Interceptor.
     
     Gordon constructed the Pursuit Special replica and then set about spending time living a small part of the Mad Max dream. Back in the 1980's Gordon would travel far from the cities and crowds to run the Interceptor at high speed on the empty desert roads. By the mid 1980's Gordon had already been making regular visits to the outback locations made famous by the "Roadwarrior" filming. So before the internet was even thought of and before there was any acceptance of his Pursuit special replica, Gordon was traveling the empty Australian outback roads at over 100 MPH just as often as he could.
     
     In those early days the replica was minus the famous Monza nose section. It was only after Gordon moved to Perth and linked up with Grant Hodgson that the final act of the Interceptor reconstruction came together.

GRANT:  
     
     Grant Hodgson is a Ford XB guru, and also a trained motor mechanic who works on BMW's by day . After having owned perhaps fifty early 1970's and mid 1980's Ford Falcons in the last decade, Grant is a constant information source on Ford and the XA-XB-XC Falcon in particular. Grant moved into the Mad Max scene when he grabbed an opportunity to own what was at the time believed to be the "lost" yellow 4-door XB Falcon that Mel Gibson piloted at the start of the first movie. History was to prove the car as a replica, but for years Grant enjoyed the powerful GT sedan as he researched it's missing past.

THE START:
     
     When by chance Grant loaned his tri-colored replica to the West Australian motor museum, he came into contact with Gordon Hayes whose black replica had also been in the museum. Once the two Mad Max and car fans teamed up, the final construction of Gordon's replica was assured. With a further Australian linking of Peter Barton (of www.madmaxmovies.com) and Kerion Murphy, along with the USA link of Dave Boboc, the replica acquired it's missing Monza nose and all the rest fell into place.
     
     Such was the demand for the replicas that Grant Hodgson was offered money from the USA for his yellow replica. As the replica was a high profile car on Australian roads, the Police were displaying a constant interest in the replica. This aspect, although not a particular concern to Grant, had lost it's appeal over the years so Grant accepted the offer and sold the yellow replica. Immediately Grant moved onto an XA coupe refitted to resemble a later model XC coupe. Motor mechanic Grant rebuilt the 351 V8 engine into a powerful (450 BHP) but still street drivable 351. Grant still owns this Falcon Coupe today.

     The day came when Gordon was also enticed to part with the Interceptor he had spent almost 20 years owning. More so than Grant, Gordon was disillusioned with the Australian Police attitude to modified cars and he (somewhat reluctantly) sold his replica also to the USA. Gordon moved onto a street legal XB coupe, but vowed to once again own a Black Pursuit special replica one day. That project is now slowly getting underway.

REPLICA BUILDING:  

     With both Interceptors now across the sea in the USA, Grant and Gordon found themselves equipped with the years of collected Interceptor knowledge, but no replicas. This situation changed as requests for more Interceptors started drifting in. The initial request was handled by Grant Hodgson, with Gordon supplying the monza nose and roof spoiler. This was the Interceptor commissioned by Steve Pliant from the USA, and it is now owned by Bill Brown in the state of Oregon. 

     From this replica Interceptor on the requests continued to drift in, and finally the two agreed to devise a policy to not just fit a few fiberglass parts to any old coupe, but instead they agreed that the base cars would be carefully sourced, then stripped back to just their shells, and then they would be assembled again with any rust issues addressed. The two also agreed that new parts were to be sourced and fitted where ever possible. This indicates a considerable effort because unlike the American cars of the 1970's, the Falcon Coupes no longer have any factory replacement parts available, so the hunt for parts is never ending. 

     Today Gordon and Grant's Mad Max replica base cars are stripped and re-built with full new GT interior, with (Mad Max style) replica trim, new front and side glass. The original running gear (almost never movie correct) is removed from the base car and a Mad Max specification running gear is added. This being a 351 Cleveland engine, a top loader 4-speed manual gearbox, an LSD 9" differential equipped with traction bars and disc brakes. To restore a replica to "as new" handling and balance, they are fitted with an entire new front suspension, springs, tie rods, etc., the whole lot. Every suspension bush, both front and rear, gets replaced, and a GT steering box then goes in. 

     So not only is every aspect of the legend Pursuit special Interceptor faithfully reproduced, but the replicas drive like new cars. With a new interior and fresh paint,  again reproduced to remain faithful to the original Interceptor, these cars also look brand new. Having a string of replica Interceptors now behind them, attention to detail and the use of all of the correct parts, Grant and Gordon have understandably become the world's leading Mad Max replica builders.