This site is a father/daughter collaboration... the father has the car knowledge and collection of source materials and his youngest daughter* has the patience to help get this information into a digital format and out on the web.
The father is Ivan Hoffmann who has resided in Australia since his birth in 1930. As a 19 year old he saw the prototype of a Hartnett sedan and put his name down on the waiting list to buy this, what would have been his first car. However, the Hartnett sedan took too long to become available due to supply issues, so instead his first car was a four-door 1952 Morris Minor with the registration plates of 336-683. Since that time he consecutively owned a 1956 Morris Minor Van (bought in 1959); Morris 1500 Nomad (bought new in 1971); Leyland P76 (bought in 1978); and in 1982 a Subaru station wagon that he still drives, aged in his 90's (it doesn't even have electric windows nor power steering!).
Ivan Hoffmann started collecting car badges when he was in his thirties (see AustralianAutoEmblems.blogspot.com ) he also collected information on Australian automobiles - newspaper clippings, magazine articles, brochures, even government archived files.
This is his collection it contains early electric, steam and petrol automobiles; prototype, limited edition, major manufacture, various models, racing, sporting, road and transport vehicles built, designed, assembled or only available in Australia.
Often bicycle manufactures diversified to become early automobile manufactures. Early automobiles were often little more than a bicycle (with a motor and with more wheels); or a horse-drawn carriage with a motor-unit attached instead of a horse; or a horse-drawn-style wooden carriage with a motor. Early automobiles had narrow tall wheels (for travel on the poorly made roads), a narrow high body and on the sides where running boards, so as to get into the vehicle more easily.
This list is unlikely to be complete !
*Janet Fuller
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