Marty McFly’s Back to the Future Toyota Hilux dream car comes to life in WA

Boat repairer Jeff Bullock is reliving his childhood dream with a 1985 Toyota HiLux replica from the classic Back to the Future film trilogy. It’s a dead ringer for Marty McFly’s SR5 Xtra Cab 4x4 pick-up he first sees at Statler Toyota in Hill Valley, California, then serendipitously finds parked in his family’s garage when he returns home from 1955 in the DeLorean time machine. “I love the movie but I’m not a tragic,” said Mr Bullock, who owns O’Connor-based RIB Rescue. “But there I was sitting on the couch watching it with my son and said to him, ‘When I was your age, this was a brand-new vehicle and I absolutely wanted it’. “Then it occurred to me that I could get my hands on one now because the truck was already 30 years old, much cheaper than when it was new and I had a workshop and the time to do it.” Just licensed with the number plate ALLWAXDUP — a line from the movie — it’s been nearly three years in the making and is finished in gloss black paint with a shine to rival Biff Tannen’s handiwork, new grey interior, air-conditioning, replica Smittybilt tubular bumpers and KC lights with yellow covers, which define the Toyota truck McFly drives. “I managed to get brand-new old stock of the two rectangular KC HiLiTes on the front from the US,” Mr Bullock said. “They were 30 years old, in the box, unopened. “The round ones on the top are KC Daylighters. “Take off the covers and most people would just think there goes a tidy black HiLux. “The response I get varies from enthusiasts who appreciate the restoration to people who actually recognise the car as being from the movie — and that’s just the next level. “It turns grown men into 10-year-olds.” He’s lost track of the hours he’s spent on the build, a lot of it with his 13-year-old son Luke, who’s been hands-on dismantling, wet sanding, filling, spray painting, polishing and detailing to get everything up to scratch — and you can follow it on @backintimebuild on Instagram. The panel and paint was largely DIY but interior trim and mechanical upgrades needed professional help, including the suspension which was lowered in line with the movie car. Even though McFly’s pick-up looks huge, the actor playing him, Michael J. Fox, is only 163cm tall. Wheels are the real deal, with black chrome rims and 235/75/15 Goodyear Wrangler Radials brought in from the US because they’re not available in Australia. “I’ve got the movie correct tyres — and the difference is in the extra white writing on the side,” Mr Bullock said. It’s the second HiLux he has tried to revamp, the first found in Geraldton in 2017 and stripped down over two years only to turn out too rusty. This one turned up on Gumtree in country Victoria and was trucked across, the owner initially refusing to sell it sight unseen until Mr Bullock reassured him it would be unrecognisable when he finished with it. “For 34 years old, it was in very good condition with 430,000km on the clock and, from memory, only three owners in that time,” he said. “I paid $3000 for it and I’m still in contact with the owner who’s chuffed it didn’t end up at the wreckers.” It’s the same make and model as the original, which was simply called the Toyota pick-up truck in the US but otherwise everything had to be modified, including the tray, wing mirrors and the tinted rear slider window, to bring it in line with the movie-car spec. Not wanting to compromise on safety, the old AM/FM cassette was upgraded with a new stereo system with Bluetooth for hands-free convenience. “Three trucks were used for the trilogy and each was slightly different as it was made over four or five years, so at a glance you wouldn’t notice those slight variations and it means you can interpret some details the way you like and still have a movie-authentic look,” Mr Bullock said. As far as a replica goes, this one now ticks all the boxes, with double (not single) roll bars over the cab because these varied between versions, full instrumentation with tachometer, five-speed manual transmission and reproduction Toyota decals on the windscreen. Perfect to take up to the lake with a couple of sleeping bags in the back and lie out underneath the stars. The original 22R-E 2.4-litre four-cylinder electronic fuel-injected petrol engine was not available in Australia, only a series of variants, including Mr Bullock’s 2.2L carburetted 4Y, which he will replace with a 4.2L Holden 253 V8 conversion to get a nice sound and more pull than it currently has. “It’s a motor from the same era, so period correct, but will give the HiLux more power,” he said. “I’ll do it in phase two of the restoration next year.” Mr Bullock said there were a lot of replica movie HiLuxs in the US and three or four over east in Australia but, as far as he knew, only one in WA. “There’s only one of the three actual movie trucks still in existence in the US and it’s owned by a family who’s restored it,” he said. “I’ve been in touch with them about details a couple of times over Instagram and Facebook. “Some of the replicas may not be quite right and even when doing the work yourself you notice things that need adjusting — for example, I had the roll bar made up and fitted on the back, then realised 40mm needed to be taken off it to match the truck in the movie. “Lucky my wife is patient and indulged me in this because she saw how much I got out of it — and no, her name is not Jennifer, it’s Lana.”