In 1972, Paul McEwen bought Swallow Doretti - Chassis No.1261 for $150 from an advert in a local paper. At this time he did not have the skills to fix it, so he enrolled in evening technical college courses for panel work and spray painting. With much help he restored it all by himself, except for the upholstery which he handed out.
Paul joined the Healey club, to which he had access and attended all their hill climbs, lap dashes etc. with the Doretti and has been on most of the race courses in the state. However, the years have turned on Paul, and he can't compete like he used to, but the love of the Doretti (and all cars) is still with him. Paul has communicated with other Doretti owners in Australia and has compiled a register. He also says, he felt had a grasp on other Dorettis around the world, thanks to the Doretti website and Tom Householder
Chassis No.1261 has travelled many times to most states in Australia, some very long distances and it has always been reliable. That was until the time it broke a crankshaft in Queensland, 1200 miles away. The solution was to drop a six-cylinder Triumph engine into the car. The replacement was lighter, shorter (if you include the harmonic balancer on the four-cylinder), and it's much smoother than the four. And of course it went like hell. Unfortunately not long after, Paul had a stroke and he considered installing an automatic gear-box to make it more suitable to drive. He had collected a Borg-Warner box and was ready to go, but it never materialized as he can handle the car and extra horsepower quite well.
Over the years, Paul purchased and restored Chassis No.1014. Paul and his brother, Warren,
also bought two more cars, Chassis No.1269 and No.1126, which they restored and sold to
Anthony Hamilton in England.
After over 50 years of ownership of his Swallow Doretti,
Paul says that he will never sell it.
...Information and photos courtesy Paul McEwen