Something strange in the neighbourhood as pals recreate iconic Ghostbusters car (From Dudley News)

Something strange in the neighbourhood as pals recreate iconic Ghostbusters car

6:07pm Wednesday 9th May 2012 in Sedgley

THERE'S something strange in a Black Country neighbourhood - where two 80s film fans have spent the last two years painstakingly turning an old American Cadillac into a replica Ghostbusters car.

Security guard Paul Harborne from Sedgley and mechanic Tim Jordan from Kingswinford have devoted hundreds of hours to restoring the battered 1960 car and turning it into a perfect replica of the famous ghosthunting wagon from the classic movie franchise.

Paul reckons he's spent up to £100,000 on creating his very own Ecto 1a (the upgraded ghoul mobile seen in Ghostbusters II) which he hopes will lead to a new full-time career for him and pal Tim, who plan to rent the pristine vehicle out for proms, weddings and corporate events.

He said: "It would be great if we can have it out on the road, make people happy and make a living from it.”

The 48-year-old father-of-five, who has also restored other vehicles including a Ford Mustang like the one in Gone in 60 Seconds, said he had been hunting for the Cadillac Miller-Meteor across the USA - and he finally managed to track one down in Leicester.

Although he doesn't know for sure whether the car he's restored was used in the classic 1980s movies starring Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson as New York paranormal investigators, there's every chance it may have played a part as he believes numerous vehicles were used to produce the popular flicks.

Paul, who says he’s seen Ghostbusters more than 100 times, said: "Different cars were used throughout as it was filmed in California and Washington; sometimes the wing mirrors are bigger, sometimes there are little hub caps and sometimes there are none.

“This car may well have been one of the cars purchased for the films as it was previously in Washington.

“It was originally used as an ambulance and was worth around $9,000 back in 1960.”

After replacing the windows, the lights, the gearbox, engine, hub cabs, seats and other items at Tim’s former garage - Tricklicks in Stallings Lane - the pals are now putting the finishing touches to the car which has yet to hit the streets.

Paul said: “We’re just ironing out the bugs. No-one’s really seen it yet, although when we took it through Kingswinford on a truck people were stopping their cars and taking pictures.”

The pair say they hope to have the eight-seater Ecto 1a up and running by the summer - although Paul admits: “It’s going to be a full-time occupation keeping the thing on the road.”

Anyone interested in hiring the car can check out www.ghostbusterscarhire.co.uk or call 07801 249677.