216-632: The Holden Dealer Team ( HDT ) was Holden 's semi-official racing team from 1969 until 1986 , primarily contesting Australian Touring Car events but also rallying , rallycross and Sports Sedan races during the 1970s. From 1980 the Holden Dealer Team, by then under the ownership of Peter Brock , diversified into producing modified road-going Commodores and other Holden cars for selected dealers via HDT Special Vehicles. After Holden terminated its association with Brock's businesses in February 1987,
432-433: A "mirrored" configuration around a longitudinal midpoint in each head i.e. I-E-I-E-E-I-E-I. The co-located exhaust valves in the two centre combustion chambers resulted in a "hot spot" making the heads prone to warping or cracking, especially in performance versions of the engine. For the fuel-injected 5000i version introduced in the 1988 VN Commodore, the cylinder heads were redesigned to a repeated I-E design (a similar layout
648-443: A 12-year life cycle, but early in the design phase this was reduced to just two, an 'economy' 253ci (4143cc) and an enlarged 'performance' 308ci (5044cc) version, which became known as the 4.2L and 5.0L respectively. Design targets of a weight of 525 lb (238 kg), which was lighter than equivalent US engines, and a net output of and 161 hp (120 kW) at 4000rpm and 263 lb⋅ft (357 N⋅m) at 2400rpm were set for
864-451: A 6-cylinder engine. The LC Torana GTR XU-1 was a match for the larger and more powerful Falcon GT-HO at most circuits, but at Bathurst, with its long straight and steep 'mountain' climb, the car was less competitive, and Ford's Allan Moffat dominated both the 1970 and 1971 Bathurst events. However, in the wet 1972 Hardie-Ferodo 500 the Holden Dealer Team with its LJ Torana GTR XU-1 broke through Ford's domination, with Peter Brock winning
1080-798: A A$ 149 million government grant to build a localised version of the Chevrolet Cruze in Australia from 2011, Holden in 2009 announced that it would initially import the small car unchanged from South Korea as the Holden Cruze. Following the government grant announcement, Kevin Rudd , Australia's Prime Minister at the time, stated that production would support 600 new jobs at the Elizabeth facility; however, this failed to take into account Holden's previous announcement, whereby 600 jobs would be shed when production of
1296-787: A LJ-series GTR XU-1 and then the new LH-series SL/R 5000. Both Brock and Bond suffered engine problems with the new L34 version of the SL/R 5000 at the Sandown 250 and the Bathurst 1000 in 1974. Engine problems put the Brock/ Sampson car out on lap 118 of the Bathurst race when it was six laps in front, while the Bond/ Bob Skelton car was black flagged for an oil leak which lost the car time and they eventually finished in fourth place. Despite these failures in
1512-528: A broken timing chain three laps from the end of the race while running a strong second behind the much more powerful, V12 Jaguar XJS , driven by 1974 Bathurst winner John Goss and German Armin Hahne entered by European Touring Car Championship winners Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR). The single-row timing chain had been shown up throughout the year as a weak point of the Commodore's, something which would not cause
1728-459: A deal with the various track promoters around the country which paid him appearance money for the car but meant there was very little (if any) prize money left over for Bond. The car only appeared in two rounds of the seven round series, qualifying on pole at Sandown (1.1 seconds faster than Geoghegan despite a power disadvantage on what was a known power circuit), before finishing 3rd behind Moffat and Geoghegan in both heats, and again finishing 3rd in
1944-535: A device known as the "Energy Polarizer" to his range of vehicles. This device was a small box with crystals and magnets encased in an epoxy resin, which Brock claimed improved the performance and handling of vehicles through "aligning the molecules". Brock was also quoted as saying that the Polarizer "made a shithouse car, good." Regarded as pseudoscience by Holden and the vast majority of the Australian motoring community,
2160-460: A dominant win at Symmons, Phillip Morris committed to the deal. Despite the off track changes, the Holden Dealer Team remained as competitive as ever in 1980, with Brock claiming his second and last 'triple crown'. During the final months of 1979 the team had been secretly testing and developing a VB Commodore with a view to the new rules of 1980. This led to a situation where Brock and the HDT virtually had
2376-495: A four-barrel inlet, 750cfm carb. Due to the rules of the day race teams could put any carby with same number of venturies and modify the exhaust from the first join. So the as delivered headers were not that good lowering the as delivered cars power down to near stock. But when set up for race it had excessive amounts of power. Cam and carby were open as well so the cars internals where heavy duty and designed to flow. But cam carby and exhaust due to cams rules could keep it tame. The L34
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#17332026182842592-497: A lack of Australian identity and internal company competition, decreasing the brand recognition and desirability of Holden in its domestic market. This led to the announcement, on 11 December 2013, that Holden would cease vehicle and engine production by the end of 2017. On 29 November 2016, engine production at the Fishermans Bend plant was shut down. On 20 October 2017, production of the last Holden designed Commodore ceased and
2808-465: A large four-storey factory on the site. By 1923, HMBB were producing 12,000 units per year. During this time, HMBB assembled bodies for Ford Motor Company of Australia until its Geelong plant was completed. From 1924, HMBB became the exclusive supplier of car bodies for GM in Australia, with manufacturing taking place at the new Holden Woodville Plant (which was actually in the adjacent suburb of Cheltenham ). These bodies were made to suit
3024-464: A magazine interview that other than for financial reasons, the change of sponsor was partly motivated by the growing anti-smoking lobby in Australia (Brock himself had given up smoking in mid-1984 after becoming ill when he returned from Le Mans) with the team finding it harder to justify handing out posters to kids with Marlboro cigarette signage prominent. The team's 1985 season started off in January with
3240-528: A market share of more than 50% in 1958 with the revised FC model. This was the first Holden to be tested on the new Lang Lang Proving Ground in Lang Lang, Victoria . In 1957, Holden's export markets grew to 17 countries, with new additions including Indonesia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Fiji, Sudan, the East Africa region, and South Africa. Indonesian market cars were assembled locally by P.T. Udatin. The opening of
3456-566: A maximum capacity engine of 5.0 L. As the largest engine in the Torana road car range was the 5.0 L 308 V8 engine, this restricted the Torana to using a 5.0 L engine. Bond and his team in Sydney paid for the build costs of the car but ran it under the HDT banner and painted it in the team's Marlboro sponsors colours, though as he told in Australian Muscle Car magazine in 2015, Harry Firth had done
3672-640: A mechanic/driver with the HDT in the early 1970s under Harry Firth before embarking on a career in Europe until returning home in 1977. Perkins was hired by Brock in 1982 to prepare the race cars and co-drive with the boss in the endurance races. The HDT again won Bathurst in 1983 , though it was under somewhat controversial circumstances. The rules at the time permitted 'cross-entering' which meant that after Brock's pole winning car dropped out on only lap 8 with an engine failure, both Brock and Perkins transferred into John Harvey's car, leaving Peter's younger brother Phil, who
3888-405: A new VL-series based "Director" model was then released in February 1987, which incorporated not only the Polarizer, but also a new independent rear suspension system developed by HDT without Holden's approval. Holden ended its association with Brock upon his refusal to submit this model to Holden for testing purposes, despite numerous chances to do so. Brock instead told Holden through the media that
4104-557: A number of chassis imported from manufacturers including Austin , Buick , Chevrolet , Cleveland , Dodge , Essex , Fiat , Hudson , Oakland , Oldsmobile , Overland , Reo , Studebaker and Willys-Knight . In 1926, General Motors (Australia) Limited was established with assembly plants at Newstead, Queensland ; Marrickville, New South Wales ; City Road, Melbourne, Victoria ; Birkenhead, South Australia ; and Cottesloe, Western Australia using bodies produced by HMBB and imported complete knock down chassis. In 1930 alone,
4320-557: A partner and effectively managed the company. In 1885, German-born H. A. Frost joined the business as a junior partner and J. A. Holden & Co became Holden & Frost Ltd. Edward Holden , James' grandson, joined the firm in 1905 with an interest in automobiles. From there, the firm evolved through various partnerships, and in 1908, Holden & Frost moved into the business of minor repairs to car upholstery. The company began to re-body older chassis using motor bodies produced by F. T. Hack and Co from 1914. Holden & Frost mounted
4536-507: A place in Hardies Heroes due to Moffat's crash on the top of The Mountain which resulted in the car needing a complete new front end. A strong run in the race with Brock moving form 11th to 2nd in the first 3 laps (though he was unable to catch Allan Grice for the lead) only saw the pair finish one lap down in 5th place largely thanks to a mid race pit stop which lost them over 2 laps due to a leaking oil cooler which had to be by-passed causing
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#17332026182844752-460: A problem with the upgraded 1986 car which would have the more durable double-row timing chain. By 1986, a homologated SS Group A version of the VK Commodore, originally intended to be released in 1985 but delayed due to the unavailability of parts which prevented HDT Special Vehicles from making the required 500 before 1 August homologation date, made the Commodore much more competitive, and Brock
4968-517: A quirk in the rules for Sports Sedan racing in Australia, the Torana was restricted to an engine size of just 5.0 litres, while its main opposition ( Ian Geoghegan and Bob Jane in their HQ Monaro GTS 350 's, Allan Moffat's Chevrolet Monza and the Ford Mustang of New Zealand 's Jim Richards ) were all allowed to run engines up to 6.0 L in capacity. The rule was that cars which had engines of no more than 5.0 L in road going form could only race with
5184-683: A range of Opel-derived cars comprising the Astra VXR and Insignia VXR (both based on the OPC models sold by Vauxhall) and Cascada . Later that year, Holden also announced plans to sell the European Astra and the South Korean Cruze alongside each other from 2017. Holden V8 engine The Holden V8 engine , also known colloquially as the Iron Lion engine , is an overhead valve (OHV) V8 engine that
5400-522: A result of GM's toying with the Wankel rotary engine , as used by Mazda of Japan, an export agreement was initiated in 1975. This involved Holden exporting with powertrains , HJ, and later, HX series Premiers as the Mazda Roadpacer AP . Mazda then fitted these cars with the 13B rotary engine and three-speed automatic transmission. Production ended in 1977, after just 840 units sold. Development of
5616-726: A row and the team made it a 1–2 the No. 25 car of John Harvey and new recruit David Parsons (who was in the car at the finish) crossed the line right behind, but 2 laps back, Brock in a form finish. During 1984, members of the Holden Dealer Team, including drivers Bathurst winning co-drivers Brock and Perkins, launched an assault on the 1984 24 Hours of Le Mans in France driving a 400 km/h (249 mph), 650 bhp (485 kW; 659 PS) Porsche 956 B supplied by 1976 Bathurst winner John Fitzpatrick and sponsored by former ATCC and Bathurst champion, retail tyre entrepreneur Bob Jane . Running under
5832-699: A separate marque, replacing the Holden badged Brougham. In 1974, both the 253 and 308 engines were added to the Torana range for the first time in the LH series (after an aborted attempt by Holden Dealer Team boss Harry Firth to introduce the V8 to the smaller LJ Torana range in 1972 which was stopped by the Supercar scare ). The engines were also offered on the LX model range introduced in 1976, but not
6048-416: A separate pressed steel non-stress bearing sump assembly with the crankshaft located within five main bearing journals secured with 2-bolt bearing caps; 4-bolt main bearing caps featured on later performance versions. The cast iron cylinder heads are a cross-flow design with wedge-shaped combustion chambers and a single spark plug. In early versions of the engine the inlet and exhaust valves were arranged in
6264-402: A small class Isuzu Gemini on top of the mountain causing an unscheduled pit stop. The damage was only minor but Brock went a lap down soon after leaving the pits and rejoining the track. Within half a lap however, Johnson hit a rock on the top of the mountain and was out of the race, and Brock and Jim Richards fought their way back and by the end of Brock's extended opening stint he was back in
6480-420: A steady decline. Total Holden sales peaked in 2002 at 178 392 vehicles and were stable up to 2005 before declining for the rest of the decade and the next. This downturn affected Holden's profits; the company recorded a combined gain of A$ 842.9 million from 2002 to 2004, and a combined loss of A$ 290 million from 2005 to 2006. Factors contributing to the loss included the development of an all-new model,
6696-570: A three-door hatchback variant. A final UC update appeared in 1978. During its production run, the Torana achieved legendary racing success in Australia, achieving victories at the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales. In 1975, Holden introduced the compact Gemini , the Australian version of the " T-car ", based on the Opel Kadett C. The Gemini was an overseas design developed jointly with Isuzu, GM's Japanese affiliate; and
Holden Dealer Team - Misplaced Pages Continue
6912-481: A very fast car. The revised 5.0L engine performed so well that GMH dropped the planned 400ci engine from HJ Caprice and other optioned HJ Holden as the emissions strangled 400ci SBC out of North America was no benefit over the local 5.0L. The flip side of the extra power and torque meant that the Trimatic transmission that was used prior to HJ was not strong enough for the revised 5.0L in a full size Holden or Statesman so it
7128-520: A win in Round 7 at Wanneroo where his tyre wear was actually helped by falling turbo boost, saw Brock finish 2nd in the championship. Brock had a chance of defeating former team mate Jim Richards (now with the Nissan team ) for the title in the final round at Oran Park, but a poor start which saw him drop to 6th by the first turn cost him his chance, though he did eventually finish the race second behind Richards who
7344-426: Is the range of high performance HDT cars produced under Peter Brock 's direction and with approval during the 1980s (by Commodore series reference and in sedan form unless otherwise stated): The range of high performance HDT cars produced by HDT independent of Holden include (by Commodore series reference and in sedan form unless otherwise stated): Holden Holden , formerly known as General Motors-Holden ,
7560-673: The High Feature engine. This was built at the Fishermans Bend facility completed in 2003, with a maximum output of 900 engines per day. This has reportedly added A$ 5.2 billion to the Australian economy; exports account for about A$ 450 million alone. After the VZ, the High Feature engine powered the all-new Holden Commodore (VE) . In contrast to previous models, the VE no longer used an Opel-sourced platform adapted both mechanically and in size, but
7776-733: The 1989 Tooheys 1000 , but a rear hub failure caused the No. 05 car's retirement on lap 81 while the team's second Sierra (#105) driven by Brad Jones and Paul Radisich finished in 9th place. At the end of the year, Brock and Radisich drove the Sierra to victory in the Nissan-Mobil 500 Series in New Zealand . Brock also claimed pole position for the Group A support races at the 1989 Australian Grand Prix in Adelaide , though he only managed to finish 2nd and 5th in
7992-558: The ATCC and at Bathurst that year. In 1977, John Harvey became the HDT's principal driver with young Queenslander Charlie O'Brien signed to drive the team's second car. The 1977 touring car racing season also saw the debut of the LX Torana , the new A9X performance option replacing the L34 version and available in both four-door "SL/R 5000" sedan and two-door "SS 5.0" hatchback body types. Other than
8208-603: The Adventra , a Commodore-based station wagon. The fourth model to be replaced with a South Korean alternative was the Vectra by the mid-size Epica in 2007. As a result of the split between GM and Isuzu, Holden lost the rights to use the "Rodeo" nameplate. Consequently, the Holden Rodeo was facelifted and relaunched as the Colorado in 2008. Following Holden's successful application for
8424-724: The Daewoo Kalos , replaced the Opel Corsa as the source of the Barina. In the same year, the Viva, based on the Daewoo Lacetti , replaced the entry-level Holden Astra Classic, although the new-generation Astra introduced in 2004 continued on. The Captiva crossover SUV came next in 2006. After discontinuing the Frontera and Jackaroo models in 2003, Holden was only left with one all-wheel drive model:
8640-552: The Dandenong , Melbourne , production facility in 1956 brought further jobs; by 1959, Holden employed 19,000 workers country-wide. In 1959, complete knock-down assembly began in South Africa and Indonesia. In 1960, Holden introduced its third major new model, the FB . The car's style was inspired by 1950s Chevrolets, with tailfins and a wrap-around windscreen with "dog leg" A-pillars . By
8856-513: The Endurance Championship , finishing 6th at Surfers due to tyre problems, before Brock qualified the No. 05 Commodore on pole for the Castrol 500 at Sandown. The pair were favourites at Sandown, having won 12 of the previous 14 Sandown enduros between them. However minor problems in the race saw them finish a lap down in 4th place. They again went to Bathurst as favourites but missed out on
Holden Dealer Team - Misplaced Pages Continue
9072-508: The FIA 's International Group A formula, rather than the indigenous Group C production car regulations that had been in force since 1973. This led directly to the Holden Commodores becoming less competitive against the imported Nissans , Volvos , BMWs and Jaguars . 1985 also saw a change in sponsorship for the team with Mobil taking over as title sponsor from Marlboro . Brock explained in
9288-593: The Family II engine ceased in late 2009. In March 2012, Holden was given a $ 270 million lifeline by the Australian Federal Government (Labor Party of Australia) along with the South Australian and Victorian state governments. In return, Holden planned to inject over $ 1 billion into car manufacturing in Australia. They estimated the new investment package would return around $ 4 billion to
9504-526: The Ford Works Team , Howard Marsden, believed that the V8 would have brake issues due to its greater speed, as well as other handling problems (with Firth making a similar counter-claim about the Phase IV). While Firth continually dismissed this, Marsden's claims were later backed up by Peter Brock who also raced the car in sports sedans. Brock claimed that while the V8 was faster in a straight line, its handling
9720-545: The HR was introduced, including changes in the form of new front and rear styling and higher-capacity engines. More significantly, the HR fitted standard front seat belts; Holden thus became the first Australian automaker to provide the safety device as standard equipment across all models. This coincided with the completion of the production plant in Acacia Ridge, Queensland . By 1963, Holden
9936-677: The HX , HZ and WB . At the end of HQ (and earlier for LH Torana release) the 253 and 308 engines were referred to by their metric names: 4.2L and 5.0L. Apart from minor external changes like cable throttle and things to make it fit the Torana properly the 4.2L engine in HJ and LH was the same as the HQ engine. At the HQ to HJ transition GMH changed the power output figures on all engines from "advertised horsepower" to proper GM20 test "SAE Gross hp". The power ratings on all engines dropped. The HT-HQ advertised power figures for
10152-584: The Holden Astra , as a result of a deal with Nissan. This arrangement ceased in 1989 when Holden entered a new alliance with Toyota, forming a new company: United Australian Automobile Industries (UAAI). UAAI resulted in Holden selling rebadged versions of Toyota's Corolla and Camry , as the Holden Nova and Apollo respectively, with Toyota re-branding the Commodore as the Lexcen. The company changed throughout
10368-543: The Holden Hurricane concept car at the 1969 Melbourne International Motor Show , albeit it in a highly modified form featuring increased 10.1:1 compression, big cam and solid lifters, and producing over 250 hp (190 kW). The new engines saw their production release soon after in the HT model range, with the 253 being used for manual vehicles whilst the 307 SBC was retained for automatic vehicles. The 308 however debuted in
10584-572: The Royal Melbourne Showgrounds and travelled clockwise around the country over some of the most inhospitable terrain imaginable. The team used the VB model Commodore which were powered by the 3.3L (202 cui), 6 cyl Holden Red motor previously used in the XU-1 Torana's (the six was chosen over the more powerful V8 due to their much lighter weight). Anxious to prove the then new cars reliability,
10800-660: The Statesman range of large size luxury cars which Holden established as a separate marque replacing the Holden-badged Brougham . Initially both the 253 and 308 (and imported 350ci engine) were offered in the HQ V8 Statesman model and 308 standard in HQ Deville but after HQ both the 6cyl and V8 Statesman (Custom) models were dropped leaving the 308 powered HJ Statesman Deville as the base Statesman variety. This continued for
11016-412: The Statesman WB limousines were introduced in 1980. However, the designs, based on the HQ and updated HJ, HX and HZ models from the 1970s were less competitive than similar models in Ford's lineup. Thus, Holden abandoned those vehicle classes altogether in 1984. Sales of the Commodore also fell, with the effects of the 1979 energy crisis lessening, and for the first time the Commodore lost ground to
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#173320261828411232-423: The VL range in 1987, when relations between the two companies soured and Holden severed its ties with HDT. With the release of the 'Black' engine in the VK Commodore in 1984, the 253 was dropped as an option and the 308 was the only capacity of the V8 now available in the Commodore. However, the smaller engine continued to be available in the Holden WB commercial vehicles e.g. the One Tonner cab chassis until
11448-683: The WH Statesman and Caprice in June 1999, both of which featured the 5.7L Gen III V8 imported from the United States. However, the engine remained in production for a little while longer and continued to be available in the Commodore VS Series III utility (which sold alongside the VT sedan and wagon as no similar vehicle was available in that range) until the new generation VU Ute debuted in late 2000. In addition to being Holden's mainstream performance engine throughout its production run, higher performance versions were fitted to limited-edition vehicles available through Holden Dealer Team Special Vehicles (HDT) and later Holden Special Vehicles (HSV). It
11664-450: The Wellington 500 and Pukekohe 500 races in New Zealand where Brock and Perkins failed to figure in the results their under-developed Group A Commodore. Despite only one win during the 1985 season in the cars Australian debut which saw Brock win Round 2 of the 1985 ATCC at Sandown (the team missed the opening round at Winton as the car was still in transit from NZ), Brock nearly pulled off an upset podium at Bathurst , retiring due to
11880-447: The carburettors initially on the VL Commodore SS Group A SV , again with Group A touring car racing in mind, this car produced by Holden's new performance vehicle partner Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) in partnership with British-based Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR). While Group A disappeared after the VN model range, the fuel injected 5.0-litre; 304.3-cubic-inch (4,987 cc) engine, often referred to by its nickname, The Iron Lion ,
12096-452: The naturally aspirated , 2.3L BMW M3 was no longer competitive against the much faster Ford Sierra's (especially in the ATCC where shorter races saw the 300 hp (224 kW; 304 PS) M3's unable to challenge with the 500 hp (373 kW; 507 PS) Sierra's) and Brock, Jim Richards, David Parsons and emerging talent Neil Crompton (also one of Channel Seven's lead commentators) found themselves fighting for scraps rather than
12312-404: The sports car and formula racing oriented European motoring press were concerned. In a complete reversal of the situation in Australia, Brock was regarded by the media merely as a saloon car driver from the Antipodes who was along for the ride. Perkins started the race and along with Brock had the car up to 5th place after a few hours before being forced to spend some 45 minutes in the pits after
12528-479: The "Holden". The unofficial usage of the name "FX" originated within Holden, referring to the updated suspension on the 48–215 of 1953. During the 1950s, Holden dominated the Australian car market. GM invested heavily in production capacity, which allowed the company to meet increased postwar demand for motor cars. Less expensive, four-cylinder cars did not offer Holdens the ability to deal with rugged rural areas. Holden 48–215 sedans were produced in parallel with
12744-549: The 1950s, the declining sales of large sedan cars in Australia led the company to look to international markets to increase profitability. In 2013, Holden revealed it received A$ 2.17 billion in Federal Government assistance in the past 12 years, the amount was much larger than expected. Holden blamed a strong Australian currency, high manufacturing costs and a small domestic market among the reasons for exit of local manufacturing. The Australian population also blamed GM's consistent mishandling of rebadging Holden's lineup leading to
12960-440: The 1970s, Holden ran an advertising jingle "Football, Meat Pies, Kangaroos, and Holden cars", a localised version of the "Baseball, Hot Dogs, Apple Pies, and Chevrolet" jingle used by GM's Chevrolet division in the United States. Holden discontinued the Torana in 1979 and the Sunbird in 1980. After the 1978 introduction of the Commodore, the Torana became the "in-between" car, surrounded by the smaller and more economical Gemini and
13176-455: The 1990s, increasing its Australian market share from 21 percent in 1991 to 28.2 percent in 1999. Besides manufacturing Australia's best selling car, which was exported in significant numbers, Holden continued to export many locally produced engines to power cars made elsewhere. In this decade, Holden adopted a strategy of importing cars it needed to offer a full range of competitive vehicles. During 1998, General Motors-Holden's Ltd name
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#173320261828413392-409: The 253 and 308 were respectively: 185 hp and 240 hp. The SAE Gross figures for these engines was 175 hp and 227 hp. GMH Technical and Engineering literature shows these revised power figures for HJ but it took a while for it to appear in Sales literature - LX Torana release information shows the 4.2L as 175 hp and the 5.0L as 250 hp. The HJ 5.0L was a very different engine to
13608-413: The 308 became available across all models in the HT range, including the 2-door Monaro coupe. At the same time an automatic option was made available behind the 253 and a manual was available behind the 308 (previously automatic only when 308 was only available in Brougham). The 253 and 308 soldiered on essentially unchanged into the HG Holden and HQ Holden Series. The V8 engine also appeared from 1971 in
13824-485: The 308, which was mechanically identical to the 253 except for a larger bore and bigger pistons, along with heavier counterweights on the crankshaft to compensate for the increased reciprocating mass. Originally an alloy inlet manifold was specified to reduce weight, but this was changed to iron when problems were encountered in the casting process. The exhaust manifolds were also cast iron but the timing case cover remained as an alloy item. The initial pre-production engine
14040-420: The 4.9-litre V8 to run hot for the rest of the race. The team's second car driven by John Harvey and 1986 team engineer/driver Neal Lowe finished 8th at Sandown before going on to finish in second place at Bathurst behind the Les Small prepared Commodore of Allan Grice and Graeme Bailey . By 1987 the relationship between Brock and Holden had soured, primarily over the controversial 'Energy Polarizer' device Brock
14256-436: The 5.0 L; 304.3 cu in (4,987 cc) version of the engine, created to slip underneath the 5,000 cc (305 cu in) engine capacity cut-off in Group A touring car regulations, allowing Commodore competitors to run at a lower competition weight. This slight shrinking of the traditional Holden 308 saw the Group A Commodore's racing weight drop from 1,400 to 1,325 kg (3,086 to 2,921 lb). Due to
14472-515: The 5.7-litre LS unit. The UAAI badge-engineered cars first introduced in 1989 sold in far fewer numbers than anticipated, but the Holden Commodore, Toyota Camry, and Corolla were all successful when sold under their original nameplates. The first generation Nova and the donor Corolla were produced at Holden's Dandenong, Victoria facility until 1994. UAAI was dissolved in 1996, and Holden returned to selling only GM products. The Holden Astra and Vectra , both designed by Opel in Germany, replaced
14688-568: The 50-2106 coupé utility from 1951; the latter was known colloquially as the "ute" and became ubiquitous in Australian rural areas as the workhorse of choice. Production of both the utility and sedan continued with minor changes until 1953, when they were replaced by the facelifted FJ model, introducing a third panel van body style. The FJ was the first major change to the Holden since its 1948 introduction. Over time, it gained iconic status and remains one of Australia's most recognisable automotive symbols. A new horizontally slatted grille dominated
14904-470: The Australian Government to halt the lowering of car import tariffs. By 1997, the federal government had already cut tariffs to 22.5 percent, from 57.5 percent ten years earlier; by 2000, a plan was formulated to reduce the tariffs to 15 percent. Holden was critical, saying that Australia's population was not large enough, and that the changes could tarnish the local industry. Holden reintroduced its defunct Statesman title in 1990—this time under
15120-405: The Australian economy and see GM Holden continue making cars in Australia until at least 2022. In mid-2013, Holden sought a further A$ 265 million, in addition to the A$ 275 million that was already committed by the Federal, South Australian and Victorian governments to remain viable as a car manufacturer in Australia. A source close to Holden informed the Australian news publication that
15336-409: The Australian government outlining the production of the first Australian-designed car. Ford's proposal was the government's first choice, but required substantial financial assistance. GM's study was ultimately chosen because of its low level of government intervention. After the war, Holden returned to producing vehicle bodies, this time for Buick, Chevrolet, Pontiac, and Vauxhall. The Oldsmobile Ace
15552-593: The Commodore's recovery strategy involved the 1988 VN , a significantly wider model powered by the American-designed, Australian-assembled 3.8-litre Buick V6 engine . Holden began to sell the subcompact Suzuki Swift -based Barina in 1985. The Barina was launched concurrently with the Suzuki -sourced Holden Drover , followed by the Scurry later on in 1985. In the previous year, Nissan Pulsar hatchbacks were rebadged as
15768-714: The Dandenong line on 25 October 1962. Following the Chevrolet V8 fitted to the HK, the first Australian-designed and mass-produced V8, the Holden V8 engine debuted in the Hurricane concept of 1969 before fitment to facelifted HT model . This was available in two capacities: 253 and 308 cubic inches (4.1 and 5.0 L). Late in HT production, use of the new Tri-Matic automatic transmission, first seen in
15984-610: The Elizabeth plant was shut down. Holden produced nearly 7.7 million vehicles. On 17 February 2020, General Motors announced that the Holden marque would be retired by 2021. On 30 October 2020, the GM Australia Design Studio at Fishermans Bend was shut down. Holden has been replaced by GM Specialty Vehicles (GMSV), which imports the Chevrolet Silverado and the Chevrolet Corvette . The parts supplier known as
16200-556: The European teams operated and had followed suit. Brock and John Harvey also contested the 1986 ATCC in their new Group A Commodore's, with Brock finishing as the highest placed Commodore driver in the series in 4th place. Brock's only win for the year was in Round 6 of the ATCC at Surfers Paradise. It would prove to be the final ATCC race win for a Holden until Brock won Heat 1 of Round 1 in 1992 at Amaroo Park. Brock and Moffat then teamed up in
16416-605: The Ford Falcon. Sales in other segments also suffered when competition from Ford intensified, and other Australian manufacturers: Mitsubishi , Nissan and Toyota gained market share. When released in 1982, the Camira initially generated good sales, which later declined because buyers considered the 1.6-litre engine underpowered, and the car's build and ride quality below-average. The Camira lasted just seven years, and contributed to Holden's accumulated losses of over A$ 500 million by
16632-566: The HDT was not as competitive as they hoped, but they still achieved some successes, such as co-winning the Kings Cup team's prize at the Spa 24 Hours with Allan Grice 's Australian Racing Team. The HDT's best FIATCC finish were 5th places in Round 2 at Donington Park and Round 3 at Hockenheim , but the car was generally out-paced by Grice's privately entered Commodore prepared by longtime Roadways Racing chief mechanic/engineer, Les Small who had seen how
16848-533: The HDT with some success. In 1972, Harry Firth began developing a V8-engined version of the LJ Torana GTR XU-1, to be able to compete with Ford's anticipated XA Falcon GT-HO (Phase IV) and Chrysler 's mooted 340 cui V8 Charger at Bathurst (Chrysler continue to this day to say that the Charger R/T V8 was a myth and that their intention was to continue with the 265 cui Hemi-6 , but Ford's GT-HO Phase IV
17064-790: The HDT. During this period, Peter Brock proved himself to be very successful in Rallycross races at Calder Park Raceway in Victoria, Catalina Park in New South Wales and in Mallala in South Australia, driving HDT's famous Holden Torana GTR called "The Beast". In Brock's hands this supercharged version of a LC Torana GTR proved virtually unbeatable. At the time Brock was sweeping all before him in Rallycross, young team mechanic, test driver and sometime race driver Larry Perkins also raced Rallycross with
17280-694: The HT Brougham at the same time but as automatic only (two different imported 350ci Chevrolet engines (auto and manual versions) replaced the 327 and thus the HK GTS327 became the HT GTS350). The 253 was initially only available with a 2-barrel carburettor while the 308 was only ever available with a 4-barrel carburettor (except for when it was used in Bedford trucks in the late 70's). Once the Canadian 307ci engines were used up
17496-578: The HT-HQ 308 though. It got a raise in compression from 9:1 to 9.7:1 and got a new camshaft which was basically the same valve timing as used in the HK-HQ SBC engines (prior to HJ the 308 used the 253's smaller camshaft but retarded 5 degrees). The revised 5.0L was SAE Gross rated as 250 hp which was a 23 hp gain on the HQ 308. In LH SLR5000 Toranas built after HJ release and LX SLR5000 and SS with RPO L31 built prior to HX Holden this revised 5.0L engine created
17712-478: The Holden Trade Club was renamed GM Trade Parts. An extensive Holden service network continues to help maintain the many Holdens that remain in operation in Australia. In 1852 James Alexander Holden emigrated to South Australia from Walsall , Staffordshire, U.K, and in 1856 established J. A. Holden & Co. , a saddlery business in Adelaide . In 1879 J. A. Holden's eldest son Henry James Holden , became
17928-542: The Holden marque, as the Statesman and Caprice . For 1991, Holden updated the Statesman and Caprice with a range of improvements, including the introduction of four-wheel anti-lock brakes (ABS); although, a rear-wheel system had been standard on the Statesman Caprice from March 1976. ABS was added to the short-wheelbase Commodore range in 1992. Another returning variant was the full-size utility, and on this occasion it
18144-539: The Kingswood sedan, station wagon, and utility body styles to Indonesia, Trinidad and Tobago, Pakistan, the Philippines, and South Africa in complete knock-down form. Holden launched the new HQ series in 1971. At this time, the company was producing all of its passenger cars in Australia, and every model was of Australian design; however, by the end of the decade, Holden was producing cars based on overseas designs. The HQ
18360-518: The LC Torana was phased in as Powerglide stock was exhausted, but Holden's official line was that the HG of 1971 was the first full-sized Holden to receive it. Despite the arrival of serious competitors—namely, the Ford Falcon, Chrysler Valiant , and Japanese cars—in the 1960s, Holden's locally produced large six- and eight-cylinder cars remained Australia's top-selling vehicles. Sales were boosted by exporting
18576-627: The Marlboro day-glo paint scheme on one of the rival Porsche 956's at Silverstone and had decided at that point that the HDT would use that same paint scheme on the Bathurst Commodores. Brock's own No. 05 won three of the four races it was entered in, the wins being the Castrol 500 at Sandown, the James Hardie 1000 and the Motorcraft 300 at Surfers Paradise . While it has been widely reported that
18792-541: The No. 05 VK Commodore was undefeated in Brock's hands, this is actually untrue. The car did finish first in all three Endurance Championship races it competed in, however Brock's fourth and last race in the car saw him finish second to the factory backed Nissan Bluebird Turbo of George Fury in the support race for the 1984 Australian Grand Prix at Calder Park in Melbourne. In 1985 Australian touring car racing now ran under
19008-451: The No. 56 M3 (running in Class B saw the team forced to give up using No. 05 for 1988) in just 16th place, some 6 seconds behind Johnson. The Brock/Richards car had a new BMW Motorsport engine for the race as well as a newly homologated 6-speed gearbox. Unfortunately however the race proved to be something of a disaster. The No. 56 car only lasted 89 laps before retiring with engine failure, while
19224-405: The No. 57 car (which had qualified 24th) was out on just lap 68 with similar problems. Brock finished off 1988 by driving his M3 to 4th place in the Group A support race at the 1988 Australian Grand Prix in Adelaide . By the 1989 ATCC season Brock was forced into the unthinkable and spent the next two years racing Ford Sierra RS500s to be competitive. The turbocharged Sierras had quickly become
19440-507: The Torana continued in with the larger mid-sized LH series released in 1974, offered only as a four-door sedan. The LH Torana was one of the few cars worldwide engineered to accommodate four-, six-, and eight-cylinder engines. This trend continued until Holden introduced the Sunbird in 1976, essentially the four-cylinder Torana with a new name. Designated LX, both the Sunbird and Torana introduced
19656-489: The Torana in various events throughout 1977 and into 1978, though it was Peter Brock who last drove it for the team at Melbourne's Calder Park in mid-1978 before it was sold. The Torana ended up in the hands of Casino sports sedan racer Geoff Russell who campaigned the car in the Australian Sports Sedan Championship as well as sports sedan races at Sydney's tight Amaroo Park circuit. Russell later sold
19872-451: The Torana to fellow Sydney racer Des Wall who retained the car until his death. The Torana is currently owned by Des' racer son David Wall who by 2015 had fully restored the car to its 1977 specification and livery. John Sheppard took over as HDT team manager following Firth's retirement and one of his first moves was to bring Peter Brock back to the team. Holden had originally wanted to bring Brock back in 1976, though Harry Firth had vetoed
20088-631: The Toyota-sourced Holden Nova and Apollo. This came after the 1994 introduction of the Opel Corsa replacing the already available Suzuki Swift as the source for the Holden Barina. Sales of the full-size Holden Suburban SUV sourced from Chevrolet commenced in 1998—lasting until 2001. Also in 1998, local assembly of the Vectra began at Elizabeth, South Australia. These cars were exported to Japan and Southeast Asia with Opel badges. However,
20304-574: The US released V8 versions of their respective Falcon and Valiant models which Holden expected to soon be released in locally assembled or produced versions. In response, in January 1965 the company's engineering division initiated a forward engine program review and concluded that by 1969 a V8 option was a necessity for Holden, with forecasts of 35 per cent of all Holdens sold in 1970 to be V8s, rising to 50 per cent by 1975. Initially six capacities from 237–308 cu in (3,880–5,050 cc) were planned over
20520-501: The Vectra did not achieve sufficient sales in Australia to justify local assembly, and reverted to being fully imported in 2000. In the 1990s, Holden's share of the Australian market surged and peaked at 27.5 percent in 2000 before declining to 15.2 percent in 2006. From March 2003, Holden no longer held the number one sales position in Australia, losing ground to Toyota. Commodore sales had peaked in 1998 at 94 642 vehicles and were relatively stable up to 2004 before going into
20736-521: The XU-1. Some of the lower performance Toranas were light, but the six-cylinder LJ XU-1 weighs 1140 kg while the SLR5000 L34 only weighed 1180 kg with the high performance V8. The engines were also offered on the revised LX released in 1976, which from July of that year saw emission-controlled versions of the 'Red' engines introduced to comply with the new ADR27A regulations on fuel and exhaust emissions. The V8
20952-455: The backbone of the team over the next few years. The team's three HT Monaro GTS350 ’s tasted success, finishing first and third, with Bond winning with co-driver Tony Roberts , while Brock finished third with Des West. Concerned at the ongoing development of rival Ford's V8 powered XW Falcon GTHO Phase I , in 1970 Firth opted to run a much smaller race car based upon the Holden Torana with
21168-599: The basic fleet model , the Standard , became the Belmont. On 3 March 1969, Alexander Rhea , managing director of General Motors-Holden's at the time, was joined by press photographers and the Federal Minister of Shipping and Transport, Ian Sinclair as the two men drove the two-millionth Holden, an HK Brougham, off the production line. This came just over half a decade since the one-millionth car, an EJ Premier sedan, rolled off
21384-599: The big one, the Hardie-Ferodo 1000 at Bathurst, though Peter Brock, driving for former racer and Melbourne Holden dealer Bill Patterson , gave the A9X Hatchback a dream racing debut when his privately entered car won the 1977 Hang Ten 400 at Sandown Park . After a solid eight years as team manager of the HDT, and a 29-year career in motor racing that had begun with preparing the 1948 Australian Grand Prix winning BMW 328 for Frank Pratt, 59-year-old Harry Firth retired at
21600-537: The body, and painted and trimmed it. The company began to produce complete motorcycle sidecar bodies after 1913. After 1917, wartime trade restrictions led the company to start full-scale production of vehicle body shells. H. J. Holden founded a new company in late 1917, and registered Holden's Motor Body Builders Ltd (HMBB) on 25 February 1919, specialising in car bodies and using the former F. T. Hack & Co facility at 400 King William Street in Adelaide before erecting
21816-444: The camshaft in turn driving the distributor and oil pump. Valve actuation is by hydraulic lifters and pushrods to rocker arms (roller lifters in some models) in the cylinder heads; the lifter bore angle in the engine block is 45 degrees from the block centerline. A belt-driven radiator fan and water pump are located on the front of the engine block taking drive from the main pulley, as is the alternator. The cast iron engine block features
22032-402: The car company is losing money on every vehicle that it produces and consequently initiated negotiations to reduce employee wages by up to A$ 200 per week to cut costs, following the announcement of 400 job cuts and an assembly line reduction of 65 (400 to 335) cars per day. From 2001 to 2012, Holden received over A$ 150 million a year in subsidy from Australian government. The subsidy from 2007
22248-574: The car lost a wheel during Brock's second stint, putting them out of winning contention. The team fought back and were still hopeful of a respectable finish when their race came to an end at just before 2 am after Perkins crashed the car in the Esses after a clash with the Brun Motorsport Porsche 956 of Massimo Sigala while trying to make up lost ground, the resulting damage put an end to Team Australia's race. Ironically, Perkins had clashed with
22464-442: The car to have in touring car racing, and Brock's cars were supplied by English Sierra expert Andy Rouse , with Brock's own 1989 ATCC car the one Rouse had used to win the 1988 RAC Tourist Trophy at Silverstone. Rouse also supplied the team with the latest technical information for the cars and was Brock's co-driver at Bathurst in 1989 and 1990 , the pair recording a DNF in 1989 and a 4th-place finish in 1990. Limited budget forced
22680-535: The car using a Repco Holden Formula 5000 engine in a Holden LJ Torana body. The car was driven by Colin Bond and Peter Brock . The 1976 season saw Bond (who continued to live in Sydney despite the team being based in Melbourne), and his mechanics build a lightweight LH Torana Sports Sedan powered by a Formula 5000 sourced Repco-Holden V8 engine to race in the inaugural Australian Sports Sedan Championship . Due to
22896-579: The cars in order for them to finish races. HDT's circuit racing presence returned to a two-car status for 1976, initially with South Australian Formula 5000 driver Johnnie Walker joining the team, but following his departure along came former speedway and open wheel driver John Harvey who would remain with the team until its split from Holden in early 1987. In 1977, Colin Bond departed HDT to join Allan Moffat's semi-works " Moffat Ford Dealers " team where he went on to finish second behind Moffat in both
23112-418: The cars were perfectly prepared and finished first, second and third. Brock, who won the event along with co-drivers Matt Phillip and Noel Richards, has cited this event as his career highlight as it was an event in which many motor racing experts throughout Australia, as well as the media, did not believe he would do well in despite his previous rally and rallycross exploits. Despite the success, by 1980 Holden
23328-475: The company in 2002 as a representative of GM. This was increased to 50.9 percent in 2005, but when GM further increased its stake to 70.1 percent around the time of its 2009 Chapter 11 reorganisation , Holden's interest was relinquished and transferred to another (undisclosed) part of GM. The commencement of the Holden-branded Daewoo models began with the 2005 Holden Barina, which based on
23544-548: The company was jealous of his large public profile and HDT's success in improving their standard cars without the resources available to General Motors . In 1987, therefore, in a partnership with the British-outfit Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR), created Holden Special Vehicles (HSV). Since that time, HSV has been producing factory-approved modified Commodores for general road use as well as for Group A racing homologation. Because of their heritage and rarity,
23760-512: The complex Group A regulations, this also allowed the racing cars to run bigger wheels and tyres without any drop in power. Indeed, the VK Commodore SS Group A was one of the fastest cars in the world of Group A racing when it hit the tracks in 1986. HDT Special Vehicles also offered a more powerful version of the engine enlarged to 5.6 L; 344.4 cu in (5,643 cc) in some of its VL models between 1986 and 1988, including
23976-416: The controversial Calais Director. This engine, making as much as 231 kW (310 hp), was an expensive option, particularly once Holden severed ties with HDT in February 1987, which drastically increased the prices of all HDT models, and consequently very few of the 5.6-litre motors were made. Bore and stroke is 102.4 mm × 85.7 mm (4.03 in × 3.37 in). Fuel injection replaced
24192-501: The costs involved in its development. Firth claimed that he personally lost some A$ 55,000 of his own money on the cars with the HDT carrying out almost all of the development work. In 1974 Holden was able to keep the V8 engine eligible for racing when it released the larger, but significantly more powerful LH Torana SL/R 5000 . Peter Brock dominated the Australian Touring Car Championship that year , using both
24408-446: The country under Holden management. In the postwar period, this decentralisation was slowly reduced and, by 1989, the consolidation of final assembly at Elizabeth in South Australia was largely completed, except for some operations that continued at Dandenong until 1994. Engine manufacturing was consolidated at Fishermans Bend , which was expanded to supply markets overseas. Although Holden's involvement in exports had fluctuated from
24624-456: The development days, the six-cylinder Torana was reserved for motor racing, but research had shown a business case existed for such a model. The LC Torana was the first application of Holden's new three-speed Tri-Matic automatic transmission. This was the result of Holden's A$ 16.5 million transformation of the Woodville, South Australia, factory for its production. Holden's association with
24840-426: The early 1990s. The plants had belonged to General Motors from 1926 until 1990 in an earlier and quite separate operation from GM's Holden operations in Australia. Holden's production became increasingly concentrated in South Australia and Victoria after World War II . However, Holden had factories in all five mainland states of Australia when GM took over in 1931, due to the combining of Holden and GM factories around
25056-651: The end of 1984. In 1985, a destroked version of the 308, known as the 304 but still sold as a 5.0L engine, was introduced to allow the VK to compete with a lower minimum weight (1325 kg, a saving of 75 kg) under the 4501-5000cc regulations of Group A touring car racing. In 1988 fuel injection appeared for the first time on a Holden V8 engine, on the VL Commodore SS Group A produced by Holden Special Vehicles (HSV), Holden's new performance partnership with British-based Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR); however, this
25272-477: The end of 2017. As a result, 2,900 jobs would be lost over four years. Beyond 2017 Holden's Australian presence would consist of a national sales company, a parts distribution centre and a global design studio. In May 2014, GM reversed their decision to abandon the Lang Lang Proving Ground and decided to keep it as part of its engineering capability in Australia. In 2015, Holden again began selling
25488-641: The end of 2020. Holden's primary products were its own models developed in-house, such as the Holden Commodore , Holden Caprice , and the Holden Ute . However, Holden had also offered badge-engineered models under sharing arrangements with Nissan , Suzuki , Toyota , Isuzu , and then GM subsidiaries Opel , Vauxhall and Chevrolet . The vehicle lineup had included models from GM Korea , GM Thailand, and GM North America. Holden had also distributed GM's German Opel marque in Australia in 2012 and 2013. Holden
25704-401: The end of the 1977 season. He later told how he had become increasingly frustrated that Holden weren't listening to his advice on what was needed to be successful in Australian touring car racing. Firth would go on to be the chief CAMS scrutineer for touring cars from 1978 to 1981 alongside Frank Lowndes, the father of Craig Lowndes . The Holden Dealer Team debuted a Sports Sedan in 1973,
25920-621: The engine locally for the Camira model, and to export markets - primarily to GM's plants in Europe for installation in Opel/Vauxhall vehicles. While GM Australia's commercial vehicle range had originally been mostly based on Bedford products, these had gradually been replaced by Isuzu products as the Bedford brand was being retired in Britain. This process began in the 1970s and by 1982 Holden's commercial vehicle arm no longer offered any Bedford products. The new Holden WB commercial vehicles and
26136-538: The engines were intended to be offered as part of the 1968 Holden HK range, but the project ran behind schedule and instead became part of the 1969 HT model range. In the HT, the Holden V8 sold alongside the 350-cubic-inch (5.7 L) Chevrolet Small-Block engine until 1974 with the introduction of the HJ series. The V8 engine also appeared from 1971 in the Statesman range of large size luxury cars which Holden established as
26352-542: The final UC range which appeared in 1978. Both engine capacities were offered on the first VB Commodores which appeared in 1978. The 253 version was not available in the VK Commodore range, released in 1984, but continued in Holden WB commercials until their cessation in late 1984. In 1985, the special editions modified by Holden and their official after-market tuner, Peter Brock 's HDT Special Vehicles , began introducing
26568-600: The final versions of the 'Red' 253 and 308 were available with the initial VB . In 1980 the revised VC saw the introduction of the revised 'Blue' series of engines, available in both capacities, which continued through to the VH in 1982. The VC also saw the introduction of high-performance versions of the engine but mostly L34 parts still. All performance parts on parts list at HDT state L34. in limited-edition vehicles produced in partnership with Peter Brock 's Holden Dealer Team (HDT), with various models subsequently appearing through to
26784-600: The firm, largely through the use of public relations , a then novel form of business communication which was imported to Australia through the formation of General Motors (Australia) Limited. Throughout the 1920s, Holden also supplied 60 W-class tramcar bodies to the Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board , of which several examples have been preserved in both Australia and New Zealand. Holden's second full-scale car factory, located in Fishermans Bend ( Port Melbourne ),
27000-447: The first of his nine Bathurst victories in a solo drive in the last of Bathurst's 500-mile Series Production race formats During Firths time at HDT Brock had his day winning Bathurst in 1975 on a dry track in his No. 05 Holden L34. This was a win for HDT as well for they masterminded the fastest Holden ever built the L34. The HDT developed L34 got 1st, 2nd, and 3rd that year and the first 7 places in 1976. Never had Holden been so dominant at
27216-460: The five lap support race with a lap time some four seconds faster than the team's 6-cylinder Series car ran on the same day. Production plans were terminated following the ' Supercar scare ' of June/July 1972. The road handling of the V8 XU-1 remains a contentious point. While Firth maintained until his death in 2014 (at the age of 96) that the V8 actually handled better than the 6 cyl XU-1, his rival at
27432-516: The four-wheel drive Jackaroo (1981), the Shuttle (1982) van and the Piazza (1986) three-door sports hatchback. The second generation Holden Gemini from 1985 was also based on an Isuzu design, although, its manufacture was undertaken in Australia. In 1981, the Fishermans Bend engine plant began production of the Family II - part of a global engine programme for GM's compact vehicles. The plant supplied
27648-542: The front end of the FJ, which received various other trim and minor mechanical revisions. In 1954, Holden began exporting the FJ to New Zealand. Although little changed from the 48–215, marketing campaigns and price cuts kept FJ sales steady until a completely redesigned model was launched. At the 2005 Australian International Motor Show in Sydney, Holden paid homage to the FJ with the Efijy concept car . Commercial success underpinned
27864-447: The hatchback body, the most visual difference between the L34 and the A9X was that the A9X had a rear-facing bonnet scoop designed to feed cool air to the engine resulting in more horsepower. However, due to teething troubles with this new homologation special, the Holden Dealer Team struggled against the two-car Moffat Ford Dealers team, with Allan Moffat winning both the 1977 ATCC title and also
28080-419: The ideas and parts for this engine and produced the higher performance 308 engine (engine code L34). The LH SLR5000 was released that used a standard 5.0L engine. A little while into LH, GMH built a limited number of SLR5000 vehicles (263) with an engine code L34 along with a whole host of other parts fitted to it for manufacturers championship endurance rounds. And you had to use the complete car complianced with
28296-491: The introduction of the HJ , heralding new front-panel styling and a revised rear fascia. This new bodywork was to remain, albeit with minor upgrades, through the HX and HZ series. Detuned engines adhering to government emission standards were brought in with the HX series, whilst the HZ brought considerably improved road handling and comfort with the introduction of radial-tuned suspension. As
28512-462: The larger 308. The design was also very compact with a width of 22 inches, and was only 80 lb heavier than the 186 cu in (3,050 cc) straight six, but producing over 40% (55 hp (41 kW)) more power than that engine in standard form. The first running engine was delivered in October 1966. Unfortunately, the engine failed after just four days testing from a seized oil pump; however,
28728-585: The larger Holden six-cylinder and V8 engines. Initially, the Commodore maintained Holden's sales leadership in Australia. However, some of the compromises resulting from the adoption of a design intended for another market hampered the car's acceptance. In particular, it was narrower than its predecessor and its Falcon rival, making it less comfortable for three rear-seat passengers. With the abandonment of left-hand drive markets, Holden exported almost 100,000 Commodores to markets such as New Zealand, Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia, Malta and Singapore. During
28944-570: The larger, more sophisticated Commodore. The closest successor to the Torana was the Camira , released in 1982 as Australia's version of GM's medium-sized " J-car ". The 1980s were challenging for Holden and the Australian automotive industry. The Australian Government tried to revive the industry with the Button car plan , which encouraged car makers to focus on producing fewer models at higher, more economical volumes, and to export cars. The decade opened with
29160-816: The latest technical information. At the end of 1990, Brock concluded a deal that would see him close his team and take his sponsorship to Perkins Engineering to race a Holden VN Commodore SS Group A SV . The original cars built by HDT Special Vehicles for road use, through the early and mid-1980s under Peter Brock 's direction and had approval from Holden (based on the VC , VH , VK , and VL series Commodore, plus WB series Statesman), quickly gained an enthusiastic following. Some of these were " homologation specials" required to meet both Group C and Group A racing regulations. All HDT vehicles were individually numbered, with only 4246 produced. HDT and Brock's association with Holden ended sensationally in 1987, after Brock began fitting
29376-402: The lead and they went on to score their 3rd straight win (and Brock's 5th) while team mates John Harvey and driver/engineer Ron Harrop failed to finish after engine failure. Ironically, Harvey's engine blew just as Channel 7's camera's were following the No. 25 car across the top of The Mountain with commentator Mike Raymond praising the HDT's reliability record. Brock's extended opening stint of
29592-447: The life of the VL. The decision to opt for a Japanese-made transmission led to the closure of the Woodville, South Australia assembly plant. Emboldened by the apparent sign of turnaround, GM paid off Holden's mounted losses of A$ 780 million on 19 December 1986. At GM headquarters' request, Holden was then reorganised and recapitalised, separating the engine and car manufacturing divisions in
29808-500: The major support coming from Vin Kean in Adelaide who could see a market for "hotter" versions of the road-going Commodore. In return for providing assistance, Vin would build a special range of modified, high performance Commodores at his Richmond road adelaide premises and provided them for the dealers to add to their range, though the cars were only available through the 54 other dealers around Australia who had agreed to help Vin Kean finance
30024-409: The manufacture of Chevrolets and Pontiacs ended in 1968, coinciding with the year of Holden's next major new model, the HK . This included Holden's first V8 engine , a Chevrolet engine imported from Canada. Models based on the HK series included an extended-length prestige model, the Brougham ; and a two-door coupé , the Monaro . The mainstream Holden Special was rebranded the Kingswood , and
30240-401: The matter. The engine change was necessitated by the legal requirement that all new cars sold in Australia after 1986 had to consume unleaded petrol. Because it was unfeasible to convert the existing six-cylinder engine to run on unleaded fuel, the Nissan engine was chosen as the best engine available. However, changing currency exchange rates doubled the cost of the engine and transmission over
30456-479: The mid-1980s. In 1984, Holden introduced the VK Commodore , with significant styling changes from the previous VH . The Commodore was next updated in 1986 as the VL , which had new front and rear styling. Controversially, the VL was powered by the 3.0-litre Nissan RB30 six-cylinder engine and had a Nissan-built, electronically controlled four-speed automatic transmission. Holden even went to court in 1984 to stop local motoring magazine Wheels from reporting on
30672-401: The most expensive new Australian-made car when launched in 1987. Since May 2007, Peter Champion, a good friend of Peter Brock, purchased the HDT Special Vehicles business and relaunched a range of high-performance vehicles. Enthusiasts in many Australian States have formed HDT Owners Groups, which conduct regular concourse events, showcasing the various HDT models over the years. The following
30888-407: The motor. The whole car was homoligated. In the A9X they had to use the L34 motor. Due to the Supercar scare the car which was the fastest production car in the world (in the future all hot 308s were aftermarket delivered not Holden Production line) still lower in HP.HDT HSV. It had more power than most of its combinations in the future mainly due to its high compression motor. It had larger valves, and
31104-517: The mountain. The A9X used the L34 motor for its victories as well as the HDT Commodores. The big brake light car concept brought about by Firth with high-performance small motor dominated Holden's thinking moving from the cumbersome Kingswoods to the Torana-like fleet of foot Commodore of the eighties. Holden had been supporting rally adventures since the early 1960s and had made use of the brand's successes in its advertising ... support had often been arranged via dedicated state 'dealer' teams, however, it
31320-413: The move when he found that Holden were allegedly willing to pay Brock A$ 40,000 which Firth claimed was twice as much as what he was being paid as team manager. It was a wise decision by Sheppard for Brock dominated the season, becoming the first driver to win the 'triple crown' of the Touring Car Championship , the Hang Ten 400 at Sandown and the Hardie-Ferodo 1000 (with Jim Richards ) at Bathurst. He
31536-402: The name of "Team Australia" , the team also ran in the lead up race to the event, the 1000 km race at the Silverstone Circuit in England where they finished 22nd (second last) after losing a lot of time in the pits early in the race repairing a broken rear upright. At Le Mans Perkins qualified the Porsche in 15th position. As a former Formula 1 driver, Perkins was the name driver as far as
31752-445: The new Falcon in Australia, only months after its introduction in the United States. To Holden's advantage, the Falcon was not durable, particularly in the front suspension, making it ill-suited for Australian conditions. In response to the Falcon, Holden introduced the facelifted EK series in 1961; the new model featured two-tone paintwork and optional Hydramatic automatic transmission. A restyled EJ series came in 1962, debuting
31968-417: The new luxury oriented Premier model. The EH update came a year later, bringing the new Red motor , providing better performance than the previous Grey motor . The HD series of 1965 had the introduction of the Powerglide automatic transmission. At the same time, an "X2" performance option with a more powerful version of the 179-cubic-inch (2.9 L) six-cylinder engine was made available. In 1966,
32184-429: The next round at Oran Park. Despite this, Bond finished equal sixth in the series with Geoghegan. After Bond left the team at the end of 1976 to join Allan Moffat Racing , the Torana was brought to Melbourne where driver/engineer Ron Harrop was given the job of preparing and driving the car. Harrop changed a few things on the car, which from 1977 was re-painted to mirror the look of the team's touring cars. He would drive
32400-428: The only race ready car for the start of the 1980 ATCC, which had to conform to CAMS new engine emission regulations which meant the Toranas and Falcons of previous years were out (or had to be significantly modified, running drum brakes on the rear wheels instead of 4 wheel discs and the "low emission" engine heads which produced less power), and the new Commodore and XD Falcon model were in. Other cars had come on during
32616-546: The operation (see section on HDT Special Vehicles below). For the first time, the team really was a 'Dealer Team' rather than a back-door factory team. While Vin was the boss of both the race team and the Special Vehicles operation, he hired Peter Brock to be the front man HDT driver John Harvey as the Special Vehicles workshop manager. Vin Kean was also able to keep the team's sponsors on board including major sponsor Marlboro and minor sponsors Castrol , AC Plugs & Filters, Bridgestone and TAA Airlines . According to Vin he and
32832-467: The operation. The Holden Dealer Team's race debut was made at the 1969 Sandown 3 Hour . A single Holden Monaro GTS350 was entered for Kevin Bartlett and Spencer Martin , the car retiring after suffering brake problems, crashing and catching fire. Harry Firth hired six drivers to contest the 1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500 for the Holden Dealer Team including two talented, but relatively untested, drivers in Colin Bond and Peter Brock . These two would form
33048-411: The original Brock-era HDT Commodores have a substantial place in Australian motoring history, and have become highly collectible. After Brock's death during a motorsport event in 2006, HDT vehicles became ever more sought after. In 2010, for example, a "Polarizer"-equipped HDT Director was expected to be sold at auction for over A$ 300,000 , compared to its original list price of A$ 87,000 that rendered it
33264-409: The outcome of a A$ 600 million development programme that spanned more than five years. The new model featured a rounded exterior body shell, improved handling and many firsts for an Australian-built car. Also, a stronger body structure increased crash safety. The locally produced Buick-sourced V6 engine powered the Commodore range, as did the 5.0-litre Holden V8 engine, and was replaced in 1999 by
33480-422: The problem was found to be caused by swarf residue rather than a fault in the design or the quality of the components. Further testing proved that the engine was smoother and more durable than Holden's six cylinder, no mean feat as the 186 was considered a smooth and reliable engine in its day. The new engines were initially intended to be offered as part of the 1968 Holden HK range, but production issues caused
33696-429: The process. This involved the splitting of Holden into Holden's Motor Company (HMC) and Holden's Engine Company (HEC). For the most part, car bodies were now manufactured at Elizabeth, with engines as before, confined to the Fishermans Bend plant in Port Melbourne, Victoria. The engine manufacturing business was successful, building four-cylinder Family II engines for use in cars built overseas. The final phase of
33912-511: The production line's closure in 2016. Holden's ultimate survival, though, depended on continued negotiations with the Federal Government—to secure funding for the period from 2016 to 2022—and the final decision of the global headquarters in Detroit, US. Following an unsuccessful attempt to secure the extra funding required from the new Liberal/National coalition government, on 11 December 2013, General Motors announced that Holden would cease engine and vehicle manufacturing operations in Australia by
34128-497: The project to run behind schedule and consequently 307ci Chevrolet engines imported from Canada were used instead. Initially the 283ci engine was to be used but it was replaced in North America for the 1968 GM model year with the 307ci engine hence it was used instead for HK. GMH had already planned to use the 327ci Chevrolet engine in the HK GTS327 and it would have originally been fitted in the HK range alongside 253 and 308 if things had gone as planned. The 253 made its public debut in
34344-448: The race for both cars, the No. 05 M3 of Brock, Richards and Parsons eventually finished in 8th place at Sandown while the team's second M3 failed to finish. For the Tooheys 1000 at Bathurst, the nature of the track and the improvement from the Sierra's (plus the introduction of the new Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV and Nissan Skyline HR31 GTS-R turbo) saw the M3s even less competitive than they had been previously. Richards qualified
34560-400: The race would later mean Richards actually took the chequered flag. It would be the only time Brock would not do so in his 9 Bathurst victories. While the Holden Dealer Team was unable to win another Touring Car Championship, the team maintained its excellent Bathurst record over the next few years. Brock won Bathurst again in 1982 with former Formula One driver Larry Perkins who had been
34776-419: The race, Brock set a new lap record on the very last lap of the race (which would not be broken until 1982 ) and they won by a massive six-lap margin. Brock's pole time of 2:20.500 was also 1.966-second faster than Morris who was second on the grid. Before Bathurst, the Holden Dealer Team also entered a three-car Commodore team in the 20,000 km Repco Round Australia Trial which started and finished at
34992-443: The rally team. In 1970, the rally team ran a Monaro GTS 350 for Bond whilst Ferguson and Roberts each drove the new Torana GTRs. As the team progressed, Colin Bond in partnership with George Shepheard won the Australian Rally Championship three times in 1971, 1972 and 1974 driving the LC Torana GTR XU-1 and later the LJ Torana GTR XU-1 while team mates Peter Lang and Warwick Smith won in 1973 making for four consecutive titles for
35208-454: The relevant specifications were available in a magazine article which detailed the Director's pre-launch tour of Europe and North America in 1986, where it was compared to cars from BMW and Opel . Holden subsequently retaliated by deciding to not honour warranties on any cars modified by HDT. Brock would go on to claim that Holden had wanted to end its association with HDT to establish its own brand of Commodore-based up-market models, and that
35424-505: The resettling to the new Holden headquarters on 191 Salmon Street, Port Melbourne, Victoria. Holden caused controversy in 2005 with their Holden Employee Pricing television advertisement, which ran from October to December 2005. The campaign publicised, "for the first time ever, all Australians can enjoy the financial benefit of Holden Employee Pricing". However, this did not include a discounted dealer delivery fee and savings on factory fitted options and accessories that employees received. At
35640-477: The rise of Holden as a cultural icon, as the Holden car became synonymous with the 'Australian way of life', coming to symbolise the stability of post-war Australian capitalism. Holden's next model, the FE , launched in 1956, offered in a new station wagon body style dubbed "Station Sedan" in the company's sales literature. In the same year, Holden commenced exports to Malaya , Thailand, and North Borneo . Strong sales continued in Australia, and Holden achieved
35856-458: The rules had not changed and that the cars were actually the 1977 cars built by the team when Firth was the boss, Harry waved off the protest as he knew what he had done with the cars and knew they were not legal. Brock was narrowly defeated by privateer Torana driver Bob Morris for the 1979 Australian Touring Car Championship , but went on to dominate the Hardie-Ferodo 1000 . Brock qualified on pole position , he and Richards lead every lap of
36072-433: The same 956 during practice, but the car was undamaged on that occasion. After returning from Le Mans, the team had built two new VK model Commodore's for the end of season Australian Endurance Championship races and the Group C support race at the Australian Grand Prix at Calder. The cars were painted in Marlboro's "day-glo" colours and were regarded as the best looking of the Dealer Team's Commodores. Brock had noticed
36288-425: The same time, employees were given a further discount of 25 to 29 percent on selected models. Holden revived the Monaro coupe in 2001. Based on the Commodore VX architecture, the coupe attracted worldwide attention after being shown as a concept car at Australian auto shows. The VX Commodore received its first major update in 2002 with the VY series. A mildly facelifted VZ model launched in 2004, introducing
36504-401: The shut-down of the Pagewood, New South Wales production plant and introduction of the light commercial Rodeo , sourced from Isuzu in Japan. The Rodeo was available in both two- and four-wheel drive chassis cab models with a choice of petrol and diesel powerplants. The range was updated in 1988 with the TF series, based on the Isuzu TF . Other cars sourced from Isuzu during the 1980s were
36720-677: The still independent Woodville plant built bodies for Austin, Chrysler , DeSoto , Morris , Hillman , Humber , Hupmobile , and Willys-Overland , as well as GM cars. The last of this line of business was the assembly of Hillman Minx sedans in 1948. The Great Depression led to a substantial downturn in production by Holden, from 34,000 units annually in 1930 to just 1,651 units one year later. In 1931, GM purchased HMBB and merged it with General Motors (Australia) Pty Ltd to form General Motors-Holden's Ltd (GM-H). Its acquisition of Holden allowed General Motors to inherit an Australian identity, which it used to cultivate nationalist appeal for
36936-499: The strong Australian dollar and the cost of reducing the workforce at the Elizabeth plant, including the loss of 1,400 jobs after the closure of the third-shift assembly line in 2005, after two years in operation. Holden fared better in 2007, posting an A$ 6 million loss. This was followed by an A$ 70.2 million loss in the 2008, an A$ 210.6 million loss in 2009, and a profit of A$ 112 million in 2010. On 18 May 2005, "Holden Ltd" became "GM Holden Ltd", coinciding with
37152-565: The team became the factory BMW team racing M3s race team in 1988 . Further into 1988, Brock sold off his HDT Special Vehicles road car business, which has nevertheless, under various ownership, continued to modify Holden vehicles to this current day. After showing an increasing interest in motorsport during the 1960s, Holden decided to form a team to enter both Touring Car and Rally events in 1969. However, Holden's parent company, General Motors forbade its manufacturers from officially entering motor sport circuit racing events worldwide. Holden
37368-481: The team into a merger with Miedecke Motorsport in 1990, the merger was made all the more easy as Andrew Miedecke's team also ran Rouse supplied Sierras. The venture with Ford was not without success. Brock won his first ATCC race since the 1986 when he stormed to victory in the final round of the 1989 ATCC at Oran Park to claim 3rd in the championship behind the Shell Sierra 's of Dick Johnson and John Bowe . Brock went on to claim his last Bathurst pole position at
37584-421: The team went to the first round of the 1980 ATCC at Symmons Plains in Tasmania with no major sponsor. The car was painted in Marlboro colours, but Marlboro's parent company Philip Morris International had yet to commit to the new team. Brock ran the new VB Commodore with the sponsors signs on the premise of showing them that the team would carry on its winning ways of the 1970s and after claiming pole and scoring
37800-494: The team's second car, which started the race in new recruit Peter McLeod 's hands and made up ground in the wet conditions, and eventually finished in third place behind the two Sierras. Like 1983 a driver (in this case Formula 2 racer Jon Crooke) missed out on a Bathurst win when the lead car retired and its drivers transferred to the second car. Six months after the race was held, the Sierras were formerly disqualified for running illegal bodywork and Brock, Parsons and McLeod became
38016-416: The team's spare LJ GTR XU-1 Torana (#2) in Round 6 of the ATCC at Surfers Paradise on 19 May. Johnson, who in the 1980s would become a Ford folk hero and one of the Dealer Team's chief rivals, finished third in the race won by Brock with Bob Morris finishing second. At the end of the 1974 season Brock left the HDT team, whilst Colin Bond continued on as the team's sole circuit racing driver. The L34 option
38232-412: The time it was introduced, many considered the appearance dated. Much of the motoring industry at the time noted that the adopted style did not translate well to the more compact Holden. The FB became the first Holden that was adapted for left-hand drive markets, enhancing its export potential, and as such was exported to New Caledonia, New Hebrides , the Philippines, and Hawaii. In 1960, Ford unveiled
38448-402: The two high-profile endurance races for the year, Holden, thanks largely to the Dealer Team, did win the 1974 Australian Manufacturers' Championship after Bond had won Round 1 in Adelaide (Chesterfield 250), Round 4 at Surfers Paradise (Chesterfield 300) and the final round at Phillip Island ( Repco 500K ). 1974 also saw Dick Johnson make his one and only start for the HDT when he drove
38664-420: The two races after a couple of spins caused by his Bridgestone tyres not handling the hot conditions during the Saturday race, or the very wet conditions on the Sunday. The team was again a force in the 1990 ATCC although they suffered a setback when Miedecke rolled his Sierra in at Mallala after an accidental clash with the Shell Sierra of his old open wheel adversary John Bowe. Consistent placings, and
38880-438: The victors giving Brock his record 9th Bathurst win. The team continued under the direction of Alan Gow , with continued support from Mobil , but without the assistance of Holden, new automotive partners had to be found. At the end of 1987, Frank Gardner had gone into a short-lived retirement and shut down the JPS Team BMW . The team bought the JPS team assets and became the official team for BMW Australia. However, by 1988,
39096-473: The wins the JPS team had achieved in 1987. The Mobil team's only win during 1988 was when Brock and Richards won the Pepsi 250 at Oran Park with Parsons and Crompton finishing 4th. The team's first time at both the Sandown and Bathurst endurance races with anything other than a Holden were forgettable. Although Richards qualified the lead M3 in 4th at Sandown , his time was over 3 seconds slower than Dick Johnson's pole time in his Sierra. After oil problems in
39312-441: The year, namely the new European style Falcon and the American Chevrolet Camaro Z28 with its powerful 5.7-litre V8. This time the HDT's Bathurst adventure was less straightforward. After only qualifying 3rd behind the Camaro of Kevin Bartlett and Falcon of Dick Johnson (the first time all year the No. 05 Commodore did not claim pole position), Brock chased Johnson's XD Falcon early in the race. Then on lap 15 Brock collided with
39528-440: Was able to circumvent this directive by naming its team the ‘Holden Dealer Team’ which was officially owned by its dealers. In reality Holden bankrolled the entire operation and Holden executive John Bagshaw, who was the driving force behind the establishment of the team, created the financial framework which allowed the HDT to be funded without Detroit's knowledge. Holden appointed former Ford Works Team manager Harry Firth to run
39744-410: Was able to sign longtime rival Allan Moffat to the team. The HDT, taking advantage of Group A regulations, also ran a car for Brock and Moffat in the 1986 FIA Touring Car Championship (formerly the European Touring Car Championship). Due to the liberal nature by which European regulators enforced the rules (and strong rumours that the TWR Rovers and the factory Volvo turbo's were nowhere near legal),
39960-428: Was also produced from 1946 to 1948. From here, Holden continued to pursue the goal of producing an Australian car. This involved compromise with GM, as Holden's managing director, Laurence Hartnett , favoured development of a local design, while GM preferred to see an American design as the basis for "Australia's Own Car". In the end, the design was based on a previously rejected postwar Chevrolet proposal. The Holden
40176-488: Was also utilised within limited production vehicles from other manufacturers as well as in kit cars . The engine has a successful history in various forms of motorsport , most notably in the Australian Touring Car Championship and the Bathurst 1000 until 1995, as well as in Formula 5000 and other racing applications. It can also be found in Australian powerboats fitted with inboard engines , especially those used for water skiing . In 1964 Ford and Chrysler in
40392-443: Was an Australian subsidiary company of General Motors . Founded in Adelaide, South Australia , it was an automobile manufacturer , importer, and exporter that sold cars under its own marque in Australia. In its last three years, it switched entirely to importing cars. It was headquartered in Port Melbourne , with major industrial operations in the states of South Australia and Victoria . The 164-year-old company ceased trading at
40608-433: Was based on the Commodore. The VN Commodore received a major facelift in 1993 with the VR —compared to the VN, approximately 80 percent of the car model was new. Exterior changes resulted in a smoother overall body and a "twin-kidney" grille—a Commodore styling trait that remained until the 2002 VY model and, as of 2013, remains a permanent staple on HSV variants. Holden introduced the all-new VT Commodore in 1997,
40824-425: Was based on the Holden developed GM Zeta platform , that was earmarked to become a "Global RWD Architecture", until plans were cancelled due to the 2007/08 global financial crisis . Throughout the 1990s, Opel had also been the source of many Holden models. To increase profitability, Holden looked to the South Korean Daewoo brand for replacements after acquiring a 44.6 percent stake—worth US$ 251 million—in
41040-428: Was driving the new 4WD , twin-turbo Nissan GT-R . Brock actually proved that his Sierra was the only car that had the speed to match Richards in the race, but his poor start saw him have to fight through the field which allowed Richards to build a lead big enough to win the race and the title. With Rouse going on to race Toyota 's in 1991, the team faced the prospect of going it alone with the expensive Sierras without
41256-513: Was dropped as an option in the final model in the Torana series, the UC released in 1978. There was a high performance version of the 308 engine built in 1973 by Repco for the Formula 5000 series. It was built as a 302ci (4940cc) engine using a slightly smaller bore than the production 308 (3.960" versus the 308's 4"). It was a far stronger block than the production block and featured 4 bolt mains and 11.7:1 compression with either Lucas fuel injection or Weber carburettors. GMH asked REPCO to use some of
41472-414: Was exporting cars to Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, and the Caribbean. Holden began assembling the compact HA series Vauxhall Viva in 1964. This was superseded by the Holden Torana in 1967, a development of the Viva ending Vauxhall production in Australia. Holden offered the LC, a Torana with new styling, in 1969 with the availability of Holden's six-cylinder engine. In
41688-400: Was founded in 1856 as a saddlery manufacturer in South Australia before moving into the automotive field in 1898. It became a subsidiary of the United States–based General Motors (GM) in 1931, when the company was renamed General Motors-Holden's Ltd . It was renamed Holden Ltd in 1998 and adopted the name GM Holden Ltd in 2005. Holden briefly owned assembly plants in New Zealand during
41904-473: Was homologated for racing in 1975 which cured the V8's oil surge problems and Bond went on to win the 1975 Australian Touring Car Championship whilst also competing in rally events for HDT in a LH Torana SL/R 5000 L34. While the L34 solved the engine problems, the Torana still had one major weak spot in that the axles on the car were easily broken. In later years drivers such as Bond, Brock, Bob Morris and Allan Grice would all tell how carefully they had to drive
42120-401: Was in fact terrible due to the extra weight and that the XU-1's chassis was never built to take the greater torque of the V8 engine. Brock also told that the first time both he and Colin Bond used full acceleration in the car in testing, the greater torque of the V8 actually cracked the windscreen. Of the four V8 XU-1 prototypes built, none survived as Holden crashed them in an effort to re-coup
42336-433: Was initially given the team's 4-Door A9X to drive in the opening round at Sandown while John Harvey drove the only Hatchback available at the time. Brock was given a new hatchback Torana to drive for the rest of the season. Soon after Sheppard took over the team in 1978, the HDT was forced to re-build their new A9X Torana's as CAMS new chief scrutineer Harry Firth refused to pass them for racing. When Sheppard protested that
42552-509: Was installing in the HDT road cars ( see below ). Moffat and Harvey both left the team, and HDT's 1987 international campaign was limited to a single car assault on the Spa 24 Hours , and team did not pose a threat in that year's ATCC . That year the Bathurst 1000 was a round of the World Touring Car Championship and Eggenberger Motorsport 's turbocharged Ford Sierra RS500s dominated the race, finishing 1–2. Brock's own car failed early but he and co-driver David Parsons were cross-entered into
42768-417: Was launched in 1948, creating long waiting lists extending through 1949 and beyond. The name "Holden" was chosen in honour of Sir Edward Holden, the company's first chairman and grandson of J. A. Holden. Other names considered were "GeM", "Austral", "Melba", "Woomerah", "Boomerang", "Emu", and "Canbra", a phonetic spelling of Canberra . Although officially designated " 48-215 ", the car was marketed simply as
42984-408: Was more than Holden's capital investment of the same period. From 2004, Holden was only able to make a profit in 2010 and 2011. Industry Minister Kim Carr confirmed on 10 July 2013 that talks had been scheduled between the Australian government and Holden. On 13 August 2013, 1,700 employees at the Elizabeth plant in South Australia voted to accept a three-year wage freeze to decrease the chances of
43200-450: Was never advertised except when wheels found out about it. Only cams licensed teams could buy one. The car eventually was nicknamed the L34 The letters L34 were the engine code and thats how the L34 got its name. The L34 had the code on the model plate there is nothing on an A9X that states its an A9X and the A9X had to use the L34 motor from an L34 to rsce. In 1978 with the introduction of the new smaller Commodore as Holden's family car,
43416-410: Was no myth as 4 examples were built with two surviving as of 2015). The first V8 Torana was fitted with the small block 253 cui (4.2L) V8, but this was soon upgraded to the 308 cui (5.0L) version. This car was built to Series Production rules at the time but Harry Firth had Colin Bond race the car, disguised as a Sports Sedan, at the 1972 Easter ATCC race meeting at Bathurst. Bond took an easy victory in
43632-406: Was not a standard production engine, which still continued to feature a carburettor. Later that year the VN introduced the 5000i engine with new cylinder heads and multi-point fuel injection which represented the most extensive redesign of the standard production Holden V8 since its launch in 1969. This engine continued in all subsequent Commodores until 1999 (2000 for the VS Series III Ute), when it
43848-405: Was not marketed as a "Holden", but rather a "Statesman". The HQ framework led to a new generation of two-door Monaros, and despite the introduction of the similar-sized competitors, the HQ range became the top-selling Holden of all time, with 485,650 units sold in three years; 14,558 units were exported and 72,290 CKD kits were constructed. The HQ series was facelifted in 1974 with
44064-540: Was not until 1969 that the whole arena of rallying and Holden motorsport, in general, was grouped together under the management of Harry Firth and the Holden Dealer Team. The new team kicked off in August 1969 with Harry himself behind the wheel of an HT Monaro GTS 253 rally car, but he soon after announced his retirement from active driving, handing over the rally Monaro to his old rival, Barry Ferguson. Colin Bond and Tony Roberts, both of whom had considerable previous rallying experience, then joined in as additional members of
44280-436: Was offered in Commodores until the VS III Commodore utility in 2000, although there were no longer V8 VS III utilities available for sale during the latter part of 2000. HSV vehicles featured a variety of more powerful versions of the 5.0-litre, which were also available on regular V8 Holdens as part of the SV Enhanced package. Additionally, from 1994 with the VR series, a 5.7-litre; 349.8-cubic-inch (5,733 cc) "stroker"
44496-440: Was opened on 5 November 1936 by Prime Minister Joseph Lyons , with construction beginning in 1939 on a new plant in Pagewood , New South Wales . However, World War II delayed car production with efforts shifted to the construction of vehicle bodies, field guns, aircraft, and engines. Before the war ended, the Australian government took steps to encourage an Australian automotive industry. Both GM and Ford provided studies to
44712-404: Was powered by a 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine. Fast becoming a popular car, the Gemini rapidly attained sales leadership in its class, and the nameplate lived on until 1987. Holden's most popular car to date, the Commodore, was introduced in 1978 as the VB . The new family car was loosely based on the Opel Rekord E body shell, but with the front from the Opel Senator grafted to accommodate
44928-521: Was previously utilised for the HSV VL Group A SV) for all combustion chambers, delivering better heat distribution and thus greater reliability. Depending upon the application, induction was either carburettor or fuel-injection (multi-point or sequential, depending on the year). For the 1986 VL Commodore, the engine was modified to run on unleaded fuel which carried forth to all subsequent models. Initially offered in 4.1 and 5.0 L; 252.8 and 307.8 cu in (4,142 and 5,044 cc) versions,
45144-412: Was produced by the Australian General Motors subsidiary, Holden (GMH), between 1969 and 2000. The engine was initially fitted to the Holden HT series in 1969 and was later utilised in a series of updated versions in the Torana and Commodore ranges. The final iteration, the heavily revised HEC 5000i, was phased out of Holden passenger vehicles with the release of the VT Series II Commodore and
45360-429: Was ready to pull the pin on the Dealer Team. Holden believed that since Ford had pulled out of touring car racing at the end of 1978, there was no longer any point in competing against privateer teams driving Holden cars, and they put the team up for sale. As a result of Holden quitting, John Sheppard also quit as team boss and Vin Kean purchased the team, and financed it. He called on Holden dealers to support him, with
45576-429: Was replaced by the US-made all-alloy Gen III LS1 5.7L V8 in the VT Series II . The Holden V8 is a water-cooled naturally-aspirated 4-stroke gasoline engine featuring eight cylinders arranged in a 90 degrees vee-formation. It is an overhead valve design featuring two valves per cylinder with a camshaft centrally located in the engine block above the crankshaft, driven by a timing chain attached to toothed sprockets, with
45792-399: Was replaced with the imported TH400 transmission. In 1974, both the 253 and 308 engines (now called 4.2L and 5.0L) were added to the Torana range for the first time in the LH series (after an aborted attempt by Holden Dealer Team boss Harry Firth to introduce the V8 to the smaller LJ in 1972 which was stopped by the " supercar scare "). In fact the SLR5000 only weighed 40kg more than
46008-401: Was shortened to "Holden Ltd". On 26 April 1990, GM's New Zealand subsidiary Holden New Zealand announced that production at the assembly plant based in Trentham would be phased out and vehicles would be imported duty-free—this came after the 1984 closure of the Petone assembly line due to low output volumes. During the 1990s, Holden, other Australian automakers and trade unions pressured
46224-412: Was the 253, which not only met but greatly exceeded the design targets. The complete engine assembly from fan to flywheel and all auxiliaries weighed in at 460 lb, around 12% less than the design target, while net output for the higher compression (9.0:1) version fitted with a 2-barrel carburettor was 185 hp (138 kW) with 262 lb.ft of torque, which matched or exceeded the targets set for
46440-450: Was thoroughly re-engineered, featuring a perimeter frame and semi-monocoque (unibody) construction. Other firsts included an all-coil suspension and an extended wheelbase for station wagons, while the utilities and panel vans retained the traditional coil/leaf suspension configuration. The series included the new prestige Statesman brand, which also had a longer wheelbase, replacing the Brougham. The Statesman remains noteworthy because it
46656-495: Was to be Harvey's co-driver, without a drive. The trio then went on to win the race in what was actually the 1982 race winning VH Commodore SS . The controversy was that although the rules permitted drivers cross-entering in other cars and indeed this had actually been seen previously, it was the first time that car swapping had resulted in winning the race. For 1984 , which was the last year for CAMS locally developed Group C touring car regulations, Brock and Perkins made it three in
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