So who knows about Holdens then?

[akku]

"aussie Opels"

Although some of them appear to be Pontiac based?

And the old Torano was based on a HB Viva...? Or was that something else?

The "Mystery car" has reawakened a dormant interest. Lets face it they seem ideal - quirky looking and lots of powerful options (domestic and american V8s) and they are more European sized than the traditional yank tanks.

Can't rememeber the last Holden I saw int he UK except the occasional HRV or whatever that muscle ute is called.

I know a little about Fords and Chryslers down under but precious little about the Holdens and being a bit of a GM guy...

Next up who can find me a HD series Premier...

Opel look or what?



Nice.

[bstardchild]

If you wanna ask questions - this forum is very good

www.fastlane.com.au/forums/default.asp?CAT_ID=4

this might help too......

www.southgate.com.au/history.htm

[jizzy gillespie]

I'm partial to a vk commodore myself. or as i like to call them .5.0 carlton

[penski]

With UK povo-spec sun-bleached black plastic bumpers and trim?

Hell, yeah!

*n

[surprisingskoda]

ive never wanted a carlton sooooooooo bad, raaaaaar.
personally i would ADORE a v8 commodore myself, a mid 90s one, not too much like a vectra (don't like new vauxs) more like what its supposed to be, a low slung high performance saloon

[bstardchild]

mrsigma said:

I'm partial to a vk commodore myself. or as i like to call them .5.0 carlton

Actually thats based on a senator A!!!

[kyteler]

I had a VK with a 202ci straight 6 (3.3litres) and a 350CFM Holley 2barrel feeding it. Cheeewwwed the gas, but did good skids! ;D

VB, VC, VH, VK all the same just different trim.
VL same body but with different nose and Nissan engine RB20E and RB30E variants.
VN, changed to buick based 3.8 V6 and got boring from this point on.

[akku]

Some fantastic pictures of old Holdens and others in action here...

members.tripod.com/motorsportarchive2/page_2.htm

Check 'em out.

[triang]

That Holden HD always looked like a grown up Vauxhall Victor 101 to me...

[TwincamGTi]

America called them 'Muscle' cars

Austrailia called them 'Horn' cars

[mercmad]

Holdens....wibblepoo on Wheels!
I have had a few,living as I do in the land of the skippy and Dame Edna( John howards mother in real life...) .
The last one was HJ "one tonner" a full chassis ute with 308 (5.0 liter) V8 ,four speed and LSD.It was incredibly basic with a heater and no radio,
The worst i have ever owned was VK group "A" I bought new in 1985.I ordered it with the Group 3 roller rocker engine ,a full 308 cubic inch engine ( the normal group A were 304 cu.in.) . I had it 2 weeks and was still running it in when the vibration damper fell off the front of the crankshaft!.It had seriously hard springs which caused all my passengers to moan about how crappy the new car was..
It had a special electric fuel pump ( the others were only mechanical) which failed at 3 weeks as i was crossing a rail way line!!
I finally had to sell it when it I was clocked on a radar at 245Kph....so after losing my drivers license for 6 months it was pointless owning it. ;D

It also blew head gaskets ,and it was using water all the time ,which was traced to the exhaust ports,they had been modified by the brock organisation and some genius had ground into the water jacket...

Regarding GM family connections,the Early Holdens were all designed in the USA,The HQ models from 1971 onwards were built on the US "A" body floor pan and chassis.
So a lot of those ugly transams were imported into OZ because the steering gear etc to convert to RHD was a complete bolt in.
The first Torana was a HA viva as was the second series ,which were HB viva,but from then on they were all Holden in design .
The commodore is a slightly different car to anything in Europe in that it is 4" wider.
to fit fat ass Aussie women....LOL. ;D
;D ;D

[TwincamGTi]

So a lot of those ugly transams were imported into OZ because the steering gear etc to convert to RHD was a complete bolt in.

Trans am ... ugly?

To me one of the coolest looking cars evAr



Theres just a sort of 'deep south, confedrate, red neck, US of A Brashness' image to them...

...and I love it ;D

[bstardchild]

twincamgti said:

So a lot of those ugly transams were imported into OZ because the steering gear etc to convert to RHD was a complete bolt in.

Trans am ... ugly?

To me one of the coolest looking cars evAr



Theres just a sort of 'deep south, confedrate, red neck, US of A Brashness' image to them...

...and I love it ;D

whats the word for it here - heads off to the little boys room - that's automotive porn that is ^

[mercmad]

Complete with wavy panels,silly looking Screaming chook on the bonnet and a .....VEEE SIXXXX HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!! ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

and don't forget to wash your hands when you cum back from the toilet.....

[TwincamGTi]

V8 Actually!

Well all the Trans ams friends have had are/were

[mercmad]

By the time those "visually challenged" screaming chicken cars came out,the US was in one it's Arab/fuel crisis modes. So most of them with V8's only had Smogger 305's and the wimpy VEEEESIX.
The only real transam was the Firebird with 455....almost as good as ,but nowhere near as good as a mopar...
Heres a link to a resto of real car,from Gods own country.
www.nz440rt.com/
But if you insist ,this what they looked like in the beginning,before the Ugly stick was waved at them.
(1973 Transam firebird with 455 and Super duty option)

now thats better isn't it?

[akku]

lets get it right. The Firebird had the V6 and the Trans Am had the V8. The V8 was optional in the Firebird (except Formula where you got a V8 as stock)

No Gen 2 Trans Am or Firebird had the 305. They all had either the 455 or the 400 (403 Olds in California emissions markets during the later 70s). 455 was dropped about '76 same time as manual transmissions were knocked off the option list. The "Small" V8 for the Gen 2 was the 301 Pontiac.

In the Gen 3 there was a V6 T/A (note that they lost the rights to the Trans Am name for a while) this was IIRC called the GTA, but this was the wicked Buick Turbo V6 from the Grand National T Type and theres street cars running 9s on this motor quite happily....

Yup, all the V8s in the Gen 2s from 1974 on are smogger motors, limmited by low compression and catalytic converters, and feedbakc carbs. However, all this stuff is easy to junk and build a decent 500 horse motor.

These cars are alos quite rust prone, mainly in the lower rear rockers and the trunk floor area.

[TwincamGTi]

Yes I agree the 455HO was a superb beast but I prefer the 'Darth Vader' front end of the '77 model and partial to the slight alteration of the one after till '81 before the Series 3 ('Kight rider' shape came out).

Yes I know the smog laws caused problems but most of the restrictions can be removed.

Sorry but '77/78 model is best for ultimate style for 8-)me

[TwincamGTi]

alistairk:

Sorry for going off topic/hijacking your thread.

As for holdens ...
Me like the Monaros in the Mad Max films

[akku]

I liked the Dodge Pheonix in the Mad Max film, shame they burnt it...