Canberra Holden day hits
My favourite car at the recent Holden Day held at Old Parliament House in Canberra was this terrific 48-215 owned by a young bloke called Cain (and his brothers). A genuine survivor car that brought back memories of the FXs that were still on the road when I was a boy, the sedan had been bought by his grandfather around 1950. The old guy had driven it until the 1980s when he had to stop driving. The car, which was mechanically sound and had a definite patina, was then parked in the shed under cover where it remained for more than 30 years. When Cain's grandfather died he left the vehicle to his grandsons who appreciate just what a treasure they possess. Cain said the plan is to replace the wiring loom (and take it up to 12 volt at the same time), carry out a mechanical refurbishment and leave the rest absolutely as is. While I have nothing against restored cars I am glad this survivor is being treated this way. There are plenty of better than new examples of the FX and the FJ in clubs and on the road. What is in short supply are well used examples that show the original standard of construction, panel fit and paint work (pretty good in this case) and how the cars stood up in the real world. The modifications you can see here (the added on instruments being the most obvious) are all a part of the story. The original leather and horsehair upholstery retains that unique smell familiar to anyone who has ever ridden in one of these. Cain's FX is a time machine in a bottle. Cain's car makes an interesting contrast to the beautifully restored 48-215 owned by Tony Pryce of Belconnen we feature further down this page.
The FB/EK Holden series is the closest Australia ever came to producing a 1957 Chevrolet. They were my father's favourite car and we had four of them while I was growing up; one ute, a wagon and a couple of sedans. Three were EKs and one of the sedans was an FB. The major difference was the contrast strip on the FB rear quarter panel. I still love the fins and the exclamation mark tail lights, They were a vast improvement on the FC and FE models (in my view). The three speed manual was a good box once you got used to it and the little (only 2.3 litre) OHV valve six was a real slogger. Fuel economy, as with all grey motor Holdens, was exceptional. This grey EK with white roof and red trim would have been a very stylish machine in 1962 and remains so today.
The 48-215 and the FJ were replaced by the FC-FE series cars which displayed hints of mid-1950s Cadillac styling in the grille and at the rear. This is a nice example of an FC, complete with rear wheel spats and a new paint job. These cars had a more modern looking raked windscreen than the wrap around affairs that appeared on the FB (and claimed a lot of kneecaps over the years). Despite the FB-EK's apparent extra length they were no roomier than either these cars or the original FX/FJ series. If anything the FX/FJ was the most space efficient of all the designs. I find it strange that while you rarely saw spats on an old Holden when I was a kid in the 1960s and 1970s they seem to be fitted to every second car you see today. Go figure! The FC was the first ``Special'' if I recall.
The EK/FB interior was by far the classiest effort on any Holden up until that point. Beautifully sculpted, trimmed and finished, it was colour co-ordinated and well laid out. The only fault was the lack of instruments. Ford offered a water temperature gauge on its Falcon and the Valiant, which arrived soon after, upped the ante with an ammeter. Add-on gauges, which rarely matched the quality of the main instrument cluster, were popular. A feature of the FB/EK speedo was the bar style indicator rather than the traditional needle. With no soft plastics to speak of Holden interiors generally aged very well.
The EK was followed by the EJ, one of the least successful of all Holdens. A startling new look combined with the retention of what was now the least powerful six cylinder motor on the market kept buyers away in droves. Fords ``small'' 144 cubic inch six trumped the 14 year old 138 grey motor and it just wasn't in the hunt when compared to the Falcon 170 or the Valiant 225. Holden quickly rushed the EH into production in much the same way Ford brought forward the BA as the replacement for the AU almost 40 years later.
This is a mildly customised example of the car regarded as one of the greatest Holdens of all time - the EH. Its squared off styling and the choice of two engines, a torquey little 149 cubic inch and a powerful 179 cubic inch six that formed the basis for the company's first Bathurst special (the 179M), made it an instant hit. It carried over the Premier luxury option that had debuted in the EJ range.
The EH was replaced by the HD/HR ranges in 1965 and 1966 respectively. This is a very well presented HR Special fitted with the rare X2 186 engine that put out 145 horsepower (compared to the standard engine's 125). This was achieved by fitting a twin carburettor manifold and working on the breathing. Some X2s were mated to fragile Opel four speed manual gearboxes most owners concluded were more trouble than they were worth. The small engine option in the HR (which marked the introduction of the 186) was the 114 horsepower 161.
When I was a kid I thought these were the duck's guts. The HK Monaro was so different to any Holden that had ever gone before that it made the just phased out HR look a decade out of date. Because of its performance image it came to be regarded as Australia's first sports coupe, drawing attention away from the classier, but less performance orientated XM and XL Falcon hardtops that had preceded it. Ironically, given the hype about the 327 and its performance at Bathurst, the base Monaro was slower than the original Falcon hardtop. Little more than a two door Belmont it came with a 161 cubic inch six that generated a meagre 114 horsepower and three on the tree. The GTS, allegedly the line-ball competitor with the Falcon GT, opened the batting with a ``186S'' twin carbie six that was identical in most respects to the X2 in the HR pictured above. This put out 145 horsepower, 20 more than the 125 horsepower generated by the standard 186. At least the GTS models came with a four speed gearbox, in the case of the 186S the same fragile Opel unit that had been offered in the HR. Buyers who stepped up to the entry level V8, a Chevy 307, got some serious performance while the top of the line 327 easily eclipsed the 230 horsepower 302 V-8 offered as standard across the Falcon GT range in the XT, The experts of the day said the HK 327 was the better race car (thanks to the bigger than Ben Hur engine) but that the XT GT was a more thoroughly developed vehicle and a more civilised drive. The HK's lack of development showed in elements such as the ``after thought'' floor-mounted tachometer and the retention of the strip speedo, a step backwards from any previous Holden and absolutely useless due to parallax error in a racing car. Don't get me wrong; I love these cars - they are a part of history and did the job they were designed to do. But, and it is a big but given the prices they are commanding, we shouldn't be blind to their faults. The HG/HT Monaros were much better packages and by the time the HQ rolled around the GTS had evolved into a refined grand tourer which left the rough stuff to the lower rent GTRs and XU1s. As an aside, you hardly ever see a six cylinder or non-GTS Monaro today. Almost all have either been converted into clones of the more prestigious models or cannibalised for restorations.
For the anoraks:
HK Monaro 161
2.6 litre in line six; 85kw (114bhp); weight 1315kg; Top speed 152km/h (94mph); 0-100km/h 16.2 seconds; standing 400 metres 20 seconds.
HK Monaro 161 four speed
2.6 litre in line six; 85kw (114bhp); weight 1315kg; Top speed 154km/h (96mph); 0-100km/h 15.4 seconds; standing 400 metres 19.8 seconds.
HK Monaro GTS 186S four speed
3 litre in line six; 108kw (145bhp); weight 1336kg; Top speed 167km/h (104mph); 0-100km/h 12.1 seconds; standing 400 metres 18.2 seconds.
HK Monaro GTS 307 four speed
5 litre V8; 156.5kw (210bhp); weight 1425kg; Top speed 180km/h (112mph); 0-100km/h 8.9 seconds; standing 400 metres 16.6 seconds.
HK Monaro GTS 327 four speed
5.35 litre V8; 186.5kw (250bhp); weight 1488kg; Top speed 183km/h (114mph); 0-100km/h 7.9 seconds; standing 400 metres 15.9 seconds.
(It is interesting to note that in standard form the 307 was not far off the pace set by the 327 with a negligible difference in both top speed and acceleration times. The 186S GTS was a surprisingly strong performer and would have satisfied many buyers)
HK Monaro 161
2.6 litre in line six; 85kw (114bhp); weight 1315kg; Top speed 152km/h (94mph); 0-100km/h 16.2 seconds; standing 400 metres 20 seconds.
HK Monaro 161 four speed
2.6 litre in line six; 85kw (114bhp); weight 1315kg; Top speed 154km/h (96mph); 0-100km/h 15.4 seconds; standing 400 metres 19.8 seconds.
HK Monaro GTS 186S four speed
3 litre in line six; 108kw (145bhp); weight 1336kg; Top speed 167km/h (104mph); 0-100km/h 12.1 seconds; standing 400 metres 18.2 seconds.
HK Monaro GTS 307 four speed
5 litre V8; 156.5kw (210bhp); weight 1425kg; Top speed 180km/h (112mph); 0-100km/h 8.9 seconds; standing 400 metres 16.6 seconds.
HK Monaro GTS 327 four speed
5.35 litre V8; 186.5kw (250bhp); weight 1488kg; Top speed 183km/h (114mph); 0-100km/h 7.9 seconds; standing 400 metres 15.9 seconds.
(It is interesting to note that in standard form the 307 was not far off the pace set by the 327 with a negligible difference in both top speed and acceleration times. The 186S GTS was a surprisingly strong performer and would have satisfied many buyers)
I have always felt that the HK Monaro's best angle was the rear three-quarter view. There is a purity of line that appeals to me more than the Mustangs and Camaros of the day and the thin tail lights work better than the thicker lenses used on the HG and the HT. That said, the HQ Monaro coupe was in a class of its own and is possibly the most beautiful mass produced car ever built in this country.