Holden HK News

Way back in February 1968, when Brian Jolly's next door neighbour rolled up in a brand new V8 HK Holden Kingswood, little did Brian know that 46 years later the same car would reside in his driveway. "It's my baby," says Brian of the pristine, metallic blue sedan.Built in the Dandenong factory the car is a perfect example of Holden's efforts to retain market leadership by offering increasingly affluent buyers a longer, lower and wider car featuring a bedazzling array of factory options and all wrapped in a swaggering new shape.Holden's advertising blitz urged buyers to indulge themselves and "personalise" their new car. The choices were formidable : power steering, power windows, four engines (three sixes and the 5.0-litre V8), drum or disc brakes, bench or bucket seats, automatic or manual transmissions (three and four speed), five interior and 10 exterior colours, white wall or redline tyres, airconditioning, venetian blinds (yes!!!) and the list went on and on.Adding to all of that, the upmarket Premier shouted out its prestige and difference with four headlights, metallic paint and a formal, Cadillac-style roof line. It is no wonder that Holden claimed they could make one million HKs and no two would be the same.Brian's neighbour wholeheartedly embraced the idea of creating his own HK. "He ordered it from the Reg Hunt dealership and was very particular about what he wanted," remembers Brian."What he wanted was a Kingswood with the 5.0-litre V8, powerglide automatic, power steering, front bucket seats with the centre arm rest, power disc brakes and the heater from the Premier."This combination makes Brian's car very rare because most Kingswoods came with the three litre six cylinder engine and bench seats. Brian drives the car almost every day. "I've had it for eight years. When my neighbour decided to stop driving in 2004 he asked if I'd like to buy it, but on the condition I call it 'baby'," admits Brian. And that's what he continues to call it."I spent four years restoring the body and bringing it back to new. The interior was much easier. It was in showroom condition, thanks to my neighbour using sheep skin seat covers from day one," says Brian.  The effort has paid off. The car has been a multiple trophy winner at Holden car shows since 2010.On the road the HK cruises with no effort at all. The V8 is totally under stressed and the disc brakes and power steering make for easy driving in 21st Century traffic.HK Holden's are fabulous first time classics. They are not expensive and, because Holden built 199,039 of them, parts are easy to find.David Burrell is the editor of www.retroautos.com.au

A decision on Holden's future is a mere pen-stroke, email or phone call away -- and it could now happen before Christmas after the Federal Government increased its pressure on the iconic car-maker.News Corp Australia understands the global CEO of General Motors, Dan Akerson, based at the company's headquarters in Detroit, has the sole discretion to sign away Holden's manufacturing operations and with it the jobs of 1760 factory workers.Contrary to earlier reports -- and protocols at other companies -- the Holden decision does not need to go to the General Motors board, which meets monthly.Mr Akerson is a $12 million-a-year man who served as an officer on a US naval destroyer in the 1970s.  In just three years he has developed a reputation in Detroit as not being afraid to make tough calls, such as shutting factories or axing entire brands, such as Pontiac and Hummer and the sale of Swedish icon Saab.A self-confessed "non-car guy", Mr Akerson has helped reshape General Motors globally since it came out of bankruptcy, driven the company to record profits and, as of yesterday, finished repaying the $50 billion loan from the US Government, which sold its remaining shares in GM.In a recent interview with USA Today, when asked about the secrets to his success and the transformation of General Motors, Mr Akerson said: "You can't live in a crisis mode … fundamentally I've got to run a business that's gonna turn profits."Holden has lost $432 million over the past five years and the company openly admits it loses money on each car it builds locally. Mr Akerson speaks about "fortress balance sheets" and taking emotion out of decisions by being able to "define reality"."That was necessary in this industry and in General Motors," he told USA Today. "Once you define reality you have to provide a vision."With pressure from the Federal Government reaching new heights after the Treasurer Joe Hockey said of Holden in Question Time "either you're here, or you're not", General Motors is increasingly being left with no option but to shut the car-making factory that Queen Elizabeth II visited in its opening year, in 1963.It is possible an announcement by Holden could come on or before December 20 -- the last day of work for Holden factory employees before the scheduled summer shutdown, and the same day the preliminary report by the Productivity Commission is due to be released.An early announcement would alleviate the uncertainty being felt by Holden factory workers and minimise the potential damage being done to the company's brand image.When asked yesterday if Holden felt pressured by the Federal Government to announce a shutdown sooner rather than later, Holden boss Mike Devereux said: "Everything that could have been asked of me has been asked of me (at the Productivity Commission hearing). No decision has been made by General Motors."When asked by News Corp Australia if an announcement would be made before or after Christmas, Mr Devereux and Holden representatives declined to answer.A formal decision to shut the Elizabeth car making factory is believed to be a formality given the hardline stance of the Federal Government to not increase taxpayer funding to the industry, and Holden's request for more assistance.Central to the debate over the Holden shutdown is the definition of the word "decision". In car industry terms, executives may have made up their minds on an outcome, but a "decision" is a more formal process.It took Ford more than 300 meetings and seven years to arrive at its decision to shut its Australian factories, and Mitsubishi was questioned for four years before its eventual shutdown, the Federal Government is trying to force Holden to announce its bad news within months.When Ford announced the 2016 shutdown its Australian factories, the decision was made at board level and included input from executive chairman William Clay Ford Jr, and Edsel Ford, both great-grandsons of Henry Ford. It then took several days for the announcement to be made to Ford workers on the factory floor.When asked by the Productivity Commission how much extra money Holden had asked from the Federal Government, Mr Devereux said the government had the figures and would not disclose them publicly.Carsguide understands Holden had asked for an average of $150 million per year -- the annual figures fluctuate to match the progress of vehicle development.In March 2012 Holden agreed to invest $1 billion in two new cars to be built from 2016 to 2022, in return for $275 million in taxpayer assistance -- $215 million from the Federal Government, $50 million from the SA Government and an estimated $10 from the Victorian Government.However after Ford announced in May this year that it was closing its factories in 2016, Holden has asked for an increase in taxpayer support because, it says, market conditions have "changed significantly" since the original deal was signed.Holden milestones1948Prime Minister Ben Chifley unveils the first Holden car, declares “she’s a beauty”. More than 18,000 orders are held before the 48-215 “FX” Holden goes on sale. Some customers sell their place in the queue for £100.1954One in three cars on the road is a Holden.1958One in two cars on the road is a Holden.1960The first export of left-hand-drive Holden vehicles begins with a small shipment of cars to Hawaii.19621 millionth Holden sold (EJ Special sedan, Oct 1962).1964Holden employee numbers peak at 23,914 across seven facilities in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and South Australia.19692 millionth Holden sold (HK Kingswood, March 1969).19743 millionth Holden sold (HQ Kingswood, June 1974).1978Holden celebrates 25 years of continuous sales leadership.19814 millionth Holden sold (VC Commodore, June 1981).19905 millionth Holden sold (VN Calais, August 1990, more than twice as many as any other Australian built car at the time).1991Japanese car-maker Toyota beats Holden and Ford to market leadership for the first time in Australia.20016 millionth Holden sold (VX Commodore SS, June 2001).2002The last year Holden led the Australian new-car market.2004Holden produces 165,000 vehicles (the most in its modern era), almost matches the 1963 peak of 166,274. Factory worker numbers in 2004: 7350.2005Holden’s biggest export year: 60,518 cars were shipped, mostly to the US and the Middle East.20087 millionth Holden sold (VE Commodore LPG, Aug 2008).2011After 15 years as Australia’s favourite car, Holden Commodore sales are overtaken by the Mazda3 from Japan. Automotive historians say it is the first time since WWI an imported car has led the new-car market.2013Toyota Corolla on track to become Australia’s top-selling car for the first time.Only five out of 100 new cars sold in Australia is a locally-made Holden.Holden is overtaken in some months by Mazda, Hyundai and Nissan.After several redundancies and a three-year wage freeze, Holden factory worker numbers fall to 1760.Despite a record new-car market, Australian vehicle production falls to its lowest levels since 1958.Holden is on track to export just 14,000 of the 84,000 cars it will make locally.This reporter is on Twitter: @JoshuaDowling _______________________________________ 

How can they not, when the Japanese hero is now the world's all-time favourite with a production total that has just topped 40 million cars. Based on those numbers, the Corolla is nearly twice as popular as the Volkswagen Beetle with 21.5 million sales and even further ahead of the T-Model Ford at 16.5 million, although it has had the advantage of selling at a time when far more people everywhere in the world own and drive cars.My first experience of the Corolla was in the 1960s, soon after the original cars landed in Australia. By the standard of the times, and we're talking here about Falcons and Kingswoods and Valiants, it was tiny and tinny but also solid, sensible and smartly priced. I was only a rider and not a driver at the time, but it also had a fun factor that was missing from other cars of my acquaintance - and you have to remember that an Austin Freeway cringed in our suburban Sydney driveway.The original Corolla helped ignite a small-car revolution and laid the firm foundation that now sees Toyota rampaging along as Australia's favourite carmaker, with annual sales that trump the combined efforts of Holden and Mazda in the other podium places.In America, the Corolla - along with the Honda Civic - is credited with the relatively recent bankruptcy of General Motors and Chrysler. Looking back to the USA in the sixties, it became the 'second' car in many American households and won over women and youngsters driving for the first time. They went Japanese and never came back. Does that sound familiar?Since the late 1970s I've driven every new Corolla model and had some fantastic fun on the side, including flat-out track laps in pursuit of an Australian racing championship and several forest fights in the Australian Rally Championship. And a Corolla has never let me down.And that gets me thinking about the Honda 750 four. You see, the Honda stalwart from the seventies was tagged as the Universal Japanese Motorcycle because it could do anything, from high-speed pursuit duties with the Highway Patrol police to daily commutes to touring the world in the days before long-distance motorcyclists switched to BMWs.In the same way, the Corolla should be known as the Universal Japanese Car. It's as sensible as an accountant, as dependable as a bullet train, and as predictable as a new tech toy from Apple.  It's also a bankable investment on the secondhand scene and will never offend or annoy. It doesn't have the attitude of an Alfa, or the performance of a Porsche, but a UJC is just fine and we have 40 million signatures to prove it.This reporter is on Twitter: @PaulWardGover 

Yes, by the time you read this, the odometer on Allan Clancey's 1976 Holden Kingswood will have clicked around to six zeros.The odo won't show the "1", but that's one million kilometres or 25 times around the world."When I bought it new in '77, it had just 23km on the clock," he says."I reckon I'll have a glass of red and quietly celebrate when it goes from all 9s to all zeros."The 66-year-old retired geologist and teacher now enjoys fossicking around the outback for gems and has driven his HX Kingswood all over Australia except for Cape York and the north-west coast."You name the place and it's probably been there," he says. "I bought it in June of '77 and we drove it to Perth that Christmas."The car is largely in original condition with wind-down windows for airconditioning, a Brisbane UBD instead of satnav and no anti-lock brakes, airbags, CD player or cruise control.Apart from "four or five" replacement engines, the only modifications have been a five-speed gearbox from a Toyota Supra replacing the three-speed column shift and an LPG conversion."It's very reliable with only a couple of hiccups. I've only had to call the RACQ a couple of times," he says. Clancey bought the car for $5400 and believes he could get up to $10,000 from a car restorer or collector."I reckon I've got my money back many times over," he says. "But why would I want to sell it? It will do me out."I still enjoy driving it and it's cheaper to keep than buying a modern car.  The others can leave me behind at the lights but it's got pretty good pick-up."I can also tow a caravan with it to the gem fields; I still have a claim at Rubyvale. He's also got an auto gem in his garage.H1976 HOLDEN HX KINGSWOODPrice: $5400Engine: 3.3-litre six-cylinderPower: 87kWTransmission: 3-speed manualFuel economy: 11L/100km2012 HOLDEN COMMODORE OMEGAPrice: $39,990Engine: 3-litre V6Power: 190kWTransmission: 6-speed autoFuel economy: 8.9L/100km

So far, in fact, that the traditional Holden versus Ford tribal war doesn't mean much to Irish butcher Paul Lawless, born in Tiperrary, even though he has lived in Australia for more than 30 years."I don't have a preference for Holden or Ford," says the 2002 Australian sausage champion who runs a butchery in Annerley, south Brisbane, and now owns two pristine examples of '60s Australian automobilia. His 1961 EK Holden and 1966 XP Falcon ute look like they have just rolled off the factory floor."I've been interested in Australian cars since the 1960s when I first arrived in Sydney," he says in his strong Irish accent. "I used to go to the auctions and I bought and sold a lot of cars, mainly Holdens and Fords because I grew up with the culture."There's not really a lot of money to be made (buying and selling at auctions); we just wanted to have different cars all the time." He says he onced owned a 1968 Monaro he bought for $1350. "I only had it for 12 months and sold it for $1500. I wished I'd kept it. In the '60s I went more for Holdens and in the 1970s I veered off into Fords and then I followed Dick Johnson, so I was into Fords. "At Bathurst time my allegiance all depends on what car I have at the time."So come that special Sunday in October this year and he will be in a real quandry as he now owns one of each, although the odds are in favour of Holden as his third car is a 1972 Kingswood he bought six years ago for $2500.Lawless says that despite his past buying and selling habits, he would never sell his XP or EK. "I can't see the point," he says. "I just want to keep them and hand them on to my sons."He bought the XP ute recently for $10,000. Lawless says it had a "clean body" with the rust cut out and had 43,000 miles (69,201km) on the odometer. The only modifications he has done is to reupholster the seats, install a new tonneau cover and replace the steering wheel with a "pearl" model. "That was fairly popular in the 1960s," he says. He has also had the original AM radio restored by John Carr of Yass."I bought hubcaps on the internet from America for $450. They are the only non-original part. Everything else is completely original," he says. It's his daily driver, while the EK only comes out for Sunday drives and car shows."I bought it about 12 months ago for $5000 from a woman who only used it to drive to the shops," he says. "No one has sat in the back since the 1960s. It's absolutely lovely. It is completely original. It was just always kept under cover. You will never get another car like that." He turns over the 170 cubic inch six-cylinder and it purrs into life. "Listen to that. You wouldn't even know it was running," he says.An EK cost 2500 in 1962 and for an extra 180 you could get a Diamond Dot radio which this one has. "That's the only thing I've had to fix on this one," he says.

...and sat between the entry level Belmont and the top spec Premier. An icon and showpiece of the 1970’s, it spanned two generations to 1984 and was the most popular car of its time in Australia.For baby boomers, the Kingswood offered the chance for many to realise their great Australian dream, with luxury and mobility at a realistic price.First generation (1968-1971)The first Kingswood was released as part of the HK series and was lighter and heavier than its predecessor. The same six cylinder engine was used, but Holden introduced a V8 with the HK – the 307 Chevrolet small-block. The Monaro was introduced soon after, and was effectively the two door version of the Kingswood.Holden started making its own V8 for the HT in 1969, but that was the only big change until the introduction of the Tri-Matic automatic transmission with the HG in 1970.Second generation (1971-1984)A completely new design came with the HQ. It looked a lot different from the HG and was the first large Holden to feature coil-spring rear suspension.The HQ was only made in right hand drive so left hand drive markets never saw it; but it remains Holden’s biggest selling model even today at 485,650 units. However, motoring journalists panned its poor ride and handling – a feature added on the insistence of then Managing Director George Roberts, who said it should drive like a Cadillac.Special edition Kingswoods were produced during this time called ‘Vacationers’, and proved so successful that they were seen in various Holden ranges over the next twenty years.In 1974 the Sandman panel van was introduced. It took on some design elements and the sporty features of the Monaro. It was very popular and gained a reputation for being a love-mobile, attracting nicknames like Shaggin’ Wagon and Sin Bin.Apart from a few minor design and engine changes, there were no major upgrades for the HJ. Interestingly though, in 1975 some of the Premier bodies were made at Mazda in Japan, and were fitted with rotary engines. Unfortunately the engines were severely underpowered and the project was dropped in 1977.Government emissions controls saw the 2.85 straight six engine removed from the HX series in 1977, and it resulted in a big drop in performance across the range. There were only minor exterior changes for the HX. The Sandman vans got a tailgate logo and stripes down the sides, and the Kingswood got bucket seats as standard.In 1977, the poor ‘Cadillac’ handling was fixed with Holden’s new Radial Tuned Suspension (RTS), introduced along with minor exterior changes in the HZ. The base model Belmont was lost to another Kingswood variant and equipment levels were enhanced to match those of the Ford Falcon range.1978 saw the introduction of the first ever Commodore and consequently, the fall of the Kingswood reign in 1980. The last Sandman panel van was produced in October 1979 as it had lost its place in contemporary Australian youth culture.Although the true Kingswood was dead, the name lived on in the WB series as a ute; but the flame finally flickered out in 1984 when Holden stopped producing large luxury cars, focussing entirely on their medium vehicle range. 

‘Bloody Kingswood’ is about to return to the Australian lexicon thanks to Paul Hogan's new movie. Charlie & Boots hits the big screen on September 3 with Hogan starring alongside Kenny actor Shane Jacobson as father and son. However, the real star of the film is the iconic Holden Kingswood. The story is about Charlie McFarland (Hogan), a man in his late 60s who has suffered a devastating loss, and his youngest son, "Boots" (Jacobson). Boots decides to cheer up his grieving father by taking him on a fishing trip _ nearly 5000km away at Cape York in a 30-odd-year-old Kingswood. The road movie takes in beautiful locations and landscapes as well as young, beautiful hitchhiker, Jess, played by Morgan Griffin. But the sheer beauty of Australia's landscapes and young women are no match for the beauty of the old Kingswood. Steve Lack, action vehicle co-ordinator for the film, had the job of finding three Kingswoods and modifying them. "Not the Premier; it had to be the standard Kingswood," he said. "I found three that we could use and made them all look exactly the same in colour and interior. They were all automatic and basically all we did was modify one from a T bar shift to a column shift." One was used for wide shots, another for "drive-up" shots and the third was used on a "low loader" trailer. "The low loader car is all for the dialogue and the close-up stuff so the boys don't have to worry about steering and missing obstacles while they're acting," Lack said. "We took out the engine, diff, suspension; the whole idea of that was to get the vehicle as close to the ground as is normal ride height. We hung cameras all over it and it looked like the real deal." Lack said the Kingswood was a big hit with Jacobson who is a car fan and spent much of his down time during filming playing car racing games on his Playstation in his van. "Shane just keeps falling in love with it. It takes him back to his roots as a petrol head." Jacobson has competed in several tarmac rallies and was so smitten by the Kingswood, he bought one of the cars when filming was finished. "He would have done some of the driving stunts too but we couldn't get the insurance," Lack said. "As far as driving goes, the boys weren't really happy with the car in 40-degree heat. "The low leader car had a household airconditioning unit under the bonnet to cool the actors, but we couldn't get aircon into the others because of a lack of time and budget." Lack said the cars went through a few stunts, but the biggest was called the ‘pig stunt’. "The boys are driving down the road and there is a woman jogger coming toward them and they eyeball her and she looks back and calls out `pig'," he said. "They think he's having a go at them but when they turn around there is a big pig right in the middle of the road, so they swerve and go through the bush and come back on the road through a group of letterboxes one of which is decorated as a pig." He said the stunt was coordinated by Danny Baldwin from Queensland and used stunt driver Clint Dodd. "Shane did the bit through the letterboxes, though." Lack said working with Hogan, Jacobson and the Kingswood was "a hoot". "It was a lot of hard work but I probably would have done it for free."   ‘Not the bloody Kingswood’ has become part of Australian culture as the reply when someone asks to borrow something you hold dear. The line comes from the Australian sitcom Kingswood Country which screened from 1980 to 1984 on the Seven Network and featured Ross Higgins as a bigoted buffoon who loved his Holden Kingswood. Higgins didn't want anyone borrowing his car and would usually reply "You're not taking the bloody Kingswood" followed by an idiotic excuse such as "I've just glad-wrapped the aerial", "I've just polished the number-plate" or "I've just ducoed the tyres". The Kingswood succeeded the HR and was produced from 1968 to 1984 as a sedan, ute, panel van and station wagon. In those years it was produced as HT, HK, HG, HQ, HJ, HX, HZ and WB models. A 1968 HT Kingswood cost $2326. They were also exported to New Zealand, South Africa, and Asia, where many became taxis and are still in use.

He won five 500cc titles from 1994 to 1998, claiming 54 victories from 137 starts, and only retired after a life-threatening crash that still causes him to limp.Doohan's results make him among Australia's most-decorated international sportsmen, but he has also become a successful businessman since leaving the glamour of Monaco to live with his wife Selina — and nine-year-old daughter Allexis and five-year-old son Jack — on the Gold Coast.His businesses include Global Jet International, an air charter company, the CatHouse restaurant and nightclub at the Luxor casino in Las Vegas, and Czech-based CDT, a company involved in motorsport, which has David Coulthard as a partner.When he is not flying his helicopter or relaxing in his private jet, Doohan likes to slide into a Mercedes-Benz that has been tweaked by the company's hotrod AMG division.What was your first car?A 1975 HJ Holden station wagon I bought in 1982 for about $1400. It was a V8, but also ran on seven cylinders.What do you drive now?A dark grey Mercedes E63 AMG with a 6.3-litre V8 and an S65 with a V12 twin-turbo engine. They are both civilised vehicles with ample room for family. Both have torque when you need it without being aggressive. They are smooth and quiet, but if you want a bit extra they can give it to you. Both are sporty looking cars without being over the top.Do you have a favourite drive and who would you take?The drive from Mugello in Italy to Monaco is always good. It's about 400km along the Mediterranean coast through tunnels and along winding roads, bypassing Florence and Genoa. You can cruise at about 130km/h, which is quick enough to enjoy the drive and also take in the views. I would take my wife Selina with me.How far would you drive in an average year?About 10,000km, mostly between my home and the Gold Coast, and around southeast Queensland. I've also got a Mercedes CL65 coupe in Vegas to drive when I'm over there. When I was racing and living in Europe in the 1990s I used to drive a lot more. In 1990 I had a Porsche and I drove to many of the races all over Europe from Monaco.Do you have a favourite motoring memory?Wayne Gardner and I driving back to Monaco after a race at Mugello in the early '90s. I was in a Porsche and he was in a Honda NSX. We weren't racing, but we made sure we got home before the restaurants and bars closed!What would you buy if money was no object?I don't really have a dream car, but the McLaren SLR 722 Edition is a serious piece of equipment. It's a sports car developed by Mercedes and McLaren Automotive and gets from 0-100km/h in less than three seconds.What music is playing in your car?Whatever is on the radio.How much is too much for a new car?It's all relative to what you earn and what your passion is. The problem in Australia is the large taxes on cars. In the US you can pay half the price you would spend on the same car.What should be done to make driving safer?Without a doubt, better education and compulsory driver training is needed in Australia. In Australia they seem to hand out car licences so long as you can start on a hill and do a reverse park. People should be taught how to control a vehicle and what danger signs to look for up ahead so they know what to do to prevent a crash.Are you sponsored by a car company?I don't have any sponsorship. 

Click here for full page image in PDF format THE car Todd Kelly will drive to Bathurst this year was built three years before he was born.This weekend, Todd and Rick Kelly will pack up a 1976 HX Holden Kingswood for the trip from their family home in Mildura to Bathurst — partof a growing tradition of getting to Mt Panorama under their own steam.Along the way they will pick up another Holden driver, Nathan Pretty. The three V8 Supercar drivers will cruise to Bathurst in the Kingswood — towing a matching 1970s caravan.“This car is so good you could drive straight on past Bathurst and keep going around Australia,” Todd said yesterday.Todd Kelly personally chose the Kingswood, which he described as having a “nicebeige paint job with not too much rust”.The drivers will sit three abreast on the front vinyl seat and sleep in the caravan on their way to Bathurst.The car and van will be on display in the pit paddock at Mt Panorama and after the race, autographed by Holden drivers, will be auctioned for the Peter Brock Foundation. Todd Kelly will race with Mark Skaife in the Bathurst 1000 and Rick will team up with Garth Tander for Toll Racing. Pretty is in the second HRT car with Glenn Seton.In Bathurst developments yesterday, WPS Racing announced they would pair up leading drivers Jason Bargwanna and Max Wilson.