John Bowe 2017 Touring Car Masters season review 05 December 2017 07:10 Rare Spares (0) ShareRare Spares Brand Ambassador and our long-time friend John Bowe has just wrapped up his 2017 Touring Car Masters campaign at the Newcastle 500 over the weekend. In what was a hard fought series Bowe and his Torana SL/R 5000 spent many rounds at the front of the pack and even led the series coming in to the final round. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be, as he could do little to stop the hard charging Steve Johnson on the tight streets of Newcastle’s East End. In this week’s blog, we’ll take a quick look at Bowe’s incredible season. The 2017 TCM season kicked off way back in March at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide, and for Bowe the season started with a bang. Bowe was challenged early in both races 1 & 2 before recording victory in both, while a 6th in race 3 was enough to guarantee him the round victory. Round 2 at Winton saw one of the biggest accidents in the category’s history and unfortunately Bowe was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Race 1 went swimmingly for the number 18 Torana as Bowe worked from 23rd on the grid to take the win, a monumental effort around the short Victorian circuit. Race 2 was where it all went pear shaped for a large number of the TCM field as Jason Gomersall span in front of the following pack as he rounded the 2nd corner on the first lap. Gomersall span into the path of Eddie Abelnica and his XB Falcon before being collected by Mark King’s Camaro, leaving both cars with very heavy front end damage. The ensuing pack had nowhere to go, with a number of cars finding each other or the surrounding walls. Bowe was sandwiched in the middle of all the action and the resulting broken ribs ensured a non-start for race 3 and a short stint in hospital for the fan favourite. Bowe was able to make a speedy recovery from the massive shunt to line up only four weeks later at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin. It wasn’t quite a fairytale comeback as a gearbox issue left the Torana in a plume of smoke early on in the first race. Some quick work was done to the Torana and he was able to make it back on to the circuit for races 2 & 3, finishing in 2nd and 1st respectively. On to Queensland Raceway and after recording his 90th victory in the TCM category Bowe left the event sharing the championship points lead with Adam Bressington. The ‘paper-clip’ as it’s known in the industry provides a unique challenge to competitors with a number of difficult breaking sections wreaking havoc on the TCM field. Sandown provided a unique challenge to competitors as race 1 was run in terribly wet conditions. The conditions provided a shuffle in the running order with Bowe finishing in 8th. Race 2 was abandoned while Bowe was out in front after Gomersall parked his Torana in the tyres at the end of the back straight. Wrapping up the weekend with a 2nd in race 3, Bowe was able to take the lead in the championship over his rivals. While Bathurst wasn’t a bad weekend for Bowe by any stretch of the imagination, the event began the late season run of Steve Johnson. Scoring 4,2,2 finishes throughout the weekend was enough for Bowe to maintain the championship lead, however closing quickly was Johnson who took 2 of the 3 victories throughout the weekend at the mountain. Bowe entered the final round with a 5 point lead, however was only able to manage 3rd in both races, making up ground throughout the first half of the track but struggling to keep up with the big Mustang of Johnson and the Camaro of Bressington down the more open sections of the track. The championship went to Johnson who won both races and the image of Bowe congratulating Johnson post-race will be go down as one of Australian motorsports great moments of sportsmanship. As well as TCM racing, Bowe has kept busy piloting a number of different race cars throughout the country this year at a host of different events. Take a look at his Facebook page to keep up to date with all of the incredible cars John gets behind the wheel of – very impressive! What was your favourite moment of the 2017 TCM season? Head over to the Rare Spares Facebook page and let us know in the comments section below.
When Records are Smashed, Australia’s Most Expensive Torana 15 March 2017 02:58 Rare Spares General, Rare Spares (0) ShareThe year is 1977, the first Star Wars movie, ‘A New Hope’ had just hit the screens, and a trip down to the local Holden Dealership for a shiny new Torana SS A9X would set you back $10,800. Fast forward 40 years and a savvy car enthusiast just hit the jackpot, selling his iconic Aussie hatch in original paint with only 120,000k’s on the clock for a cool $260,000. In front of a record crowd of classic car enthusiasts at Lloyds Auctioneers and Valuers auction on the Gold Coast in January, bidding was short and sweet, an un-named online bidder was victorious less than 5 minutes after the car was rolled into the auction house, purchasing the car and able to bask in rare Holden glory. So what makes this Torana so special, you may be asking? The A9X was an option available for the SL/R 5000 sedan and SS hatchback LX. Only 405 were produced for sale, 305 four-door and only 100 two-door hatches between August and December 1977. The idea behind the A9X Torana was to homologate the model for racing in the Australian Touring Car Championship, where Holden was in need of a car that could keep them at the top of the podium. And successful they were; the A9X dominated the ATCC from the get-go with wins throughout the tail-end of the 1977 season, and a complete domination of both the 1978 and 1979 series. Not to mention huge wins in the 1978 and 1979 Hardie-Ferodo 1000, including a mammoth 6-lap win by Peter Brock and Jim Richards in ’79 capped off with a then lap record on the final lap of the race. Features such as a 10-bolt Salisbury diff, rear disc brakes, the option of a Borg Warner Super T10 four-speed transmission and approximately 100 other differences to the regular LX Torana ensured the A9X was special enough to justify its racing pedigree. Handling was significantly improved with a steering rack mounted solidly to the front crossmember and radial tuned suspension. A9X’s were clearly identified by their rear facing, bonnet-mounting carburetor induction scoop. The A9X has gone down in history as one of Australia’s greatest muscle cars, and with scarce few produced, it’s fantastic to see an example in such pristine condition go to a new home! Have you ever owned an A9X Torana? Or perhaps you’ve owned a different Australian Classic that’s appreciated in value over the years? Head on over to the Rare Spares Facebook page and let us know in the comment section below!
The Future is now – Holden’s Concept Cars 21 February 2017 07:57 Rare Spares General, Rare Spares (0) ShareWith Holden closing down its production in Australia in 2017, not only will remember classics such as the Torana and the Australian built Commodore, we will also miss the impressively forward thinking and sometimes crazy concept cars. Holden have been particularly active in designing concept cars throughout their history, with many capturing global attention and in some cases knocking on the door of production. In this article we take a look at four of our favourite Holden concept cars from the last 50 years. The EFIJY The ‘EFIJY’ was built by Holden in 2005 as a tribute to the iconic FJ and successfully mated the past, present and the future in to one timelessly impressive looking package. Although not technically built in the same vein as many concept cars, which often indicate technology and design of the future, the EFIJY was met with a similar reception. Designed and built afterhours as somewhat of a passion project, the car was built on a modified Corvette chassis and featured a thumping 6.0 litre V8 producing 480kw/ 775nm. The car was so well received it was even the recipient of the 2007 Concept Car of the Year award in Northern America, proving that the EFIJY’s timeless good looks appealed to a global audience. Despite high demand from millionaires such as sheiks and sporting stars, Holden made the decision to cap production at one, with the EFIJY currently residing at Holden’s headquarters in Port Melbourne. The Hurricane Built in 1969, Holden’s ‘Hurricane’ was Australia’s first glimpse into what the future of motoring may look like. Featuring a rear-view camera, an early form of satnav, inertia reel seatbelts and one of the most interesting door opening mechanisms ever seen, the Hurricane was a long way ahead of its time. A mid mounted 193kw 4.2 litre V8 coupled with some very aggressive aerodynamics ensured the remarkable concept car was also quite zippy for the time. In 2011, a refurbished Hurricane was unveiled at Melbourne’s Motorclassica event after 6 years’ worth of repairs had been undertaken to restore the Hurricane to its former glory. Torana GTR-X This featherweight Torana concept was born in the 1970’s with serious intentions of eventually going into production. Featuring the 186 from the XU1 driving power through a 4 speed manual transmission, this 1043kg prototype reached a top speed of over 200km/h during early testing. The car also featured pop up headlights, four wheel disc brakes taking many design cues from the Lotus Esprit of the day. The GTR-X featured in promotional footage and brochures, confirming Holden’s interests of production. However, it wasn’t to be as higher ups decided that the GTR-X was best left in concept form, leaving many a Holden fan to wonder what could have been! Coupe 60 When the Holden Coupe 60 was unveiled in 2008 at the Melbourne International Motor Show questions were quickly asked as to whether or not it may herald a new era of Monaro’s on Australian roads. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be as Holden ensured fans the Coupe 60 was nothing more than a concept. Featuring a b-pillar less design, massive 21-inch centrelock wheels and an E-85 friendly 6.0 litre LS2 V8, the Coupe 60 was the stuff of Holden fans dreams. Showing that the concept car wouldn’t have been too far out of place on the race track, the vehicle featured a rear diffuser, front splitter and a carbon fibre spoiler. The Coupe 60 was received so well at the initial unveiling that other manufacturers even halted their own planned vehicle announcements in fear of being overshadowed. What has been your favourite Holden concept car? Head over to Rare Spares Facebook page and let us know in the comments below.
Aboriginal Car Name Origins 20 February 2016 01:06 Rare Spares Rare Spares (0) ShareThere are some great car companies around the world with iconic names to match. The origins of these companies are well known to car enthusiasts, even though many have since been bought out or sold. The Brits have Rolls Royce and Bentley, the Germans have Porsche and Mercedes Benz and the Italians have Ferrari and Fiat, and so on and so forth. These brands evoke images of their country of origin, whether it’s a Silver Shadow majestically passing Big Ben, a Carrera 911 storming down an autobahn near Stuttgart or a Fiat 500 zipping around the Colosseum in search of that perfect espresso. Here in Australia, we have exactly the same scenario as our European cousins. Holden and Ford have established a proud national heritage too, however the names of some of our car models have a history originating from a culture that itself, has been around for over forty thousand years. And that of course is the Aboriginal culture belonging to the traditional owners of Australia. A shining example of this is the beloved Monaro, which is Aboriginal for ‘high plain’ or ‘high plateau’. In 1967, Holden was having trouble coming up with a name for its new coupe. But as luck would have it, Noel Bedford, Holden's Technical Designer was on holiday and as he drove through Cooma, he passed the ‘Monaro County Council’. “It said ‘Monaro County Council' in western-type lettering that reminded me of 'Marlboro Country' and Camaro. It seemed to me so simple and logical. Why didn't somebody think of it before? I was quite excited and couldn't wait to get back to work,” Noel explains. And the rest as they say is history. Another true Aussie automotive icon is the Holden Torana, which like the Monaro, has its name originating from Aboriginal culture. Meaning ‘to fly’, it also has alternate meanings in other cultures such as Hinduism and Buddhism. Unfortunately, not every car name with Aboriginal origins becomes an icon. So it was with the Camira. Billed as a “Supercar” in the early 1980s when released, it never really lived up to the hype. As a result, the Camira, meaning ‘wind’, never went on to achieve the status of the aforementioned legends above. A more recent example of continuing the indigenous theme is the Maloo. John Crennan, the ex HSV Managing Director came up with that one after reading a book on Aboriginal Australians. Released in 1990, the Maloo, meaning ‘storm’ or ‘thunder’, was released in 1990 as a performance ute. It went on to become famous in 2006 when the Z series Maloo R8 broke the world record for the fastest production performance Ute. Without doubt, these great Aussie auto icons, named after words from one the of oldest, if not the oldest surviving culture in the world, evoke images of our great Australian landscape, just like the European auto icons do in London, Stuttgart or Rome.
The Forgotten Ones 24 September 2014 12:57 Rare Spares Rare Spares (0) ShareThere are many Aussie cars that fill the spotlight. Iconic cars that are on t-shirts, in sheds and museums and close to the hearts of motoring enthusiasts. However on the flip side, there are Aussie cars that have been forgotten through age, lack of popularity, changing trends and the odd total flop. The Leyland P76 was designed by Michelotti in Italy and introduced to the Australian market in 1973, against Holden, Ford and Chrysler. Despite winning ‘Wheels Car of the Year’ in 1974, the car quickly died out in Australia with fewer than 18,000 produced. Many put the failure down to strange marketing, quality control issues and the loyalty Australian consumers had toward the existing Holden and Fords models on the market. Even being names the 1976 'Wheels Car of the Year didn't save the Leyland P76. Despite the Torana having a sacred name in Australian motoring, not every Torana was a success. The TA model was a short lived four cylinder variant based on the LJ platform. Australian’s at the time still wanted the larger six cylinder and V8 engines so it never took off or retained the longevity some of the more famous models have shown. Perhaps Holden’s most infamous sales flop was their attempt at a 1980’s sports coupe, known as the Piazza. Buoyed by the success of the Japanese giants selling sports cars in the 80’s Holden brought in the Piazza from Japan which was produced by Isuzu. Despite a powerful 2 litre turbocharged engine, the Australian motoring media were extremely critical of the Piazza which hurt sales prospects from the start. The criticism was in the most part warranted and the car had a horrible chassis and as a result, dangerous handling. The Star Wars style instrumentation and the technology employed was a step too far for a majority of the Australian market at that time. The car was quickly phased out by Holden who had certainly missed the mark on the Piazza. The Holden Piazza was not Holden's finest moment and never succeeded in Australia. The Ford Zephyr is quite a well-known model and examples are still being restored, however the Ford Consul is a much lesser known 4 cylinder variant that never really gained popularity as the Zephyr did classic, perhaps due to its smaller engine. Another angle to consider is the forgotten style of cars. Panel Vans were a symbol of the Australian way of life through the 60’s and 70’s but by the late 80’s the market had changed and eventually panel vans phased out of existence. These models do however retain classic status and many are restored to their former glory. Another dropped style is the 1 tonner. Popular for tradesman and those in farming, the first generation of 1 tonner’s were built by Holden from 1971 to 1984. A second generation was released as part of the VY and VZ range before being phased out again. With the demise of Australian vehicle manufacturing our questions now turn to which vehicles will become future classics and which models will be all but forgotten? Only time will tell.