History of Dads car

 

 

To my fellow car club members. 

 

As a small child my dad had a few cars, EH, sold for the HQ Holden wagon, UC Torana was mums car, the HQ sold for, the beloved HJ Premier that came with a 253V8, trimatic auto, GTS full dash, air con, tow ball and windscreen mesh protector, sun visor, hood rack, lots of chrome trims and the lower grill that was a limited thing on the Premier, and I still have them all.   

 

   And here’s where it all started. 

 

   As a 17 year old lout, I was loose with a license to drive and what better way to learn, my dear old dad and his 1975 HJ Holden all ridgey didge. I still remember him saying "keep 1 eye on the road and 1 in the mirror, and not a bad 21st birthday present. 

 

   Time alone will tell, and the test of time stand alone, the original car still wears its two tone paint (that's a limited colour, call "Casino Blue") and Holden hub caps. The old 253 V8 and trimatic did serve well, but as all us know things go bump in the night or in this case BANG. It used more oil then fuel, from doing the family holiday trips, towing caravan, boats and trailers, and they were starting to phase out the leaded fuel, so I started to look around and do some homework and research on fuel injection V8,s. Chev, Buick, Pontiac, the Holden was going to be the pick of the bunch, but I really wanted another Chev and there it was, a 1989 TPI (Turn Port Injection) Chev with a TH700, 4 speed auto that’s got 30mpg . These are known as the C4 Corvette and were also used in the Z28 Camaro and the Pontiac Trams AM, from 1985-1990, they came standard with 275hp. 

 

   So the Holden had a heart transplant, so to say ha ha. That was in the year 2000, and all was good.  The interior got a freshen up as the paint did too. Move to Brissy Vagas (for work ) and joined the  Car Club which was a mix and match of everything you could think of, from old Holdens to Chev, Rolls Royce, Porch, BMW, Farrier, Jag and yes even Fords ha ha. Did the transferred back to North Queensland after a 4 year contract, as my dear old Dad wasn’t well. Then meet the LOVE OF MY LIFE NETTY. 

As my dad passed away, it was hard to do anything to or even drive the Holden for a while, so it sat under cover for a bit. Netty in and out of treatment (she had more rust cut out of her then the Holden) HA HA, and with the passing of my eldest brother Mike as well. 

 

 Meetings held on the 3rd Sunday of every month.  

 

   Netty and I joined the club in around 2008, and enjoyed the company of like mined car enthusiast like us, as well as a member of OldHoldens.com

In the last 15 years the Chev’s been the car, and the car has had its ups and downs like we all do, and there are some things that need to be done and addressed, one day but not today.   

 

   It has been to many shows in Queensland and to the All Holden Show , where a crowd of people couldn’t believe, 1), the Chev had been in there since 2000,  2), no one had seen the car or heard of it and 3), it was from North Queensland. I won most travelled distance and a $200 fuel voucher HA HA. In Queensland it has won (with the bonnet close) Best Holden HQ-HZ Cairns, Modified Holden Cairns, Townsville, Brisbane, (bonnet open) best Holden HQ-WB Cairns,I’m proud of, and a few other little ones as well. All with the original books, papers and most of all, a picture of dad on the front seat. 

 

   I have to say THANK YOU to Netty for giving me the big push (and a smack in the back of the head) to complete the Holden and to enjoy it. As Netty said, “it’s the most expensive DUST COLLECTOR in town ha ha, and, my son, little Mikey (MG) and Sabrina (BB) and Tabitha-ann(Tabalaca),love the old style OOGARH horn”. 

 

   A question was asked on OldHoldens.com “why do we have our old cars?” and this was my answer,

I remember as a child playing peek-e-boo with dad in the mirror, I remember holidays, towing caravans, trailers on family holidays and outings, family and friends weddings, outings, learning to drive THIS car with my dad. Learning to do oil changes and other little things. The good times and the bad, the Holden was there with our family and saw it all. 

 

   You ask me “WHY” I have my car? The answer is for the love and the memories of my dear old dad.

Regards 

D.R. Pollard 

 trippled75@yahoo.com.au