It is the numbers which tell the story of the FE Holden. Released in late July 1956, the car was an instant hit with buyers. 

Their enthusiasm boosted Holden’s market share from 29.4% in 1955 to 34.5% in 1956. General Motors Holden’s (GMH) 1956 annual report noted:

“Customer demand still exceeded the company’s ability to supply, and at the end of the year distributors and dealers were holding thousands of unfilled orders.” And there was favourable news in 1957. That years’ annual report proclaimed Holden’s market share was now a massive 42.7% and demand continued to outpace supply. For GMH and its dealers, life was good. These were the golden years.

What new model?

As was typical of GMH back then, in the months ahead of the FE’s launch they denied a new model was imminent. There were no pre-release previews for the motoring magazines. They were ignored. What was the point? GMH could sell every car it made. Who needed pesky motoring journalists asking questions? The plan was for the FE to be revealed in Holden’s dealerships supported by advertisements in newspapers, radio, cinemas and TV. But not everything goes to plan. The first time many Australians saw the FE was on the pages of one of those ignored motoring magazines. The July and August 1956 editions of Modern Motor carried scoop photos of the car at GMH’s Pagewood factory.  In the April 1974 20th anniversary issue, then editor Rob Luck, revealed how the scoop was achieved.

“Motorists were hungry for news but GMH wouldn’t even admit a new model was coming, so we went into their Pagewood factory, got photos and information and came up with Australia’s first new model scoop. We did it over two issues. In July we published photos of part assembled bodies—all there was at Pagewood. The issue sold like hot cakes, but GMH denied the car’s existence and we heard rumbles of doubt among the public. Nettled, we returned to Pagewood every day for two weeks, photographed everything from interiors and suspension details to complete cars and published the lot in the August issue, with the models release then a fortnight away. GMH are still wondering how we did it.”

How they did it was to dress as production workers and just walk in the front gates, cameras hidden. How embarrassing for GMH. In the years ahead Modern Motor  tormented GMH with its scoop photos of new model Holdens, some still more than 12 months away from release. So, who did design the FE Holden? There has always been conjecture about the origins of the FE design. What was the American involvement? What was GMH’s contribution? 

Research by Dr Norm Darwin, and included in his book Early Australian Automotive Design, revealed that the general shape of the FE originated in Detroit in late 1952. 

Back then Harley Earl was firmly in charge of GM’s styling efforts and had been so for 25 years. Earl set the design trends. Others followed.  Earl’s focus was the US market. He spent little time considering the styling activities at Vauxhall, Opel and Holden. For that he relied on Glen Smith, who travelled the world to ensure GM’s design themes were largely consistent. 

The FE began as sketches in Australia and the USA, followed by small scale clay models which were built in Detroit. Dr Darwin says that during February 1953 Smith was in Australia discussing the proposals with Alf Payze and Holden executives. The proposals were similar in shape to what would emerge as GM’s mid-fifties American range of cars, minus the wraparound windscreen. Hints of the 1953-56 Opel Kapitan also were evident. By mid-1953 Payze and his team had distilled the drawings and scale model design themes into one full sized two-sided model. The left side had a straight through belt line, while the right side had a small notch at the back door. The notch was a favoured motif of Earl. He used it often in the 1950s. On the FE it was not a real notch. Rather, it was a simulated version pressed into the rear door panel. Real notches meant costly tooling and Holden liked to keep things simple and cheap. As the design program progressed, Payze continued to refined the full-size model and gradually the FE shaped emerged. The initial design for the grille took its shape from the 1953-54 Chevrolet with a bit of FJ thrown in. It was staid and uninspiring. During 1954 it was replaced with one that replicated the upcoming 1955 Chevrolet sedan and truck models. A small Chevrolet?

The FE is often described as a smaller version of the 1955 Chevrolet. And to some extent, that’s a fair observation. When the 1960 FB was being developed, one of the FE testing prototypes was reconfigured with a wraparound windscreen, highlighting the styling similarities with the Chevrolet. 

Take a look at this FB prototype. Using a discarded FE test car, a wraparound windscreen was grafted onto the upper body. The result demonstrates the similarities to the Chevrolet. However, to consider the FE as simply a shrunken Chevrolet clone undersells the requirements Payze had to accommodate when shaping the FE. 

No longer a basic car, the Holden was transitioning into a consumer product. It had to be stylish, with a sprinkle of glamour. But not too much glamour, because it had to be affordable for most Australians. It had to be reliable and economical to run. At the same time, the FE needed to be robust enough to withstand the rigors of our rudimentary roads. It had to be a car for the city and the country. It had to live up to the claim in the brochure that:

“It is the ONE Car designed and engineered for Australian conditions. It is the ONE CAR that can incorporate all the things Australians most want in a car.” Payze successfully negotiated all the variables. The bright two-tone colour schemes, pleated Elascofab vinyl seats, smart new dashboard, full horn rim and restrained use of chrome side trim ensured the FE looked more expensive than it was.  Best looking wagon of the 1950s? The FE station wagon arrived in March 1957 and was an immediate success. GMH’s 1957 annual report admits that its own production projections were exceeded.  There was nothing really to match the FE wagon. In many ways, it was the SUV of its era— high ground clearance, loads of space and great looks. It hit all the right targets for growing families now shifting to new houses in new suburbs. With its curved rear side glass and slight forward rake to the C-pillar it combined the styling of the 1955 Chevrolet wagon and sporty two door Nomad. For my money it was one of the best-looking four door wagons of the fifties’. Fifty Percent and a Golden Anniversary The FC, which appeared in May 1958, was an FE with more chrome. Together, the FE and FC delivered 346,000 sales to Holden in four years, which was double the rate of the previous four years. In 1958 production topped 100,000 per year for the first time. A FC was the 500,000th Holden produced.

The FC’s 1958 sales helped push GMH’s total market share to beyond 50% for that year. It was GM’s 50th anniversary year and not even it could boast achieving 50% of its home market. 

In 1958 GMH was a star performer in GM’s world. But change was coming. Holden’s success drew the attention of rivals. They wanted a piece of this profitable action.  And so it was that the sleek XK Falcon arrived in September 1960 and the powerful R &S Valiant appeared 18 months later. For GMH and its dealerships the golden era was drawing to a close.
Special thanks to John Kyros at GM Heritage Centre. Retroautos® is written and published by David Burrell with passion and with pride. Retroautos® stories and images are copyrighted. Reproducing them in any format is prohibited. Retroautos® is a registered trademark. Reproducing it in any format is prohibited.