Fletch is out on the road again and catches up with three motoring enthusiasts and their iconic Holden classics. A chance discovery was Brenton with his restored HR Holden Premier in beautiful condition and from external appearance to be in original condition. However, the car ’s drivetrain was upgraded to 93 VR spec along with a 253 V8 engine. Another vehicle from Brenton’s shed is a beautifully restored to original condition 1926 Pontiac, ignored for almost 40 years before being fully restored.
Another Holden man is Bob, with his original 1964 EH Holden that has an incredible 53-year association with his family, and now in the custody of Bob and his brother Tony. With 136,000 miles on the clock and with very few mechanical issues, this very popular model is in original condition featuring the classic 149 red engine and ‘three on the tree’ manual. Fletch gets to take the EH for a drive and remarks on how well it still drives and how good the ergonomics of the bench seat and oversized steering wheel that makes for a great driving experience. The EH was very popular selling over 250,000 in just 18 months, only being outsold by the HQ that had a much longer lifespan.
Our next Holden is a 1963 EH Holden - the S4 model, looks like any other EH and has nothing to discern it from the others. But the S4 was specially built for Bathurst, with only 125 made to meet race requirements. Owner Harvey believes there to be only twelve - S4 models left and his the only one fully restored. The car today is the result of a 14-month ground-up restoration. The S4 features the 179 engine, bigger tail shaft and brakes, larger full tank along with some other spec changes, but they were all stock on the S4 model sold out of the dealerships but designed to race at Bathurst. A beautiful restoration of a rare Australian classic.
