HT Monaro GTS and GTS 350
The HT Monaro GTS and GTS 350 celebrate their golden anniversary in 2019. To celebrate, AMC presents 50 reasons to love them
All Aussie adventure
Launched in June 1969, Holden’s HT Monaro range initially consisted of just the two models, the Monaro (161ci and 186ci engines) and Monaro GTS (186S, 253ci and 307ci powerplants). The GTS 350 model would follow a couple of months later. When it did, it stole the limelight from the rest of the range. And it did so forevermore.Yet, within the initial June offerings was a car of huge historical signi cance – the rst all-Australian V8 Monaro. The GTS tted with the Holden-designed and built 253 (4.2-litre) V8 was as Aussie as burning your tongue on a hot pie at the footy or drying your ‘Reg Grundys’ on a Hills Hoist. But history has overlooked this beast. AMC too, if we’re honest. So being overlooked and under-appreciated are good rst-up reasons to the love the 253cipowered HT Monaro GTS.
Forgotten history
V 8 engines had been planned for inclusion in a Holden as far back as 1964 when the HK programme was in the initial stages of design. In keeping with the notion of an all-Australian car, which naturally included the engine, GM-H embarked on a project to design and manufacture its own V8 engines to power the Aussie Holden. The forward thinking of the time was that eventually the bulk of cars sold in this country would have a V8 engine under the bonnet – as was the case in the United States in the mid 1960s. Delays saw the rst production Holden V8 engine eventually red up on October 15, 1968 – too late for inclusion in the HK series. Thus, the V8 HK Monaros were powered by imported Chevrolet engines, the 307ci and 327ci bent eights. The 307 carried over to the HT model of ‘69, until the larger of the two Fishermans Bend-built V8s, the 308, came on stream later in the HT’s lifespan. But at HT Monaro launch time, the 253-powered model was pushed hard by Holden, ensuring all of its press eets had an example. So for two short months, the 253 GTS was the company’s hero car and the vehicle which featured most prominently in magazine and newspaper road tests.
Staggering engine range
For a car on sale for just 13 months, the HT Monaro was offered with a staggering choice of engines – 161, 186, 186S, 253, 307, 308 and 350!
First with the 308
T he HT Monaro was the rst Holden performance car tted with the Aussie-built 308 V8 – an engine, in evolving forms, that powered the company’s muscle cars for the next 30 years.
Bread and butter
T he HT range featured a number of improvements over the HK that were hardly sexy but led to a much-improved HT Monaro compared to its predecessor. Examples included a new wiper-arm mechanism, while ride and handling were improved via a change to rubber frontsuspension bushes, larger rear-spring eye bushes and a new front sub-frame assembly that gave the HT a 1-inch wider track.
New stripes
W hile exterior cosmetic changes were minimal, the HT GTS Monaros were offered with a new thicker stripe design down the centre of the vehicle’s bonnet and boot. Also new were side stripes. Stripes were available in two colours Warrigal Black and Persian Gold, although the latter were only offered on Monaco Maroon or Verdoro Green cars. Our feature car is an example of the latter. In the immortal words of the Twelfth Man, impersonating Bill Lawry, “That’s Australian green and gold, my friend, and don’t you forget it!” We may have omitted another colourful word from that quote.
Way-out colours debut
T he wild colours – with way-out emotionlaced names – that would become a trademark of the Torana GTRs and XU-1 that followed actually rst appeared on the HT Monaros. “The bright colours and bigger stripes re ected what was happening at the time [in the US and in pop-culture],” Holden designer Phil Zmood told AMC for issue #46.
New bonnet
T he biggest body change from HK to HT was a new bonnet for the GTS, featuring twin air-intake vents. While these intakes were rst and foremost a cosmetic enhancement, they were also functional, even if they didn’t suck in vast volumes of air.
Release the houndstooth
W hile the HK featured all-vinyl seats, new optional fabric inserts caught the eye of prospective HT buyers. Especially the houndstooth check inserts in either black and orange or black and white.
Instrumentation
The HT featured a revised dash and instrumentation, with tacho moved from the centre console to a new instrument cluster.
New badging
B adging detail was revised for the HT with the bonnet GTS badge moved to the grille, while a GTS badge under a Monaro script was added to the door trims.
New wheel
S teering wheel, that is, for the GTS models, a non-slip version that was a de nite improvement over the plasticky, slippery surfaced one used on the HK.
Spoiler alert
H olden’s design staff toyed with front and rear spoilers and a reverse bonnet scoop. While the ideas made it to mock-up stage, they ultimately ended up on the cutting-room oor.
Enter the GTS 350
T wo months after releasing the rest of the HT Monaro range, Holden announced the much-anticipated GTS 350.
Full of itself
T he GTS 350 was the last full-sized Holden with a factory competition focus for 21 years, until the 1990 VN Commodore Group A.
Two-in-one
T he GTS 500 manual featured an engine and suspension that was very different from the auto version. The manual was a race-bred special, while the auto was a grand tourer.
Winner, winner...
I t won the 1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500, beating the more fancied XW Falcon GT-HO fair and square.
Side-stepped GM ban.
W inning at Bathurst in ‘69 was truly an underdog performance, especially given it was done under a GM ban on motor racing.
First HDT racecar
The GTS 350 was the first Harry Firth/Holden Dealer Team entry (see separate story) and marked the way forward for Holden to maintain a motorsport presence despite the limitations of the aforementioned GM global racing ban. It followed the promise shown by the HK GTS 327 under the David McKay-led Sydney-based Scuderia Veloce squad that operated under the Holden Dealer Racing Team banner. The 350’s success was the springboard for HDT’s legendary competition heritage.
Unlikely rally car
T he GTS Monaro also flew the flag for Holden in rallying in late 1969 and most of 1970. Colin Bond and his navigator Brian Hope finished second in the Australian Rally Championship to Renault R8 Gordiniequipped pair Bob Watson/Jim McCauliffe. Bond and Hope were joined by Tony Roberts for the Ampol Round Australia Trial where they came home third. But what most old-timers with dust in their nostrils remember is the incredible presence the big, booming coupe had in the forests as the V8 engine’s rumble bounced off the trees.
Bond, Colin Bond
I t was the vehicle that made local motor racing’s living treasure Colin Bond famous, by virtue of his and Tony Roberts’ Mountain victory in ‘69. See Colin’s recollections in the story elsewhere in this issue.
Brock’s breakthrough
T he HT Monaro was the model through which Peter Brock was introduced to Bathurst, making his debut as sidekick to Des West, with the pair coming home third for Team Harry. Again, see separate story.
Morris makes his Mark IV
T hat same ex-Brock/West chassis was farmed out by Harry Firth to Bob Morris, with the Sydneysider running it at his local tracks and winning many races in 1970. This then led to Morris’ call up to the HDT proper when it switched to Torana XU-1s. Thus, two stars who went on to win Bathurst and the ATCC used the very same chassis as a career springboard.
White is right
A ll six Monaro GTS 350 that started the 1969 Bathurst classic were predominantly white. Good pub trivia fodder that. Your mates will love this tidbit.
Crash with benefits
T he HDT’s – and the GTS 350’s – first ever race was held at Sandown three weeks earlier. It could hardly have gone worse. Yet, Spencer Martin’s crash merely highlighted an area the Harry Firth-led team needed to fix for Bathurst. Then HDT engine man Ian Tate agrees. “The failure at Sandown allowed us to win Bathurst,” he says unequivocally. “Without that failure we wouldn’t have done all the checking and analysis that allowed us to improve the car.”
Survivor 1
I ncredibly, the car crashed by Martin at Sandown lives on today, in Townsville. It sold at auction in 2017 for $500,000. It was used by Holden 10 years ago to highlight 40 years of Holden ‘factory’ racecars and photographed with the HRT V8 Supercar of then factory drivers Garth Tander and Will Davison. The car has only had three private owners in 50 years and today wears its famous white livery with dark green and gold highlights.
Survivor 2
The HDT machine which nished sixth at Bathurst ‘69 in the hands of Henk Woelders and Peter Macrow also survives. When Harry was nished with it, he sold it to Lawrie Nelson, who raced it for a spell before selling it to Doug Hawkins, who retains the car to this day. Like the ex-Martin Sandown car, it resides in regional Queensland.
Elusive race winner?
I t’s possible that the 1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500-winning Monaro lives on today. We’ve heard reports recently to that effect, but haven’t been able to verify the claims. Longtime Chevron Publishing contributor David Greenhalgh researched the fate of #44D for his excellent ‘Before We Lose Track’ series on the whereabouts of former Bathurst-winning chassis in Motor Racing Australia magazine in the mid 1990s. Greenhalgh contacted #44D’s former drivers and crew members, along with Tony Connolly, then-owner of sister car #57D, the Sandown crash car, and ended his informative and well-researched piece with the following. “Connolly believes that the winning car was scrapped. As all the other theories suggested to me have drawn a blank, this idea may well be right. Certainly, if somebody out there owns the only works Monaro to win the race, he or she did a very good job of getting it from the Dealer Team without attracting the attention of any of its senior members.” The mystery continues!
Crash avoidance
I t’s Bathurst folklore that a rst-lap crash in 1969 saw a quarter of the eld suffer damage. Somewhat miraculously, the Monaros all managed to avoid it. In Henk Woelders’ case, only just (see left).
No fluke
The HDT’s one-three-six result at Bathurst showed that the rst Monaro’s ‘68 Bathurst win wasn’t a uke.
12 Hour winner
A ll but forgotten today were the 12 Hour production car marathons held at Surfers Paradise in mid-summer heat half-a-century ago. Colin Bond and Tony Roberts again triumphed on January 4, 1970 aboard a HDT Monaro, almost certainly the same chassis, bearing the KJK-345 numberplates, in which Bond greeted the chequered ag rst at Bathurst. Assuming it is the same chassis, it’s one tough hombre, as it covered 435 laps of the 3.21km (two mile) circuit for a distance of 1400.26 km (870 miles).
KJV-339
T here is a fth HDT Monaro that hit the track in 1969 that played a big part in cementing Colin Bond’s position in the team. It’s the car Bond tested pre-Amaroo, wearing KJV339 numberplates, allowing CB to show his circuit racing pace and vehicle development skills. It’s shown in the pre-race publicity shot below. This practice car was taken to Bathurst and used to bed in brakes and other components at night by mechanics on the road to Blayney. PostBathurst it was rallied by Frank Kilfoyle. But wait, that’s not all. KJV-339 was loaned out to Rex Monahan to run – read punish – on the burgeoning rallycross scene, where it became something of crowd-pleaser. Especially so, when it adopted truck-style dual rear-wheels. After 12 months or so, Holden wanted this pre-production hand-built coupe back as it had a date with the crusher. The full story on this special HDT development Monaro is told in
AMC #31.
Norm!
T o this point we’ve raised many points about Series Production Monaros. Yet probably the most legendary HT GTS 350 of all is the Improved Production version that Norm Beechey used to win the 1970 Australian Touring Car Championship. This Mustang mauler is arguably the greatest Holden muscle racer ever built. The heavily-developed and tickled beast triumphed against the best imports from the US and Europe, scoring GM-H’s rst ATCC title. Beechey’s HT Monaro is now part of the Bowden’s Own collection.
Pluck of the Irish
A lthough Holden downsized from the Monaro GTS to the Torana XU-1 as its race and rally weapon from 1970, the big coupes continued to enjoy great success on the drag strip. A good example was Peter D’Alessandro’s ‘Leprechaun’, which, with a HT nose in its Pro Stock days, won the Nationals in 1977, the same year it emerged victorious in Castlereagh’s Mr Ford vs Mr Holden event.
Precision instrument
T he Holden Precision Driving Team may be long gone, but memories of its shows will never fade completely. It started life in 1970 as the Monaro Precision Driving Team, with its very rst vehicles being four-speed manual HT GTS models tted with the 253ci V8.