Rare Aussie Muscle up for grabs in Sydney

By Matt Brogan | January 30th, 2009

It’s almost a prerequisite that motoring journos have a car collection, and in at least one case in the CarAdvice office, that involves Australian Muscle.

If you too have an interest in such cars then now is your chance to grab one of three absolute gems at Shannons Sydney Auction on Monday February 9.

While HT Monaro GTS 307 prices rose around two years again response to demand for the larger-engined GTS 327 and GTS 350 ‘Bathurst’ models, they still represent keen buying amongst collectors, with condition and provenance being the most sought after qualities.

With two owners from new, matching numbers and still gleaming from a meticulous ground-up restoration, the rare Platinum Silver with Sandalwood trim GTS 307 coupe being offered at the auction ticks all the important boxes.

Featuring automatic transmission and desirable period accessories including a NASCO gear lock, Shannons say the Monaro’s exceptional condition would satisfy the most fastidious enthusiast. It is expected to sell in the $65,000-$75,000 range – around the same price as a very well maintained 1981 Ferrari 308 GTS ‘Targa’ Coupe.

Chrysler enthusiasts on the other hand will be drawn to a rare eye-catching, three speed manual 1971 Chrysler Valiant Changer R/T coupe – one of only 20 Magenta E37-optioned Chargers built.

Initially used as a demonstrator by the Glenn Innes, NSW Chrysler dealer, the Charger was refreshed in the late 1980s with new paintwork. Then, after it spent most of the 1990s in storage, the car’s fourth owner since 2000 rebuilt the car’s straight-six engine with its triple Weber 45DCOE carburettors to E38 ‘Bathurst’ specification.

Equally desirable for Torana XU-1 enthusiasts is the one-owner March the 17th green 1972 Holden LJ Torana GT-R XU-1 sedan being offered in very original and unrestored condition.

Used briefly for hillclimbing in the 1970s, the all-matching-numbers Holden has been on blocks for several years, occasionally being driven to keep everything working.

The paint is still factory apart from the driver’s side front guard, which was damaged when the car kit a kangaroo.

Shannons expect both the Charger R/T E37 and GT-R XU-1 to sell in the $45,000-$55,000 price range.

The muscle cars are amongst 26 vehicles in the February 9 auction, six of which will be offered for sale unreserved, including a desirable 1974 Holden HJ Monaro GTS 4.2 V8 sedan $3,000-$6,000), a 1975 Alfa Romeo 2000 Spider ($14,000-$18,000) and a 1969 Rover 3500 V8 sedan ($3,000-$5,000).

The auction also contains 22 memorabilia lots, including classic petrol pumps, enamel signs and five original black and white enamel NSW number plates.

All lots can be viewed over the January 31-February 1 weekend from 9.00am-4.00pm at Unit B, 12 Frederick Street, St.Leonards.

HSV

********PriMa********888

How nice is the monaro??? One of the greatest cars ever produced. Go the might Holden Monaro!!11
http://navelcontemplation.blogspot.com/ SuperCujo

HSV – You can have the Monaro, I’ll take the superior XU-1. It was faster around Mt Panorama too.
Lloyd

I’m with the Monaro. I don’t care if the Torana is quicker or not – I’ve always liked the full size Holdens better.
Long after the novelty of the Torana being quicker has worn off you are still stuck with a hard riding Viva-based small car. I do admire XU-1s but I always wished Firth had stuck with Monaros. As a 9 year old I was devastated that they went with Toranas as to me the Monaro’s were the performance flagship of the Holden range.
Ford still did alright with their Falcons and didn’t revert to Cortinas or Capris for an outright Bathurst win.
Am I just getting old?

kel

they did change to the cortinas but holden always had better running gear.

Roadtard

A9X better than all others mentioned. Godzilla of the 70′s.

http://skyline The Salesman

This is were it is at, the ducks gutz of motoring. When i think of all the cars i had as a kid that are now considered classic i have to give my self a mental kick in the butt for giving some of them up instead of holding onto them. Isn’t hind sight a wonderful thing. All i have now are photos and in most of them i have a mullet hair cut so i dont get them out much.
topdog

I like them all from that era.If i had the cash and was forced to buy one i would go for the mighty gt ho falcons which are the holy grail of that era.I spose the price of those gt reflects that as well o well ill keep dreaming
Bavarian Missile (.)(.)

Your in my age group to Salesman”the ducks gutz of racing” that such an eighties saying hahaha!

Been there done that with the collectible too……oh well something we can tell our gran kids ,do you think they will believe we drove them as hacks daily ?

Ill have the Charger thanks,love the colour! Not as good inside as the Falcon Coupes but a tough car all the same.
Mark B

For sure there’s a lot of appeal in these old-timey original Aussie muscle cars… but wouldn’t a brand new, utterly-base-model 4.0 litre Falcon XT give each of these a run for their money, if not in actual straight-line performance then certainly on the twisties and in stopping power? Not to mention crash safety and such…

Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t dare rag on those who drool over and desire these cars – I’m just saying they’re not for me. If I had $800,000 I’d spend it on something other than a GT-HO Phase III… like maybe a brand new 599B GTB Forino? And pocket ~$150k change?
Bavarian Missile (.)(.)

Mark you obviously just dont understand why we love our Muscle cars………..

They dont handle or stop …..but they do give you a rush when you drive them . The looks and the thumbs up you get from driving them is equal to any Sportscar driver of today gets. Plus you have that Im “cool” not pretentious look you get in any Supercar of today ,people will walk up to and chat to you about your car with out the fear your a w a n ke r ! Each to their own though I guess………

A new 599b GTB Forino ??????? Great ,but as a collects piece whats it going to be worth in ten years let alone 40?
http://skyline The Salesman

Mark B,
Its not the ride, it is the ride. If you want to go really fast than sure, buy a late model something. But if you want some class and to be known as a connoisseur of motoring than this is were it is at.

BM (.)(.),
Oh the glorious 80′s. What were we thinking? Back when Mark Walberg was a young rapper and Ice, Ice baby and Gunners boomed out of the stereo speakers I stole from dad to put on the rear parcel tray. You would be amazed how many high school kids can fit into a HQ.
Memories……….
Bavarian Missile (.)(.)

hahaha Salesman……….dont get me started or we will take over this thread !

HQ ???????? Prem was it ? had to drive it over speed humps side ways so the exhaust didnt scrape ?

Knew a guy that bought a Val for $50 for the weekend cruise,cut the roof off,welded the doors shut {too strengthen the chassis} added a tape player to cruise too.Only tool he carried all weekend was screw driver,in case the car stopped he could remove the tape player .

Wasnt about going fast ,just having fun! Same as it is now with the old cars except that too many of the owners of today are frightened to take them out…………I say drive them .
Zorro

The GT Falcons were the King of that era. Imagine how frightening these monsters would’ve been around Mt Panorama in their day. Those were the days…

My choice would be the XC Falcon Cobra, the rare Bathurst edition. Still has killer looks…
http://www.ilab.com.au Peter Allison

The Charger’s were rubbish in 1971 and they still are. I can’t belive anyone would pay big bucks for one now. GT HO yes, but not an old Charger.
Bavarian Missile (.)(.)

ummmmmmmmmmmm Peter based on what ? Its old an Aussie Muscle Car and deserves just as much respect as any of the others from the 70s.

Sure the Phase 3 is a legend but the Charger was under rated.

Car advice quote \”The E49 was in fact the quickest accelerating Aussie Muscle Car of its era clocking 0-100 km/h in 6.1 seconds – pretty good considering this was 36 years ago! The quarter mile was knocked over in 14.4 seconds but despite all Chrysler’s best efforts, the E49 never won at Bathurst.\”

And all that out of a 6 cylinder !
Realcars

Wouldn’t mind a 770 with the 340 magnum v8.Quickest of the breed in stock form.

Prices are getting a bit silly though but then just a case of supply and demand I surpose.

Is your xa gt coupe an rpo83?
Marcus

Love the early Monaros, hell I even loved the new ones
Bavarian Missile (.)(.)

Hey Realcars…….no he isnt….most were built in 73 cause the parts that were intended for the Phase 4 were used in the RPOs ……..His build date is August 72,which means he gets an ID plate with GT on it,those in 73 didnt but they still had JG33 and JG66 written on them to confirm they were GTs……..

I think the ones that had to have one pushed the prices up ,they have come back to earth now .
Wheelnut

Quote [Marcus]: Love the early Monaros, hell I even loved the new ones

What even the wannabe 4 door Monaros like the HX-HZ..

I call them “Wannabes” because when you mention the word Monaro to a Car Enthusiast; let alone a Holden Fan I doubt many of them would mention the sedans.
However; there is of course the “Final” Monaro the 1978 HX LE Monaro Coupe complete with honeycomb wheels and cartridge player [Limited to 400 - same as the XC Cobra].
topdog

Yep thats the problem even if you bought one you can never drive it around all these old cars now are just collector cars that spend all there life at shows and in sheds sad realy.
birdie

The GT Falcons were the King of that era, hear hear . i agree, screw the monaro it sounds like a breed of sheep,
JasonP

These older muscle cars are great, & the Holden fans usually respect the GTHOs & Chargers, especially the 6 cyl (E38?)
My Old Man had a HQ 308 Premier Wagon, with aircon & Power windows, & Auger mags in the mid 70s. Cyan Blue. That was the Ducks Gutz!
Bloody younger Brothers & Sisters; we could have had a Monaro, but needed the extra bootspace.
Check the high profile tyres in the photos. Todays’ rubber would give them 10 secs at Bathurst!
http://skyline The Salesman says “Hay, Charger”

Whets wrong with the HX or HZ? Do they have any less appeal with a V8 rumbling in the tummy? Maybe i am too old but i even love the classic lines of the HD and the box shaped boat anchor HT. My dad still has a HR, you can’t get much more Aussie than that.
Wheelnut

Theres nothing wrong with the HX or HZ perse; its just that the Monaro is traditionally a Coupe – like the HG HK HT and the HQ…. not a Sedan.

By putting various Monaro features on the Sedans its almost as if Holden were trying to get rid of the excess parts etc – that was until they came up with the Limited Edition HX Monaro… which is more of a collectors item than the Sedan
http://skyline The Salesman says “Hay, Charger”

Fair point. Limited Edition usually translates to we have too many parts that are not moving so we will give them away and slap a sticker on the car.
john a

in 1973 i got a ht it was marketed by gm in 1971 as a white hot special standard equipment was a 253 v8 3 speed all synchro box and disks up front,quite a nice car for its day,dont forget that the hq still had drums at this time,i remember the le hx well everybody shit canned it i thought it looked ok.it was a bit slow because of the new polution adr,s that had just become law,gm didnt get a grip on the polution bit untill the hz.
Phill

I’d like a XA GT,coup or sedan,red with black strips.
http://porsche Millatime

Anti-spam word FASTER

Back in the seventies there was nothing FASTER than the 351 with 4v heads, top loader gearbox and nine inch diff. What a tuff combination.

If you’d shipped one over to Vietnam it would’ve won that war the day it arrived.
http://www.luxurycampers.com OiOiCringe

My brother and I were floating on cloud 9 when dad brought home a diamond white XY 302 wagon that made all the other family’s cars suddenly look like dowdy chaffcutters and tinny ugly JapCrap. Funny thing back in the early 70s was that there were plenty of euro-snobs, Jap worshippers and general self-loathing aussies trying to run down the Australian products.

The great thing was back then to ride in their cars and know that they were deluded (and tossers). The more thigs change the more they stay the same…except they fixed the rust thing (thank god)