Rare Holden Torana for sale in the UK, as the search for Australian classics heads overseas

A 1972 Holden Torana GTR XU-1 (LJ) has turned up for sale in the UK – and it could prove to be an absolute bargain.

The bright pink homologation coupe – claimed to be an authentic example of the rare Bathurst special (of which only 150 were ever built) – hasn’t been started since 1985, and is in need a complete restoration.

It's unclear how the car ended up in the UK. Drive has contacted the selling agents for more information on the vehicle's history.

Only one low-resolution photo was provided with the listing, which could lead some to interpret the vehicle's condition as on the poor side of average.

However, the price guide appears to take this into account.

Classic Car Auctions is looking to offload the historic vehicle with a pre-auction estimate of between £45,000 ($AU80,000) and £55,000 ($AU100,000). It goes under the hammer in March 2022.

For reference, a running but well-worn example was sold in Australia last year for a record $AU348,000 (shown above).

The second-generation XU-1, based on the LJ-series Torana, is sought after as the car that took Peter Brock to the first of his nine Bathurst victories (below).

A 3.3-litre inline-six petrol engine sends 142kW/162Nm to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual transmission.

This delivered a 0-100km/h sprint in a claimed 7.9 seconds, on the way to a top speed of approximately 195km/h.

Despite the UK Torana XU1 for auction not being operational, the vehicle remains registered in the UK and has been kept by the same owner for almost three decades.

You can find more on the listing by visiting the auction house's website here.