Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 152 i Australian Muscle Car

Steve Normoyle

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Steve Normoyle

If you haven’t already noticed, this issue we’re celebrating Peter Brock’s remarkable privateer Bathurst victory half a century ago. Sadly, Brocky’s no longer with us to reminisce about that fairytale second of his nine Great Race wins. Nor is co-driver Brian Sampson, or the car’s owners and preparers, Norm Gown and Bruce Hindhaugh. There are some key players still around from that campaign, though, and David Hassall caught up with them to piece together a cover story this issue that’s not only a cracker of a read but which sheds new light on this small but important chapter in the Brock story. It was a pivotal period for Brocky. At the start of 1975 he reached a cross-road point in his career. It wasn’t just that he’d been sacked by…

Falcon GT official history softcover book

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Falcon GT official history softcover book

Ford fans who missed out on a copy of the comprehensive Falcon GT book, The Official History of the Falcon GT: Collector’s Edition, before it sold out now have a second opportunity, with the release of a new softcover version. The 250-page The Official History of the Falcon GT: Blue Edition softcover is being offered as a two-part deal, with a special-bonus Falcon GT magazine, The Official Falcon GT Magazine – Issue No.1. The magazine has been designed to complement the book, with additional stories and rare imagery not found elsewhere. As implied in the titles of both magazine and Blue Edition book, each publications is officially licensed by Ford. The first 100 pre-orders will be able to access to a special launch deal: the Blue Edition softcover and magazine…

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

AMC BEST LETTER

amceditorial@chevron.com.au | Locked Bag 5555, St Leonards NSW 1590 Rambler Man Today I grabbed the latest edition of Australian MUSCLE CAR and, as usual, I have dived head-first into it. However, I began thinking about Issue 150, and the Corvette story featured. It made me wonder whether Australia missed a golden opportunity in the early 1970s to add another muscle car to its ranks, and whether it would have changed the scene at all. American Motors Corporation (the other AMC!) had a limited market presence Down Under with several models locally assembled by AMI. One of these was the Rambler Hornet, which was available from 1970 with two versions of the company’s straight-six providing respectable performance. However, North American buyers could order one with a V8 and other mechanical components…

AMC BEST LETTER

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Bondy’s boilover

At first glance, the ’75 Australian Touring Car Championship didn’t look like it was going to amount to very much. It was the second season of the Group C era without Ford involvement, and that meant Holden was the only manufacturer contesting outright honours. The Ford challenge was in disarray. John Goss had delivered the goods at Bathurst just months before the start of the ’75 season, but Goss had since moved on: most of his time and effort was now being directed into his new Formula 5000 programme. He’d be back with a Falcon for Bathurst, but Goss was absent from the ATCC. That just left the Hardtop GTs of Allan Moffat and Murray Carter standing in the way of a complete Holden whitewash – and Moffat only lasted…

Bondy’s boilover

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Western Star

Introduction They breed them differently out west. Motor racing in Western Australia back in the day was self-sufficient – limited by the enormous distances to the East Coast and a graded dirt track that passed for the Eyre Highway. Wayne Negus may not have been the first West Australian to venture east to race at Bathurst – his father Syd raced there in 1958, followed by Dick Roberts and Stan Starcevich in 1965 – but he was the first to race in the Bathurst 500/1000. Indeed, his results from seven Bathursts – three top-10 finishes – plus other touring car starts was only beaten by Garth Tander in the Supercars era. Wayne Negus was a complex man – a fast and aggressive racing driver, a clever mechanic and a wily…

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Slot car addiction

2025 releases Once again it is time to overview the Australian-related releases due to hit the shelves this year. After what was initially a slow start, announcements have snow-balled into what is looking like a bumper year. Some have almost slid under the radar, so let’s take a good look at what is coming down the pipeline. As is their norm, Fly popped in a very quiet announcement of the Jim McKeown 911 Porsche Sports Sedan. It almost looked like a mistake, having been mis-labelled as a rally car in some slot news sites. This one should be popular around the world with its striking Camel colour scheme, although some overseas slot enthusiasts might be reaching for their atlas to find out where the hell ‘Winton’ is. Quite a few…

Slot car addiction

Carpark Muscle

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Carpark Muscle

Classic Cars & Coffee - Rouse Hill Some of the Aussie and American muscle that turned out for the June 15 Classic Cars & Coffee - Rouse Hill. The venue was the Supercheap Auto carpark at Rouse Hill – where Classic Cars & Coffee - Rouse Hill meets every third Sunday of the month. On every first Sunday of the month, it’s on nearby at The Fiddler Hotel. Basic Auto Photography Car photography for private and and public events Located in Western Sydney Contact: Tyler England to organise a private shoot! Instagram: @basic_autophoto Email: basicautophotography@gmail.com…

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

a word from our sponsors...

Tyres aren’t all created equal. But they are all black and round, and that makes it a challenge for tyre companies when it comes to marketing their products: how do you visually differentiate the tyre you’re selling from its competitors, when theirs looks pretty much identical to yours? One easy way for the tyre to make a good impression in the ad is to have it draped around an attractive-looking mag wheel – and, even better, with an attractive-looking model draped around the tyre and the wheel. But that’s not enough: there needs to be a trademark brand slogan. Such as, for example, the simple ‘Donuts’ theme which Bridgestone adopted for its 1990s ad campaign spearheaded by Peter Brock. ‘Donuts’ as a tyre brand catchphrase mightn’t be particularly inventive, but…

a word from our sponsors...

Mustang Cup Australia for 2026

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Mustang Cup Australia for 2026

It’s Ford’s equivalent of Porsche’s Carrera Cup, and it’s coming to Australia in 2026. The Mustang Cup Australia will be held over six rounds and will run as a part of the 2026 SRO SpeedSeries. The Mustang Cup is Ford’s new global one-make series, contested by identical Mustang Dark Horse R models. The Dark Horse R is a specially-developed track-only competition car derived from the road-going Mustang Dark Horse model. The Dark Horse R featured at the recent Le Mans 24 Hour meeting, with Australian Cameron McLeod winning two Mustang Challenge invitational races support races. “The Mustang Dark Horse R was designed to be a turnkey race car to provide a thrilling, accessible, and competitive platform for drivers,” said Ford’s Global Director, Ford Performance, Mark Rushbrook, at the series announcement…

TCM from the Top-end

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

TCM from the Top-end

Steven Johnson emerged from the Hidden Valley round of the Touring Car Masters Series with top overall points after a weekend of torrid competition. Johnson prevailed in race one in Darwin after a tough battle between the Mustang driver and Joel Heinrich. But Camaro ace Heinrich got the better of Johnson to win both the second and third races. It was only Heinrich’s retirement from the Trophy Race (won by Camaro teammate Scott Cameron) that prevented the South Australian from taking the overall rounds honours. Jude Bargwanna was back in action after his huge shunt at the recent Symmons Plains round in the Duggan Family Hotels Commodore, finishing a solid second in the Trophy Race before going on to a pair of third placings in races one and three. In…

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

The pauper king

Motivation was always a hallmark of Peter Brock’s career, and he was never more motivated than after General Motors had sent him packing from the mighty Holden Dealer Team at the end of 1974. Not for the last time, his critics claimed his run of success had been purely from having the best equipment, and they predicted a dire future away from the umbrella of the factory team. A year later, his critics were thoroughly silenced. Not only had the reigning Australian Touring Car Champion raced on as a privateer with little backing, he had taken a rag-bag bunch of enthusiasts literally to the top of the mountain, winning the Bathurst 1000 just three weeks after also taking out the Sandown 250. And, to emphasise the point, he again beat…

The pauper
king

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Retro Vision

John Goss fires his McLeod Ford Falcon GTHO Phase 3 out of BP Bend and onto Oran Park’s main straight in the final of the 1972 Toby Lee Series. Goss was fresh from victory in the Sandown 250 the previous weekend (with Bathurst now only two weeks away), but while he started the Toby Lee final from the front row, alongside Allan Moffat’s works Phase 3, 100 laps around the fast and flowing Sydney circuit was too much for the tyres and brakes on the big Fords. Both GTHOs would slip down the order in a race that resulted in a Torana XU-1 one-two-three, but Moffat and Goss certainly entertained the crowd, as Racing Car News colourfully reported: ‘their fast approaches to corners with failing brakes were proving exciting as…

Retro Vision

Details of drama

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Details of drama

The Australian Motor Heritage Foundation, based at Sydney Motorsport Park, has been working on a most meritorious effort to collate – and make available to the public – as many primary race results as possible from the ‘pre-Natsoft’ age of Australian motor sport (primary results are those issued by race organisers, as distinct from secondary results which are published with race reports in contemporary magazines). One such set of results which has recently surfaced is the long-elusive full details of the inaugural Australian Touring Car Championship, at Gnoo-Blas in 1960. Australian motor racing historians have been seeking these results for many years, so it is wonderful that they have now emerged. The Gnoo-Blas results were the only missing piece of the entire jigsaw of ATCC results since 1960, so it…

Muscle Stuff

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Muscle Stuff

Your own #carparkmuscle display! For die-cast collectors and miniature enthusiasts, the G-Fans 1:64 Dioramas are a must-have addition to any display setup. From the moment you unbox them, the craftsmanship stands out. Constructed from a mix of PVC and acrylic, the dioramas include thoughtful touches to make the scenes feel complete and lifelike. The dioramas shown here showcase fully illuminated indoor spaces and signboards, thanks to a clever USB-powered LED lighting system equipped with a handy on/off switch. Whether you’re showing off your die-cast collection or setting up a miniature streetscape for photography, the lighting gives your layout a professional-grade polish. The designs are also impressively modular: road sections are freely splicable, allowing for flexible placement and customisation. Functional opening doors, high-resolution printed walls, and realistic dimensions all add to…

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

AMC Club Directory

CAR CLUBS A9X Torana Club Australia Inc. Established to assist all its members identify and preserve genuine examples of the A9X Torana by providing assistance with information, parts, and services. WEB: http://a9xclub.org.au Brock Commodore Owners Assoc. of Australia Inc The Brock Commodore Owners Association of Australia Inc (BCOAA Inc) endeavours to bring together owners of Brock/HDT Special Vehicles built Commodores (VC-VL) and WB Magnums (Statesman and utility variants), produced and issued with a build number during the period that Peter Brock owned and traded under the HDT Special Vehicles Pty Ltd company name from 1980 to 1988. WEB: https://bcoaa.com Canberra Torana Club (CTC) The CTC was founded in 2003 with the goal of preserving the history and experience of the Holden Torana for future generations. The club is about bringing…

Aussies star in Mustang Le Mans Challenge

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Aussies star in Mustang Le Mans Challenge

Rising young Aussie star Cameron McLeod scored a major career milestone with wins in both the Invitational Mustang Challenge support events to the Le Mans 24 Hours. The Super2 racer and Supercars enduro co-driver only just prevailed in the second race; a late-race Safety Car restart error almost resulting in his Mustang getting hit from behind by American Robert Noaker. McLeod survived to hang on by a tenth of a second at the chequered flag. “The experience is amazing, not only because of Mustang Challenge,” McLeod said, “but it’s also at a one-of-a-kind track... especially to stand up on the podium. The Ford Mustang Dark Horse R is a great car. Ford Performance has done well developing it so far, and it’s going to keep getting better and faster.” McLeod…

All Holden Day NSW

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

All Holden Day NSW

The annual NSW All Holden Display Day is on this year on August 2-3 at the Hawkesbury Showground, Clarendon (opposite the Richmond RAAF airbase). This is the 37th running of the event, which is the largest open-air display of Holdens in Australia. It’s supported by dozens of NSW Holden Clubs, and entry is open to all Holden-badged vehicles. The two-day event includes a swap meet (starts 6am on both days), providing Holden owners with a great opportunity to secure that hard-to-find Holden component to complete a restoration. To enter your Holden in the NSW All Holden Display Day, go to the online entry form page – www.allholdenday.com.au. Organisers stress that entries on the day won’t be accepted.…

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

‘75 snapshot

No Moffat, no problem There was a major change to the prizemoney structure for the ’75 Hardie-Ferodo 1000, with significantly more cash being directed to the class winners and placings at the expense of the outright performers. The prizemoney shakeup was part of a battle over the future direction of the Bathurst 1000. This was the big issue in Australian touring car racing in the early months of 1975, as the ARDC made it clear that it wanted to ban the V8s and limit the race to under 3.0-litre cars from 1976. Part of that strategy was to encourage under 3.0-litre participation in the ’75 race via a dramatic redistribution of the prize pool to the minor classes. Where John Goss had pocketed $10,500 (plus conditional prizemoney) for winning in…

‘75 snapshot

THE F6
FIX

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

THE F6 FIX

Back in the early 2000s Mal Wood took what would prove to be an important phone call. It was Howard Marsden on the line. Marsden introduced himself as Ford’s motorsport manager, but Mal Wood already knew who he was. “We’ve got a bit of a problem,” Marsden told him. “We’ve got a new model coming out with a boosted six, and the transmission’s not coping.” Marsden had been made aware that Mal Wood’s small transmission business tucked away in Warwick in semi-rural Queensland had done a lot of work developing aftermarket transmission upgrades, and might be able to help. As for the ‘boosted six’ Falcon, this was the yet-to-be-released BA-model turbocharged six-cylinder engine that would power the XR6 Turbo and FPV’s F6 Typhoon range – which was where Marsden came…

HSVE SENATOR SIGNATURE

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

HSVE SENATOR SIGNATURE

“There’s no doubt BMW was our benchmark,” Tony Hyde reflects today on the VE Commodore. He was Holden’s engineering executive director in the late 1990s when the VE development was given the green light. According to Hyde, the objective with the VE was not just an affordable, high-quality Holden but one with the driving dynamics to match BMW’s 5 Series. Ambitions were lofty but so too was GM’s mid-2000s vision for the VE and the ‘Zeta’ platform that underpinned it. It was more than simply a new Holden Commodore model, because Zeta was meant to form the basis of a wide array of GM models world-wide: Pontiacs, Chevrolets (including the fifth-generation Camaro) and maybe even a shorter-wheelbase Cadillac to take on BMW’s 3-Series. Ultimately a lot of that didn’t happen,…

Mini Muscle

Australian Muscle Car|Issue 152

Mini Muscle

Many years ago I helped out various racing teams as a pit crew member. No, I’m not a mechanic, but I can do basic stuff like standing over there and not touching anything, or cleaning parts or sorting nuts and bolts into size order. Without a word of a lie, I did some of the above on the 1980 Army Reserve XD Falcon at Bathurst. No, really. It’s also not my fault the car blew up four engines in four days. Honest! Anyway, I decided I needed a model of the other Bathurst car I was involved in, the Phil Alexander/Ron Gillard RX-7. I was a gofer and lap-scorer for this team in 1982 and ’83. These were the days when you could run a privateer entry and just be…