Australian Muscle Car

Australian Muscle Car is a fresh, proudly Australian publication dedicated to preserving the legend of the unique ‘Australian made’ Ford vs Holden muscle car heritage. From 1960s classic Bathurst muscle to the super sophisticated Falcon and Commodore performance cars of the new millennium and everything in between.

Steve Normoyle

Australian Muscle Car

Dark Horse unleashed

Hamilton’s Gemini swansong

Auction update

Badge of honour

Land of the Rising Yen

Brock’s Brock Commodore

Paul Newby

AMC BEST LETTER

Hits and misses • Being the first Bathurst for Group C touring cars, and the first 1000km distance, the 1973 Great Race shaped up as an exciting and intriguing contest - though no one could have predicted the high drama that would unfold on the Mountain 50 years ago.

The one that got away • At the height of the Holden-Ford factory team war in 1973, Harry Firth’s HDT undertook a futile attempt to complete the first Bathurst 1000 with only two stops for Peter Brock. It effectively ended with the devastating sight of co-driver Doug Chivas pushing the dry #1 Torana XU-1 to the pits. David Hassall unravels the subtle mysteries surrounding one of Australian motor sport’s most famous failures.

Triumph and tragedy • One works team Falcon Hardtop ran faultlessly for the entire 1000km; the sister car was doomed even before the start. Ford team engine builder Colin Russell explains how it all went wrong for the Gibson/Seton Falcon.

Back to the future? • It’s hard to believe today, but 50 years ago there was a serious push to return the Great Race to its ‘stock standard’ origins. The idea was for the cars to be taken straight off the showroom floor, impounded by race organisers and then delivered to their entrants only a day or so before the race!

Vision

Preserving Fred’s Ute! • How Fred Gibson was reunited with his former Falcon XY work ute, now restored to original ‘Gibbo’ spec.

Repco-Holden V8: F5000’s homegrown hero • Barely a year after the first 308 V8 Holden engines rolled off the line, Repco had developed a Formula 5000 racing version the equal of the best small-block Chevs from America’s best engine tuners. The Repco-Holden V8 achieved widespread success in F5000, sports car racing and Sports Sedans. Here is its story.

From trash to treasure • That such a twisted wreck could be salvaged and returned to its former glory is testament to the skilled tradesman who took on the job – and not to mention the structural integrity Holden built into the old HQ chassis design. This is the story of one Monaro that was saved and brought back to life.

Call Me Shag • Some may know him as Murray Carter’s Bathurst co-driver in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, but Graeme Lawrence was a lot more than that. The Kiwi openwheeler ace, for whom the Formula 5000 term ‘Lola Limp’ was first coined, starred in the Tasman Cup, in Can-Am as well as Formula 5000, and later fostered the careers of some future Indy and F1 stars.

35th All Holden Display Day • Hawkesbury Showground, Clarendon NSW 6th August 2023

All Ford Family Day • Sydney Dragway, Eastern Creek, NSW 23rd July 2023

Slot car addiction

Muscle Stuff • Essential products for the Australian MUSCLE CAR enthusiast.

Mini Muscle

Mini Cooper S

Seventies superstars

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