Brock VC, VH and Monza

Story By Ewan Kennedy

Some of the most desirable of all hot Holdens are those built by Peter Brock's HDT operation. We take a look at the early days in detail, in particular, the VC and VH models.

Brock Commodores were only built for eight years, but in that time some of the hottest cars Australia has ever seen set Holden enthusiasts' hearts pounding. Originally, HDT stood for Holden Dealer Team, the name of the racing team.

In the beginning GM-H paid for the operation, even though it pretended dealers were footing the bill. That was because the official GM head office policy at the time was: No car racing'.

Later GM-H partially pulled out and some dealers picked up the tab in order to keep the name alive. Brock worked with the dealers, and with Holden again, to set up HDT Special Vehicles. The machines the public soon tagged Brock Commodores started to come off the line.

Though the Commodore was the basis of all the major models, there was also the Statesman-based HDT Magnum, and even a sort of two-door Commodore based on a German Opel design. Here we take a close look at the Commodores, with a fleeting glance at the two-door.

HDT Holden

Commodore VC

The VC Commodore SLE V8 made its debut at the end of 1980 and was priced at what now sounds a very low $18,999. All were virtually identical except for the colours, and even they were limited to white, red or black. White was by far the most popular of the colours, followed by red, with black versions ordered by only a few. Five hundred cars were planned and all were built by June 1981.

The engine was the 5.0-litre V8, no other option was offered. There was the option of a four-speed manual or a three-speed automatic transmission.

The cars had a front airdam, a large three-piece rear spoiler, big wheel arches extensions. They were finished in striping of red, white and black bands. The stripes ran across the front spoiler, along the car's sides and finished with a showy flourish at the rear.

Not everyone liked the airy style of the stripes and quite a few cars had them removed, Later, HDT Special Vehicles would deliver cars with the body kits and stripes supplied, but not filled. Owners could store the bits and sell them with the car later. The bumpers were painted in the same colour as the body and were fitted with rubber inserts. Wheels were 15 x 6 lrmscher alloy units specially imported from Germany. Uniroyal Steel 60-series tyres completed the package.

There was a healthy power increase from detailed engine tuning, though emission regulations prevented the engineers from going gangbusters under the bonnet. The inlet manifold was matched to the cylinder head, The head had the inlet and exhaust ports tidied up. The combustion chambers were reshaped for improved gas flow. Larger valves were fitted, as was a high-capacity air cleaner. A dual exhaust system carried away the exhaust gases as quickly as possible.

A larger radiator was fitted to help the uprated engine keep its cool. Also installed was a heavy-duty alternator and battery. Under the bonnet was the all-important production plate, bearing the cars build number and stating that it was modified by HDT Special Vehicles.

At the rear, a heavy-duty limited-slip differential was installed.

Gearing with the four-speed manual gearbox and 336:1 final drive ratio was quite low overall and the engine had to pull more revs than was recommended for the standard car in order to reach Is top speed of 210 kmlh,

Great acceferation was the by~product of the low gearing and the HDT Commodore would reach 100 km/h in 8.4 seconds. It covered the stand;ng-start 400 metres in 16 seconds - good for its day.

The suspension was lowered and firmed up. Brock never revealed exactly what he did to the suspension, but the springs were obviously stiffer and the shocks heavier. The rear shocks were Bilstein gas-pressurised units The brakes were uprated to match the extra performance.

A Momo steering wheel bearing the car's build number and Brock's stencilled signature were prominent features of the interior. A special gearknob and a drivers footrest were installed. The VC Brock, being based on the upmarket SLE, had all the standard SLE equipment of that luxury model, including a radio/cassette.

HDT Holden

Commodore VH

A VH Commodore, dressed up and finished in bright red, was shown at the 1982 Melbourne Motor Show and it turned out to be pretty much the real thing in terms of appearance. It wasn't until later in the year the cars were officially released. Many deposits were taken before the new Brock VH was seen - the cars were already becoming a collectors item.

In time there was a base moder customers could order in red or white with matching body-coloured bumpers and grille. It was a rather plain, with very few extras, and had only the 4.2-litre V8 engine. It sold for just $13,385. Holden needed a lightweight model for homologation purposes, because CAMS racing specifications based a vehicle's racing weight on that of the base road car from which it was developed.

Four VH Brock models were planned: HDT Commodore SS Group One 4.2 V8. Group Two 4.2 V8, Group Three 4.2 V8, and Group Three 5.0 V8. Not surprisingly, few buyers were interested in anything other than the top-line model. Only a handful of 4.2-litre cars were built.

A quoted total of 322 of all the Brock VH Commodores were built and almost all of them were 5.0-litre V8s with the works. Group One cars, tor $1995 over base price, had modified suspension, high-capacity air cleaner, a heavy-duty brake master cylinder, 70-series Uniroyal Wildcat tyres on 14-inch wheels, a sports steering wheel and gear knob, and body decals. There were no body modifications.

Group Two VH Brocks cost $3250 over the price of the base car. They had blueprinted cylinder heads and exhaust extractors, chromed engine parts, gas-flowed inlet manifold, front tender splitters, a rear wing and Group Two decals.

Group Three cars were priced at $4750 over base cost. They had all of the above plus further blueprinting of engine parts and ignition system, 60-series Uniroyal Wildcat tyres on lrmscher 15-inch wheels, front airdam and side skirts. There was a rear skirt below the bumper and Group Three decals.

For $5500 above the cost of the car you could have all of the above and the 5.0-litre engine instead of the 4.2-litre.

HDT Monza

The HDT Monza V8 was one of Peter Brocks great projects, though it was eventually to flounder due to the high cost of getting it through the Australian Design Rules. Only the prototype car remains and it apparently spends most of its time under lock and key in the hands of a private owner. The Monza was a two-door, fastback design based on the Opel Senator four-door - the German car on which the 'small' Holden Commodore was based. It had a 3.0-litre straight six. Brock realised the car's potential if it was fitted with a Holden 5.0-litre V8 and had all the HDT Group Three engine and suspension changes.

He also planned to add a five-speed manual gearbox from the Corvette and rack-and-pinion steering from the Holden. It would have been a stunning coupe - but it never did happen.

The Future

Strangely, Brock Commodores aren't, as yet, really hot property on the car collectors' scene. However, it has to happen one day. Most that were built are still on the road, usually in immaculate condition. A few have been further modified into street machines, but wise owners know to keep the original parts and are generally able to restore their car to its HDT state with a little work. Some owners have further improved the engines, but kept the external appearance of the V8 stock. That way they get some more grunt to match later-model Holden V8s, but don't spoil the Brock car's special appeal.