American Reacts to 10 Muscle Cars the USA Never Got..

[@Mechanic.Pete41]

They showed the wrong monaro, they showed a HQ, the African SS was based on the HG ( and the HK and HT alike ) Monaro

[@robertleeimages]

Yeah strange they showed that 1, especially as the narrator even says rebadged HG

[@bruizey7319]

I reckon a HT or HG with that front end would get some double takes in OZ

[@mikeythehat6693]

Yeah I noticed that.

[@rickthelian2215]

The did say them selves it was H then audio dies.😊

[@andrewd7586]

@@bruizey7319A year or 2 back I saw on one of the car sites a South African rebadged Monaro for sale here in Oz.

[@Your.Uncle.AngMoh]

Peter Brock (05) and Dick Johnson (17). Non-Aussies or Kiwis cannot appreciate the rivalry between Holden (the Australian GM car) and Ford that went on here- and continues today, even though neither manufacturer produces full-size sedans anymore. I love all your Australian "stuff". I've seen several mentions in the comments on the "Hoey 3"- the Ford XY model Falcon GTHO Phase III. The 351 V8 was published as producing 300 DIN horsepower. But this was just to get the authorities off Ford's back. The true figure was closer to, or slightly in excess of, 375- or even 400, of you believe some sources. In 1971, the US was using the SAE system, which runs around 15 to 20% higher, so an equivalent engine in the US would need to be or the order of 430 to 480 HP. At 147 mph from the factory, it took the record for the fasted four-door sedan off the Mercedes Benz 350 Sel 6.3. Obscene amounts of money change hands for these cars- over 1 million Aussie dollars. The ultra limited GHTO Pase IV, is even more special to Ford fans. Those two Chevy SS's. the first one was based on the 1971 to 1974 HQ series, the second on either the HG or HT from 1967 to 1971. 20:30 The "ss" is "Aussie" is pronounced as a "zed". As a 'Murican, you will win friends here knowing that! The E49 is the Charger to go for. Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) is a special division that was separate from Holden itself. Based on the regular Holden Commodore and the long-wheelbase Statesman, HSV tarted up the exterior and interior and tuned the engines to give tyre-shredding performance in a road-registerable vehicle.

[@johnvender]

When he showed the model ranges for Aussie cars he missed the panel vans, very big here in those days. They came in muscle versions with Sandman from Holden, Sundowner from Ford and Drifter from Chrysler.

[@ianmontgomery7534]

Also completely missed the Torana.

[@johnvender]

Yeah, at the very least the SLR 5000 and A9X should have been there and the XU-1 is worthy of a place too.

[@davidmatchett2947]

I had a 318 Fireball Hemi powered Drifter Van . I later swapped in a 340 Hemi small block . It was a weapon. White with the blue to black large stripe package . 1 of 5 in that spec.Wish I still had it.

[@fistovuzi]

man, i miss the Shaggin Wagons. they were everywhere when i was a kid.

[@edstar83]

My first car (was a black Ford Cortina with a 250 crossflow.

[@Gordon-r4h]

The most Iconic an Recognised Oz Car EVER... "The Mad Max Falcon"

[@stringpicker5468]

The Valiant Charger E39 was a race design. One of my teachers had one that was taken to Bathurst and never raced and it went. Triple double choke carb is how. One throat per cylinder.

[@unclebrentsshed4253]

Did you notice how ford emphasised that the gtho was the quickest 4 DOOR at the time. They said this because the 6 cylinder charger was only 0.02 seconds slower

[@gordonpkm7560]

Barra6 237mph t,s 6.0.45...1/4 m..

[@helmuthschultes9243]

The Valiant Charger was definitely a popular performance car in Australia. The model was also used by police especially the highway patrol in NSW. There they got a boosted performance engine, special 300 Kg lead weight in the boot to improve highspeed handling and improve traction under leadfoot power takeoff, for better pursuit. I in those days had a Suzuki LJ50 Jimny 4WD, a tiny 3 Cyl 540cc two stroke engine with around 33 hp, that sadly needed a repair needing parts from Japan, caused by the dealer workshop after some defective service repair work. I had to over two weeks drive my bosses wife's Ex-police pursuit model, Valiant Charger, all orange paint job, borrowed to keep me mobile while without my little Suzi. After driving this for two weeks, with ample ' kick in the pants' go power I picked up my now ready Suzuki. Letting the boss's wife drive off in her car, as mine was returned to me. On engaging 1st gear, and driving off, my first reaction was having missed being in gear. Engine reved up to say 7000 rpm, no sensation of acceleration, as the Suzi barely rolled away. After driving with heaps of tyre squealing power available for over two weeks, going to beyond 50 kph, before even bothering to up shift gears that free wheeling high performance 6 Cyl Hemi easily pushed power to high revs without any effort. By comparison the tiny 540cc Two Stroke low power, but with matching high ratio 1st gear, only accelerated you to a bit over 3 kph and high revs, before needing to up gear range, till top gear, 4th, allowed 80 kph at some 7500rpm and speedo red line indication. In reality you could push that three cylinder, glorified motor bike engine over 10,000 rpm and have speedo at end stop, with road speed at around 100 kph. No need to say in 1st gear, it was as if you had no gear engaged, compared to the punch of Charger takeoff. Case of big difference of performance car vs NO Performance 4WD. Just in 4WD the Suzuki would do far more than the Charger, which was impossible driving on even rough dirt roads, a number of police pursuits failed as the persued drivers took off into rougher unsealed side roads. Just poor ground clearance and suspension travel limits.

[@TheDodgeFactor]

Don't know about the Chargers not being good on dirt roads. I've had mine sideways many a time on them. And I used to drive the dirt roads out where I was rather than the sealed ones, for 2 very good reasons. The dirt, and no cops.🤫

[@joelfeuerreiter703]

Loved the LJ50...laid mine down on its side resting on some tyres in the shed one weekend and raised the height to fit Desert Duelers. Snapped a few axles pulling wheel stands from reverse to first and would get up on two wheels around corners, went absolutely anywhere and everywhere off road. She was a super cool little ringa dinga of a buzz box ❤

[@rossbrumby1957]

300kg in the boot? You're dreaming. Like chasing bad guys with 4 coppers in the car, but most of that weight behind the back wheels! Massive oversteer and wheelstands on launches. Had a charger in the 80's, handled fine on 7" mags and monroe gt130's all round. Bitchy or dirt- was raised in a country town on dirt roads. Only city people cant handle them no matter what car.

[@GreenCrim]

Ford Australia shipped the up spec version of the Falcon, the Fairmont, to South Africa in the 60's and 70's. Falcon GTs were sold there and badged as Fairmont GT, which was technically more accurate as GTs were built from Fairmont spec cars.

[@Rob-fc9wg]

The South African GTHO was called the Super Rhino.

[@paulhoughton654]

also south africa had xy gt falcon rebadged as xy gt fairmont.

[@Holden308]

With the Monaro's original run in Australia (1968-1977), the GTS models were powered by the 5.7L 350 Chevy V8, except the original HK model which had the 5.3L 327 Chevy V8. The Monaro SS models (from 1969) were powered by Holden's own 5.0L 308 V8.

[@davidcarter4247]

Australian motor journalist Peter Wherrett, who had a TV show called Torque, had some scathing things to say at the time about the Charger E49. The example he tested had brakes (drums at rear) that grabbed unevenly, throwing the car off line. The suspension was donkey cast semi-elliptical leaf springs and the steering was recirculating ball for that "I wonder where the wheels are pointing" thrill. Throw in heaps of power and there was a reason E49s figured frequently in news bulletins about fatal road accidents. Valiants generally had a tendency to split in two in a crash and the Charger was no different . More than any other Australian muscle car, the Charger drove efforts to banish them from the road. The Charger was the cheapest of the muscle cars, so tended to have more inexperienced drivers and more crashes.

[@charlesemerson6763]

The car they showed for SA was a HG Monaro with the different grill and the 350Cui Chevy. We also did the standard 4 door Kingswood and the top of the line Brougham for SA. When the HQ came out we supplied the same cars to South Africa, New Zealand and the middle east, mainly Saudi Arabia. The big change was the engines with the 186Cui straight 6 now the 202Cui, the option of the 250CuiV8, the 308Cui V8 and the 350Cui. The Brougham model was dropped and the Statesman/ DeVille models came on. By 1973 the 350 engine was only available in export models and all Aussie models had the 308 V8/250V8 or 202 6clyinder.

[@6226superhurricane]

253ci v8 aka the thong slapper

[@Nicholas.610]

Great video! Growing up in Australia in the 70's it was mainly a 2 horse race, Holden or Ford. Chrysler built a few nice ones too, including a station wagon called the 'Safari', huge land yacht! It was a tribal thing, it was about what your dad had, your uncle had, and people were quite passionate about their brand.

[@randyakshon3890]

I was always a Valiant guy, they used to call them wog chariots in OZ lol, i loved them

[@goldreverre]

@@randyakshon3890 hahaha... I remember the name was always said with an Italian accent "Valianta mate"... I had several of them back in the day, including a VG 770, a Charger, both with the 318 V8 and a couple of 6 cylinder models in the late 70's too.

[@randyakshon3890]

They were the best OZ cars, the only engine i never had was the 340 unfortunately

[@Maverick-cl2lt]

I am Australian and have a Town & Country ute with the 265 Hemi. It's good to see the Valiants getting a bit of street cred. They truly were outstanding cars.

[@markchilcott719]

Valiant had a whole propaganda machine against them from GM-H and Ford. " Valiants rust, no resale etc. " All the Australian cars of the day were like that ! In good times, they were manufactured in a hurry and little quality control

[@michaelcrane2475]

The South Africans built their own versions of English and Australian cars that weren't available elsewhere which I wish we got. For example the Pirana Capri. The English ones had either V4's, straight fours or V6's. The South African ones had 302 v8s. The Capri was about the size of a Ford Pinto. They also had 3litre V6 Ford Cortinas. We got them with 1.6litre four cylinders. But they also put Chevelle fronts on the Aussie Holden Monaros and had GT Falcons with different bits, badging etc to the original Australian cars.

[@TheDodgeFactor]

We also got the Cortinas with the 2 litre OHC Pinto motor, the 200 and 250 Falcon 6 with either a 3 speed floor shift manual for the 200, or auto, a 4 speed or auto for the 250.

[@michaelcrane2475]

If I was a Ford fan I would be excited for you Brother. But watching Ian I learned the South African Monaros had Holden 308 engines. In my opinion the best sounding V8 ever built and they haven't been produced since the 1990s. So get your hands on one or two of those engines and sell them back to the Aussies. @@TheDodgeFactor

[@TheDodgeFactor]

@@michaelcrane2475 The A9X ran 308s. Have a look at Brockys last race at Bathurst in one and what he did with it. And I doubt that there would be any 308s in SA worth the trouble. We've still got plenty here.

[@michaelcrane2475]

Oh I know all about the mighty 308 and what it was in. I was at Bathurst in 1992 when all the Holdens were running chevs. Except one. Larry Perkins was still running one. And it sounded so much sweeter than the fake Holdens with Chev motors.@@TheDodgeFactor

[@TheDodgeFactor]

@@michaelcrane2475 Yep. Perkins is an engineering freak. Must be all the vintage tractors he has! Makes me laugh when I see Commies with a Chev badge. I've got a factory C10, 454,T400 and 12 bolt that looks, well,as stock as one can look, and I love nothing more than pointing out that it's actually a Chev, not a Chev powered Commodore. And it eats HSVs. There's a couple of young bucks on the Warrego Highway that found that out when I smoked the tyres at 100 ks when they tried to crowd me because I passed them. It's pulling 490 at the wheels with a torque curve in similar numbers or something like that 😁

[@velocityjet1884]

The 1971 GT-HO Phase 3 was actually 380HP, due to insurance premiums, etc Ford had to underpower the GTHO on paper and change the GT-HO as HO From HIGH OUTPUT, to HANDLING OPTION,

[@faampie]

That Valiant Charger was available in SA as the Valiant Barracuda

[@Kawasaki1-m4l]

Holden Torana, the first to take a 4cyl, 6cyl or 8cyl engine by simply changing the engine mounts.

[@garchompy_1561]

dont knock an inline 6, theyre mad engines consistently, shame people in america didnt build them in the aftermarket as much as they focused on the V8. The barra, RB26, 1 and 2JZ, XK series, OM606, the new hurricane from dodge/jeep, etc, etc, etc. time and time again the inline 6 has come through as being a good layout for power output.

[@nickrgsi]

Barra, Barra, Barra🤩

[@combr]

About the opala, acutally it means opal in portuguese. Is one of the most important rocks in brazil, we are known for the outstanding quality of our opal exports so chevy chose the name to pay tribute to brazil and to make a statement here is a 100% brazilian made chevy car.

[@derekgrayjr]

Good video. Other cars worthy of a mention which were not in the video include the 1) South African mk1 Ford Capri built by Basil Green Motors. It started with a 3.0 V6 and then it was replaced with the Windsor V8 from the Mustang. 2) Again from South Africa, a Ford Sierra XR8 with a 5.0 litre V8 from the Mustang.

[@thembanjoko2844]

Oh yeah, the Capri Perana.

[@sporkfindus4777]

Great video. On that Can-Am Firenza from SA, I recommend looking up videos about Baby Bertha, the Vauxhall HP Firenza with DTV livery raced in the BTCC by Gerry Marshall, prepared by Bill Blydenstein and using Holden V8 power. That thing absolutely cleaned up!!!

[@colingoode3702]

Ditto that. Loved watching Gerry Marshall race the DTV cars back in the day & of course Baby Bertha . To replace it they made Mega Bertha which is based on a MK1 Cavalier which has now got 8.5L 800hp V8 in it. It was never raced but it gets outing at the Goodwood Festival & the like. Side exhausts ahead of the front wheels & a fabulous noise!!

[@sporkfindus4777]

Mega Bertha looks gorgeous. The Cavalier Coupe/Manta B was such a clean shape. Shame it never turned a wheel in anger in the day. I would also have loved to have seen Big Bertha race in the day before Gerry crashed her, but then there wouldn't have been Baby Bertha without that sacrifice!

[@Wok86]

22:06 1978 Ford Falcon XC Cobra. This my hill, and I will die on it.

[@fugawiaus]

302 or 351 version? What about the goss?

[@davidb1630]

Hi, Ian, at 13 minutes in, the South African SS was not a rebadged HQ Monaro it was the HK to HG Monaro before the HQ. We also sold them the ute versions and called them the El Camino ute

[@gsmith8098]

Forgotten hero.... Leyland P76 👍

[@mikeparkes7922]

Lol! NEVER a muscle car!

[@JosephCowen-ru7up]

Yes the Buick small block was a grate motor in the P76

[@JosephCowen-ru7up]

​@@mikeparkes7922the two door P76 was !

[@TheDodgeFactor]

Bit of trivia. The Noble ran a 5 litre, fuel injected Rover V8, originally developed from the baby 215 Buick motor. All alloy.

[@JosephCowen-ru7up]

@@TheDodgeFactor bit of triva , the all alloy rover/Buick v8 was the birth place of the Buick V6, they sliced off two cylinders and created a V6 , that is why the buick V6 is 90 deg bank angle with a Ballance shaft , not 60 deg as a normal V6 should be , Buick made the Alloy 215 ci (3.5 litre) in 1962 then enlarged it to 300ci with a alloy block and iron heads , then 340ci with iron block and heads and finally a 350ci Buick were they redesigned the heads with big block Buick port locations , same block as 340. In that time they sold the engine to the Roots group in England which included Rover and Leyland , Leyland Australia got hold of it but thought 3.5 litres was a bit small for Australia so they increased the block deck height and bore /stroke and brought out the Leyland P76 and also the Leyland P76 Coupe the Force 7 of which not that many came to market . The tall deck Aussie block can be bored and stroked to 5.8litres at least, the Buick V6 lasted till 2008 in the US and 2005/6 in Australia in the Holden Commodore , Australia was the only late model market that used this motor in North south rear wheel drive format , in the US was a front wheel drive only format , and the 3.8 was not the biggest Buick V6 that was the 4.3 Buick V6.

[@Flamebeard0815]

The Firenza Can-Am was basically an Opel Manta A, which was itself the coupe version of the Ascona A. You should know the last one from the 70s Rally videos.

[@sporkfindus4777]

Vauxhall Firenza, not Opel Manta A

[@Kivas_Fajo]

I absolutely love the Video coming from a corner expanding bigger and bigger from that corner effect. Nice! Really very nice!

[@nelsondawson9706]

The most expensive gtho is actually a phase IV which last sold for around 2 million AUD

[@datwistyman]

God dam sexy as. The xb gt red with back stripes is one of the best looking cars ever made I reckon. If I had to pick between the gtho phase3 or the HK Monaro or the xb it would be very very close, I love them all. 👍

[@OZI-OZI-OZI]

Pity the charger was quicker tho,lol,

[@fistovuzi]

the "1 of 1"? two million sounds like a bargain. it might be one of the 3 prototypes but i doubt it, any that survive would be on display by Ford somewhere.

[@petersajkic6749]

​@@fistovuzione registered owned by a retired dentist in Sydney.and 2 race cars in private hands the 4th was written off many years ago.ford don't own any

[@fistovuzi]

@@petersajkic6749 i heard one of the prototypes got written off but i didn't know what happened to the other two. one of the "private hands" is probably John Laws, lol.

[@LinaGenX]

Here in Norway you learn to drive with a stick shift. Stick shift is still very common, and when renting a car, stick shifts cars cost way less. I guess mist ppl never fell in love with the automatic gear like you dud in the US. It's the same way in most European countries

[@moparsrule862]

Brilliant, absolutely enjoyed this, only wish it covered more, when I was in South Africa I spotted a 71 Demon but it was called a Valiant Charger and a 67 Barracuda with Dodge on it if I remember correctly, this was many years ago, I'll put my 5 cents in and say 68 Chargers get my vote

[@callumv9758]

I live in Australia and I can confirm the charger rt is certainly the best Aussie made muscle car for the era. We still have them drag racing at mopar Sunday event and they dominate everything and followed closely by the Chrysler centura if they are built for it

[@markchilcott719]

Aussie Valiant Charger r/T e49 4 speed big tank was the best Aussie supercar never to win Bathurst. Chrysler Australia didn't have the money to race it properly against Ford ,+ Holden who spent squillions on their race programme. Should not have sold my charger, would love a genuine Bathurst Charger . . . .

[@bendobie1042]

As an Aussie I really loved this vid, and it makes me happy you guys loved our cars.. I'm a Mopar man aswell, I had a beautiful 70 vg valiant hardtop. Basically a dart body, 245 straight six hemi.. 3spd auto, great car. Shouldn't have sold her

[@chriss2948]

I'm an Aussie, and my first car was a 1972 charger 770. It was 1996 when I bought it. And the best part. It was owned by one person. A little old lady that bought it brand new and kept it garaged its entire life except for trips to the supermarket. It still had the wooden blocks under the driver seat her late husband put there so she could see over the dashboard!!

[@ianmontgomery7534]

the Australian equivalent of the Brazilian Charger would be the VF Valiant 770 V8 two door Mexico (it had the same buttresses).

[@Lext87]

You missed the South African Ford Sierra XR8

[@area51isreal71]

Best Aussie muscle car? There were so many that choosing is difficult. The Falcon GT's were frigging awesome with their incredible fire power. But the Torana GTR-XU-1 and Charger E38 and E49 represented a ground up approach. The fact that the LC and LJ Torana's that was designed to have a four cylinder engine ended up with a redesigned body to accommodate a six cylinder engine was a bold move that payed off big time. A market smash that ended up creating a new market segment. Highly successful in rally and circuit racing added to the mystique. The Charger was dreamt up under the cover of darkness, money was skimmed off a new model programme to create it. It got to the point were it was so far developed that Detroit just had to allow it. Imagine these days a manufacturer sending a car to Italy to be tuned for Webber carbies. Chrysler Australia did just that. The Charger and Torana for my money, Aussie ingenuity, determination and sticking their necks out made them happen. I am glad they broke cover and made it onto the scene.

[@stephenanthony6508]

There was a mechanic who worked for Mercedes in Sth Melbourne, he put a v8 in his xu1, a Chevy 307. I worked at a tyre joint next door to them. I had an ap5 slant 6, 245. Great car, brought it for $50.

[@hemichump]

the Torana was good with the 4 to 6 cylinder switch but the chrysler centura with a 4 cylinder to start but ended with a 4ltr hemi 6

[@rossbrumby1957]

@@stephenanthony6508 do you mean you replaced the slant with a 245? I did that with an ap5 that i shortened by 800mm- cut and shut the front n rear doors to make a 2 door you drove from the back seat. VJ disc brake stubs and vj diff, vj power tandem brakes, diff welded under the springs to make room for the 10.5r15's. Was a great fun swamp car backbin the 90's. Still have videos of the races.

[@atrothe]

The best performance car in Australia is a six cylinder Barra turbo. They make big HP with very little modification. They are turbine smooth, beautifully balanced, fuel efficient and have thumping torque and power. An FG or FX turbo G6E turbo or XR is going to be a collector car , no doubt about it and the G6E Turbo is a sweet comfortable power ride with great safety stats. Fantastic fuel economy on the highway. The best GT ever made in Australia. The best being the 50th anniversery editions with their fantastic award winning leather interior. Even on their optional factory 19" rims the G6E turbo is a very comfortable car. I can drive a 1000 klm in a day and feel fine at the end. The overtaking performance is exhilerating alonf with 7.8 litres per 100 klm.

[@hemichump]

@@atrothe HAHAHAHA only took Ford how long to develop the a high performance straight six

[@baddaddy8718]

I was a bit shocked there wasn’t an LX Torana hatch in that list. So many sweet looking muscle cars around from the 70’s here in Australia, it’s really hard to pick a best whether it’s a falcon, charger, Monaro or a Torana

[@cameronwalter997]

The Torrie was hard to beat on the track in it's day

[@markchilcott719]

Golden era for good engineering, then the clowns in Canberra (masquerading as a government) dropped import tariffs. CLOWNS! Great engineers took a 4 cyl Vauxhall Viva then used the body shell, added longer front subframes etc etc AND the Holden red motor 161 (2600s) 186, 202 cubic inch - some with triple carburettors. Won BATHURST.

[@matthewleonardi247]

My uncle has a LC gtr with a 355 it’s tough as runs low 9s down the quarter

[@baddaddy8718]

@@matthewleonardi247 I watched a beautiful standard GTR run a 14.80 at the creek Wednesday night at race for real. Such a little beast even as a 6, and a freaking awesome car just to look at.

[@PeDr0.UY131]

Hermosas las Opala Wagon,🤩 Here in Uruguay they were almost exclusively used by the highway police.(policia caminera)

[@macman1469]

In the 50s and 60s General Motors seemed to come in 3 sizes . Small ( British Vauxhall ) , medium ( Australian Holden ) and large ( American Chevrolet) .

[@magnuslundstedt2659]

You forgot the Germans, Opel. In all sizes.

[@MiKe-b9y2b]

The green one was in Austria the Opel Kadett C (GM Brand in Germany) mostly the young people in 1990 drive one it was used cheap and good drive and comfort, the girls like them. I am over 42 so when I was kid I see a lot of them. greetings from Austria

[@RafaelFerreiraChannel]

Ahh, the Opala! Here in Brazil people are used to make the original straight-six go for 1000hp figures. There are some adapted with small blocks (305/350), but it usually doesn't pay off.

[@AMV12S]

Inline sixes generally can take more boost than V8's because of being more stable on the primary/secondary vibrations and having more main bearings, V12's too. That's why it have so many powerful Supras and Skylines, maybe that's why it doesn't pay off...

[@HGSolberg]

The first gen Opalas are beautiful cars. Of course, we have equivalent Opel Rekord C/Opel Commodore A here in Europe, and I love those too. But I would really love to have an early Opala coupe here in Norway. That would have been cool. Brazil is a bit far to travel to find a used car though. :)

[@Jonsson474]

It was just a rebadged German Opel Rekord.

[@RafaelFerreiraChannel]

@@Jonsson474 Redesigned*, and better. The original Opel Rekord couldn't handle the GM 250-S used in the Opala. Rekords were made to use a very weak 4 cylinder originally. GM Brazil redesigned the subframe and suspension, and made the obvious facelift.

[@eelco1982]

​@RafaelFerreiraChannel that's not entirely true...yes the Rekord had only 4 cilinders but the Opel Commodore was based on that chassis as well and accomodated an inline six with similar power figures. In '68 the GSE had up to 150 hp out of a 2800 engine. Now lawnmowers have more but in the days they were serious business.

[@TheDodgeFactor]

Just a little bit that isn't that known about with the Aussie Charger. All the development for it was done using a shortened ute and most of the handling/brake and suspension development was done by a top level race driver named Leo Geoghegan.

[@nobodyhome8148]

The main difference between USA and our Aussie muscle cars is that you could drive ours around corners 😝

[@Flamebeard0815]

Regarding the Chevrolet Opala and a small V8: They put the Chevy 283 (and the Chevy 327, for that matter) in some of the highend Opel sedans. That engine should fit into the bay of the Opala with a little elbow grease.

[@williamhardes8081]

love your work. some info for the non Aussies. the XA, B and C falcons were the first of Ford Australia's fully designed and engineered series of cars as were all those coming after them. as the guy said, the Aussie GTHO Phase 3 was the fastest sedan in the world and also faster over the quarter than any other world wide. they are now regarded as legendary by just about every Aussie petrol head. The drivers would pick them up from the factory ready to race and use the drive to Bathurst to run them in. one recently sold for more than $1,000,000 at auction. BTW. i have no idea why they missed it but South Africa got a 2 door version of the Aussie XY Falcon with a big block. Dammit!

[@TheDodgeFactor]

Are you sure that wasn't Bill Bourke's personal car? A black XY Phase 3 with a 429 stuffed in it when he was CEO of Ford Australia.

[@Expedient_Mensch]

Dude, The VH R/T charger was faster than the GTHO over the quarter mile, AND only six cylinders.

[@TheDodgeFactor]

Fun fact for you. The HO wasn't the fastest 4 door sedan in the world. That's just hearsay. The fastest was the Mercedes 6.9 sedan, built at the same time. It has a top speed of over 155 miles per hour. Go ahead, look it up. The facts are all there for you.

[@TheDodgeFactor]

@@Expedient_Mensch Still is. I've got an E49 that I love upsetting the rice burners and the so called factory hot cars with when they try it on. And if that fails, I've got a 1200 HP Silverado that will clear up any misconceptions. Ask the two young guys in their HSVs that tried to run me on the highway from Brisbane. Smoking the tyres at 100 ks when they're trying to crowd me from behind and besides me didn't work out so well for them. And yes, they were trying to carjack me. Rather than drive through them and wreck my ute, I just nailed it and left them for dead. And a couple have tried the same bullshit with the Charger. All I'll say is that they're lucky that I didn't have my arborists equipment with me. And that most of these types of dickheads can't drive for shit.

[@Expedient_Mensch]

Yeah, I have a big mutha-f'ing bullbar on my Pajero just for these dickheads, they really shit bricks when it is obvious that it's too late to stop, and I'm still hauling. Not sure about the Merc thing, I understood that the HO'y had the record until the Porsche came along in the 80's or there abouts, but I don't really know that to be fact. @@TheDodgeFactor

[@HGSolberg]

A friend of mine had a Vauxhall Magnum 2300 back in the 1980s, which is the same car as the Vauxhall/Chevy Firenza, just in sedan body style insted of coupe. (All these cars are basically Vauxhall Vivas.) It had a 130 hp 2.3 liter 4 cylinder, which was the largest engine available in those cars here i Europe. I drove that car a couple of times. It's a very small and light car, and it was reasonably quick even with 130 Hp. At least by that era's standards. It's such a small car that even with the 2.3 liter 4 cylinder it was a bit front heavy and understeered in tight corners. I can't even imagine how that car would handle with a z28 302 in it. It sure must have been fast. A real beast of a car.

[@dalelc43]

Australian Chargers also came with 318 & 340 V8

[@johnd8892]

Also the 360 V8, but all less powerful than the E49. The weight of the V8s made them handle worse, so Chrysler developed the six for racing

[@TheDodgeFactor]

​​@@johnd8892Never had the 360 in a Charger. It was reserved for the luxo barges. Or the VH Hardtop, and the Chrysler by Chrysler Hardtop. The 340 was intended for the stillborn E55 and ended up as an asthmatic 2 barrel with an auto.

[@johnd8892]

@@TheDodgeFactor they only had a limited number of 340 engines. Then they standardised on the 360 for the 770 Charger as in this road test from the time : kzbin.info/www/bejne/qmfccqKwndKjbKcsi=xCcGyedAj85s78kY

[@TheDodgeFactor]

@@johnd8892 300 340s, the only 360 was the test exercise and if you delve a little further in to it, you'll see why the 360 was never a production car. And the amount of work that it took to make the 340 E55 handle was insane.

[@johnd8892]

@@TheDodgeFactor do some research yourself . Wikipedia explains the changes. 360 not for racing just simple production. As you have been told elsewhere here, not just by me

[@LeonRaymond-yo1te]

With the Brazilian Opela bung a set of tripple Carbs it and you've got a Brazilian XU1Torry!!!

[@peterblair6489]

I finally know. Ive been trying to figure out for years, if Mad Max's car was xb or xc. Theyre very similar.

[@noelgibson5956]

In the movie, the dashboard should have been the obvious giveaway........ they're totally different.

[@peterblair6489]

@@noelgibson5956 Really. I'm gonna check that. I thought they were the same. Just different headlights, which were changed.

[@jkbdk6723]

Don't know if this classify as a muscle car, but the Jensen Interceptor v8 383, my uncle owned one years ago.

[@DiGiDaWgZs]

I don't think there's any doubt about the Jensen. It fits all the muscle car criteria. Also the Euro Spec 1977 Aston Martin V8 Vantage outMustanged Mustangs and was quite rapid. whilst for some reason the U.S. version was anemic.

[@jeffreyflynn2805]

Crashed one into a swamp back in 83, it belonged to a friends father and we were NOT supposed to be driving it!

[@johnd8892]

Muscle cars usually based on affordable mass produced cars. The 383 and 440 Jensen Interceptor and FF were not that. Neither were the numerous Italian GT cars using the simplicity of a US or even Australian V8.

[@matth4638]

Seriously we just did it better across the board. Check out the lines and look of our cars here in Australia. Dimensionally ours just hit right.

[@TheDodgeFactor]

A mate, years ago said that if you wanted to build the best car ever as a standard sedan type effort, then you would use Chrysler mechanicals, Ford interiors and Holden bodies. And being the owner of a wrecking yard, he did just that. And I know the beast still exist, buried in a shed somewhere. HQ Munro body, warmed over 318, 4 speed BorgWarner, Halibrand quick change rear end. And it hauled. And very few had any idea what the hell was under the bonnet and was kicking the shit out of everything.

[@constantineb6433]

OUR DESIGN WAS V8 IN MEDIUM SIZE COMPARED TO AMERICAN. WHICH GAVE OUR CARS SUPERIOR HANDLING. NO ARGUMENT WHEN LATEST MUSTANG /CAMARO WHEELBASE ARE FALCON AND MONARO.

[@constantineb6433]

​@@user-mj5vx8xj8tGUESS YOU DONT REALISE THE FALCON WAS THE QUICKEST 4 DOOR PRODUCTION IN THE WORLD. PLUS LATEST MUSTANG /CAMARO WHEELBASE ARE FROM AUSTRALIA'S FALCON AND MONARO. OUR MUSCLE CARS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN SUPERIOR IN HANDLING AS WE CHOOSE SMALLER CHASSIS FOR V8s

[@xerodelacroix5552]

You can build a pretty convincing Interceptor replica out of a Torino with some '73 Mustang parts.

[@mattayc266]

South Africa got a lot of cool cars while England only got a few but still not as tasty as in SA

[@michealriseley6261]

Great video, nice to see you repping the Falcon of Johnson and the Commodore of Brock behind you. And the Calais badge too!

[@baddaddy8718]

There’s a real hot replica of Greens Tuff getting around Penrith these days, a true head turner for sure

[@michealriseley6261]

@baddaddy8718 I live on Queensland, the Bowden Collection is about 5 minutes up the road, the real Tru-Blu and the reborn Greens-Tuff are both there

[@Quantum-Omega]

Thanks for the video from an Aussie car enthusiast we love the old Ford's, some I would like you to view is the Ford Falcon XA, XB, XC 4 door sedans, 2 door coupe and Panel Vans, the other one, the beast, a Ford Landau, and XC FORD COBRA.

[@cudwieser3952]

it isn't the number of cylinders but what you can get from each. TVR did 4 litre 6 pots which were good for 350-400 hp.

[@paulthompson1654]

At 12.48 is a Holden HQ 1971--74 ... At 23.42 are Holden models HK HT HG 1968--71 Both have there South African versions . Holdens were sold in Indonesia , Japan ,England also

[@Phiyedough]

I didn't know about that Firenza but I do remember the UK Vauxhall Firenza. It was a coupé version of The Viva HC, the smallest Vauxhall until the Chevette was introduced in 1975.

[@ianmontgomery7534]

The Chev SS sales were deliberate. they only wanted to sell 15,000 of them. When we did the prototype instrument clusters we were told that the entire run would be no more than 15K so that is why they did not advertise them. I think the reasoning was the overall fuel average for chev vehicles (in California I think) - if they sold more of the SS then it would have increased their overall consumption figure.

[@IWrocker]

Sounds accurate, just a annoying scenario because I would’ve loved more of these around the US and to able to find one easier to buy

[@ianmontgomery7534]

@@IWrocker yeah I bought the electronic components for the instrument cluster prototypes and lead-ins for the VF and Chev SS. The cluster was roughly based on the Chev Malibu and so it shared a lot of components.

[@brrebrresen1367]

i see the Firenza Can-AM mentioned several times of the SA "muscle-cars" but one that gets little attention from down there is Ford Capri Perana V8. i had an Capri 3.0S and that thing was a handfull for that frame, would not think how it would bee with a V8 from a Mustang under the bonnet.

[@thewoomelanghotel8756]

That South African SS is not modeled on the HQ Monaro shown but the HG/HT Monaro 1968 to 1971. Fact!! And you can tell from the rear slope over the quarter window. Unfortunately the e49 charger was eclipsed by the Phase 3 GTHO in Australia as they were brought out at the same time. The Phase 3 was, and still is the favourite here, but the charger was genuinely a BEAST.

[@MazdaMotion]

Wow your back ground tripped me out with your accent lol! Had to do a double take and make sure it was really toranas and the greens tuf falcon, great taste in cars man 👍🏻

[@OptimalToast]

Growing up in the 80's in Australia and loving cars, man that was such a sweet time. So many different type of muscle cars that'd turn your head and ones you'd hear miles away and have you and your mates guessing amongst each other what they were. Times have changed, not that many head turners around anymore, but like any car guy, I still do the same. That Brazilian '74 Chevrolet Opala SS looks pretty cool, kind of wish we got that down here.

[@70chevs]

When you look at certain models of the Opala you can see body lines similar to HK to HG Holden Monaros. GM manufacturers around the world definitely borrowed ideas and parts from each other. South Africa also got Holden utes that were badged as Chev El Caminos.

[@magnuslundstedt2659]

The Opala is a rebadged Opel Commodore.

[@70chevs]

@@magnuslundstedt2659 Australia didn't get rebadged Commodores till 1978 and didn't get the 2 door model only 4 doors and wagons, different grille and Holden badges but they were built in Australia. Compare a 1969 Opala Commodore to Australian Holdens of 1969 they were completely different but certain body lines were similar.

[@magnuslundstedt2659]

@70chevs yea. The Holdens usually differ in some ways from the Opels, even if some models and generations are more or less the same, others have only design langua and style in common. But the Cheverolet Opala is not based on Holden. it's based on the Opel Commodore from Germany. And there where no Opala Commodore. It was Opel Commodore and Cheverolet Opala. Opel Commodore was built I Germany, with a German inline 6 while the Cheverolet Opala was built in South America with a US based inline six.

[@noelinsley8057]

The Aussie Charger also came with a 318cui V8 and was used by the Sth Aust Highway Patrol...

[@andrewh9613]

I think the 1976-8 770 charger also had a 360 V8 option

[@JosephCowen-ru7up]

And the 360 and 340

[@TheDodgeFactor]

Last time on the Chargers. Never had a 360 V8. 318 and the 340 which was in the E55.

[@TheDodgeFactor]

​@@andrewh9613No.

[@TheDodgeFactor]

​@@JosephCowen-ru7upNo.

[@jameslaidler2152]

Back in the 70s my Dad rented one of the Aussie Chargers when he was going somewhere business related. He's driving down a country highway (we have them all over here) and the front left wheel came off. Thank you Avis. Anyway, off the road he went, into a tree, giving his head a bit of a bonk. The people in the house he crashed in front of pulled him out, sat him in the kitchen and gave him a cup of tea while he called Avis to tell them what happened. It's not a myth dude, any country with a heavy British influence really does do the whole cup of tea thing when things go to pot. Anyway he was alright, the car wasn't. Again, thank you Avis.

[@VampyrMygg]

It's interesting how many unique models you'll find in places like Brazil and South Africa, and not just with US brands. like.. South Africa got a unique BMW E30, one with a 3.3 liter engine, so the BMW E30 333i, instead of getting the M3. They also got a special South Africa only model of the Ford Sierra, the Ford Sierra XR8, here in Europe we got the XR4i which had a 2.8 V6, and later XR4x4 which was an AWD version of the XR4i The South African Sierra XR8 had a 302 V8... I wish we had gotten this model in Europe.

[@dilligaf4219]

love the fact that behind you is a pic of Brocky's 05 (may he rest in peace) ultimate king of the mountain, he won the race 9 times, no one will ever match that again

[@helmuthschultes9243]

Sure missed several great performance cars from Australia. The many models released as specials, to get into Bathurst would one group. Monaro, which a South Africa variant mentioned, and above all Torana muscle car versions would on such list.

[@nobodyhome8148]

Yeah those v8 Torana A9X were Awesome beasts !

[@Zarthaz1]

Yah, had a mate who had a HG Bathurst Monaro which as soon as he hit the road with it, it got taken off again. Was dark blue and I think it was HG, it's a long time ago now. Another mate (Robert iirc) had the XU-1 and Mick had a SLR 5000. Those were the days, I just get around in a sedate VF SS Commodore these days lol. The old cars had so much more character

[@fugawiaus]

That ‘72 Dodge Charger R/T looks identical to the vf Chrysler valiant regal 770 hardtop v8 from Australia.

[@adrianmclean9195]

Valiant pacer

[@myresponsesarelimited7895]

Still remember an old lady who drove that exact one, colour and all, 318s ran 135hp and although two cylinders less- 265s run 130hp so you can see how six pack 265s were pretty wild, also straight six is one of the best configurations for engine balance.

[@Retiredroamers]

R/T Charger was and still is the best looking and performing Aussie muscle car of that era.

[@stanleywiggins5047]

Way back when I had a XB Ford (not a GT but a GS ) a 302 with a 30/70 cam & a Hollie 4 barrel double pumper on top (not standard) Another fun fact (you might know or not) the Valiant Charger had a big ass boot / trunk. It can take a 44gal drum with the lid closed 😊

[@thebob3712]

I thought it was the Leyland p76 that had the big boot that took a 44gal drum

[@stanleywiggins5047]

@@thebob3712 Yea my fading memory, I did correct in a 2nd comment, with the P76.

[@lovinpa8087]

That was a Holden HT or HK Monaro GTS there was also a Holden HQ Monaro GTS and it wasn't from South Africa.

[@user-gi7fr1gv7e]

Had a friend who moved from oz to new zealand in the early 80's his dad had ford falcon xc cobra, man that car was sweet.

[@StephenStHill-si7en]

In the mid '80s in Sydney the customers at wrecking yards pulled the parts they wanted from the cars themselves. I saw a lot of Chrysler Valiant slant 6 motors with a piston rod through the block. Hi revs must have been a big temptation.

[@jeffveraart2695]

The Chevy Opala uses the same GM platform as the Opel Kadet and the Holden Torana. The Holden Torana was also produced in South Korea as the Daewoo-Chevrolet 1700.

[@peterblair6489]

HK monaro was cool. XB coupe was my fav, but the HQ ute was the most popular by far. Aussie muscle. None of them had decent brakes though. Lol

[@advanceaustralia4861]

XB had ventilated four wheel disc brakes as standard. They stop pretty good.

[@munckintattoolover24]

AUSSIE AUSSIE AUSSIE! nice video! Mate, my dad had an XB coupe (not a Gt) and my mum had an XA coupe Superbird (the model before the XB) before I was born, unfortunately. Its funny everyone drools over them now (even me) but back in the day apparently, those body shapes didn't sell too well and to get rid of the old stock ford dressed them up all sporty and gave us the XB Jon Goss Special and believe it or not the XC Cobra with the blue stripes. I found all that very interesting! Keep up the good work and also just wanted to say that the guy from that video didn't mention that another body type was available along with the ute and wagon etc was the humble panel van! Cheers!

[@scottwyatt2614]

I was in Australia in 1981 for a liberty call in the US Navy, and I saw one of those Chargers. I just stood there, staring at it, wondering what the heck it was. Now I know. Thanks.

[@lordofkiwi5144]

Sadly they missed one very nice EU muscle car, the 1977-1989 Aston Martin V8 Vantage. I love the design of this car and it got a 5.3 V8 with up to 430hp.

[@ExUSSailor]

The only one I really wish we got was the Aussie VJ Valiant Charger E49. It had a 265 c.i. version of the Slant Six, with a Hemi head, that made 302 hp.

[@ExUSSailor]

GM really let the SS down, because, they had a dynamite car, and, they put ZERO marketing behind it. The good thing is, you can still find them for a decent price, because, nobody knows about them.

[@johnd8892]

All the hemi sixes got rid of the slant. A completely new non slant engine.

[@andrewflorl5151]

I used to have one... what they laked in HP they made up for in torque... not that there wernt V8s that could beet it but I used to blow away 350s and 351s all the time with ease...12.91 quarter mile

[@TheDodgeFactor]

A stock E49 ran the quarter in just over 14 seconds, beating the XY Phase 3 by about 4-5 tenths of a second. And the Hemi sixes, tuned right could easily pull 400 HP. I had a club racer that on the metric dyno was pulling 320 kw at the wheels. My E49 I don't mess around with. It's original, stock, and smokes 10 inch tyres with ease.

[@peterwhite7252]

It was not the slant six . The slant six was fazed out.

[@MirkoC407]

What a pity no European car was shown. We had muscle cars, most of all probably the Opel Diplomat V8 - a full size sedan with a Chevrolet V8 taken from the Corvette C3. But considering how much lighter and smaller our cars were, also models like a Ford Capri V6 could qualify falling just short of 200 hp. The Brasilian Opala had also six cylinders and was featured.

[@DSP16569]

Opel (GM-owned) GT (Baby Corvette), Manta (The poor man's muscle car), Ford Capri (You mentioned it).

[@johnstimpson6834]

Had a 6cyl te Cortina, extractors, 2 throat Webber carby, worked cam, lowered sports suspension, moondish? I think mags. Tilted the bonnet up to fit the air filter in, still scaped a bit. 4spd. Metallic blue, damn that thing would move! Could smoke it up in 1st,2nd, 3rd on a dry road, even chirped in 4th :).. had many a good time in that, power to weight was ridiculous, though if you didn't floor it well kept the 2nd barrel closed it would behave like a fast street car. As a first car I blew 2gearboxes, 2 clutches and 1 & a half diffs. Believe me i must have been watched over by a higher force back in the 80's to be typing this in here today :). It was a dangerously nice feeling to be Airbourne!!(once) --driving a Datsun 180 'b' today, so we are all safe on the roads take care 😀

[@msaint187]

15:00 also had a 355 stroker option

[@rosskelly8268]

Canberra, Australia. The 1971 - 1976 Valiant Charger came with so many engine options over the years... 215 Hemi 6, 245 Hemi 6, 265 Hemi 6, 318 V8, 340 V8 and 360 V8. The performance and race 'R/T' cars were always the 6-cylinder with triple carbs. Why? Because the local Chrysler plant had spent up big on the tooling to produce big Hemi sixes that were unique to Australia, and they needed to sell them because they got more profit from promoting and selling their own engine. When you ticked the box for a 360, 340 or 318, you got a 2-barrel carb. and a T-Bar auto. There WAS a sports 360 option pack with tighter handling and minimal trim - but only the Highway Patrol could order them! Back in the day, I test drove an "ex-chaser" 360 Charger that was sitting near the back of a used car lot.... for $2995. If only I had bought it. Worth about 50+ grand now.

[@RealHooksy]

The car/xb/xc coupe are probably the best looking muscle car ever imo. I’m a Holden guy, but I like the look of these better. They were fantastic in the day, and could take about a 12in wide rear tyre in stock trim no problem. Great cars.

[@JohnSmith-rw8uh]

A lot of better looking muscle cars, especially the Yank ones, plus the cobra looks tacky af

[@RealHooksy]

@@JohnSmith-rw8uh I’ll take that as opinion

[@vcval]

In south Africa they had a demon/duster/valiant mix called a charger , the Brazilian charger with extended buttress was also made in Mexico as a dart , in 1970 the Australian vg valiant 770 was optionally available with the extended buttress and was called the Mexicana only 200 were to be made very rare now

[@firebrand2619]

I knew Highway patrolman back in the day. He preferred the Valiant charger with the 265 Hemi as it was quicker to get up to speed from a standing start, then the 351 Cleveland Ford Falcon hardtop.

[@stevenlucas1880]

Love that a9x in the background. Certainly was a favourite of mine too.

[@rosskennedy]

Australia HSV holden were best mucule cars from 80 to late 2017.

[@fugawiaus]

Dime a dozen. They’re like assholes… everyone’s got one. Hdt we’re better from Holden. Gts from ford, hemis from Chrysler.

[@jamescormack8602]

The GT HO was the best muscle car Australia produced. The Charger was dangerous because on Outback roads it got airborne on some humps resulting in deaths and write offs.

[@classicscustomsandhotrodso600]

In Chile I saw many XYGT body style Fords. Some fella near the family home had 2 in fact. There are earlier style Falcons also running around that were made in Bariloche, Argentina until the early 80’s.

[@jonsmith6982]

Valiant chargers in Aussie did in fact have a v8 model as well it had a 360 in it & sedans also had 318 & 360 fitted to them ,the six pack models were e37 e38 e49 & the 360 was a e55 .Chevy ss or Holden Monaro also came with a 327 & 253 & some that come here to NZ had 307 chev v8's in them .

[@stocksucks9281]

The E55 had the 340 cid engine.

[@jonsmith6982]

yes sorry they did ,,E57 was the 360 model & thats the only ones we got here in NZ & limo had the 360 also we got quite a few of them here in NZ ,,they all rusted bad here very few left but you see the odd one turn up ..@@stocksucks9281

[@pathogan632]

My brother had a VJ Valiant with a 440 hemi. It was 100% made in our home town in Adelaide, Australia. It was poo brown, factory paint...

[@tonydrake462]

Had a XA Coupe - (and XB and XC...) - regret sale.... but so so many Aussie mussle missing aside for the E49 charger and XA Coupe.. the Torana XU1, SLR5000, Holdern Monaro's ...and panel vans/utes...

[@damiannorris129]

Best car in Australia was the Torana A9X hatchback well made and tough

[@fugawiaus]

And yet it’s only a fraction of the value of a phase 3. Hmm how come. Hehe But seriously… a9x was fantastic and looked tough.

[@damiannorris129]

Your right the GT phase 3 is a great car and worthy of it’s title very tough car

[@carlgoldsmith5444]

Hi from New Zealand. Ex owner of a 1975 XB Ford Fairmont coupe. Interesting car to drive, especially with it's big arse. Very hard to see what was behind you. I hear they are worth a lot of money now.

[@kevinsummersford4112]

Watch from Brisbane Australia mate I love that you share the same intrest as myself and other Aussies I love my fords as well as a good Shelby mustang but I too have a soft spot for the 68,69,70 charger you guys had its like the big tough guy up against our valiant charger which is sporty but just as tough

[@GregWhite_WhiteKnightMusic]

For me the Charger 770 with the 360 v8 was the car, throw the stock suspension out and bring in some handling bits and pieces and it left the RT for dead. In Australia the 770 was the equivalent of the luxury Regal model.

[@LeonRaymond-yo1te]

Bro have you heard of the Luxury 2door falcon the Ford Landou or something like that In Australia! Very nice car for a Ford 😂🤣😂🤣

[@JosephCowen-ru7up]

Yes it was , it came in 4 door LTD as well,