32 replies to this topic

[yel327]

Wow, HJ Statesman in manual. That is a definite special order. Other than those Devilles destined for Malaysia as 202 4spd they were all standard with auto. If it was a Caprice it most likely had Leather trim, although it was possible to order a delete option to remove the leather. If it is possible to remember when it was ordered like 1974, or when you saw it, it would help possibly find it.

Edited by yel327, 28 November 2012 - 11:39 AM.

[REDA9X]

It may well have been leather. I wasn't terribly interested at the time, i was more interested in the Torana because I didn't believe there was such a thing as an auto SLR5000 at the time, and green trim! The guy was a a mate and when he told me the story behind it I said bullshit i have to see this statesman as well, it was just really to try and substitute the SLR5000 story for me being that he said it was special order.
I'm having a mental break as to whether the Statsman was gold or white, but I'm sure the trim was a gold/brown colour. I seem to remember some sort of inserts in the seats in similar colour or either velour or some sort of material, but the main seat was leather or vinyl. We drove out and had a look and here was this thing in a shed on a farm in pristine condition. We popped the bonnet and the tag clearly read M21. Inside the console had a manual surround with the four speed badge and the round black knob. I can't for the life of me remember if it was the one with the four speed logo as well but I do have a feeling there was a double up there somewhere.

[yel327]

You were gawking at the wrong car looking at the auto Torana! They were common as CO2 in comparison to the manual HJ Statesman!

[REDA9X]

I realise that now lol, but back then it was simply something I wasn't interested in. I was very interested in Toranas . I didn't know much about Statesmans at the time. When i think back I wish I'd taken more note of a lot of cars I saw years ago. In the last 15 years though, i have taken notes and photos of every car I have gone to look at. I've had a lot of calls to look at cars for people over the years and I started to realise I was getting calls about the same cars later and it's funny when you look back at your notes and pictures and then see the car later down the track and see all the things that have been done to it either for good or bad. There have been a few I wish I had taken a bit more note of though.
When I first got my A9X in the mid 90's I had it in my grandmothers shed. I had it out one day and an older lady friend of hers asked me about the car and when I told her it was an A9X she said she had an L34 they had since it was 6 months old. I had to see it for myself, luckily I took my camera along. It turned out to be the genuine article, and to make things even better, it was a genuine full High Output pack car. The only part of the pack missing was the aircleaner which had been replaced with a 12" chrome unit.
It hadn't been driven for a long time and the last rego label was 1986, still with original rims and Aquajet tyres, but it was sitting in a farm shed, well under the awning on the side with a dirt floor. Of course they were not interested in selling it. I wish I had gone back again and looked at this car more careflly but never really got the opportunity. I'm sure it would still be sitting there.

[yel327]

It is amazing what is still out there, and how many of the "special" cars have survived. By special I don't necessarily mean the well known stuf flike L34 and A9X (these were always going to be special), but special factory design clinic cars (with funny paint codes), prototypes like the HJ GTS done as an LE prototype, one off 350 manual Kingswoods etc. For some reason these cars have been loved and survived at a much higher rate than is apparant in run of the mill production stuff. Such a shame I didn't take more notice of this stuff in the 80's. Could have had a shed full of good stuff like GTS 350 sedans, HJ GTS coupes etc that were unloved in the early 90's!

[enderwigginau]

I like the "Genuine L34s will start around the $100k mark.......add another $50k or more for a mint example."
Someone at the mag is obviously trying to push L34 prices up.........

Grant..

[boomfunk]

interesting read, i had a customer not so long back, email and ask for various products

Jade green interior, slr5000

I asked for photo's, green golfball with green long grain,. wow he ordered it like that from factory as this is how his wife wanted it

Paint colour was green also, he is the only owner from new, with all books and records and also original purchase receipt

[kudu]

The auto option for he LH SL/R5000 wasn't available when the LH was first released, it became available due to demand later in 1974. Auto LH SL/R5000s are still quite rare though, LX versions are more common.
Dr Terry

I have only seen one other auto "5000" over here besides mine and that was a Contessa gold model with a horrible factory brown interior with a tartan trim of some sort.