• Monaro History

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Monaro History

Monaro History

Ever since the Holden Monaro was first introduced on July 22nd 1968, three generations of the Holden Monaro have been produced.

HK Monaro Coupe (1968 – 1969)
Based on the HK series Kingswood sedan, the HK Monaro was first brought out as 2 door hardtop coupe and had a design that was heavily influenced by automotive trends in America. With engine options that included 2 Chevrolet V8’s, a striking roofline, modern rear wheel arch blisters, an almost constant slope from the rear window to the boot, rear pillars which integrated perfectly into the rear quarter panels, as well as exterior GTS detailing such as a tail panel strip, offset bonnet and side stripes and stainless steel full wheel covers, the HK Monaro was unlike any car that Holden has ever produced and was an instant success.

HT Monaro Coupe (1969 – 1970)
In mid 1969, the Monaro went through a minor facelift. The HT Monaro was the first to use the Aussie V8 engine, and had a multi-louvered plastic grille with a raised centre section. Daytona Bronze and Sebring Orange were some of the wild new colours introduced. The GTS model featured bold centre bonnet stripes in gold or black framed by new bonnet scoops. Customers who bought the limited build GTS 350 manual were also given the option of having rally wheels, another first for Holden.

HG Monaro Coupe (1970 – 1971)
The detail from the Monaro HG rear lights were removed thus giving the illusion of extra size, while the bold new centre division and surrounds were accentuated with the addition of GTS blackouts. The HG GTS was given a sleeker look with the addition of black rocker panels around the lower body and the removal of wheel and sill arch mouldings. Engine wise, the HG Monaro used the same V8 engine as the final HT models while the Powerglide was replaced on all models except for the big 350 with a new three-speed Trimatic auto option. Out of the early Monaro models, the HG is regarded as the most sophisticated and hence even till today, is highly sought after and very rare.

HQ Monaro Coupe (1971 – 1974)
With the emergence of the HQ series, a completely new generation of the Monaro was born. Although the HQ was larger than previous models, it had a more compact, ground hugging look due to it’s flowing rear lines, forward reaching front and pronounced ‘tumblehome’ behind each wheel. A new LS (luxury and sport) model with black vinyl roof and dual headlights was also manufactured. Inspired by the ‘flower power’ palette, the HQ Monaro came in colours such as bright blue, purple, pink, acid red, lime green, silver and gold. When the 4 door GTS model was released in 1973, the GTS coupe went through another facelift. New bonnet and boot cover rally patches were added, as well as accents on the side vents and optional polished trim rings for the sports wheels. Bold new colours were also introduced.

HQ Monaro GTS 4 door (1973 – 1974)
Due to the strong influence of the trendsetting 2 door Monaro, sedans from other Holden range started taking on a similar sleek look and Holden decided to make use of the opportunity to try out a 4 door sedan version of the Monaro. The 4 door HQ Monaro, sometimes referred to as a GTS/4, was hence introduced in early 1973. Besides having loud GTS rally panels on the boot cover and bonnet, it also had contoured front seats that were trimmed in a herringbone pattern, thus giving it a very different look from the previous HQ Monaros.

HJ Monaro Coupe & 4 door (1974 – 1976)
Featuring its own comprehensive sports instrument panel, a bigger emphasis was placed on body detailing in the HJ Monaro GTS so as to differentiate it from previous models. The 4 door GTS model had big wraparound rear lights, aggressive decals and side vents, as well as an eye catching blacked out grille. The HJ GTS was given real presence with the options of having factory front and rear spoiler for the first time. Its sloping boot line was also bolstered by new tail lights and a deep rear spoiler.

HX Monaro GTS 4 door & LE Coupe (1976)
In July 1976, the HX Monaro arrived in the midst of new anti-pollution requirements. While the new HX line-up did not include a Monaro coupe, the name was brandished on a single, extroverted GTS 4 door. It became the most distinctive 4 door Monaro due to its large GTS decals, bright colours, integrated body coloured spoiler options and colour-keyed bumpers and mirrors. Being a heavyweight, long distance grand tourer, the HX upped the comfort level of the HQ series while keeping the built-in toughness and durability. During this period, many Australian performance car favourites were killed off by new emission controls. The HX Holden Monara GTS was one of the few that kept the V8 muscle car tradition alive.

The HX LE Coupe was released in August 1976, almost 2 months after the launch of the HX series. The LE had unique gold-finished 14x7 inch polycast wheels, as well as gold lettering and pinstripes over a riveting shade of metallic crimson. It also came with high performance Monaro hardware such as a 308 engine, Salisbury limited slip differential and Turbo-Hydramatic. Outside, it had integrated, colour-keyed front and rear spoilers, as well as the four headlight (quartz halogen) HX Premier front. Even though the limited edition LE coupe did not actually carry the Monaro tag, Holden fans still look on it as a true blue member of the Monaro line.

HZ GTS 4 door (1977 – 1979)
Similar to the LE coupe, the HZ GTS 4 door did not carry the Monaro tag. However it was officially called a “Monaro GTS sedan” as the brochure produced for the car put the Monaro badge on it. Released in October 1977, the HZ series introduced Radial Tuned Suspension (RTS), which improved the ride and handling of the car remarkably. Radial Tuned Suspension had the largest impact on the GTS, which brought back aspects of the HG Monaro GTS with its mesh grille and subtle body stripes and detailing. It also featured a four-headlight nose, body colour front and rear spoilers and bumpers, as well as sports wheels. Many people regarded the HZ GTS as Australia’s premier performance car. This position was further consolidated when the 5.0 litre V8 engine became standard in May 1978.

Monaro Revival

Monaro Revival

In 1998, a Holden Commodore Coupe show car was displayed at the Sydney Motor Show. It was quickly named the Monaro by journalists, thus prompting GM Holden to build it. The third generation of the Holden Monaro was born. The show car was designed for production and the V2 series Monaro, which was made available in CV6 and CV8, was launched by 2001. In 2003, a Monaro series II model was launched with a new wheel design and a revised dashboard from the Commodore VY series. Disappointing sales of the CV6 model caused it to be dropped from production when a series III model appeared in 2004.

Soon after the Monaro series 1 edition, a Holden Special Vehicle (HSV) version was released in GTO and GTS models. The GTS model was dropped later on but a 4 wheel drive version called “Coupe4” was introduced. Two special edition CV8-R were launched, one in a muted red and the other in grey. Both had special wheels and other distinctive features.

The new Monaros were also exported to overseas markets. In the Middle East, it is sold as the Chevrolet Lumina Coupe while in the US, it is rebadged as the Pontiac GTO, thus resurrecting another classic muscle icon. In 2004, two bonnet scoops were added to the VZ series Monaro after American consumers complained that the Pontiac GTO’s styling was too sedate. This addition brought to mind the later muscle car variants of the late 1960s models.

1200 Monaro CV8Z models were produced in August 2005, after which production of the third generation Monaro ceased. Similar to the earlier Monaro CV8-R models, the CV8-Z had extra features such as a metallic orange colour, a sunroof as standard, and special wheels. In spite of this, the CV8-Z was priced the same as the previous VZ Monaro CV8.

Find Holden Monaros on eBay Australia

Find Holden Monaros on eBay Australia

Once you have decided on which Monaro you want, go to the Cars, Bikes & Boats portal. Click Holden under Cars and start searching for item listings on eBay Australia.

• Cars Finder: Use the Cars Finder to help narrow down your choices by manufacturer, model, type, kilometres and year of manufacture.

• Categories: The Categories list on the left side of each page will help you narrow down your listings by item type. You'll find links for Barina, Commodore, HSV, Monaro, Torana and more.

• Keyword Search: Search eBay Australia listing titles for specific words. For example, if you want to find HQ Monaros, type “hq monaro” (without the quotation marks) into the Search box. Click "Search title and description" to expand your results. Visit eBay Australia's Search Tips page for more tips on searching with keywords.

If you can't find exactly what you want, try shopping eBay Stores, tell the eBay Australia Community what you want by creating a post on Want It Now, or save a search on My eBay and eBay Australia will email you when a match becomes available.

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Legal Disclaimer

Legal Disclaimer

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