HDT Monza V8 - 2 door Commodore
Even though it's known as a 1984 model, the idea for the HDT Monza V8 came to Peter Brock three years earlier. In France to race a Porsche in the 1981 Le Mans 24 Hour, Brock was given an Opel Monza coupe as a daily driver. The sleek, fastback coupe certainly looked good, harking back to the hot Toranas and Monaros of the previous decade. With the right amount of HDT magic, Brock believed he could turn the Monza into a genuine high-performance coupe that could compete with the big BMW and Mercedes 2-doors.
Through sheer force of will, as much as anything else, Brock got a prototype built to HDT-specs in fairly rapid order and the Monza was debuted early in 1984. The car appeared on the front cover of Wheels and Modern Motor May '84 editions, wearing Centra Alloys and a VK-style grille. At that stage, the Monza looked like being another Brock success story, but the costs and red tape encountered with making the Monza ADR compliant, plus the pressure of other projects, meant the idea never went any further.
While there are a few other Monzas in circulation in this country, the only genuine HDT Monza is the one you see pictured here, which is currently in the possession of enthusiast, Phil Walmsley. Phil purchased the car off long-time owner and Holden dealer, Paul Wakeling a few years back. Wakeling first saw the Monza when it was on the Beasley & Bruce stand at the Canberra Motor Show in May '84 (he was working at Beasley and Bruce at that time). Curiously, while the car was still wearing the Centras, the VK grille had been replaced by the original Opel grille. Despite an anticipated price in the range of $45000 (when VH Group 3s were priced at $20000) there was much interest at the show, and several orders were taken. When it became clear the Monza project wouldn't proceed, Brock offered the prototype to Wakeling, who was now running his own dealership. As you can imagine - he didn't need to think twice about saying yes! Wakeling used the car as his daily driver, with Victorian rego, while he undertook the arduous task of getting it registered in NSW.
An engineer's Inspection Report detailing modifications required for ADR compliance was completed in October '85. It wasn't until Jan '87 (!) when a Dept of Motor Transport Vehicle Report was completed. In June '86 a letter received from the Director of Vehicle Registrations at DMT gives an insight into the difficulty in getting the Monza registered.
The following is an excerpt:- 'A recent letter from Mr. F. R. Pound, Vehicle Safety Engineer of Holden's Motor Company, and subsequent discussion with Mr. Pound, has clarified a number of matters concerning the origin and construction of your vehicle. It is now apparent that it is in fact a "one-off" vehicle, being neither an Opel Monza nor a Holden Commodore. Mr. Pound assures the Department that no other such vehicles exist, and there are no plans to produce a vehicle of this type. On this basis, your vehicle can be assessed for registration as an "individually constructed vehicle" rather than as an imported vehicle without a Compliance Plate.' Finally registered in NSW on 10 July '87, one wonders what would have happened if it hadn't been purchased by a Holden dealer like Wakeling, given the high level correspondence required between the DMT (now RTA) and Holden to get the Monza registered.
Interestingly, we were told by a member of the NSW HDT Owners Club that during its tenure with Wakeling, the Monza served as pace car for a round of the NSW Road Race series! The Monza changed hands in September, 2005, and has since attended the past three Muscle Car Masters, among other events. It was also driven to Melbourne this past April for Brock's Big Day Out, where these photos were taken. In October 2005, Brock was briefly reunited with the car, where he echoed his disappointment that it never made it into production. Today, the Monza shows a genuine 26,000 miles. Having put 4,000 of those miles on himself, Phil can understand Brock's enthusiasm for the car. It would surely have ranked as one of the great HDTs had it made it into production. Alas, there is but one - the legendary HDT Monza prototype.
