HOLDEN COUPE CONCEPT: AUSTRALIAN MOTORSHOW CONCEPT NO. 3

Revheads love their two-doors. So it follows that Holden revheads love their Monaros. A little over twenty years after the last Monaro coupe, the HX 'LE', bowed out, Holden fans clamouring for the return of a full size performance coupe got their wish when Holden unveiled the 'Coupe Concept' at the 1998 Sydney International Motor Show.

Built around the then current VT Commodore, the Coupe Concept was a success largely due to its attractive blend of two-door styling onto the Commodore platform. While some past attempts to make a two-door Commodore were awkward, the design by GM-H's Mike Simcoe looked 'right'. Visitors to that year's Sydney Motor Show obviously agreed, as Holden were bombarded with requests - bordering on demands! - to make the concept a production reality.

Simcoe was Holden's Executive in Charge of Design at the time, but the concept wasn't a factory effort - at least not initially. Motoring folklore has it that the idea started on Simcoe's lounge room wall, and was undertaken by GM-H staffers largely on their own time, so passionate were they to make the idea of a Commodore coupe a reality, as Simcoe explained.

"(The team) knew there was a coupe in (the VT Commodore design) just waiting to get out. It's the essence, if you like, of what was on their minds when they produced the original VT sketches - a 'wish list' car with exaggerated lines and fast-flowing surfaces."

Like most of Holden's concepts, the Coupe Concept was no mere rolling design study, but a fully operational vehicle. While the Commodore origins were obvious, what wasn't apparent on first viewing was how much the Coupe Concept differed from the sedan. Aside from the longer door and increased side glass area, the concept also featured a sharper rake to the front glass and roofline, more deeply-accentuated body panels, shorter boot area, and a stance markedly lower than a comparable Commodore, although the wheelbase was the same. The concept debuted with chunky 18-inch wheels and a high-performance braking package, both of which also saw production.

As a 'present' to mark Holden's 50th Anniversary, the Coupe Concept was ideal, and it was largely due to its reception at the Sydney show that GM-H, less than six months after its 1998 debut, committed to making the concept a reality - as the Monaro. The fact it used existing GM-H mechanicals (production versions were based on the VX Commodore) made the transition from concept to production easier, but even that was achieved in super-quick time, a mere 22 months.

Simcoe would go on to bigger and better things, heading to the US and becoming GM's Executive Director of Design in 2010. His 'baby', the Coupe Concept, aka Monaro, would sell more than 40,000 units (including those badged for international markets) before the Holden coupe was laid to rest for a second time in 2005. The 1998 Coupe Concept is currently on display in GM-H's Port Melbourne headquarters.

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