Holden 48-215: Appendix

Just some stuff that got left out of the 48-215 post, either because I couldn't find a place for it, or just forgot I had it. Starting with...

The Utility Version

Released in January 1951, the first Holden ute was designated the 50-2106 thanks to the awkward GM-H naming system. There's not much else to say: It was a Holden, and it was a ute. A godsend to farmers and anyone else with a load to carry, but otherwise little different from the sedan version. I only left it out because I wanted to save the topic of utes for the Ford origins post, which is still in the pipeline.

The Inevitable YouTube Embed
Next, here's some corporate propaganda showing GM-H actually building Holdens at Woodville and Fishermans Bend. Amazing to see both how automated some tasks are (durability testing), yet also how manual other tasks are. (Cutting panels out of sheet steel with a band saw? Not on your life!)

And Lastly, Some OC

I'm not sure if this lovely Seine Blue 48-215 is restored or preserved, but either way: According to the sign in the window, it was bought in Dubbo by the Frost family back in August 1953. Annoyingly, I haven't been able to find out which dealership sold it, as even in those days Dubbo had several: Gersbach Garage, Skerman Motors and Ezi-Drive are all contenders, and I can only find an image of the last one, taken during the catastrophic flood of 1955. Anyway, at some point it was transferred to its second owner, who I've tried to anonymise in case of Gone in 60 Seconds types, and where and how it spent the rest of its life is a subject I'd love to dig in to. I forgot I had this picture until after my write-up of the 48-215 was published, but better late than never.

For what it's worth, the car was part of a historic vehicle display at the Gilgandra tractor pull of 2009, where the star attraction was a Matilda II that had been mechanically restored by one of the locals. Regrettably, Yours Truly only took a few photos that day: He really should've taken more, but Inside The Chieftain's Hatch was still a few years away, so he didn't quite grasp what an achievement that tank represented. (For those wondering, the turret had a 2-pounder fitted, but it wasn't original. In service it carried the bigger, bunker-buster gun, but the details of that escape me.)

Fin.