Quote:
Was Holden once an Australian independent auto maker? I've never heard of them.


They are owned by GM but run very independently of GM. Have you heard of the Pontiac GTO that was brought back to the US a few years ago? It's a Holden with a few new body panels. GM needed a car real fast so they looked to Holden and had a "GTO" within a year. So, the GTO is made in Australia. And, IIRC, the engine is the old Corvette engine that gets built in the US, shipped to Australia, put in the car, then shipped back to the US. Sales are slow now because the design isn't that exciting compared to the Mustang and Charger, but when it first came here, it sold well. GM would have sold more of them if the UAW let them. They threatened a strike if GM imported more than the agreed upon number from Australia. /sarcasm Yeah UAW! Woo hoo!

Australia is known for making cool, large RWD cars with gobs of horse power. I think Ford still makes the Fairlane down there which is a comparable car.
_________________________
Brad B.