1977 Holden Torana A9X GMP&A For Auction

[jaykay]

How much is this Torana worth..only 475km on the clock :bow::drool::drool:

Current bid price $258,950

5499

5500

https://www.pickles.com.au/cars/item/-/details/C1977--Holden--Torana-A9X-GMP-A--LX--Hatchback--5-Seats--3-Doors/103530294?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=1977ToranaA9X&utm_content=Position2

[whitels1ss]

More stuff on it in this article...

https://www.motoring.com.au/very-rare-holden-torana-a9x-goes-to-auction-114306/

[Micks]

That would look great in your Garage John :D

[jaykay]

That would look great in your Garage John :D

Hey Mick if I won the Lotto I would be up for it....my favourite all time bucket list car !!!!!

[Pickles]

I believe I may have seen this car, in its incomplete state, around 37 yrs ago.
During the time I was looking for an A9X I saw an interesting ad in the Age Newspaper advertising a "similar" spec A9X.
Anyway, I responded to the ad, and was asked to meet the "owner" at a remote country location, which I did. He then took me to literally a sort of barn on a country property in which was a brand new A9X Hatch, not properly painted just a thin layer of white "paint" all over it, still with all factory stickers all over it, no engine or gear box fitted, nor had there ever been, but included in the price were all the "bits", block, crank, pistons, heads etc etc all in GMH boxes, sufficient to build an L34 engine, also included was a super T10.
The car would have had to have been painted, then assembled, and the price was $25K,.....BIG dollars those days,...after assembly, painting etc etc, it would've owed at least twiice that,....well out of my league.
Often wondered what happened to it. Pickles.

[Smitty]

'body in white' shell given to GMP&A during my stint at the Dandy VAP
(and kept for 'non-road' purposes..given GMH had NO authority to be involved in motorsport then)

These shells were the brain child of Joe Felice, Harry and damn ...cannot remember if Ray Borrett
also was in there somewhere

[Smitty]

ps.... been trying to work out something about this car
just didn't look right just niggled

worked it out.... the bumpers are painted (which is wrong, as ex-factory they were chrome with NO black painted strip)
and
the bonnet does not have the blackout painted area the factory ones did

oh...and for the record, it has a modern Holley on it with dual fuel lines to it...
the GMH L34 Holley only had one fuel inlet so the engine is bit sort of like a ya know L34... ish ;)

[whitels1ss]

ps.... been trying to work out something about this car
just didn't look right just niggled

worked it out.... the bumpers are painted (which is wrong, as ex-factory they were chrome with NO black painted strip)
and
the bonnet does not have the blackout painted area the factory ones did

oh...and for the record, it has a modern Holley on it with dual fuel lines to it...
the GMH L34 Holley only had one fuel inlet so the engine is bit sort of like a ya know L34... ish ;)

No side mirrors or compliance plates either.

[whitels1ss]

Anyone know how much this ended up making?

[JT]

Anyone know how much this ended up making?

last price I saw was $380k

[whitels1ss]

last price I saw was $380k

Plus a buyers fee of 7 percent? :doh:

It's not even a famous ex race car.

[Pickles]

I believe I may have seen this car, in its incomplete state, around 37 yrs ago.
During the time I was looking for an A9X I saw an interesting ad in the Age Newspaper advertising a "similar" spec A9X.
Anyway, I responded to the ad, and was asked to meet the "owner" at a remote country location, which I did. He then took me to literally a sort of barn on a country property in which was a brand new A9X Hatch, not properly painted just a thin layer of white "paint" all over it, still with all factory stickers all over it, no engine or gear box fitted, nor had there ever been, but included in the price were all the "bits", block, crank, pistons, heads etc etc all in GMH boxes, sufficient to build an L34 engine, also included was a super T10.
The car would have had to have been painted, then assembled, and the price was $25K,.....BIG dollars those days,...after assembly, painting etc etc, it would've owed at least twiice that,....well out of my league.
Often wondered what happened to it. Pickles.
Interestingly, I have recently learned that someone who I know saw the car in the barn as well, and He actually owned it for a while,...He has other A9X's too!
Pickles.

[jaykay]

last price I saw was $380k

Baaaaaaaargain

[JT]

I don't get it. It's not an ex race car. It's a race shell built into a road car. Not sure if it can be registered. A lot of coin for a museum piece

[whitels1ss]

I don't get it. It's not an ex race car. It's a race shell built into a road car. Not sure if it can be registered. A lot of coin for a museum piece

Exactly, with no compliance plate you would have to really know the right people & pull strings to ever get it registered

& at $400,000 inc buyers fees would you really want to hammer it on a race track? :nono:

It looks pretty, but in my opinion it's not $400,000 pretty. :lol:

[Smitty]

I don't get it. It's not an ex race car. It's a race shell built into a road car. Not sure if it can be registered. A lot of coin for a museum piece

can never be registered .... as the manufacturer never gave it (never will either ) a VIN
as required under Australian road rules and ADRs

and besides, they are built of light weight panels with no rust protection (paint weighs....:lol: )
and no under body coatings. NVH would be terrible ...

[JT]

There is a very good write up in old Aus muscle car mag on Barry Seton's "spare" GMP&A Torana which was also never raced & built up as a road car. It states that it was issued with an ADR certificate so it can be legally registered.

[Smitty]

There is a very good write up in old Aus muscle car mag on Barry Seton's "spare" GMP&A Torana which was also never raced & built up as a road car. It states that it was issued with an ADR certificate so it can be legally registered.

there are stories and there are tales... tall and true :bravo:

catching up on this thread, I thought... hang on, I have read about this
before and I have, on the GMH Torana Forum ( I am a member there)
and went back found this (below) about that car... under 'Barry Seaton A9X '
...interesting (and posted back in 2007)

Ross (Woodbridge) was a part time racing car driver and once was at the top of Appendix J in a Mustang.

Ross bought the car off Seaton directly after its last race at Sandown, the car was never repainted as part of it's preparation for road registration as all the Seaton sponsorship was placed on the car as stickers.
I remember Ross telling me that Seaton boasted to him that "signwriters never touch my cars"

The car was sold by Holden to Seaton as a race car and thus never had a compliance plate, however somehow Ross managed to get it registered, however I do remember that the process was probably not legal.
The car had the slicks removed and replaced with road tyres and an exhaust system change, before being put on the road with NSW registration.

Ross eventually got stick of the constant speeding tickets and loss of points and turned the car into a Sports Sedan and raced it for a short period before selling it as a Sports Sedan

So i chased that info from the website trying to find more ...
and
found that Ross Woodbridge actually wrote to AMC about that very car ..... back last year


his email to AMC is here -

https://www.pressreader.com/australia/australian-muscle-car/20171101/283265983047237

[JT]

Smitty,your story is about Seton's actual race car. I was talking about his spare which was never raced. It went from an unraced/unfinished race shell, straight to a road car.