The Holden HQ is a 4-door sedan / 5-door wagon / 2-door coupé / 2-door coupé utility / 2-door panel van / 2-door cab chassis from Holden, built from 1971 to 1974, as the oil crises and the first emissions rules rewired the industry. Under the bonnet: 2.8L GMH '173' I6. Phillip Zmood drew it.
The background
The Holden HQ series is a range of automobiles that was produced by Holden in Australia from 1971 to 1974. The HQ was released on 15 July 1971, replacing the Holden HG series. It was the first ground-up redesign of the Holden line since its original release in 1948, and included an all-new body, chassis, and suspension. The HQ was later developed into a series of successor models, finally ending production when the WB series was discontinued in 1985.
The engineering
Power comes from 2.8L GMH '173' I6; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. It weighs 2950 lbs. It shifts through a 3-speed GMH manual / Aussie 4-speed / 3-speed "Tri-Matic" automatic. The layout matters: a front engine drives the rear wheels, the classic proportion — long bonnet, cabin set back — that most people picture when they picture a sports saloon or a grand tourer. The wheelbase is 111 in / 114 in (wagon). These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Where it sits
Its family tree is legible: it took over from the Holden HG; its successor was the Holden HJ; assembly was at Adelaide, South Australia. Its contemporaries in the catalogue — the Renault 5, the Chevrolet Impala, the American Motors Corporation AMC Gremlin — show what else the money bought that year. Its Holden stablemates include the Holden 48-215 and the Holden Adventra.
What it costs now
There is no federal ownership record for the Holden HQ — it predates the complaint database or was never sold in the United States — so MotorJury publishes no running-cost figure for it. For a car of this age the price is set by the collector market and the condition of the individual example, not by a formula.