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Utes ‘R’ Us (a 1966 HR Holden)

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It occurs to me as I write this that rather a lot of recent UMPH content has been about load-luggers - hence the title of today's offering - with a magnificent 1958 FC Holden and a lovely circa 1963 XL Falcon having just been featured. So, to continue the theme, we have this 1966 HR Holden ute, which would appear to have just undergone a full and beautifully executed restoration. The duco is flawless, as is the brightwork and red-trimmed interior. Its only departures from factory spec appear to be a set of widened old-school steelies and lowering blocks on the rear axle, plus the very luxe timber tub floor that's shown above. Here are some links to the other Holden and the Falcon,  just in case you feel like catching up : https://uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com/2026/08/random-348-1958-fc-holden-ute.html ; & https://uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com/2026/08/the-architects-eye-xl-falcon-ute.html ,  Did you enjoy this post?  If so, why not browse the rest of the up...
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(Automotive) Fun in The Sun!

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Here’s a bit more Sunny Coast joy, just because great cars deserve to be celebrated and shared! Our first ray of automotive sunshine is this low-slung 1982 Corvette, photographed in Hastings Street, Noosa.   I’m no Chevrolet expert but it’s a fair guess that the personalised rego indicates that it’s a C3, which Wikipedia explains was manufactured between 1967 and 1982, making this an end of series car  ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Corvette_(C3) ) . Interestingly, the C3’s body panels were made of fibreglass.   Our second sun-kissed beauty - photographed a couple of days later, up the road in Noosaville - was this immaculate 1975 XB GT Falcon. The car appeared to be completely unmolested, being equipped with its original three spoke sports-style steering wheel, a pristine interior and a set of twelve-slotters finished in semi-matte silver.  Did you enjoy this post?  If so, why not browse the rest of the uppermiddlepetrolhead site?  There ar...
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Classics by The Beach: August, 2026

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IT issue resolved!  Or, more accurately, worked around.  Anyway, we've finally gone to press with the former Canberra Chief Correspondent's coverage of August, 2026's, Classics by The Beach.   This little unicorn is a Daihatsu ute, apparently.  It's not a model that seems to have been marketed locally but, had it been available Down Under, it probably would've been a sales success - not unlike the ever-popular Datsun 1200 load-lugger.   And on the subject of Datsun's 1200 ute, here's a particularly nice example.  We're not sure if it's made an appearance at Classics - held on the first Sunday of each month at the Long Beach car park, fifteen minutes' drive from Hobart's CBD - but it's a great example of the model. We do know that this pugnacious Escort's been to the event before, as it featured about a year back and caused some speculation amongst the UMPH team when a few items - race seats, four-wheel disc brakes and some other goodi...
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The Architect’s Eye: an XL Falcon Ute

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  Hobart architect Mark Drury has done it again, having snapped this ripper XL Falcon ute in historic Battery Point.  XLs were built between 1962 and 1964, bookending a very, very important year for more than just automobile production.    Look closely and you'll see that although it's ostensibly stock, this particular example may be a bit of a sleeper.  The fat steelies and column mounted tacho mightn't mean much on their own but the subtle twin exhausts suggest it could be packing a couple of cylinders more than it did when new.  For those that may be wondering where this month's Classic by The Beach post has gone, I can assure you that it's coming.  There's an IT issue to overcome but, once that's resolved, we'll have the former Canberra Chief Correspondent's photos up for all to enjoy. Did you enjoy this post?  If so, why not browse the rest of the uppermiddlepetrolhead site?  There are loads and loads of classic, sports and performance v...
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