This year saw the end of the production line for Australian car manufacturer Holden, raising concerns about the ongoing availability of auto parts.
But those concerns are unfounded, thanks to Holden’s legacy. The cars continue to be a familiar sight on our roads, and their popularity over the last 72 years means parts are in abundance.
Let’s look at the story of Holden and why it deserves its place in Australian culture.
Holden: the rise and fall
Starting out in 1856 as the J.A. Holden & Co saddlery store in Adelaide, Holden progressed to making car bodies and fitting them to other makers’ chassis.
Then in 1924, America’s General Motors company made a deal for Holden to exclusively manufacture its GM car bodies. General Motors-Holden was formed in 1931 and the company opened plants in other states. The first Australian-made car badged as a Holden rolled off the production line in November 1948.
Even after a surge of patriotic buying in the 50s, Holden remained at or near the top in car sales for the next five decades. The 1979 Motor Vehicle Census figures showed 30% of Australian passenger vehicles were Holdens.
However, poor brand perception, lack of new models and the 2007 global financial crisis have contributed to its decline over the past ten years. In 2020, Holdens account for 10.1% of registered passenger vehicles in Australia. That’s a total of 1,575,483, down 19.4% from 2015.
In 2017, Holden built its last car in Australia, a Commodore V8. In February 2020, Holden announced it was closing its dealerships by 2021.
So what happens to auto parts availability?
In total, Holden made 7,687,675 cars in Australia, including models that became household names, like the Kingswood, Torana, Monaro and Commodore.
Although no new vehicles are being produced, Holdens are still a familiar sight on our roads and will likely be for some time to come. The company’s demise is also fuelling crazy prices for collectable machines, which means the need for Holden spare parts remains. Holden models make up 10% of all car part sales.
The good news is that finding parts is no problem. At Transgold, we have a complete set of engine mount, transmission and rubber suspension parts for models from the Apollo to the Zafira. Covering some 40 models in total, this naturally includes all variants of the Commodore, Holden’s best-selling model.
At Transgold, we’re proud to support this legendary Australian car. For Holden auto parts, check out our parts finder, or email or call us for advice.
Transgold Parts for Holden models
| Holden Model | Engine Mounts | Transmission Mounts | Rubber Suspension |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acadia | |||
| Adventra | |||
| Apollo | |||
| Astra | |||
| Barina | |||
| Bedford | |||
| Belmont | |||
| Brougham | |||
| Business Sedan | |||
| Calibra | |||
| Camira | |||
| Caprice | |||
| Captiva | |||
| Cascada | |||
| Colorado | |||
| Combo | |||
| Commodore | |||
| Crewman | |||
| Cruze | |||
| Drover | |||
| Epica | |||
| Equinox | |||
| Frontera | |||
| Gemini | |||
| H Series | |||
| Jackaroo | |||
| Kingswood | |||
| Malibu | |||
| Monaro | |||
| Monterey | |||
| Nova | |||
| Panel Van | |||
| Piazza | |||
| Rodeo | |||
| Shuttle | |||
| Special | |||
| Statesman | |||
| Suburban | |||
| Sunbird | |||
| Tigra | |||
| Torano | |||
| Trax | |||
| Utility | |||
| Vectra | |||
| Viva | |||
| WB | |||
| Zafira |
