While many parallels can be drawn between the American and Australian muscle car scenes, the industry Down Under was driven primarily by the desire for motorsport success. It spawned classics like the Ford Falcon GTHO series, the Torana L34 and A9X, and the Monaro GTS. Our feature car is a 1968 Monaro GTS 327, a model that wrote its own place in the pages of Australian motorsport folklore. After forty-five years in storage, it was recently unearthed and has a genuine 7,508 miles showing on its odometer. It is probably one of the most original and unmolested Monaros of this era in existence, but the time is right for it to find a new home. Located in Bayswater, Victoria, Australia, you will find the GTS listed for sale here at Burns & Co Auctioneers. It is set to go under the hammer on June 19th, and there’s no doubt that the bidding will climb quickly into six-figure territory.

Holden developed the Monaro from its bread-and-butter HK Kingswood model, its volume-selling four-door family sedan. It shares its front sheetmetal with the Kingswood, but the swooping two-door hardtop body was unique from the windshield back. The company offered the vehicle in three trim levels, equipped with a choice of five different engines. Our feature car is the range-topping GTS 327, which Holden viewed as both its “halo” model and its best option in its quest for motorsport success. During its eleven months of production, 15,637 buyers slapped down their cash to park a Monaro in their driveway. Of those, 1,192 selected the GTS 327. Those figures may seem insignificant, but the body style carried through two subsequent model updates, and the HK Monaro helped boost overall sales of the HK Kingswood to 199,039 cars. This GTS wears its original Silver Mink paint and presents well for an original survivor of this vintage. It holds an impressive shine and hasn’t developed any of the patchiness or matte areas that are common with older silver paint. Its panels are as straight as an arrow, with no evidence of dents or rust problems. Its distinctive GTS stripes are surprisingly crisp, while the car rolls on its original 14″ steel wheels with their unique and undamaged wheel trims. The glass and chrome present nicely, and the Monaro has no immediate cosmetic needs.

The Monaro’s underside shows some evidence of age, with a dusting of surface corrosion. However, I can’t spot any penetrating rust in the supplied photos. The dual exhaust looks like Swiss cheese and is one item that the buyer will need to add to their “to do” list before it terrorizes Australian roads again. The buyer may elect to treat the rust and undercoat this classic, but simply neutralizing the corrosion to prevent further deterioration would seem viable.

Our American readers will look into the Monaro’s engine bay and see something pretty familiar. During the early 1960s, it was common knowledge that Ford Australia intended to introduce a V8 engine into their product range, and they would do so before the end of the decade. The Australian import and tariff system at that time was quite complex and rewarded vehicle manufacturers for utilizing as much local content as possible. Against this backdrop, Holden commenced the development of a unique V8 engine design. In keeping with the Aussie tradition of irreverence, the company “conveniently” forgot to inform General Motors HQ that they had started work on its new powerplant. They achieved this by skimming a few dollars off development budgets in other areas to undertake the work. By 1968, the new motor had undergone significant endurance testing, although it wasn’t quite ready for production. Therefore, the new Monaro featured Holden’s unique six-cylinder engines and two Chevrolet V8 options. As the name implies, the GTS 327 rolled off the line equipped with a 327ci small-block, producing 250hp. The only available transmission was the four-speed Saginaw manual transmission. The power output may not sound impressive, but it proved effective in a larger car that was surprisingly aerodynamically efficient. The GTS 327 could cover the ¼ mile in 15.6 seconds before winding its way to 115mph. Holden had no specific need to produce the GTS 327, with its existence being directly attributable to the “win on Sunday, sell on Monday” mantra surrounding motorsport success. Australia’s most prestigious race is a long-distance event conducted on a hill west of Sydney called Mount Panorama. Winning the Bathurst 500, as it was known at the time, resulted in a measurable increase in showroom traffic in the following weeks. The race has captured the public’s imagination since its inception, and during the 1960s and early 1970s, it was conducted under what was known as “Series Production” regulations. These rules stipulated that the cars had to be as they drove off the showroom floor, with no mechanical modifications or other changes. There was nothing preventing blueprinting, and some competitors followed this practice to extract the last ounce of performance from their machinery. It was also common for competitors to drive their machines to the event to reveal any potential bugs or problems. The GTS 327 proved to be the right car at the right time. It didn’t just win, but its drivers occupied all three spots on the podium. Our feature car recently emerged after forty-five years in dry storage, and it appears the owner has not attempted to coax it back to life. That joyous task awaits the buyer, and there’s no doubt that it will need some work before achieving a roadworthy state. Apart from an exhaust system, the brakes and perishable items will require replacement. If I were to buy this classic, I would thoroughly inspect that 327 before hitting the key. The car is numbers-matching, and damaging that engine by being too hasty doesn’t bear consideration. Adding to this Monaro’s appeal is an odometer reading of 7,508 genuine miles. The original Owner’s Manual, Warranty Book, and Registration documentation are included.

In keeping with a classic with a four-digit odometer reading, this Monaro’s interior presents in near showroom condition. It is a sea of Red, which was the most popular choice on these cars when wearing Silver Mink paint. There is no appreciable wear and no evidence of rodent infestation. The original owner treated the GTS to dealer-installed aftermarket Mark IV air conditioning, but there are no other additions. The installation necessitated the relocation of the factory tachometer from its original spot atop the console, which could pose a problem. The console mount could shake loose, causing the tach to rattle. Its location also made it difficult to read, with the wheel and its spokes often blocking the view. However, its new site beside the driver’s left knee is worse for visibility and practicality. That will leave the buyer with a choice to make. They could leave things as they are, but since the A/C is an aftermarket addition, there would be no shame in removing it and returning the tach to its rightful spot. Otherwise, this interior appears to need nothing.

For decades, Holden was considered “Australia’s Own” vehicle manufacturer, developing unique models that catered to local motoring tastes. However, the inability to move with the times and changing market trends saw General Motors decide to close its Australian production facilities in 2017. The company survived as a seller of imported products from other GM brands, but sales figures hovered in that uncomfortable region between not very many and none at all. That the company had plummeted to such depths from an era when literally half the new cars sold in Australia wore a Holden badge was difficult to comprehend. Finally, in 2021, Holden followed other great GM badges like Pontiac into extinction. The company’s legacy lives on in cars like this 1968 Monaro GTS 327, with original and unmolested examples of the more desirable performance models selling for extraordinary prices. There’s no doubt that this classic will climb into six-figure territory, but what will its new owner decide to do once they have it in their workshop? My instincts tell me that they will treat its existing surface corrosion to prevent deterioration, return it to a roadworthy state, and dust it off for the occasional slice of motoring on sunny days or for trips to shows. I hope they take it out on the open road for a gallop every now and then because that is what its creators intended. It has been sitting for forty-five years, and it deserves nothing less.