Jamie

They'll be doing them to order, so no real cost to the conversion company. Ford Australia got burned a few years ago doing Mustangs for the local market. The first couple cost a mint to do when they discovered that the engine, driveline, and transmission tunnel were offset about an inch to the right of the car, and would need the driveline relocated to the left to provide more driver foot room. After the expense of the first few, they decided to forgo the driveline move. Even so, they basically had to rebuild the cars from the ground up. I know a few people that were involved with the factory sanctioned conversion, and they say that the Mustangs that arrived straight from the Ford plant were the worst assembled and finished new cars they'd seen in a long time. Here's one notable quote:

Here are the company's 2 web sites: Camaro Australia and American Vehicle Sales Except for a few options, there's no price mentioned, but you can guarantee that one of their RHD Camaros will not be inexpensive. My personal guess is that it will be between 2 and 3 times the price of a new Camaro in the US. American Vehicle Sales specializes in the import and conversion of Chevrolet, GMC, Hummer & Cadillac SUV and Pickup vehicles. Here's a quick run down on the process they go through to convert a vehicle to RHD

Nope. Not going to Australia and England will get 100 and no more. Chevrolet nixes RHD Camaro from Autoblog

I really miss Coke made with sugar. The taste is very different ... much sharper. Pretty much anywhere in the world except North America it is made with sugar. There is a sugar based Coke bottled in the New York City area, but AFAIK, it's only done leading up to Passover and is labeled as "Kosher for Passover".

I followed a trail of links starting at the Bacon Explosion and ended up here. I think I'm in love.

My thought was that it was either a Chevy Impala or a Chrysler Gazelle.

A friend of mine found this gazelle/impala style hood ornament at an antiques show in Toronto. If the pic doesn't load, click here. Can anyone identify it?

Yep. The Monaro was designed to sell only 5,000 cars per year over a 3 year model life with strict quotas that meant exactly 1/4 would have the 3.8 V6 and auto trans and the remaining 3/4 would get the V8 in either auto or manual). The idea was that it would be a true low volume halo car, and the limited production numbers would keep the price of new and used models high.

From a Norwegian buddy of mine ...

Interestingly, that G8 GXP is is wearing Australian registration plates. All the G8 engineering/mule cars are from GMH in Port Melbourne, and this year, Victorian plates starting with WHH are usually reserved for Holden engineering/mule vehicles.

Nope. The First Home Owner Grant (FHOG) in Australia is just what it says, a grant, and it's a once in a lifetime grant.

The members of one of the forums that I am on consider it a badge of honour to get banned from some sites (mostly the ricer forums). The forum owner even baned himself from his own site (and then couldn't figure out how to log in to un-ban himself). If you want to see a no holds barred automotive forum, have a look at PerformanceForums.com. Be prepared for a serious hazing if you join. The "Off Topic" area that you can't see unless you're a member, is like the C&G "Lounge" with no rules.

I'll be looking at a V8 (I'd like a diesel with an Allison trans, but they attract a big price premium) that I can fit with a snow plow kit to do the long driveway on the house we're looking at buying. It's also going to be a bad weather vehicle for my wife to drive the 45 minutes to work (or for me to come and rescue her if she gets into trouble in her car). I'm not really worried about bling, but I want the option of fitting a camper box. The 2500HD would be the minimum spec. Just not enough capability in the 1500s. Yeah. Driving the 2002 across the US we got 13 mpg out of the 6.0. It didn't matter if the truck was totally unladen or was towing a Camaro on a trailer, it still got 13 mpg on the highway.

If all goes well, I'll be looking for a used 4x4 Silverado/Sierra 2500HD truck in a few weeks. A crew Crew Cab or Extended Cab is a must, but the bed length doesn't matter. I know all about Holden Utes, but except for driving a 2002 model Extended Cab, Long Bed, 2WD Silverado 2500HD across the US a few years ago, the Chevy/GMC trucks are something I have very little experience with. I expect to be looking at 2002 to 2006 models, but I could go a few years older if the truck is really good and the right price. Are there any years or models to avoid? Conversely, are there any years and models that are really good? Are there any common problem areas I should examine on a potential purchase?

This kit for the VE Commodore sells for AUD$10,500 and is reportedly good for 380-410rwkw with a dual 3in exhaust on 8-10psi boost. A tuner I know has estimated that he'll be able to do the complete supply, install, and tune (with a few other bits added to the basic kit, like stealth fuel system which is a surge tank with twin internal pumps for almost zero noise and joined up to the current exhaust system with 2 bar map sensor, 60lb injectors) for about $16,000. On the first installation he did, he managed 407 rwkw at 9 psi boost and saw 434rwkw/582rwhp on his dyno using 12psi boost. Peak boost arrives by 3300 rpm. The output from the dyno is attached (3300rpm is 130km/h).

The primary reason is because they were never engineered to make it easy to produce a LHD model. Ford has also decided that their wonderful Australia only 4 litre DOHC inline 6 will be abandoned in favour of a global Ford V6 engine.

Head-to-head: HSV v FPV - drag strip Falcon XR6 Turbo and XR8 v Commodore SS-V - driving impressions

Yep. Some guy in Germany with a Ferrari 348 pulled the Ferrari engine (and sold it complete with all additional parts like ecus, wiring, MAFs, Alternator, Fuel Injectors, Cats, exhaust manifolds for 4500euro) and replaced it with a turboed 2 litre Opel 4 cylinder.

For those that haven't figured it out yet, decoding the VIN on the right suspension tower will point you in the right direction ...

Someone appears to have figured it out ... :AH-HA_wink:

Doesn't the Fiero have an East/West engine layout ... besides, it's not a Fiero ...

Nah. According to the owner, the turbo installation is still being developed, so not all the plumbing is fitted. The "What's Wrong" bit is bigger than that.

from carsales.com.au

There's a long history of Holden using design cues from GMNA vehicles. The original 48/215 (aka FX) Holden from 1948 was designed in the US and both it and its replacement FJ model had strong Buick styling cues, and used a 2.2 litre six cylinder engine that was developed for an abandoned post-war Chevrolet compact car project (Earle MacPherson's revolutionary Chevrolet Cadet). The "all new" (except for the engine) FE and FC models from the mid to late 50s were essentially a 7/8 scale '55 Chevrolet, and the follow up FB and EK models from the early 60s were the earlier FE/FC models re-engineered to resemble a 7/8 scale '57 Chevrolet. The mid-60s EJ and EH models had some Chevrolet styling cues but were locally designed, with the EH model receiving a new engine that was very close to a scaled down Chevrolet inline 6 of the era. The US design studio hated the EH design, and was a bit wary of the Australian stylists, and when they saw the clays for the proposed EF replacement model, they called a halt to the model and sent US stylists (mostly from Oldsmobile) to Australia to take over the Australian design section and the HD model (nicknamed "Hastily Designed") was the end result of the GMNA stylists work. The HD is probably the most unloved Holden model. The US stylists ran the new Holden's Technical Developement Centre, that was established in 1964. It's worth reading this page and some of the following pages on the Monaro development to get a feel for the work of the US stylists and the GMNA styling cues that they incorporated into to the Holdens of the era.