Holden VFII Commodore limited edition model owners granted Lang Lang access

A year following the closure of Holden’s manufacturing plant in Elizabeth, South Australia, the Lion brand has thrown open the gates its proving ground in Lang Lang, Victoria, specifically for owners of VF Series II Commodore, Calais and ute limited edition models.

Holden produced 1200 Commodore Motorsport Edition manual and automatic sedans, 360 Calais V-based Director auto sedans and 240 Magnum manual and auto utes, with over 500 owners participating in an enthusiast club for the models – 86 of which attended Lang Lang.

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It is extremely rare for the Australian division of General Motors to open its doors to the general public, especially given that its local designers and engineers are known to be working on – primarily with validation testing – Buick and Cadillac models not yet released.

Holden confirmed that the event was organised by an employee at the proving ground, who also owns a VFII limited edition, and the day was given the company’s blessing to go ahead.

Photography revealed exclusively to MOTOR showed Red Hot to be the dominant colour of the day, with 21 of the 86 lining up and taking turns across the skid pan, the ride and handling loop and then high-speed bowl. Heron White took a close second with 19 examples, while Spitfire Green, Son of a Gun Grey and Nitrate Silver rounded out the cohort.

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Holden also wheeled out two left-hand drive Chevrolet SS prototypes, which formed the basis for the magnetic damper-equipped limited edition sedans; and also a left-hand drive original-generation Camaro, the revived US coupe of which was designed in Port Melbourne and engineered in Lang Lang based heavily on the VE Commodore’s Zeta platform.

Each owner further received photography standing beside their limited edition on the skid pan, bunched together on the high-speed bowl and leaving the facility via a tunnel with the Lion logo painted above it.

And of course they were allowed to drive around the famed ride and handling track, with several sharp corners, plus a bumpy-road straight section.