Holden’s first factory race car is up for auction

FANS of Holden race cars, prepare your wallets, because one seriously awesome car is currently up for auction.

The first ever factory-backed Holden racecar is being put under the hammer in an online auction by Lloyds Auctioneers and Valuers.

The 1969 Holden HT Monaro was the first factory supported racing car with a Holden badge.

Prepared by the Holden Dealer Team, it was driven by legend of Australian motorsport, Harry Firth.

Ironically, being the first didn’t mean it would end up getting endowed with racing glory.

“This is the car that entered into the Sandown 300 in 1969 to be driven by Spencer Martin and Kevin Bartlett,” the auction description reads.

“The car failed to finish after a brake failure led to a fiery crash, but had it not been for the crash, the three other HDT Monaros would not have tasted Bathurst glory a short time later.”

The car, dubbed 57D, was then used to homologate changes for other HT Monaro racers, which aided the three Bathurst entries.

In 1969, Colin Bond and Tony Roberts took victory in the Hardie-Ferodo 500 at Mount Panorama in a HT Monaro, with Des West and a young rookie known as Peter Brock finishing third.

“This car is a hugely significant piece of Australian motorsport history which not only shaped the success of Holden as a company, but also set the stage for domination by Holden and Peter Brock for the next two decades,” the auction description continues.

If you want to add the car to your garage, you’re likely going to have to fork out some significant cash if the recent classic auction in Brisbane is any gauge. In that instance, a pair of iconic Ford racers sold for more than $400,000 apiece.

Bidding for the 57D sits at $53,000 at the time of writing, but with 10 days left in the auction, that figure is sure to rise.

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