The Holden Kingswood is a full-size car that was developed and manufactured in Australia by Holden, from the beginning of the HK series in 1968 through to the conclusion of the WB series in 1985. Prior to 1968, the full-size Holden range of family cars comprised the Holden Standard, the Holden Special, and Holden Premier models. Initially, the HK range of models included the basic Holden Belmont (replacing the Standard), the Kingswood (replacing the Special), and the luxury-oriented Holden Premier, all of which were manufactured in a choice of sedan and station wagon bodies. Commercial variants were offered in three types: coupé utility, panel van, and later from 1971, the Holden One Tonner cab chassis. The Utility version was originally marketed in both Belmont and Kingswood configurations. However, after the Belmont name was deleted from commercials at the end of HQ in late 1974, the base model commercials were sold only with the "Holden" badge (the Belmont name continued on sedan and wagon variants until the end of the HX series).
A two-door Holden Monaro coupé and extended-length luxury Holden Brougham were also introduced in mid 1968. For HK, HT, HG and HQ the Holden Monaro carried the ID plate luxury level coding for a Kingswood but never wore Kingswood badges as a production car. HQ-HJ Monaro LS and HQ Monaro LS V8 shared luxury level coding with their respective Premier but also never wore Premier badges. HK-HJ Monaro GTS coupe, HJ Monaro GTS sedan, HT-HQ Monaro GTS V8 coupe and Monaro GTS327/350 coupe (HK-HQ) carried unique luxury level coding.
HQ Monaro GTS sedan and HQ Monaro GTS350 sedan shared Kingswood luxury level coding with later examples actually displaying the GTS coupe's Q code on the VIN plate but still retaining the HQ V8 Kingswood's 80469 model coding on the body plate. The Brougham was replaced in 1971 by the Statesman brand, based upon the station wagon chassis of the then new HQ series.
A new Kingswood model was introduced at the start of the HX Holden series in mid 1976, the Kingswood panel van.
Outside of Australia, the Holden range (including Kingswoods in various body styles) and its derivatives have been sold in New Zealand, parts of Asia and Africa, and parts of the South Pacific, branded as Holden or Chevrolet.
Following the late-1960s import cessation of the Canadian-sourced Chevrolet Impala and Chevelle in South Africa, the Holden Kingswood / Premier and Holden Brougham models were badge engineered as Chevrolet Kommando and Chevrolet Constantia, respectively. Holden-based style-side utilities in South Africa were known as the Chevrolet El Camino. Between 1974 and 1978, the one-tonne cab-chassis utility was sold as the Chevrolet El Toro.
The Kingswood passenger car and Kingswood panel van ceased production with the demise of the HZ series in 1980, the passenger range succeeded by the smaller Commodore released two years earlier. However, the Kingswood name survived via the utility that comprised part of the WB series range manufactured between 1980 and 1985, sold alongside the WB Statesman and the WB Holden utility, panel van and One Tonner.
First generation (1968–1971)
HK
The Kingswood sedan and wagon were released as part of the new HK series of Holdens in January 1968 (commercials: March 1968). This was an all-new body design, larger and heavier than the previous HR series. The HK series carried over the same local six-cylinder engines, but introduced the first V8 into the Holden range, the fully imported Chevrolet small-block engine.
The Monaro and the Brougham were introduced mid-year of 1968, thereby broadening GM's range of locally built full-size cars in Australia.
HT
The HT series launched in May 1969 and with it the introduction of a new locally manufactured Holden and Holden V8 engines. The 253 was available on all HT models except Brougham, and the 308 was available only in Brougham. The Chevrolet V8 engine remained an option for all HT series models except Brougham until stocks were depleted and it was replaced with the 308. The advertising campaign for this model was 'Never Late, in a Three-Oh-Eight'.
The range of three six-cylinder engines carried over to the HT series, however the transmission options for the V8 engines were many and varied. Initially, the 253 V8 only came with either three-speed column- or four-speed floor-mounted manual transmissions. The 307 V8 was only available with two-speed Powerglide automatic. This arrangement continued until the 307 stocks were exhausted, following which the 253 and 308 locally built V8 engines could then be ordered with any manual or automatic transmission across the range, excepting the Holden Brougham which was always specified as a 308 automatic. A new locally manufactured three-speed automatic transmission, the Tri-Matic, was introduced late in the life of the HT range, except on HT Brougham which retained the two-speed automatic Powerglide transmission.
HG
The HG series of July 1970 was a minor refinement of the existing formula, adopted as the marketing platform for the new three-speed automatic transmission option called Tri-Matic. The first of these locally made transmissions actually found their way into the last of the HT series cars. These transmissions were later criticised for unreliability and became colloquially known by dispondants, as the Traumatic. Only the HG Monaro GTS350 retained the Powerglide transmission if an automatic preference was optioned. HG commercial variants continued to be built and sold alongside the HQ series passenger vehicles until very late in 1971 when the HQ commercials were released. These HG commercials were upgraded to the newer specification HQ 173ci and 202ci 6cyl engines but retained the HG specification transmissions (cable kickdown 6cyl and V8 Trimatics and V8 M21 Saginaw) and V8 engines which are believed to have been stockpiled in sufficient quantity to cover expected requirements. These HG commercials can easily be identified by the A prefix on the chassis number appearing on the firewall and for vehicles built for sale inside Australia on the Safety Compliance Plate.
Second generation (1971–1985)
HQ
The HQ series of 1971 was a completely new design, introducing larger capacity 173-cubic-inch (2.85 L) and 202-cubic-inch (3.3 L) six-cylinder engines, with the continued availability of 253-cubic-inch (4.2 L), 308-cubic-inch (5.0 L) Holden and 350-cubic-inch (5.7 L) Chevrolet V8 engines.Davis, Kennedy, Kennedy (Part Two), pp. 67–68. HQ was the most radically engineered Holden since the introduction of the original 48-215 model of 23 years prior. It featured a perimeter frame and semi-monocoque (unibody) construction, and was the first full-size Holden to have coil spring rear suspension. As a cost-saving measure, HQ was only engineered for right-hand drive, hence it was not feasible to sell the car in left-hand drive markets. Thus Holden exports declined from 41,181 in 1973 to just 7,440 in 1975. Over the following years this led to a large decline in export vehicle revenue needed to fund the HQ-HZ series replacement.Robinson (2006), p. 21. Despite this, HQ became Holden's most popular car, selling 485,650 units, a total yet to be surpassed in a Holden. It was however, sold over a longer timeframe than previous models.Sales figures cover shifted units of all HQ models, including the Monaro and Statesman.
At the time, Holden's then Chief Engineer, an American named George Roberts, insisted that the HQ Holdens should "ride like a Cadillac" and that the front suspension be engineered to make the car prone to understeer for "safety reasons".Wright (1998), pp. 203, 206–207 Advertising of the car promoted its "jet-smooth ride" over rough roads. Notwithstanding persistent criticism from many motoring journalists, this policy persisted with the subsequent HJ and HX facelift models. It was arguable whether Australian buyers favoured this engineering philosophy and it was not until the 1977 HZ facelift that radical changes were made to the suspension to improve handling.Wright (1998), pp. 207, 240–243
In Mid 1972, Holden released a limited edition version of the HQ Belmont sedan, named 'SS' Adopted from Chevrolet Super Sport Models in the United States and other markets, Option code 'XV2' Included the choice of three very 70's Colours: Infra Red (Dark Orange), Lettuce Alone (Light Green) or Ultraviolet (Purplish - Grey Metallic), Vinyl Stripe and 'SS' Decal kit supplied by 3M Australia, a choice between 253 (4.2L) or 308 (5.0L) Holden V8 engine mated to a 4 Speed Manual Gearbox backed by a 10-Bolt Salisbury Differential with a 3.36:1 Ratio (and painted.. unusually, White, Along with the driveshaft), along with Pontiac-style Rallye weels. On the inside: Standard Black Belmont Door trims, Optional armrests, However, unusual to the Belmont, A full Sport Gauge Cluster, Steering Wheel, Carpet, Floor Shift, Center Console and Bucket Seats in Black Vinyl with Houndstooth or Flax inserts, The SS was initially limited to 1800 units, but extended by 1300 due to unprecedented sales demand.
In late 1972, Holden released a special edition version of the HQ Kingswood sedan and wagon, named Kingswood Vacationer.Holden HQ Kingswood Vacationer brochure, page 4, November 1972 Retrieved from www.uniquecarsandparts.com.au on 22 July 2010 This value package of options proved popular and made return appearances on various Holden models during the next twenty years or so. Holden, in 1974 introduced the Sandman, a version of the utility or panel van designed to incorporate many of the features of the Monaro, such as sports instrumentation, sports steering wheel and bucket seats, and "rally" road wheels with a choice of two six-cylinder and two V8 engines. Other available options included automatic transmission, power steering, and air-conditioning. Sandmans were visually identified by stick-on vinyl decals on the exterior. It gained notoriety during the latter half of the 1970s as a mobile venue for sexual intercourse. Vans earned nicknames as shaggin' wagons and sinbins.
In 1971 CKD HQ production started in Thailand. HQ's were also CKD manufactured in Indonesia and the Philippines for many years. There was also a program for Mazda in Japan to produce the HQ from CKD kits, which is believed not to have gone beyond the pilot stage.
HJ
Released in 1974, the HJ series received some major frontal appearance styling changes, taking away some of the "softness" of the HQ cars. HJ saw the Belmont name disappear off utilities and panel vans to be replaced with an "unbadged" specification. HJ also saw the demise of separate models for V8 powered variants, for example in HQ a V8 Kingswood sedan had model code 0469 and its six-cylinder version was 0369. In HJ all Kingswoods were a single model—WN69—regardless of engine. Engine displacement was now expressed in metric terms, and the six-cylinder engine became the standard power unit for all Kingswood variants and higher luxury levels. The six remained the standard engine for the entry-level Belmont and "unbadged" commercials. As with the engine, the Belmont also saw the omission of front disc brakes, now a standard fitment on all Kingswood models.
A couple of special-build variants emerged later in production, initially with the Kingswood Deluxe sedan in July 1975 and later the Kingswood Vacationer II sedan and wagon in November 1975. Added features for these cars included automatic transmission, radial tyres, floor carpeting, radio, and a range of two-tone body colours.