HOLDEN’S FB AND EK SERIES WERE SO WRONG IN THE EARLY 1960S, BUT ARE SO RIGHT TODAY … ESPECIALLY TO OWNERS MATT GRECH AND ROB KAVANAGH
Words: Dave Carey / Photos: Darren Gerlach
Holden’s FB and EK-series, with their quintessentially 1950s styling, hark back to an era of well-dressed guys and frocked up girls jiving away their Saturday nights at their local surf-club socials. All fins and chrome and wrap-around windscreens, they’re Australia’s ’57 Chev – by no coincidence – yet missed the ’50s by a whisker, causing panic within General Motors-Holden (GMH) as they did. Fortunately, time has been kind to them.
Alf Payze styled the Holden at Fishermans Bend, structurally basing the car on the preceding FE-FC series, but with enough sheet metal changes to make it look all-new. The wheelbase carried over, as did the sedan boot lid and wagon tailgate, but the fins, peaky headlight buckets and wrap-around windscreen gave it that jet-age aura, taking obvious cues from the 1957 Chevrolet. Vans and utes retained the FE-FC rear quarters and tailgates, revealing just how similar the two generations truly were.
It’s fair to say that Alf Payze’s work on the FB Holden fitted the brief perfectly. Locked in by mid-1957 and approved by Glen A Smith at General Motors Overseas Operations, the expectations of GM design boss Harley Earl were conveyed without dilution. There were just two problems simmering, unbeknownst at the time; one in Detroit, and the other here in Australia.
The first occurred when, in August 1956, Cadillac stylist Chuck Jordan happened upon Chrysler’s new range for the following year. Apparently tipped off they were visible without entering the property, Jordan peered through a fence to discover the Chrysler’s glassier, chromier, even finnier interpretation of their ‘Forward Look’ design language was completely at odds with Earl’s chosen direction for 1958. Earl loved staunch, visually heavy designs, believing they gave the products presence, and having created fins with the 1948 Cadillac, was equally confident he could lead automotive style in another direction again.
Under Earl’s direction, budget GM brands eschewed fins almost completely, with Chevrolet’s shrinking to a pair of vestigial shapes encompassing low-set tail-lights, while Pontiac’s fins grew in to fat pods perched atop deeply sculpted rear quarters. As if to hedge his bets, Earl ensured the more luxurious Oldsmobile and Buick brands remained wildly finned, while the Cadillac wore a carry-over body that was already dated by 1958.
Bill Mitchell, as both GM director of syling and Earl’s protégé, took notice of Jordan’s concerns and convinced GM’s board of directors to revisit the direction the products were heading. He recommended tossing out the 1958 shapes after just one year with no facelifts and renewing all five brands simultaneously for 1959. With Earl retiring at the end of 1958 and Mitchell set for his succession to VP, Styling Section, the board agreed, presumably hoping that Mitchell’s influence on Earl would help modernise the entire fleet and allow GM to enter the 1960s on the front foot.
The various engineering departments within GM set to work creating all-new, cruciform chassis to accommodate the longer, lower and wider bodies. Earl’s love of chrome and fins returned, culminating in the giant rudders seen on the iconic 1959 Cadillac, but it was Mitchell’s fresh ideas that brought perhaps the greatest deviation in automotive styling that had ever been seen – setting the headlights low, either side of the radiator grille – rather than above. The accelerated restyle of the entire 1959 GM USA range was unprecedented, but ultimately successful, and while fins and bubble-glass came and went, headlights stayed either side of the radiator grille for decades after.
GM’s outer realms such as Australia, Germany and the UK were soundly left behind stylistically, with the FB-series Holden, the P2-series Opel Kapitän and PA-series Vauxhall Velox all wearing their fins into the early 1960s, but more unfashionably, continued to position their headlights above, rather than in line with the grille. Fortunately, this did not immediately affect GMH; the tyranny of distance and economies of scale usually saw delays in local updates, and besides, Holden already commanded a full 50 per cent of the Australian market in the late 1950s, something that wasn’t going to slip easily.
It helped that pretty much every other front-engine car on the market wore a similar face; it’s not like the Ford Consul, Hillman Minx, Standard Vanguard or Austin Cambridge broke the mould. Even the Mini, which went on to become the legend that it is, sat the lights above the grille. Alf Payze’s FB-series, although jet-aged and American influenced, was just restrained enough for the tastes of the average 1950s Australian buyer. But there’s the crux of the problem; by the time the FB hit the market on January 14, 1960, it wasn’t the 1950s anymore, and in September that year, the second of GMH’s aforementioned problems occurred, with Ford releasing the locally produced XK-series Falcon.
The Falcon was longer, wider and a full 19cm lower than the FB Holden, putting GMH on notice that they not only had a worthy rival, but one that was at least a generation ahead in terms of styling. No fins, sculped sides, tightly curved bumpers and a pair of headlights planted right in that Philishave-like grille was incredible stuff in 1960. Furthermore, Holden’s one engine, the ‘grey’ six enlarged to 138ci for the FB, generated a relatively feeble 76hp against the Falcon’s 144ci, 90hp unit fitted standard and was positively trounced by the 170ci ‘Pursuit’ option making 101hp. It was the already-considerable sales might of the Holden brand, combined with the Ford’s initially untrustworthy front suspension, that allowed GMH to remain at the top of the sales charts.
It was late 1959 when GMH realised that they might need to update the FB in the wake of the impending compacts out of the States, namely the Falcon and Chrysler Valiant. The plan had been to let the FB-series carry through to 1962 when the EJ could take over, with a BorgWarner auto – under local development since 1957 – slipped into the options list in the meantime. For whatever reason, BorgWarner failed to deliver, so Holden started testing the Hydramatic from early 1960, with a projected ready date of May 1961. In November 1960, they confirmed internally that electric wipers were approved as standard on the EK facelift, and in January 1961, the internal bonnet release was greenlit; seemingly small bikkies, but no doubt included because the Falcon was taking them to task.
When the EK-series was released on May 2, 1961, Holden was yet to play hard in the options game; the 138ci grey six remained the only engine available, and almost anything fitted was done at the dealership rather than the factory. Times would change, but back then, it was a tall, ’50s-style family car with a reliable but unconcerned engine that still outsold its rivals, despite looking – and driving – a generation behind them.
Now, six decades later, all is forgiven. Few owners of a stock-standard FB or EK are about to go toe-to-toe with a contemporary Falcon, and it matters not that their styling is disparate enough to look like they’re from completely different planets. The FB and EK Holdens are rightly revered as the classics that they are, and their silhouette, once seen as outdated, is a major part of their appeal; they’re the rockin’, Johnny O’Keefe of classic Holdens.
Matt Grech has certainly always been a fan; of the nine FB-EK examples he’s owned, four were wagons and four were panel vans. His only sedan, a black FB, was sold to his mate Paul 20 years ago, igniting Paul’s own love affair with the cars that continues to this day, and when Paul decided to sell his Fernando yellow FB wagon, Matt was the first in line to buy.
“When I was a kid growing up, my Mum’s first car was a blue EK sedan with red trim,” he begins. “At the time, I didn’t think they were cool, but as I got older, it must have been imprinted on my DNA.”
He’s not wrong, because he’s owned more FB/EKs than anything else. “As a kid, the Chevy was the ultimate car, but we didn’t see many Chevs around the place back then.
“With the fins, the square A-pillar and wrap-around windscreen, the FB always felt like the next best thing.”
Matt’s FB-series Holden Special Station Sedan is pretty stock, but he didn’t always keep his FB/EKs this way.
“My first one was a van. I did a red motor conversion, painted it and made it all slick,” he says.
“With the second one, I put a 327ci small-block Chev into it. It was from a HK Monaro GTS, but we didn’t care back then. It’d probably be worth heaps to an engineless Monaro owner now,” Matt laughs. “I’d finish a car and drive it around for a year or so, then decide to sell it, or something else would catch my eye,” Matt continues.
“I had more energy then. More energy and less kids.”
Fortunately for Matt, the FB wagon didn’t need much work when he bought it from Paul, and amazingly, much of the paint and all the interior trim is original to the car.
“Mario Colalillo found the car in Kiama, on the south coast of NSW. Then he built WILDCAD and wanted to enter it in the Long Beach Motorama in California, so he sold a bunch of FB Holdens to help fund it. Jon Smoother in Sydney bought it, and because I love FBs, I found myself following him on Instagram,” Matt explains.
“One day Jon posted it was for sale, but by the time I saw the post, it was sold. I couldn’t believe it when I found out Paul had bought it. I pretty much hassled him for three years to sell it to me.”
Although well-looked after, it needed a few things done; Trav at Warehouse27 replaced the door skins on the right-hand side, not that you’d know. Matt also rebuilt the diff, restored the brakes and rebuilt the suspension. “I might have dropped it down a bit when I did that; just some lowered front springs and reset rears with reverse eyes.”
The minor mods certainly aren’t enough to detract from the car’s original beauty, and the 138ci grey motor starts not with a roar, but with a gentle flatulence as it clears its pipes. “That’s such a familiar noise; all grey motors do it,” Matt smiles as his FB settles down into a smooth hum. “It’s one of the beautiful things about them.”
As we reposition the pigeon pair during the photo shoot, Rob Kavanagh’s EK Holden Special starts with that same familiar ease. He shifts the Hydramatic into reverse, moves the EK a few feet, then turns it off and alights.
“My father bought one from the police auctions back in 1963. It only had 6000 miles on it, but had been written off up to the firewall,” Rob explains.
“He was a phenomenal crash repairer, and because I was 14 at the time, I helped him fix it. That got me working for him on Saturday mornings and school holidays, and that’s how I got my love of motor cars,” Rob muses for a second, “And EKs, obviously.”
Rob has had plenty of nice Holdens through his garage, but had a particularly nostalgic itch for an EK, understandably.
“My brother Dave put out a ‘wanted’ advert on my behalf. I didn’t mind what colour it was; it just had to be original and a Hydramatic. Of course, we got plenty of calls about cars in pieces, cars with manual transmissions, all of that,” he says.
“Then Dave received a call from a collector in central-west NSW who had happened upon this EK Holden when the first owner passed. He’d bought it to save it, essentially, and kept it for about 20 years. Not only was it original and a Hydramatic, but also Silverton Grey, just like my father’s,” Rob gestures to his original, unrestored sedan.
Rob went to visit the car in person, even cleaning his own car before he arrived at the seller’s property. “I could tell on the phone he was a fastidious individual, which is exactly what I wanted. I bought it in 2019, just before COVID.”
Although the EK came with the service books, the logbooks were missing, but it’s clear the car is essentially untouched from new. “From what I was told, the first owner, a lady, lived deep in a valley in the Parkes area. She optioned in a heap of NASCO accessories to suit, some now very rare.” Rob says.
The two previous owners hadn’t even fitted seat belts, but Rob installed a set of lap belts as a concession to safety, on account of his nieces and nephews that he takes out for regular drives.
“Lap-sash belts are safer,” he concedes, “But I cannot stand seeing a bolt through the B-pillar. It’s just a personal thing, but when I see a car that has been brilliantly restored, and I see that B-pillar bolt …” Rob shakes his head. “And when they spray over it, it’s even worse!”
Pet hates aside, Rob had to replace the brake fluid, which was like jelly, get a set of tyres and fit a new exhaust. “All up it cost me about $1500 to get it on the road, which is a pretty light bill to pay, especially for a car almost 60 years old at the time,” he says.
“It drives as good as a new EK would. That being said, my EH Holden drove a lot better; more modern and so forth, but I sold it because I’m connected with this one. Many classic-car owners have them not because they’re a great car, but because of the nostalgia associated with them,” Robs says.
“All my childhood memories come flooding back when I drive it. The first time I did so, I could see my mother in the front seat looking back at me. I’d forgotten that image, but through the EK, I saw it again, and every time I look at the car in my garage, it brings a smile to my face.”
As we speak, Rob is called upon to reposition his EK Holden once more, and again it dutifully resonates lightly through the tailpipe before settling down.
“That’s a noise that you can’t explain,” he grins. “It’s almost as important as the smell; even if I were blind, I’d know I was in an EK Holden.” Almost misty eyed, Rob continues, “I used to dream I’d find my father’s car again. Of course, I never did, but since finding this one, that thought has never troubled me since.”