Revival of a legend
Though starting life effectively as a tarted-up tradie’s van, the Holden Sandman – like its Ford Sundowner and Chrysler Drifter equivalents – has developed near-legend status over time.
The originals are now very much on the collector radar, with several restoration and tribute projects getting around.
Holden understandably had a crack at reviving the idea with VY and VZ series, using the existing utes as a basis. They were fitted with a unique canopy made by Holden by Design in Clayton, Victoria.
Sales were modest, but there’s no question they retain a lot of appeal for anyone wanting some thing a little different that has a lot of real-world usefulness.
The 2007 version you see here claims to be HSV plated with a fair bit of tuning work for the 6.0lt V8/six-speed manual powertrain. Located in WA, it’s prced at $45,000.
See our original series Sandman van feature;
Plus our Sandman ute feature;
And a Sundowner resto story;
And let’s not forget the Ford Escort Sundowner!
Unique Cars auction results listing