Thread: Holden LH SL/R Torana Turns 40.

Hey Baz,
I would say the opposite, my Torana handles better than a lot of newer more advanced cars and definitely much better than a GY Falcon. More comfortable as well. The GT with those crappy low back seats, plenty of power and great for a straight line, different story if you wanted to stop or turn quickly. But hey thats my opinion as well.

Originally Posted by Redback

Yes I have driven one, an A9X in fact, horrible car IMHO, for comfort and pure pleasure(for the day) to drive was the Falcon and the GTS Monaro, yes the A9X was fast, but wasn't talking about that, I've been in and driven a lot of the fast cars of the 70s, went to Bathurst in 74 with some mates, me I went as a passenger that year because I had a bike at the time, so went up in a GTS Monaro, and back in a GTHO Falcon and drove both for a while to and from, so yes I can say those two cars drove better and were more comfotable than the A9X in my opinion

Now the LJ Torana, that was a fun car to drive, only drove the GTR though, also the Mini Cooper, R/T Charger

As for the Marena, I don't remember saying anything good about it, I said it was the funniest part of that race, it was quite hilarious watching it go around the track, the crowd erupted with laughter ever time it came round, especially when it was raining

Colin Bond was just amazing to watch, in the wet he was extraordinary, an absolute pleasure to watch coming down through the esses in the wet.

Baz.

Just a few more things for the very impressive list.

What goes round...
...looks a lot better.We're referring to the L34's 7in diameter round headlight inserts that replaced the standard square ones on the SL/R 5000.

Those colours
L34's were produced in the following mostly attention-grabbing,Holden colours; Aquamarine,Covert(dull metallic grey),Gunmetal,Burgundy,Azure blue(mid blue),Glacier white,Orchid(lilac),Cognac(golden brown),Monterey green(bottle),Chrome yellow,Autumn gold,Willow(grey/silver),Sunburst(Gold with a hint of green),Sable(silver),Saffron(Orangey-gold),Barbados,Salamanca red. In addition to the standard Holden range of colours at the time,at least two tuxedo black L34's were built and as many five special order Sebring orange examples went to Bob Jane's southern motors.

Anyone for golf?
The vast majority of L34's had black trim with 'Dark Ash Sadlon' vinyl inserts-what widely became known as the golf ball-pattern.A couple of odd ball interior combos also slipped through.

It's the little things.
The L34 features a raft of subtle modifications that set it apart from other Toranas. For example the accelerator pedal has a different pivot point,so with less pedal travel the driver gets more response.In other words,it's designed to be driven on the throttle.

Occasional finds.
The last 'Numbers matching car'in original condition that turned up out of the blue-i,e.previously unknown to Torana club record keepers-did so two years ago.It was owned by the family of a former Holden dealer who had put it away many moons ago.And the previous 'find'was three years prior.Which means another is just about due to be discovered...

A driver's car.
As one Torana fan told us,"As an enthusiast,there's nothing more pleasing than driving one. You've got to take control to get the most out of them,at which point they became very rewarding.With the noise it makes and it's willingness to rev,you do feel like your driving a racing car more so than behind the wheel of the XU-1 and A9X. The A9X feels more refined.The suspension didn't progress markedly to the A9X."

A fabled development mule.
What was learned from the L34 program was built upon for the A9X. A left-field example was a stream lining of production line processes to help the race teams.It started when Bob Forbes/Wayne Negus L34 was rushed down the assembly line at the Dandenong production facility so the team could make the start line at Bathurst. The manner in which it was fast tracked made production line chiefs realise the plant could do more for race teams,prompting the famed production line process that was adopted for the famed A9X of 1977.

Stealth-like introduction.
Because the L34 arrived just two years after the supercar scare it was never advertised and showroom cars were often not fitted with all the go-faster gear.Of course,stealth-like introductions-and Holden's furphy that engine mods didn't increase horsepower-served only to create desire and mystique among enthusiasts.

Media snub
The SL/R 5000 L34 received less magazine and newspaper coverage upon it's launch than you might expect.One reason was because most publications couldn't get their hands on 'works burger' L34's to test and photograph.The Adelaide Advertiser overcame the lack of press/fleet L34's by driving a privately-owned car with all the fruit.Motoring journalist Stuart Innes'Bonnetful of Fury'report began with the words "astonishing performance". "Using the middle of the four speed box a kick on the accelerator would send the car rocketing ahead. "A squirt down the drag strip at AIR stopped the clocks at an amazing 14 seconds for a standing-start 400 metres. "That is a very quick-quicker than times recorded for such fast movers as the Porsche 911 Carrera and 1.8 secs faster than the XB GT Falcon.The standard SL/R 5000 took 15.9." Innes summed up with "The L34 Torana V8 is a very powerful and very fast car having more than is needed for road use.But it has no bad temperaments,is quite usable in city driving and has good handling and brakes."

I think that pretty well sums things up

My wife had an LC with the red 138 (2250) engine. Only a small motor but it went well in the little Torana.


Torana means "To Fly" in Aboriginal I once read!


My wife's uncle still has a G-Pak he purchased in 1975 and it is still a daily driver. Another one owner in the family is a HQ 350 Monaro four door.


Cheers, Mick.

Originally Posted by mick88

My wife had an LC with the red 138 (2250) engine. Only a small motor but it went well in the little Torana.


Torana means "To Fly" in Aboriginal I once read!


My wife's uncle still has a G-Pak he purchased in 1975 and it is still a daily driver. Another one owner in the family is a HQ 350 Monaro four door.


Cheers, Mick.

Gotta love the HQ

As Craig says, a Torana can be made to handle very well with some of GM's part's bin modifications.

The L34 claim to fame was that magnificent engine, understandably misunderstood in its early days, but good enough for many race wins against fords far bigger 351.

The A9X claim to fame is shared between the bigger 1 tonner axle with discs and the new Radial Tuned Suspension.

any torana can be easily updated with later model suspension parts and revised geometry. The difference that makes is really astounding.

There are plenty of Torana club racing cars keeping pace with more modern machinery or certainly more favoured cars.

As silly as it sounds, most people would scoff at the old Torry going door to door with a 911 Porsche, but it happens in classic targa racing all the time.`

Happy 40th Birthday L34

The really big difference on the A9X was bigger rear wheel wells/tubs (it used the later UC floorpan) to fit better/bigger racing rubber, as well as HJ/Z front brakes and 14" rims.

As Mick said, the geometry revisions were relatively easy to do.

The racing A9X also used a watts link instead of relying on the standard angled 4 link for lateral axle location.

Disco Man..thanks very much for that inforemantibve post..

A Holden Legend like the LH Torana deserves lots of respect!

I have a Yellow HOLDEN LH TORANA L34 SLR 5000 SEDAN in 1:43 scale model

They looks sooo tough! love them!

Originally Posted by 4x4 MORE

Disco Man..thanks very much for that inforemantibve post..

A Holden Legend like the LH Torana deserves lots of respect!

I have a Yellow HOLDEN LH TORANA L34 SLR 5000 SEDAN in 1:43 scale model

They looks sooo tough! love them!

No problems mate,i found a couple of articles and thought maybe some people on the forum might get some enjoyment from them.And yeah i agree they deserve respect and a mention.