1962 Holden EK Panelvan

Holden's third generation FB/EK series remained in production from 1960 until 1962, with styling firmly rooted in Detroit of the 1950s. From the toothy, chrome-laden grille to the curved roofline and rear wings, the Holden was strongly reminiscent of the '57 Chevrolet - itself one of the best looking cars of the era. Underneath, the Holden kept the rugged Aussie-developed running gear, using the trusty six-cylinder 'grey' motor taken out to 138-cid to cope with the added weight of the new body. With the compression ratio lifted to 7.25:1, the Holden had 75 horsepower on call for adequate performance, while the clutch and brakes both came in for some improvements. When the EK came along in May 1961, the option of an automatic gear change was made available on an Australian car for the first time with the column-shift Hydra-Matic transmission. The Holden continued to lead the way in the local market thanks to their excellent reputation for durability and a total of 150,214 examples of the EK were built by 1962. These days, finding a nice EK, particularly one of the rare panel vans, isn't easy - most of the commercials led hard working lives and have long since gone to the great wrecker's in the sky. As a result of the strong interest in these early model Holdens, values continue to appreciate and they make sense as an affordable, every day classic.