1977 Holden HX Statesman DeVille Sedan

Description

Replacing the Brougham as GMH's full-size luxury offering, the Statesman was based on a stretched version of the HQ platform and two versions, the Custom and more upmarket De Ville, were unveiled on July 22, 1971. Rivalling Ford's Fairlane for supremacy in the domestic luxury car market, the new Statesman proved to be a great success for Holden, thanks to careful marketing of the model as a distinct brand, one quite separate from the more prosaic Kingswoods and Toranas - having a Statesman parked in the driveway was a real status symbol back in the 1970s. The extended wheelbase afforded plenty of extra legroom for rear seat passengers while the Statesman's styling had an individual presence thanks to new front and rear sheetmetal. In October 1974 Holden replaced the HQ Statesman with the HJ, with new frontal treatment featuring a more formal grille, quad headlamps and unique rear styling and a vinyl roof. Available in two versions, the DeVille and upmarket Caprice, both came with the 308c-cid V8 and TH400 automatic transmission as standard and this, combined with the longer wheelbase and huge boot, made the big Holdens a firm favourite with country drivers. Mechanical changes to the HJ series were few, but did include useful improvements like a cable-type throttle control for all engines. Two years later, in July 1976, Holden unveiled the improved HX series Statesmans, with a revised grille and the 5.0-litre V8s were re-tuned to meet tough new emissions laws. Holden even tried a primitive anti-lock braking system operating on the rear wheels only but it was not a success and received scant attention at the time. Inside, the prestige nature of the Statesman DeVille was accentuated through the use of better trim, including Caribou vinyl as standard (Royal cord cloth was optional), teak woodgrain instrument fascia and full instrumentation, including a square speedo, clock, fuel and temperature gauges along with a remote-control exterior mirror. Both HX Statesman models benefited from better equipment levels, with power radio aerials standard, additional gauges on the Caprice and optional crushed velour trim and central locking. Many Australians have fond memories of the HQ-HZ Statesmans and these classic 1970s luxury sedans have a strong following today.