This is arguably one of the most important examples of the Holden Commodore VK SS Group A in existence, largely down to the fact that it was originally used as legendary Australian racing driver Peter Brock as his company car.
The SS Group A Commodore VK was an homologation special, designed to allow the model to race in the Group A class laid out by the international governing body FISA. A minimum of 500 cars needed to be built, and they’re now among the most collectible Australian V8s of all time – often referred to by their nickname the “Blue Meanie.”
Fast Facts – The Holden Commodore VK SS Group A
- The Holden Commodore VK SS Group A was developed in 1985 to be the primary new competition car for Holden in Australian and European touring car competition. FISA (Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile) regulations stipulated that in order to homologate the car at least 500 had to be built and sold to the public.
- Production of the VK SS Group A began in March of 1985 but the August 1st deadline was missed, largely due to logistics problems surrounding the delivery of needed parts. This meant that Holden was forced to use their standard V8 Commodore as their race car for that year – a vehicle that was considerably slower than the VK SS Group A.
- By 1986 the car had been successfully homologated, taking to the track for the first time at the Nissan Mobil 500 at the Wellington Street Circuit in New Zealand. Driven by Peter Brock and Allan Moffat, the car would win in no uncertain terms.
- Over the course of its competitive life, the SS Group A VK Commodore would win a slew of races, it would compete in Australia, New Zealand, in Europe, and even in Japan with considerable success.
- Surviving examples of the car are now highly sought after, and their distinctive blue paint scheme resulted in them being nicknamed the “Blue Meanie” in their native Australia.
The Car That Wasn’t Ready In Time
In 1985 at the James Hardie 1000, a race held on the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, Australia, racing driver John Harvey turned to teammate Peter Brock and wryly noted that the Holden Commodores they had driven to the circuit were actually faster than the Commodore race cars they would be competing in.
Above Video: This clip from 1986 shows Peter Brock driving a Holden Commodore VK SS Group A at Mount Panorama and describing a lap of the track best known to the world as “Bathurst.”
The reason for this disparity was that the cars they drove to the circuit were newly built examples of the Holden Commodore VK SS Group A. Production had begun in March of the same year, but the 500 required units needed for homologation hadn’t been completed before the August 1st deadline.
As a result of this missed deadline, which had been due to slow part deliveries and no fault of their own, the Holden Dealer Team was stuck racing the standard V8 Commodore for the 1985 season.
This would all change by the time the 1986 season came around, Commodore VK SS Group A had been successfully homologated by FISA (Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile) to compete in Group A racing, and it would begin making an impact immediately.
The Arrival Of The Blue Meanie
The first round of the 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship would take place across the Tasman Sea in New Zealand, at the Nissan Mobil 500 at the Wellington Street Circuit. The Group A Commodore driven by Peter Brock and Allan Moffat took the race win, and another Group A VK would win the Pukekohe 500 (also in New Zealand) a week later.
Fresh off the back of their victories in New Zealand, Holden sent the Group A VK Commodore to Europe to compete in the 1986 FIA Touring Car Championship. Two cars were sent in total, one for Brock and Moffat, and another that was reserved to race at the Spa 24 Hours, and to be used for spare parts if required.
This is the view of the front two seats, that driver’s seat was only occupied by one of 500 very fortunate Australians when the car was first released in 1985.
The cars performed well and qualified strongly, even leading races at Monza, Donington Park, and Hockenheim despite the fact that it was their first time dicing with the Europeans on the Continent.
Back in Australia, another example of the car, driven by Allan Grice and Graeme Bailey would win the 1986 James Hardie 1000, with Grice becoming the first ever driver to lap the Mountt Panorama circuit near Bathurst at over 100 mph (160 km/h) in a Group A Touring Car.
The car would win a slew of races across Australia, becoming one of the most legendary competitors of its day, and cementing its place in the history books. The surviving examples of the road going homologation VK SS Group A are now sought out by collectors, and have seen their values climb well into the six figures.
The Commodore VK SS Group A Shown Here
As mentioned higher up, this particular member of the Holden Commodore VK SS Group A family was Peter Brock’s company car. It’s number 005 of the 500 examples delivered, and it’s accompanied by a folder of supporting paperwork, invoices, period advertisements, and HDT literature.
The highly modified engine is a 4.9 liter Holden V8 rated at 196 kW (263 bhp) at 5,200 rpm, with a listed top speed of 215 km/h (134 mph) due to the gearing of the 4-speed transmission.
As you would expect, the car is powered by the correct 4.9 liter A9L V8 that sends 263 bhp to the rear wheels via an M21 4-speed manual transmission and limited-slip differential. It currently has 79,724 kms on the odometer, the equivalent to 49,538 miles, and it’s had just four owners from new.
The car is now being offered for sale on Collecting Cars out of Melbourne, Australia. It has had a recent service by H&K Auto & Electrical Mechanical which included standard service items, a harmonic balancer rebuild, and the fitment of new tires on all four corners. If you’d like to read more about the car or register to bid you can visit the listing here.
Images courtesy of Collecting Cars
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