1979 Holden Kingswood HZ SL review from Australia and New Zealand

New water pump needed a couple of years ago.

Leaking brake master cylinder replaced a couple of years ago.

New suspension bushes.

Overheating, so had radiator cleaned out - pretty well fixed it.

New hoses and fan belt.

4 new tyres.

Auto transmission can be thumpy, has been since I got it.

Minor rust behind the rear passenger door.

Paint is a bit faded after 30 years, can't really expect much else I suppose.

Oil goes black pretty quick, probably because it sat undriven for so long.

This car has been in my family since 1982 when my dad bought it second hand. He really looked after it, and I bought it from him in 1993, got the car and a caravan for $5,000. My previous car was a 1 litre Daihatsu Charade, so getting into a tank like this with a V8 and no power steering was a bit of a shock.

I drove it for 8 years until it needed a bit of money spent on it. It sat undriven in my garage for 6 years until we needed a second car, so I got the HZ back on the road. It's proven to be really reliable, and after the initial expense of getting it back on the road, it's needed almost no work.

It's roomy and comfortable, and ideal for a second car, except for the fuel consumption - I average 24 litres per 100km around town, which is expensive. I really enjoy driving it, its got a real hands on feel to it that my wife's late model Camry hasn't got. I'll keep driving it until something major happens to it.