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The evolution of the Holden Ute (1951-1961) |
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| Inside the back of a nice stock ute | |
| (Other bits to come) | |
A go-anywhere workhorse, the first Holden ute (universally nicknamed FX) was
light, strong and surprisingly fast, thanks to a 
modemOHV
6-cylinder engine. Cheaper than any of its rivals, it was the answer to a farmer's
prayer - and an urban businessman's as well. Demand was so strong that the waiting
list grew to 70,000 before the end of the first year. Although the FX Ute's
strengthened load floor supported an official payload of 7cwt, this limit was
blithely exceeded by many owners. Like the sedan, it featured a fully integral
'Aerobilt' allsteel welded body. The original brochure pointed out that its
high power to weight ratio meant that drivers could 'feel the punch and power
of that 6-cyl., 21 h.p. engine that carries your loads over the toughest hills
...gives you performance challenging anything on the road…'. The clincher-
'Holden is designed for Australia and built in Australia. The result is a vehicle
you will be proud to own.' Telescopic front shock absorbers and wider rear springs
were introduced late in this model's life.
Now beloved of restorers, modifiers and street machiners, the FJ Ute was a face-lifted version of the 50-2106. Mechanicallyalmost identical - a panel van variant was added in late 1953, new design differential and axles in 1954 - it sported that unmistakable, era-defining, chrome grille and stylish monogrammed hubcaps. There was a bigger choice of exterior colours and the luxury of a pull-down sunvisor on the passenger side. Proud owners chose from an expanding accessories list, which included rear wheel spats and chrome door handle protectors. The FJ Ute also benefited from the introduction of tubeless tyres in early 1956. It continued in production after the launch of the FE sedan and from mid 1956 was fitted with the FE's more powerful engine.
Released just before the first Holden wagon in February 1957, the'new look' FE Ute had a lower and sleeker Australian-designed body, although its engine, gearbox and differential were basically unchanged. It was equipped with wrap-around taihstop lights, rear 'bumperettes' and spare tyre accessible via a fold-down rear flap. Like the sedan, it featured the first one-piece curved windscreen, all new dashboard, improved steering, better ride and handling, 13 inch wheels, upgraded brakes and a 12volt electrical system. Panel van variants were now based on the station wagon.
A part of the golden Holden era when domestic sales topped 50 per cent of the market , the FC Ute continued to deliver the winning formula of performance, durability and unbeatable value for money. A minor facelift and upgrade with largely identical specifications - distinguished by the letters H-O-L-D-E-N across the front of the bonnet, replacing the FE's winged emblem - the FC delivered a smoother and more refined level of performance.
At a time when Johnny O'Keefe (She's My Baby) competed on the charts with Jimmy Darren (Gidget), Frank Sinatra (High Hopes) and Guy Mitchell (Heartaches by the Number), the American-influenced FB ushered in a fresh new body design matched to the FE/FC floorpan and mechanicals. It had a wraparound windscreen, full width grille, lowered bonnet line and lower load height, more headroom and a deep-dished steering wheel, but missed out on the FB sedan's finned, classically chrome tail light assembly as it retained the previous model Ute's rear end styling. Mechanical improvements included an engine upgrade that delivered more power and torque. The highroofed FB panel van was again based on the Ute.
While EK Special sedans and wagons introduced Holden's first automatic transmission and electric wipers, commercial versions like the basically unchanged EK Ute and its panel van variant remained steadfastly three-speed manual (column shift, no synchro on first). Parking lights were incorporated in the top grille bar, a new ventilation air intake located forward of the windscreen. Total sales of the Holden Coupe Utility climbed past 150,000 in this era and Holden operated five vehicle assembly, three body assembly, and two major fabrication plants Australia-wide.
(from: 'Holden Quality Parts' - June 2001)
| John Cadona's work ute (Fyshwick Building Supplies - Canberra) |
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Created by Eddy Hoek - please email me with problems
or suggestions (link on homepage)
or ph 02 6292 8937
This page was last updated on
Wednesday, 10 December, 2008
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(In the usual spirit of the Internet, even though I have used some of this material without permission, I try to acknowledge the original source where possible, in the hope that this will not offend the copyright owners. Sometimes, it is lucky I did, as a number of sites have disappeared shortly after I copied the information. Please acknowledge the source if you copy it. I stand to make no profit from these pages and have published them purely out of my enthusiasm for the cars. If this is unacceptable to any of the copyright holders, I will gladly remove, rewrite or replace the pictures or information. The comments on this page are mostly the authors - they are not those of the FX-FJ Car Club of Canberra inc or any other person - unless stated.)
