1977 Holden Torana A9X GMP&A – Wayne Negus

“I spent a full week at the assembly plant, as the car was being built. I virtually supervised the entire operation.”

In total, 44 GMP&A hatch shells and 7 sedans went down the production line. This one is by far the most unique and is without question one-of-a-kind.

Built for Wayne Negus (former HDT driver and mechanic) as a gift from General Motors, this is a historically significant car with incredible provenance. Competing in an event at Oran Park in 1977, Wayne experienced fuel delivery issues in his HDT car and – after some mechanical brilliance from him on the side of the track – he managed to get the car running again for a further 10 laps before the symptoms surfaced again. His innovative thinking and ingenuity resulted in significant TV coverage at the time and the executives at General Motors couldn’t have been more pleased with the outcome. So much so, when they asked if there was anything they could do for him, he jokingly answered “I would really like a A9X!”.

To Wayne’s surprise, they said yes.

And so after closely supervising the build at GM’s Dandenong plant – and in the process adding a very unique combination of options – the Torana’s shell was finished on a Friday afternoon and promptly transported to a friend’s house in Melbourne. Wayne then went back to pick-up the engine and automatic transmission which was installed over the weekend. We can only imagine how much fun Wayne had driving the car back to Perth...

The factory specification of the Negus A9X is as follows:

• VIN: CLX058565M
• Registration: XRE400 (WA)
• L34 spec 5.0L V8 engine
• T400 automatic transmission
• Mustard Yellow paint (a HQ GTS colour at the time)
• Herringbone interior trim
• Woodgrain dash
• Air conditioning
• Stereo (with electric antenna) and speakers
• Additional sound deadener
• Towbar

A factory long-range fuel tank was also specified by Wayne (knowing that the drive to Perth was ahead of him) which was then removed at a later stage and a standard Torana tank installed.

The Torana was treated to a respray in 1994 however the hatch and under bonnet area remains in its original paint. At the same time, the engine was refreshed by the Negus family, as well as the installation of new rubbers and bushes, Koni shock absorbers and the steering rack rebuilt.

The car presents in original, unrestored condition and in good running order. Recently workshop serviced, the Torana sits on original A9X wheels with plenty of rubber with the odometer reading approximately 194,000kms.

Only a handful of A9X cars were destined for road duties instead of a tough life on the circuit and in our opinion, none of the road-going cars come close to this level of historical significance. This “unicorn” is now reluctantly being offered for sale and would make an outstanding addition to a Holden collection either here in Australia or abroad.