How time flies! Its nearly 50 years since Holden’s LH Torana SL/R 5000 L34 (L34) took to the tracks and thrilled Australian racegoers with the raucous-barking-howl of its Repco-Holden F5000 influenced 308 V8.
Allan Grice teased race fans with the L34’s potential when he ran a 310bhp SL/R 5000 in some high-speed demonstration laps at Amaroo Park on Sunday April 19, 1974; the Amaroo shot of the same car above was taken during the June 2 meeting, with Fred Gibson’s XB GT Falcon Coupe behind.
Peter Brock reinforced the SL/R 5000’s pace by winning the final two Australian Touring Car Champiosnship rounds in May/June at Surfers Paradise and Adelaide International in his Holden Dealer Team car, thereby securing the title, the bulk of his points being accumulated in the good ‘ole six-cylinder XU-1.
By mid-1974 enough L34s were built (total build numbers 263) to allow CAMS homologation and therefore competition in the Adelaide and Sandown Manufacturers Championship rounds in advance of the Bathurst 1000.
On August 25 Colin Bond famously won at Adelaide International on an L34 wing-and-a-gearbox-prayer debut.
Bondy then won the 1975 Australian Touring Car Championship with Peter Brock and Brian Sampson delivering the Mount Panorama goods. The ’75 rout was complete when The General took the Australian Manufacturers Championship with the L34 winning four of the five rounds.
Things were a lot tougher in 1976 when the Allan Moffat/Colin Bond Ford Falcon XB GT351 ruled the roost, except at Bathurst where Bob Morris and John Fitzpatrick won a close finishing tear-jerker of a race in their L34.
It’s fitting that the Life and Times of the L34 are being celebrated en-masse at the Phillip Island Classic this weekend as the fast but fragile – axles, gearbox and differential – cars won there a few times: Bond in a Holden Dealer Team car in 1974, Brock in 1975 in the Norm Gown-Bruce Hindhaugh prepared car, and Bond again for the HDT in 1976. In 1977 it was the turn of the L34’s younger sibling, Allan Grice won in a new Torana A9X (Holden LX Torana SS A9X Hatchback).
In a wonderful half-centenary 1974-2024 Phillip Island book-end, Rod Hadfield’s ex-Rod and Russ McRae Dustings of Burwood L34 – third placegetter in the 1974 500K – will be on-circuit throughout the Phillip Island Classic including morning parades on Saturday/Sunday along with 40 other race/road L34s organised by the L34 Fiftieth Anniversary Committee.
This is a not to be missed meeting for Holden, Torana and Group C fans!
Etcetera L34…
Believe it or not, I loved Touring Cars once upon a time when there was variety from one end of the capacity spectrum to the other…it all turned to shit for me when the ruling CAMS-Maxi Taxi Junta gave us the infinite boredom of same, same, and a bit more same, 30 or so years ago. Fuggem I thought, and still do. Those hopelessly-conflicted pricks are the tall-tree-in-the-Australian-racing-paddock that grab all the nutrient (money) for themselves leaving fuck-all for everybody else.
While I was in Oakleigh last week I had a snoop through some of Big Bad Brucie’s (Bruce Williams, Auto Action’s publisher/owner) archives and will gradually work my way through the more technical material about the way these cars evolved through 1974-75 with a view to expanding this piece.
Etcetera Falcon GT 351 Coupe…
Interestingly, Auto Action published the ‘Super Bits’ FoMoCo homologated on August 14, before Bathurst that year, in its September 20, 1974 issue.
“The parts homologated include four-bolt main bearing blocks, forged aluminium pistons, a new slightly modified inlet manifold, modified cylinder heads, modified water pump, and an, as yet unused (by Allan Moffat) sump.”
“Moffat’s Falcon (at the Sandown 250) was modified at the rear suspension with the trailing arms being turned into leading links. Apart from all this, it was lowered more at the front, while still retaining enough ground clearance to pass over the ride height measure.”
“All this adds up to around two seconds a lap at Sandown using what amounted to a development car.”
Credits…
Auto Action, Neil Stratton, Robert Davies,
Finito…
primotipo... 
Mark,could not agree more with your comments re touring cars, or tin tops as we called them. Real motor racing,not a bloody procession as it now is. Cheers,Rob.
Mark,
There is a photo above captioned “Colin Bond on the way to winning the 1974 Phillip Island 500K….”. I believe that the caption should read “Colin Bond on the way to losing the 1975 Phillip Island 500K…”
The HDT Toranas wore rather plain red & white colours through to the end of the 1975 Australian Touring Car Championship and then this more complex white, black & red scheme from the start of the 1975 Australian Manufacturers Championship. It can’t be the 1976 Phillip Island 500K though, as Bond’s car was number 1 at that race.
Cheers,
Rob B.
Perfect!
Much more catchy caption.
Thanks.
Mark
The photo from n Stratton of grice demonstrating at Oran park is wrongly tagged I believe. I don’t recall a Oran park corner with a concrete wall like that.
Thanks Terry,
m
So no answer Mark
They were an amazing car for their time. A true homologation special.
The 50th anniversary weekend at Phillip Island was exceptional. I was part of a Western Australian contingent who drove over, and one fella (you are a legend Adam) drove his L34 all the way from Broome, which was a 12,000 kilometre round trip.
The current issue of Auto Action has a feature and a photo of the 40+ L34’s in attendance.
[…] It’s hard to believe its nearly a half-century since this crowd pleasing 5-litre/308 V8 engined beastie wrought havoc in Australian Touring Car racing, see here: https://primotipo.com/2024/03/05/holden-torana-sl-r-5000-l34/ […]