THE STORY

Iconic and culture defining, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors first released its coupe utility vehicle, the ‘Holden Ute’ in 1951. The vehicle had an excellent reception and it seemed like Holden had the Ute formula in the bag from the get-go: good looking, affordable, versatile, rugged and durable. Farmers even discovered that it was good for rounding up sheep!

Since then, the Australian icon has seen many changes and options made available, to suit a wide range of tasks. After nearly 60 years of iterations, the Holden Ute is still synonymous with speed, comfort, versatility and reliability.

2007 saw the launch of the eagerly anticipated VE Ute range. The newer generation was based on the VE Commodore and tackled an upward consumer trend towards using Utes as lifestyle vehicles, shifting it away from the traditional workhorse market.

This generation continued in production until 2017, and several versions of the VE were made available, from the base model ‘Omega’ to the progressively ‘sportier’ models including the ‘SV6’, ‘SS’, ‘SS-V’ and finally the ‘SS-V Redline (Series II)’.

THE CAR

Built in 2012 and finished in Phantom Black, this VE SS Series 2 Ute has only travelled 68,007 kms.

The car is equipped with GM’s stonking 6.0 litre V8 engine and has been customised with a Harrop 2300 Supercharger, CNC ported heads, a camshaft upgrade, extractors and a full Harrop exhaust system. All this coupled to a 6-speed manual transmission makes this car a weapon on the road.

On the outside, an HDT body kit, HDT reverse scoop bonnet and polished 19-inch HDT Aero alloy wheels with HDT centers combined with the rear spoiler and twin dual exhausts give the car a tough stance that really draws the eye.

Other features include black leather seats, an electric sunroof, central locking, air conditioning, a 6.5-inch touchscreen media center and a towbar. The car is adorned with SS and HDT badging and the fully lined rear tray is in excellent condition.

A Dyno report showing peak power at 435kW comes with this beast that also has original books and service history.