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Book Review: The Cars of the 70s
Gavin Farmer has produced another book on the Australian car manufacturing industry; this one covering the exciting and tumultuous 1970s.
“The Seventies was a decade of mixed blessings for the local automobile Industry. It was a time when for the first time in decades the country had to get used to having a Federal Labour Government led by Gough Whitlam and it became a time of great difficulties for the business world.
“This was because one of the first things the new Federal Government did was to begin the process of dismantling the tariff system.
“The effects of this were not immediately felt but as the years rolled on it was obvious that Australian industry was competing on anything but a level playing field, despite the words of assurance from our former Treasurer.
“In addition, the ACTU led by future prime minister, Bob Hawke, became extremely militant and demanded (and received) massive pay rises for all and sundry.”
So begins the introduction to Gavin Farmer’s third book about the Australian car manufacturing scene, joining his authoritative tomes that cover the 1950s and 1960s.
The introduction sets the scene for the upheavals that followed, listing the A, B, C and D local content plans that had only settled into some sort of pattern before the OPEC fuel crisis of 1973 threw the entire automotive world into chaos.
Complicating an already difficult situation for the car industry was the introduction of Australian Design Rules that managed to be at variance with overseas standards. On top of that was rampant inflation, fixed-rate currency exchange and increasing numbers of industrial disputes. As well, there was bureaucratic oversight of any price rise, run by the infamous Prices Justification Tribunal.
Traditional car producers and importers also felt the effects of Japanese vehicles on their sales numbers.
Attrition was a certainty and by the end of the 1970s Leyland was no more; Chrysler had become Mitsubishi Australia and VW and Nissan’s local assembly was soon to fade away.
Against this backdrop, it’s surprising how many interesting and pivotal car models were produced in Australia and Gavin Farmer has catalogued them all – including many niche producers.
The 1970s will be remembered as the golden era of Australian motoring. From the rise of Japanese manufacturers – Toyota, Nissan and Mitsubishi – to the fierce power race between GM-Holden, Ford and Chrysler. It was this industrial competitiveness that led to the creation of legendary models such as the Falcon GT-HO, Holden Monaro GTS and the Chrysler Charger E38.
Gavin Farmer has produced another great read that’s a must-have book for all Australian-market car aficionados.
The Cars of the 70s, Gavin Farmer, New Holland Publishers, RRP $59.99, available from all good bookstores or online: www.newhollandpublishers.com.
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