| Manufacturer | General Motors Holden |
|---|---|
| Also called | Chevrolet Constantia Chevrolet de Ville Chevrolet Caprice Classic Chevrolet 350 Isuzu Statesman de Ville |
| Production | 1971–1984 |
| Predecessor | Holden Brougham |
| Class | Full-size |
| Body style | 4-door sedan |
Statesman was an automotive marque created in 1971 by General Motors Holden (GM-H), the Australian subsidiary of General Motors.[1] Statesman vehicles were sold through Holden dealerships, and were initially based on the mainstream Holden HQ station wagon platform, thereby providing more interior room and generally more luxurious features than their Holden sedan siblings. Production ceased with the last of the WB series cars in 1984.
GM Holden re-introduced the range in 1990 with two long-wheelbase sedans; however, the cars were no longer marketed as Statesman by brand name, but instead as the Holden Statesman and the Holden Caprice. In September 2010 with the "Series II" updating of the WM series, the long-serving Statesman name was unceremoniously consigned to history. Holden's long wheelbase contenders are now branded as Holden Caprice and Holden Caprice-V.
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The original HQ series Statesman sedans were released on July 22, 1971 as a replacement for the HG series Holden Brougham, although drawings exist of an HQ Brougham, albeit in short-wheelbase guise.[2] The first Statesmans were based on these short-wheelbase HQ variants. Statesman was initially offered in two specifications, an upmarket Statesman de Ville and a basic Statesman Custom. Engines ranged from a 202 cubic inches (3.3 L) Red six-cylinder, a 253 cubic inches (4.1 L) V8, a 308 cubic inches (5.0 L) V8 and a 350 cubic inches (5.7 L) Chevrolet Small-Block V8, however the de Ville featured the 308 engine as standard equipment. Compared to the short-wheelbase Holden HQ models, the Statesman featured a wheelbase extended by 3 inches (76 mm), totalling 114 inches (2,900 mm), in common with the HQ range of Holden station wagons. The extra length was incorporated behind the rear doors to allow for additional rear seat legroom.
The Statesman was intended as a rival for Ford Australia’s successful ZA Fairlane, first introduced in 1966.[3] The Ford car had created a new and exclusive category of Australian-made prestige cars. The Fairlane was derived from the Falcon, with an extended wheelbase and unique front-end and rear-end styling to differentiate the car's appearance. At the time, this category of vehicle proved to be very profitable, in that the sale price was significantly higher than the base car from which the prestige model was derived, and the additional costs of production were only moderate. GM-H went to some length to set the new luxury Statesman marque apart from the Holden equivalent in their sales literature.[4] for the new models, totally avoiding the presence of the name "Holden", even to the extent of using the term "General Motors" in lieu of "General Motors-Holden's". Advertisements in newspapers among other mediums followed the same format.[5]
Statesman HQ models were marketed in South Africa as the Chevrolet Constantia and the Chevrolet de Ville[6][7] and were exported to many other countries as the Chevrolet 350.[8] From 1973 to 1976 HQ and HJ models were exported to Japan as the Isuzu Statesman De Ville.[9] Isuzu sold 246 De Villes between late 1973 and 1976.
General Motors–Holden’s updated the range in 1974 with the HJ series, retaining the Statesman de Ville whilst creating a new flagship in the Statesman Caprice, replete with standard luxury features such as air-conditioning and leather seating. Statesman Custom was discontinued with the HJ series and engine availability was restricted to the 308ci (5.0 L) V8 engine. Statesman Caprice was the most luxurious car offered by General Motors in Australia at that point, with air-conditioning, leather seats, electric locking, power windows and no fewer than 13 interior lamps all featuring on the standard equipment list.
The Caprice was visually distinctive with a specific radiator grille, Cadillac style front bumper overriders and lavish fluted hubcaps, whitewall tyres, and a bonnet ornament borrowed from the Chevrolet Caprice.
Once again, the Caprice was General Motors − Holden’s response to a new Ford car. In 1973, Ford had upped the ante in the Australian prestige car stakes when they unveiled the LTD. This was a Fairlane which had the wheelbase extended again – to 121 inches (3,100 mm) – making it the only Australian car which fitted into the US full size category. The LTD was a significant success for Ford, both in terms of sales and profits, as well as making a statement regarding their prowess as a manufacturer.
From March 1976, late in the HJ series, an electro-mechanical rear drum anti-lock braking system (ABS) was made available on the Caprice. This system, a Delco-Moraine unit, carried over to the subsequent Statesman HX models, but after the introduction of rear disc brakes on the Statesman HZ series, ABS was not seen on another Statesman or Holden model until the Holden Calibra coupe and Holden VQ Caprice in 1991. This new ABS system was the electronic Bosch patent system operating on all four-wheel discs.
HJ Statesman de Ville and the HJ Statesman Caprices were sold in South Africa as the AJ series Chevrolet Constantia sedan[10] and the Chevrolet Caprice Classic,[11] respectively.
The HX Statesman de Ville and Caprice models were released in July 1976.[12] A more formal grille was adopted and emissions' regulations saw a re-tuned 5.0 litre V8.
In 1977, General Motors-Holden's introduced the HZ Statesman, which involved a minor cosmetic facelift. However, it had a significant engineering upgrade, along with the rest of the GMH range, involving the adoption of Radial Tuned Suspension, giving the Statesman better handling.
The previous Director of GMH Engineering, George Roberts had insisted that the Statesman have a high standard of ride comfort (at the expense of ultimate roadholding). (Roberts previously had been the Chief Engineer of the GM Cadillac Division). Prior to HZ, the Statesman's Cadillac style of ride was not to everyone's taste.
The Statesman de Ville and Caprice were supplemented in 1979 by an intermediate model – the SL/E, which was launched with a different "egg-crate" grille.
The final series to be marketed under the Statesman marque was the WB Statesman of 1980. As with previous Statesmans, GMH did not use the Holden name in the badging or the official sales literature.[13] The WB had a six-light body, with a longer, squared-off roofline. The design was by GMH's Chief Stylist, Leo Pruneau. The styling of the WB Statesman was a compromise between achieving a fresh appearance and minimising the cost of redesign, by using panels from the antecedent HZ model.
Mid-term 'Series II' revisions came in 1983 before production ceased in 1984 when GMH announced they were vacating the luxury and commercial vehicle fields to build more variations of the lighter, smaller Holden Commodore. Well kept used models were changing hands in the mid-1980s for more than their final list price.
A full range of Holden WB models including long-wheelbase sedans and station wagons bearing the Kingswood and Premier names were planned, but only the Statesman and the commercial models (ute, panel van and cab-chassis "One Tonner") went into production. The stillborn sedan and wagon models would have shared the front end of the production WB panel van. The sedan used the HZ Statesman long wheelbase body with different tail lights. The station wagon was to have used the same tail light assemblies as the ute and panel van.
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