Monday 29th November 1948

Australian prime minister Ben Chifley and 1,200 other people attended the unveiling of the first car to be manufactured entirely in Australia – an ivory-colored car officially designated the 48-215, but fondly known as the Holden FX. In 1945, the Australian government had invited Australia’s auto-part manufacturers to create an all-Australian car. General Motors-Holden’s Automotive, a car body manufacturer, obliged, producing the 48-215, a six-cylinder, four-door sedan. The 48-215 was an instant success in Australia, and 100,000 Holden FXs were sold in the first five years of production. During the next few decades, General Motors-Holden’s Automotive went on to introduce a number of other successful marquees, including the Torana and the Commodore. Four million Holdens, with their trademark “Lion-and-Stone” emblem, were sold in Australia and exported around the world by the 1980s. In 1994, General Motors-Holden’s Automotive finally adopted Holden as its official company name, and today Holden continues its mission of meeting Australia’s motoring needs.