Thanks, Holden, for all the opportunities you gave to Australians.

Sometimes my sister and I were allowed to go for a passenger ride with Dad in the Charger out on the track. It was the highlight of our weekend feeling that brutal acceleration and the sound of the screaming engine.

I said ‘listen, you can’t do that, as I’ve got to sell this!’

I then noticed a hubcap bouncing down the road and into a paddock. Dad was very annoyed that his Charger had ‘let him down’ and angrily stopped to hunt for the errant hubcap.

It’s an immediate hit. “Hey Charger” isn’t just a catchline on television screens, it’s a popular cultural symbol in streets around the nation. The first Chargers are rolling off the assembly line in Adelaide.

Nearing the second anniversary of Holden pulling the pin on car manufacturing in Australia, there seemed no better time to make the trip east to visit the Trafalgar Holden Museum. Well, it turns out there was, but we’ll tell you more about that later.

We’ve started a brand-new Facebook group to support the people who worked in the Australian car industry.

To the men and woman still experiencing hardship from the winddown of Australian car manufacturing, this is dedicated to you.