hj and hz vans

**playwme** · 09-09-2013, 06:39 PM

Early 76 year model gets built late in 75. Perfectly normal.

**Mousey** · 01-04-2014, 10:33 PM

Originally Posted by HK1837

HJ is. HZ definitely not, as you state all HZ Sandmans were V8 and there never was any such thing as a dealer Sandman. Basically everything that was fitted in the body plant or on the assembly line on a Sandman was optional on a Holden van other than the Lukey mirrors, blackouts and chin spoiler. Quad headlight front came standard with the B06 special vehicle package on a Holden or Kingswood van. It is a special order colour though, Vermillion Fire. Not a colour you see too often. The X from memory is Acacia Ridge's way of showing a special order colour from memory. I'd love photos of the HZ's tags if that is possible.

Hi all,

A late response I know, but I just came across this thread while looking for something else and might be able to offer an explanation as to what a Ford colour is doing on a Holden and why. "Vermillion Fire" was a 1970 Ford colour as you probably know, in fact the ford works team Moffat/Gibson XW and XY's were painted this colour, but it wasn't called that. "Vermillion Fire" is the 'civilian' title for the fleet colour known as Brambles Red, identical colour and paint formula, just a different name. So it is possible that this van was a Brambles fleet vehicle. I was told they also had XT panel vans by someone who drove them. For Fords a fleet colour is indicated by F, or EY, or Y then a number. Brambles Red is code 'F117' and Vermillion Fire is code '6' but they are one and the same.

It may surprise you but there were Fords also painted in Holden colours like Royal Umber for example and there were XC Falcons painted in various Valiant colours (eg recency red) because there was some sort of paint strike at this time which had the manufacturers lending paint to each other.

Additional trivia is in 1972 during the transition to group C, Ford still wanted to run Phase 3's because the XA hadn't been fully developed but they couldn't find one so they got hold of a privately owned White XY Ph3 and put a coat of Brambles Red (aka Vermillion Fire) over the top of it, which is now in the Bowden collection. There are plenty of references in more detail to all this stuff in magazines and on websites but regarding the HZ my guess is it was probably a Brambles fleet van.

Mousey