Jason West's EH Holden Collection

 The Magazine Feature Story #14

 https://classiccarsworldwide.com.au 

One Of A Kind!

POSSIBLY THE ONLY MATCHING SET IN AUSTRALIA. FOUR EH HOLDENS, A SEDAN, UTE, PANEL VAN AND WAGON. LOVINGLY AND PAINSTAKINGLY PUT TOGETHER OVER 15 YEARS BY NSW BASED JASON WEST

Jason has just finished the matching set of EH Holdens for his daughter's wedding and says “to my knowledge it is the only matching set in Australia. It has been on Facebook on several sites with over 3k views and 1k comments. It caught the attention of Mr. Excited (Glen Higginson) who encouraged me to talk to Classic Cars Worldwide Online and tell my story.”

Jason (51 years old) has been married to his wife for 30 years and has four children ranging in ages from 29 to 16 years old. He is a cabinet maker by trade and has been building kitchens and joinery for 35 years. He has been running his own business, J & H Quality Kitchens, for the last 25 years and is based in Minto, New South Wales.

Early cars

Jason’s interest in cars goes back to an early age when his father owned a 1963 EH Holden sedan. His first car was a Mazda 323 hatch back. His daily drive now is his work van Mercedes Sprinter or his Holden Colorado.

Classic cars – all EH Holden – a family tradition

Jason’s first classic car was the EH sedan which was the start of the collection. He says “the current classic cars are the four EH’s and there won’t be anything other than EH’s. The family history of owning a EH is my attraction. The style, shape and overall general look of the EH’s is unique in itself. The motivation to put the set together was simply to do something unique. The look and attention the matching set of cars get is incredible. People can’t believe that all the cars belong to one owner. I really enjoy talking to people, young and old, about the cars.”

Jason explains that all four EH’s are Winton Red with an Ivory White roof which was the original colour for the sedan and the wagon. The ute and the panel van came out of the factory in different colours so Jason had them resprayed to complete the set.

1963 EH Sedan (Sydney build)

Jason found the sedan by word of mouth from a friend. He purchased it in 2005 from the previous owner in Silverdale NSW. It has a 179 HP engine and has a hydromatic gear box.

1964 EH Ute  202 (Melbourne build) & 1964 EH Panel Van 202 (Adelaide build)

Both cars have a 5 speed Celica gear box, The ute was purchased in 2015 from Bonnyrigg, NSW and the panel van was purchased in 2018 from Margaret River, WA. Both were sourced through Facebook market place.

 

1964 EH Wagon (Melbourne build)

Jason bought the wagon in 2020 in Penrith, NSW. “I got lucky with this one” he says. “I went to the owners place to do a quote on his kitchen and found the car.” The wagon has a 179 HP engine and a 3 on the tree crash box.

Jason adds "all four cars are pretty well stock running gear except the ute and panel van have the 202 blue motors. I run 15 inch Dragway Draglite wheels because the size and style of them suit the cars so well.”

In putting the set together Jason says “I had no major problems with any of the cars. I had an experienced team behind me. All of the mechanical works were done by FKF Mechanical and the panel and paintwork by Caronna Custom Body Works. Both companies are in Minto, NSW. The interior works were done by a local company (no longer trading) and I completed all the timber floor works myself and sourced all the parts required for the build.”

Jason explains that the sedan is a genuine 1963 and although the others are 1964 he kept them as 1963 on the registration plates to help with the matching set,

Great to drive

“All the cars are great to drive” says Jason. “Being a matching set the cars may look the same but they all start and drive differently. The sedan is great for the family Sunday morning breakfast cruise. A 50 miles an hour cruiser. The ute and panel van go a bit better with the 202 engine. Love driving around 60/65 miles an hour. Ideal for when the boys want to go for a cruise looking for a pub lunch. The wagon is the back up and overflow for when we have extra guests along for the ride.”

Car shows and the Australian classic car scene – more government support

Although Jason does not belong to any car club or association he does attend three or four car shows a year. The most recent one being Cooly Rocks On at Coolangatta in June which he enjoyed. He likes to get to as many EH shows as possible, pending family, work and other commitments. He is not a great reader of car magazines but does like to see the Facebook pages of EH cars.

Although the Australian classic car scene is huge with many cars around on most weekends Jason has a strong view that it should be supported more by the government, especially with the registration fees. He says “all my EH’s are on full registration because I want the personalised number plates that hold a special meaning to myself and the family. JW, my fathers initials and also mine and my first son. We should be able to have personalised number plates, pay the annual fees, with no question, but the registration and green slip etc at the historical car club rate. Even by showing a CV (Classic Vehicle) sticker on the number plates like the EV (Electrical Vehicle) have would be good.”

Jason concludes by saying “my aim is for my EH cars to be on an invite only basis to show the cars around Australia, retire from work and drive around with the cars from event to event.”