Blue Meanie: 1985 HDT VK SS Group A

Add Street Machine as a preferred source on Google

Twenty years after his passing, the legend of Peter Brock stands tall for Aussie car enthusiasts, and this can often be seen in the reverence paid when an HDT-built Commodore rolls into a show or pulls up at the local. With hot 5.0-litre V8s, plenty of handling and aero additions, and go-fast stickers, they stand as a great slice of 1980s Australia, but even at their rarest and fastest, their values still lag behind older muscle cars.

FIND THIS CAR AND OTHERS LIKE IT HERE:

Across five models in the first-generation Commodore’s run, from 1980 to 1987, Brock and HDT were responsible for homologating GM-H’s touring car package, with the VK SS Group A one of their finest offerings. Stripped down to 1340kg and with a new 260hp (196kW) 304ci V8, the ‘Blue Meanie’ took on the new Group A rules in 1985, and took plenty of wins against Europe and Japan’s best.

The new Group A rules meant we didn’t have the fat flares and bathtub spoilers of the old Group C racing formula, so HDT road cars were also stripped right back from the kitted-up VC and VH Group 3 models. A 0-100km/h time of 7.0 seconds and a 15-second quarter-mile time don’t sound wild today, but this was supercar-beating stuff in the mid-80s, while the new 16-inch HDT Aero wheels wrapped in fat 225/60 Bridgestone rubber became iconic among Commodore fans.

Reviewers back in the day considered the Group A the best Brock-tuned car he’d done to that point, with sharp handling and raw performance that made the car feel alive like older homologation specials of the 1970s. HDT turned out 500 SS Group A VKs to suit FIA homologation for the new international Group A racing regulations, and the example here at The Motor Gallery is car #171, as all Group As were individually numbered.

This particular Group A has 101,068 km on the clock – barely run in! While the $189,990 ask is no small number, it’s important to consider the stature of the VK SS Group A among car enthusiasts. And, in the broader pantheon of Holden muscle cars, Blue Meanie values trail cars like the HT GTS 350 Monaro, A9X Torana and even the L34 Torana.

I find it ironic that so many cars Brock raced in the 60s and 70s are worth such huge amounts, but a car many agree is the best example of the special-edition road cars he built at HDT and wears his signature lags behind. The VK Group A even won Bathurst in ’86 with Allan Grice and Graeme Bailey dominating the field in the privateer Chickadee entry.

As values for cars of the 1980s, 90s and early 2000s rise, we will hopefully see an increasing appreciation for the Blue Meanie, not just as a Peter Brock special, but as one of the best 1980s performance cars around.

MORE FIND THIS CAR AND OTHERS LIKE IT HERE