Where It All Started

[commanderwhite]

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mellor.nsf/story2/52DC7BC1A39F11B9CA25783F000DBC1E

[Mothers Worry]

The last of a small team of Australian engineers who worked in America on the first Holden, the 48-215, has died at the age of 99.

Jack Rawnsley, who spent more than 40 years with Holden, helped to build the earliest prototypes of ‘Australia’s Own Car’ in Detroit before the model was launched to great fanfare in Australia in 1948.

RIP Jack 

[Oldtony]

RIP Jack.
No disrespect mean't but it is amazing how Holden have created this sort of Urban Myth that they founded the Australian motor industry, or that the 48/215 was Australian designed.
It simply isn't a fact. What happened is that GM here and in the US came up with an idea about how they should use the much expanded industrial capacity they had built for war production.
GMH, the Australian body builders and assembly people had some input into the size and specifications, but the acctual design work was almost entirely Detriot.
There were many attempts pre war to create a viable Australian car designed and built here, the Australian Six springs to mind, but thanks to the depression none succeeded in getting a market foothold.
In terms of local design input Ford were well ahead of GM pre war in adapting US models to Australian conditions. But somehow, I think due to "Commonwealth Preference" Ford UK seemed to get a dominant say in the operation of the company in Australia. Anyone who suffered having to drve the immediate post war UK Ford based cars assembled here would know what a disaster that was.
Jack and his compatriots must be congratulated for doing the right thing in avoiding a similar disaster by insisting that Australia needed modern design.