We caught up with Daniel Armstrong recently, and quickly discovered that he was about as passionate as it gets when it comes to all things original. Cars, especially of the Aussie variety, have featured heavily throughout his life as the Holden ‘genes’ were passed down from his father, who has owned early Holdens since the late 1970s.
However, when Daniel turned 16 years old, he couldn’t resist the temptation to buy a 2.0-litre 1987 Holden Commodore VL Berlina sedan, which he still owns almost 10 years later. Obviously, the apple hasn’t fallen too far from the tree, and following in his father’s footsteps, Daniel’s Holden collection began to grow. Soon, a 5.0-litre 1987 Holden Berlina VL station wagon, 3.0-litre 1987 Holden VL GTS sedan, and a 1980 Holden HZ one-tonner were added to the collection.
In mid 2105, while searching through Trade Me, Daniel spotted our featured HR Premier station wagon, and with copious amounts of adrenaline flowing, a bidding war ensued.
Daniel picked up the latest addition to his collection on July 19. It had been hiding away in an Auckland garage for some time, and although the previous owner had kept it well-maintained cosmetically, the car was in need of some serious mechanical attention.
Have a look at a few additional photos that didn’t make it into the feature in the January issue of New Zealand Classic Car (Issue No. 313) — grab your copy of the mag here to read the full story.