For decades, the North American and Australian automobile industries have shared components, parts, staff, engineering skills and design expertise, not to mention business and management structures, as well as advertising and trade practices. The result has been the production of many unique vehicles.
In September of 2022, the SAH co-hosted a “Wheels Across the Pacific” virtual symposia with the Automotive Historians Australia (AHA) to explore this trans-Pacific automobile history.
Streamed live, and free for SAH and AHA members, the symposium was a great success. It’s hoped the 2022 meeting will be the first of many symposia on the trans-Pacific history of the automobile industry in the coming years.
Featuring papers by SAH and AHA members, the symposium saw presentations on various aspects of Australian and North American automobile industries. Topics included the design of individual cars, the importation of Australian cars into North America, the relationships of women and automobiles in the United States and Australia, and challenges both people and institutions face today with respect to preserving automobile history and presenting automobile history to the public.
On September 17, 2022, the Automotive Historians Australia (AHA) and the SAH co-convened the one-day online symposium at which ten speakers presented nine papers.
The program can be found here.
Credit goes to the AHA for organizing and administering the event, and extra credit goes to students at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) for staging and recording the event in one of the campus auditoriums. With a twelve-to-fifteen-hour time difference (depending on your North American time zone) the symposium ran from mid-afternoon to near midnight on Saturday, September 17, which was Sunday morning to Sunday afternoon in Australia.
Since the conference was virtual, it could be recorded. Check out the papers via the links below.
Introductory Remarks, 2022
Norm Darwin and Simon Lockrey (12 Min.)
Introduction to the joint SAH-AHA conference by the AHA President and Vice-President.
Brith of the Australian Auto Industry
by Louis Fourie. (36 min.)
A summary of the origins of the Australian auto industry, with a look at other Southern Hemisphere efforts, and a tariff incentive that created a domestic body building industry.
The Mobilgas Economy Run In The United States And Australia
Dave Mermanson (25 min,)
A comparative look at the U.S. and Australian Mobil Economy Runs, 1955 to 1965, which led to unintended and even confusing results Down Under.
How the Monaro Became The Pontiac GTO
Norm Darwin (19 min.)
Holden’s 2002 Monaro CV8 would seem to be unlikely contender to become Pontiac’s famed muscle car, the reborn GTO. This is the story of the transformation, the hurdles, cultural differences, and the players involved.
A Journey Towards Industrial Preservation and STEM Outreach Through Extended Reality Experiences
Christian Meyers, Manca Ogrizek, Saif Alatrash and Kaja Antlej (32 min.)
Explores the preservation of industrial heritage through user interactions with a 3D-printed version of the first Ford Ute.
The GMH Design Studio at Fisherman’s Bend: Exploring an Austrialian-American Partnership Through Exhibition.
Harriet Edquist (24 min.)
Explores new ways of working with archival materials for the 2021 “Dream Factory” exhibit at the City Gallery, Melbourne.
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