The 'car of the future' (from 1969) is back on the road: Armed with CCTV, hydraulic roof...  and a magnetic 'GPS' system

  • Restored in process lasting since 2006
  • 4.2-litre two seater had auto-seek radio and rear-view camera
  • 'Pathfinder' GPS system used magnets built into road intersections

By ROB WAUGH
Updated:

'Concept cars' are unveiled by car makers to show off new technologies. Sometimes they evolve into production vehicles, sometimes they don't - but very occasionally, they offer a vision of the future.

Holden's Hurricane - unveiled 42 years ago in Melbourne - was packed with decades-worth of technologies that have become standard in cars. The Hurricane not only had digital displays, it also had a primitive magnetic GPS system, a rear-view CCTV camera, and a hydraulic entry system that would have made the Dukes of Hazzard jealous - the entire roof lifted off on hydraulic plates.

Now the concept car has been brought back to life at a motor show in Melbourne.

The Hurricane was armed with a rear-view camera, a route guidance system, and hydraulically powered doors

The Hurricane was armed with a rear-view camera, a route guidance system, and hydraulically powered doors

Holden was a subdivision of General Motors, and this 1969 model was a showcase for then far-out technologies such as digital instrument displays

Holden was a subdivision of General Motors, and this 1969 model was a showcase for then far-out technologies such as digital instrument displays

Other 'extras' that would then have smacked of science fiction included a 'Comfortron' air-conditioning system, and a radio with auto-seek, rather than a tuning knob.

Even the engine was futuristic - a 4.2-litre Holden V8, turning out 259hp.

'At Holden we have always prided ourselves on our ability to look into the future through our concept cars,' said Michael Simcoe, executive director of General Motors International Operations.

'It's amazing to think that the features we take for granted today were born out of creative minds over 40 years ago.'

The 'Pathfinder' GPS system was perhaps the most out-there idea - showing a glowing arrow that told drivers which way to turn, and a buzzer that warned of an upcoming junction.


The 1969 Holden Hurricane was a mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive two-seater which showcased technologies such as air con and a radio with auto-seek, rather than a fiddly tuning knob

The 1969 Holden Hurricane was a mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive two-seater which showcased technologies such as air con and a radio with auto-seek, rather than a fiddly tuning knob

The restored car was shown off at Melbourne's Motorclassica show this year - the project to rebuild the car had been ongoing since 2006

The restored car was shown off at Melbourne's Motorclassica show this year - the project to rebuild the car had been ongoing since 2006

The mid-engine, rear-wheel drive two-seater relied on a pre-GPS system called Pathfinder - which relied on magnets embedded at every intersection.

Although Sputnik had launched in 1957 - and scientists realised that GPS systems could be possible quite quickly after the launch - global positioning was still a long way off. Pathfinder, of course, never took off.

 

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