The Australian manufacturing industry welcomed two returns during the 1990s headlined by Ford re-introducing the V8, but coming first was the Holden ute.
Launched on August 22, 1990, the VG ute came after three years of development by the dedicated engineers and designers at Holden at a budget of $10 million.
It was a significant addition to the Holden line-up since it hadn’t offered a ute option based on one of its family offerings for five years when it used the WB Statesman.
Using the floorpan of the VN Commodore wagon, the VG ute improved the payload compared to the WB by a whopping 17%
Standard features were also a step up compared to the WB headlined by the 3.8-litre fuel-injected V6 producing 125Kw and 292 Nm. It also came with four-wheel-disc brakes, coil springs all round, power steering and a bench seat, with column shift automatic.
A higher specification S variant was offered enjoying the power of a 5.0-litre V8, limited slip diff, GM-TH700 4L 60 automatic or Borg-Warner T5 five-speed manual, tachometer, tonneau cover, sports trim, bucket seats colour coded bumpers and 15-inch wheels.
Produced between August 1990 and December 1991, the VG started a run of 27 years production for the Holden ute leading to further expansion of the range to a sporty SS, plus HSV’s Maloo.