A lovingly restored 1978 Holden Kingswood has rolled back into Tasmania Police’s fleet, more than four decades after it last prowled the roads around the rural town of Carrick.
The white HZ sedan was handed over to Hobart Technical College in 1979 when it was retired from active duty.
Since then, hundreds of apprentice mechanics have tinkered with it as part of their training.
Now, after an painstaking restoration by TasTAFE staff and local tradies in Devonport, the classic cruiser is ready to turn heads once again.
North-east Inspector Grant Twining, who also runs the Tasmania Police Historical Group, believes the restored Kingswood will be a real crowd-pleaser.
“We’ve got a retired sergeant who was once the constable at Carrick who we are going to have to hold back with chains from getting in it, because it was his car,” Twining said.
The car clocked up just 40,000 kilometres during its working life, all behind the wheel of then-First Class Constable Steve Harrop.
When police commissioner Max Robinson loaned it to the tech college in 1979, few would have imagined it would return in such pristine condition more than 40 years later.
TasTAFE staff could have scrapped it when they decided it was past its use-by date in 2019. Instead, they saw an opportunity to give something back.
The restoration involved rebuilding the six-cylinder engine and three-speed column shift gearbox – complete with period-correct hubcaps and that distinctive white duco.
“It’s going to get a lot of attention, not just within the police environment because it was a police car, but there are historic car clubs in the community that will take a great interest in this car because it represents a certain picture in time,” Twining said.
The Kingswood will now head to Hobart for its final makeover of period-appropriate emergency lights and police signage to complete the authentic 1970s look.
The restored patrol car will then take its place in the Tasmania Police Museum.
