Holden Retirees Club News
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Unusually, our President Bill Hooper called our 120 members to order at 12:25 PM. But this was no usual lunch.
As well as our excellent speaker, Peter Xibberas, we had some surprise guests! 
The Formula 1 cars are in town, Cadillac has entered a two-car team and Sunday was to be their first race start. So, to witness this historic event, the President of General Motors (and ex-MD of GM Holden in 2008-2009), Mark Reuss, was in Melbourne. When one of our members invited him to the HRC lunch on March 5, 2026, he graciously found time in his hectic schedule. However, he could only spare one hour, needing to depart by 1:30 PM at the latest to attend a speaking engagement at the F1 track. Consequently, we commenced a few minutes earlier than usual to optimise our opportunity to talk with Mark.
Some other GM senior hierarchy also came with Mark:
- Rory Harvey, GM Executive Vice President and President, Global Markets,
- George Svigos, Director of Communications, GM Global Markets. George was Director of Corp Comms at Holden in 2013/2014, then moved to GMNA.
- Mike Simcoe, recently retired General Motors’ Senior Vice President of Global Design and ex-Holden Director of Design.
Bill welcomed all the guests, and explained that we would start immediately with a Question and Answer session with Mark Reuss and Rory Harvey, followed by Lunch and our Speaker. General Business would follow.
Mark and Rory took their positions on barstools on stage. Russel Nainie acted as moderator for the discussion, directing questions to the guests.
Both gentlemen responded with very straight answers to questions covering issues such as the growth of Chinese Electric cars and what GM was doing to compete with them, what GM's plans were for Australia, and the like.
As these responses frequently ventured into commercially sensitive territory, we were requested not to share our standard audio recording of the session. I guess you had to be there!
They were thanked with an ovation from all members.
All the guests mingled freely with the members before and during the Lunch, Mark commenting that he remembered many of the faces, if not the names!
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Bill then announced our new members:
- Christina O'Brien HSPO. (Christina has also agreed to be the HSPO Departmental representative)
- Peter Williamson, Engineering.
Bill named the colleagues who had passed away in the last three months. Two recent additions were ex-MD Denny Moonie who passed away in USA the previous week, and Alan Nanscawen from Finance.
We paused for a minute of silence to remember them.
Our two-course Lunch was then served promptly at 1:00 PM.
Our GM Guests departed at 1:30, except Mike Simcoe who stayed on to the end of the lunch.
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Our Guest Speaker, Peter Xiberras was introduced to the members.
A lifelong motorsport enthusiast, successful businessman, and proud Holden devotee whose story is truly fueled by ambition.
Peter is best known as the Team Owner and driver behind PremiAir Racing, the Supercars outfit competing in the Repco Supercars Championship. His journey through motorsport is as diverse as it is inspiring. From dominating the Australian Top Fuel drag racing scene to leading one of the country’s most dynamic Supercars teams. Peter’s hands-on passion for racing, engineering, and performance has made him a respected figure across the Australian motorsport community.
Off the track, Peter is the Managing Director of PremiAir Hire, one of Australia’s leading equipment hire companies. Starting from humble beginnings, his entrepreneurial drive and down-to-earth leadership have grown the business into a national success story. Whether it is in the workshop or the boardroom, Peter brings the same determination and team-first mindset that has defined his motorsport career.
A proud Holden and GM fan through and through, Peter’s love for the red lion runs deep. From his early days tinkering with Holdens to now running Camaros at the top level of Australian racing, his story will resonate with anyone who’s ever felt that special bond between driver, machine, and the Holden badge.
Peter recounted his remarkable love affair with motor Sport.
He started out with Drag racing. After realising that racing his street-driven hot rod was not enough, he moved into Super Sedans, Dragsters, and finally Top Fuel Dragsters. Peter competed at the elite level for over a decade.
- He won the Australian TopTop Fuel Championship in both 2021 and 2022, and in 2021, he achieved the quickest 1000-foot pass in Australian history (3.742s). He has also held track records simultaneously at Willowbank Raceway, Perth Motorplex, and Sydney Dragway.
- In record-breaking speeds, he has consistently run in the 3.7 to 3.8-second range at speeds exceeding 500kph (approx. 310+ mph). And despite a break in the 2024-2025 season, he won the Westernationals in Perth in March 2025.
- Peter described the sensation of hurtling down a track at speeds approaching 500 kph in a drag racer as 'violent'!
His entry into V8 race cars was also unusual. A friend wanted to race a Commodore V8 Supercar but could not afford to buy one. Peter asked why the friend did not lease one? "From whom?" he asked. "Me", was the reply! So Peter bought his first V8 race car.
That was the start of a unique and remarkable collection of many of the important collectable Holden cars from Bathurst races, including several Brock vehicles. He showed large colour images of all of these cars while outlining their individual history with obvious pride.
A thoroughly enjoyable display for the Club audience!
Peter was warmly thanked and given our usual small gift in thanks.
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General business
Bill proposed a vote of thanks to Russel Nainie for instigating and facilitating the GM visit. He spent considerable time working out the details with GM Security and Public Relations to make sure it all went off as well as it did. A great job on behalf of the Club. Well done, Russel.
New Vice-President.
Russel Nainie has agreed to become our Vice-President. Russel has been helping out in the background for a while and has agreed to make it official. Welcome to the role, Mr Vice-President! The announcement was greeted with applause by members.
Departmental Representatives.
As mentioned earlier, Christina O'Brien has agreed to represent NASCO/HSPO, for which we thank her.
The Department where a representative is STILL needed is Sales and Marketing.
Subscriptions:
Annual subscriptions for 2026 are now due. If you have not already paid your $10, please do so to support your club.
Your current status and "How to Pay" were included in a direct email sent to members in November, and on the mailing address sheet for the posted newsletter copies.
The Lucky Door prize draw was next, with two shirts and a desk clock donated by Russell Nainie, plus the usual $30, $20 and $10 cash envelopes from the Club. There was also a number of golf balls free for the taking.
All prizes were happily received.
Bill thanked everyone for attending and closed the lunch at 3:30 PM.
Some Happy Snaps:
The Gold Coast Retiree Lunch was held at the Parkwood Tavern, Southport, on 5 March 2026.
From L-R :-
Jan Alford, John Ashmore, Jill Ashmore, Maureen Roberts, Graeme Roberts, Ron Colman, Sue Colman, Sue Bryant, Ted Bryant, Bevan Rawson, Garry Newsome & Rod Alford
Thanks to Ted Bryant for this information.
Sydney group General Motors & Associated Trades Luncheon
The group now meets on the first Friday of June and December at the Sydney Juniors Club (South Sydney Juniors), in the Bistro.
Brief video of the guests at the 5 December Lunch : 
Participants in sequence are: Tony Connolly, Marcus McInnes, Peter Cohen, Michael Minatti, Geoff King, (Coffs Harbour Dealer), Ron Gailey, Mike Fittler (hidden), Phil Virgona (Dealer Service), Stan Kennedy, Tony Hamilton, John McLachlan, Brian Kelly (Dealer Service), Tom Southwood (Dealer Service).
Thanks to Marcus McInnes for this information
Ex-Holden Employee Discounts on GMANZ products
"General Motors Australia and New Zealand (GM ANZ) are pleased to now offer exclusive discount certificates on the full range of GMSV and Cadillac vehicles to all former Holden and GM ANZ employees, offering attractive savings.
Over the years, we’ve seen how much value an employee discount program has brought to our people, and we are excited to now be able to extend these discounts to all former GM Holden and GM ANZ employees."
For details of how the scheme works and how to apply, download the brochure here.
Trafalgar Holden Museum 2025 Ex-Employees day
Another great ex Holden employee’s day was held on 15 June 2025 at the Trafalgar Holden Museum. The incredible vision of its founder Neil Joiner, it is now the most significant and largest dedicated Holden museum in the country.
As was the case last year, the museum had another unique artefact of Holden Engineering history on display: the mobile dynamometer, used extensively around the globe for drivetrain testing of specific Holden models.
A fascinating insight into its build and data recording capabilities was delivered by Mathew Rossignoli and Stuart Redpath, who purchased it from Holden in the sale of assets from Lang Lang. Holden’s drivetrain guru Warwick Bryce then rounded off the talk with some interesting and amusing anecdotes on its journey with Holden team members.
Another great contributor to the afternoon was the duo of ‘Simply Bushed’ who performed a great rendition of songs including their popular track ‘No More Holden’s’.
Then, it was the retreat to the Kingswood room where everyone enjoyed some good food and good company with former work acquaintances - which is precisely the focus of the day.
As with any good museum, it is in a constant state of evolution. Trafalgar Holden Museum is very much one to embrace that approach with an incredible new wing, appropriately named the Neil Joiner Holden Heritage Centre, opening for the first time to the public on Saturday the 28th of June.
The museum and its dedicated team of volunteers look forward to greeting you as you explore this great new addition.
Thanks to Brett Murray for this report.
Members who are users of Social Media might like to know that there are some pages of interest to both current and retired Holden employees. The first is the “GM Holden Alumni Group” on Facebook, which at the time of writing, has 1,647 members. This is a Private Group, so you must apply on the site to join, but only other members can see who is in the group and what they post. It is a lively group, started and moderated by HRC member, Thalia Abramzon.
The second is the “Holden Engineering Alumni” Group, which also a Private Group on Facebook, but you must have been a member of Engineering at some time to join. It currently has 465 members and is moderated by Sharmy Francis and Rod Pettit. Quote: “The aim of the Group is to share photos, news, stories & thoughts between past & current Holden Engineering team members. Any group member can invite others to join. All members MUST have been Holden Engineering Team members. Please ensure that people you invite to join meet this simple criteria. Posts must be positive, professional & appropriate. No GM Confidential information.”
Lastly, for users of LinkedIn there is a “GM Holden Alumni” page with 367 members in the network at present, again administered by Thalia Abramzon. The direct link to the Group is: www.linkedin.com/groups/12295307.
All these groups are recommended to interested members who want to keep in touch with current and past mates.