Holden brand to come to an end as GM dumps the iconic Australian car badge

"He had an FB model when I was a little kid in the early '60s," he said. "I guess the urban myth is whatever car your dad had, that was the side you fell."

For Australian car fans, the sides have long been clear: Ford or Holden.

Mr Robinson, 60, said his was never in doubt after it began with a Torana GTO he bought as an apprentice electrician at Goninans.

"I had that car in the front driveway at my parents' before I even got my L plates," he said.

More on this issue: Newcastle 500 could be Supercars farewell to Holden after GM announces brand will be scrapped

Mr Robinson was one of several Hunter Holden fans left in shock after the brand's owner General Motors announced its demise by 2021 on Monday as the manufacturer begins to withdraw from right-hand drive markets.

Lake Macquarie councillor Kevin Baker said the news left him "heartbroken" as a former apprentice in the company's Melbourne engine plant.

"It was the end of an era when the Holden engine and vehicle operations closed, and this news feels a bit surreal - even if it was not totally unexpected," Cr Baker said.

More on this issue: The iconic Holden brand to be no more

Mr Robinson, a Hunter Valley Torana Club member, said Bathurst victories, the tribalism and reaction to new models arriving were among the memories Holden brought to mind.

"Back in the '60s, and I do remember in the '70s, people were at the showroom like they were giving away lollies," Mr Robinson said.

"That whole Holden Ford thing is finished. The engineering knowledge and all that, it's gone."

"Everyone's walking around crying into their beer, but how many bought Fords and Commodores?"