Daewoo · 1972–1979
Daewoo-Chevrolet 1700
The Saehan Camina (Korean: 새한 카미나) is a passenger car built by General Motors Korea (later Saehan Motor Company) between 1972 and 1979, it was a reworked version of the Australian market 1971 Holden Torana.
Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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Background
After Toyota abandoned the joint venture between them and Shinjin Motors, General Motors stepped in to form General Motors Korea with Shinjin Motors. The end result was a slightly reworked version of the LJ Holden Torana, production commenced in 1972, lasting until 1976 when it was renamed to Saehan Motors when Shinjin sold its 50% stake in GMK to the Korea Development Bank due to Financial Troubles that the company faced. It would be the first Korean car presentation, along with the GMK Rekord, at the Westin Chosun Hotel in 1972. Unlike the original Holden Torana, there was a 5-door station wagon that was never sold by Holden. Competition was expected to be fierce, but it sold poorly compared to its domestic rivals, Kia's Fiat 124 and Hyundai's Ford Cortina. The main deterrent to sales was the high government taxes imposed by the government in relation to this class of vehicle - the automobile taxation system of South Korea greatly favours engines of less than 1.5 litres displacement. The car was also perceived to suffer from high fuel consumption, while the suspension was seen as unsuitable for Korean roads and poor fuel economy during the 1970s contributed to its lower than expected sales. The low ground clearance was also a problem. The minimum ground clearance of 163 mm was lower than that of the Hyundai Cortina (180 mm), and even the company’s mid-size car, the Rekord 1900 (187 mm). In South Korea, where the road pavement rate was incomparably lower than today, a car that would frequently scrape the ground caused disappointment among customers. Currently, the only known surviving example of a Chevrolet 1700 is a yellow taxi owned by collector Baek Joong-gil in the Kumho Classic Car collection. Due to the poor sales of Chevrolet 1700, the car was revised as the Ca
Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.
Specifications
- name
- Saehan Camina
- aka
- Chevrolet 1700 (시보레 1700), GMK Caravan (Wagon model, 1972–76), Saehan Caravan (Wagon model, 1976–79)
- Manufacturer
- GM Korea (1972–1976), Saehan Motors (1976–1977)
- Production
- November 1972 – April 1976 (Chevrolet 1700), April 1976 – November 1977 (Saehan Camina), April 1976 – March 1979 (Saehan Caravan)
- Assembly
- South Korea: Bupyeong
- Body style
- 4-door sedan, 5-door station wagon
- Engine
- 1.7 L Opel 17N I4, 1.5 L Opel 15N I4
- Transmission
- 4-speed manual
- Layout
- FR layout
- Related
- Holden Torana (LJ)
- Successor
- Saehan Gemini
Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Check the linked sources for citations.
More photos
Sources
- Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1157103CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saehan_CaminaCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1363393660 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1972-1974_Holden_LJ_Torana_S_sedan_01.jpgCC BY 3.0 · Photo: Richard Lewis · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.