The final iteration, the heavily revised HEC 5000i, was phased out of Holden passenger vehicles with the release of the VT Series II Commodore and the WH Statesman and Caprice in June 1999, both of which featured the 5.7L Gen III V8 imported from the United States.

However, the engine remained in production for a little while longer and continued to be available in the Commodore VS Series III utility (which sold alongside the VT sedan and wagon as no similar vehicle was available in that range) until the new generation VU Ute debuted in late 2000.

The engine has a successful history in various forms of motorsport, most notably in the Australian Touring Car Championship and the Bathurst 1000 until 1995, as well as in Formula 5000 and other racing applications.

Initially six capacities from 237–308 cu in (3,880–5,050 cc) were planned over a 12-year life cycle, but early in the design phase this was reduced to just two, an 'economy' 253ci (4143cc) and an enlarged 'performance' 308ci (5044cc) version, which became known as the 4.2L[a] and 5.0L respectively.

[2] Design targets of a weight of 525 lb (238 kg), which was lighter than equivalent US engines, and a net output of and 161 hp (120 kW) at 4000rpm and 263 lb⋅ft (357 N⋅m) at 2400rpm were set for the 308, which was mechanically identical to the 253 except for a larger bore and bigger pistons, along with heavier counterweights on the crankshaft to compensate for the increased reciprocating mass.

Originally an alloy inlet manifold was specified to reduce weight, but this was changed to iron when problems were encountered in the casting process.

The design was also very compact with a width of 22 inches, and was only 80 lb heavier than the 186 cu in (3,050 cc) straight six, but producing over 40% (55 hp (41 kW)) more power than that engine in standard form.

Unfortunately, the engine failed after just four days testing from a seized oil pump; however, the problem was found to be caused by swarf residue rather than a fault in the design or the quality of the components.

The 253 made its public debut in the Holden Hurricane concept car at the 1969 Melbourne International Motor Show, albeit it in a highly modified form featuring increased 10.1:1 compression, big cam and solid lifters, and producing over 250 hp (190 kW).

The V8 engine also appeared from 1971 in the Statesman range of large size luxury cars which Holden established as a separate marque replacing the Holden-badged Brougham.

At the HQ to HJ transition GMH changed the power output figures on all engines from "advertised horsepower" to proper GM20 test "SAE Gross hp".

In 1974, both the 253 and 308 engines (now called 4.2L and 5.0L) were added to the Torana range for the first time in the LH series (after an aborted attempt by Holden Dealer Team boss Harry Firth to introduce the V8 to the smaller LJ in 1972 which was stopped by the "supercar scare").

A little while into LH, GMH built a limited number of SLR5000 vehicles (263) with an engine code L34 along with a whole host of other parts fitted to it for manufacturers championship endurance rounds.

Later that year the VN introduced the 5000i engine with new cylinder heads and multi-point fuel injection which represented the most extensive redesign of the standard production Holden V8 since its launch in 1969.

A belt-driven radiator fan and water pump are located on the front of the engine block taking drive from the main pulley, as is the alternator.

In early versions of the engine the inlet and exhaust valves were arranged in a "mirrored" configuration around a longitudinal midpoint in each head i.e. I-E-I-E-E-I-E-I.

The co-located exhaust valves in the two centre combustion chambers resulted in a "hot spot" making the heads prone to warping or cracking, especially in performance versions of the engine.

For the fuel-injected 5000i version introduced in the 1988 VN Commodore, the cylinder heads were redesigned to a repeated I-E design (a similar layout was previously utilised for the HSV VL Group A SV) for all combustion chambers, delivering better heat distribution and thus greater reliability.

In 1985, the special editions modified by Holden and their official after-market tuner, Peter Brock's HDT Special Vehicles, began introducing the 5.0 L; 304.3 cu in (4,987 cc) version of the engine, created to slip underneath the 5,000 cc (305 cu in) engine capacity cut-off in Group A touring car regulations, allowing Commodore competitors to run at a lower competition weight.

Due to the complex Group A regulations, this also allowed the racing cars to run bigger wheels and tyres without any drop in power.

HDT Special Vehicles also offered a more powerful version of the engine enlarged to 5.6 L; 344.4 cu in (5,643 cc) in some of its VL models between 1986 and 1988, including the controversial Calais Director.

Fuel injection replaced the carburettors initially on the VL Commodore SS Group A SV, again with Group A touring car racing in mind, this car produced by Holden's new performance vehicle partner Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) in partnership with British-based Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR).