| | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2011 HSV SV Black Edition
 
Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) has unveiled the special edition "SV Black Edition" based on either ClubSport R8, ClubSport Tourer R8, or Maloo R8 models at the Melbourne Auto Show. This special edition will be offered in both manual and automatic transmissions and will go on sale in September. The "SV Black Edition" will be offered with matte black detailing, a Vector hood scoop and fender gills, HSV’s bi-modal exhaust system, and 20-inch forged alloy wheels. For the interior, the Black Edition models will add a unique dash treatment, leather seats, and a leather-bound steering wheel, on top of the already generous E3 equipment list. A special Enhanced Driver Interface (EDI) system that will offer details on power, torque, manifold pressure, fuel, elevation, voltage, oil and air temperature will also be available. The standard equipment list includes a reversing camera, park assist, and satellite navigation. There will only be 225 units built and, despite the "Black Edition" name, this special edition will be offered in Sting Red, Heron White, Alto Grey, Nitrate Silver, and Phantom (black). Details after the jump Full story 2011 Holden Thunder Ute
Any Australians anxiously awaiting the return of the Thunder can now breathe a tremendous sigh of relief; it seems that Holden will be bringing back the special edition Thunder nameplate to the VE Series II Ute line-up. The special edition has been launched as a celebration of the 60th anniversary of the original 1951 Ute and will be based on the popular SV6 and SS Ute models. The SV6 will be powered by a 3.6l SIDI V6 and the SS Ute will come with the standard V8. Both models will come standard with a six-speed manual transmission and optional six-speed automatic. The special edition Holden Thunder Ute will be available in 10 exterior colors and will be distinguished by unique 19-inch five spoke charcoal alloy wheels. Thunder badges will also be visible on the side and rear of the exterior, while the interior gets sports seats with leather bolsters and Touch-screen Holden-iQ system with Satellite Navigation. "Over 60 years of production, the Holden ute has evolved from typical tradesman’s transport to two-door sports machine with a practical edge - that’s epitomized by the Thunder range," Holden Executive Director of Sales, Marketing and Aftersales John Elsworth said. "It is a really bold, tough looking ute which we think will appeal to many of our traditional sports ute buyers. We’re expecting it to be an absolute winner in our showrooms." Chevrolet To Get Holden Based SS Sedan
Americans always says that Canadians are “just like us.” They talk (almost) the same, look slightly paler, and they just happen to use those funny little kilometers per hour instead of the proper miles per hour. After much thought though, it’s the Australians that are most like Americans– especially when it comes down to the shared passion of muscle cars. The Holden Commodore last made its appearance on our shores in 2009 as the Pontiac G8. It was a big, full-size, four door sedan, complete with an equally big Corvette-sourced V8 engine. What’s not to love about it? Unfortunately for us, the G8 left our market with the demise of Pontiac in 2010 and we’ve been without our fair share of Australian cars since then. But alas some good news: according to GM Inside News, the Holden Commodore has been confirmed to return to the United States as a 2014 Chevrolet SS Sedan. Even better news follows. GM Inside News also reports that General Motors is considering bringing the Holden Commodore Ute and Commodore SportWagon to our shores as well, as the Chevy El Camino and SportWagon. If these rumors hold any water, we’d expect to see the El Camino the same time we see the SS Sedan and the Sport Wagon released soon thereafter. For the record, this isn’t the first time these rumors have popped up. Some of you may even remember that we were supposed to get the Commodore Ute back in 2009 as the Pontiac G8 Sport Truck before the economy tanked and it was cancelled. Also in July of the same year, Bob Lutz said that the G8 would be saved and become the Chevrolet Caprice. That also turned out to be untrue although the Commodore’s big brother, the Statesman went on to become the new Caprice PPV. While there is hope for these awesome Aussies on our shores, we’ll have to wait to believe it when we see it. 2010 Chevrolet Camaro Ute
Take a good first look at this car and you may just sit there for a few minutes with absolutely no words. Official Chevrolet Camaros come in the classic coupe and convertible forms, but unofficially things can get a little, shall we say, eccentric. For example, some tuners feel that a car should be taken to that next level just on the other side of normalcy. A coupe and convertible Camaro? Boring! How about a completely inappropriate muscle car turned truck? Apparently, that’s what Luke Bromidge from Victoria thinks is fitting of a vehicle tuned to look like a classic and beautiful Chevrolet Camaro and pick-up truck. All around the world muscle cars are weeping over their fallen brethren. While we never imagined something like this was even possible, Luke Bromidge from Victoria has spent moths in customizing a front end that will transform any Holden VE Commodore into a Camaro. While we admit the VE Commodore owners will be very happy with the new and more aggressive look, we really can’t imagine what a Camaro owner will think when it sees something that is supposed to be a muscle car carrying all kinds of cargo in its newly opened rear trunk. The worst part of this whole conversion is that it is extremely simple. All Bromidge has to do is take the front end kit, install it, and paint it. Ta-da! Did anyone order a Camaro pick-up? 2010 Holden Commodore Series II SS by Walkinshaw Performance
Tom Walkinshaw of Walkinshaw Performance knows his Holden vehicles. In fact, Walkinshaw was the man behind Holden’s HSV performance division so the fact that he chose to take a tuning spin in the Holden Commodore Series II SS isn’t a bit surprising. The result of this rendezvous was the new tuning package unveiled at the 2010 Australian International Motor Show. For this package, Walkinshaw has remade the 6.0 liter V8 engine found in the original vehicle and matched it up with an Edelbrock 230 supercharger taking the output to a challenging 617hp and 780 Nm of torque. Next to the engine upgrade, the package also gets an all new front and rear brake package including six piston 378mm rotors at front and six piston 365mm rotors at the rear, an upgraded and recalibrated suspension package developed with Bilstein, and a specially commissioned audio upgrade package from Rockford Fosgate. The Walkinshaw Performance Series II Commodore will be limited to only 23 units, all painted in Panorama Silver, which was the same color featured on the original ‘Walky’ when it debuted at the Sydney Motor Show 23 years ago. The package is priced at $99,990 (car included). Press release after the jump. Full story Holden Tuning Company HSV Working On Hot-Cruze
While drivers in the United States still love their larger vehicles, the rest of the world is driving around in hatchbacks and wagons. Chevrolet might be attempting to capitalize on this with the Cruze five-door in the land of vegemite and kangaroos, Australia. The base Cruze will likely feature a few four-cylinder petrols and diesels, but there is a chance that Holden’s in-house tuning company, HSV, will kick it up a notch with a high-performance four-pot, although this has not been confirmed. This will mean that the Volkswagen GTI and the Ford Focus ST will have some competition from GM. We don’t expect to see or hear anything from HSV for quite some time, as the company is busy making sure its V8-powered vehicles will be able to survive in the future. We hope to hear something soon on the Cruze HSV, although Americans won’t ever be able to drive it. 2011 HSV E-Series 3
Australia’s favorite sports car is getting some updates for 2011, but not much has changed aesthetically, or mechanically for that matter. What HSV has done is added a slew of technological updates to the E-series to come up with the new E-Series 3. The sports car will go on sale at the end of this month. The most impressive technological advancement for the E-Series 3 is the new Enhanced Driver Interface. This interface allows vehicle performance data to get pushed to the car’s touch screen display, something we are sure everyone would find amazing and helpful. Adding to the technology is also HSV’s new Side Blind Alert which is optional on all models in the 3 range and the Liquid Propane Injection which comes on all of the models except the Clubsport R8 Tourer. The interior will receive a new ‘Oracle’ dash, a new model specific stainless steel ID plate on the center console, new twin-stitch seat trims on GTS and Senator Signature, as well as a new leather color in Turismo Rosso and a Piano black trim on the center console and steering wheel. The list of standard equipment includes the Enhanced Driver Interface, reverse camera with rear park assist, satellite navigation, and touchscreen radio with iPod connectivity. Since nothing was mentioned of the engine options, we are going to assume that the E-Series 3 will be powered by the same heart stopping V8 engine that was found on the previous model. This engine allows the Australian sports car to produce 431hp with the top of the line GTS models getting 442hp. The Holden E-Series 3 is definitely not a bad gig for the Land Down Under. We only wish we could get our hands on one of these in the States. It looks like something that would be right up our alley. Press release after the jump. Full story 2011 Holden Commodore VE Series II
After 14 years of history, Holden Commodore is entering the 2011 model year with new smart multimedia technology, improved fuel economy, and the capacity to run on environmentally friendly bio-ethanol. The new Commodore Series II is powered by a choice of three engines: a 3.0-liter SIDI V6 engine, 3.6 liter SIDI V6, and Holden’s Gen IV V8 for the luxury and performance models. All engines offer the flex-fuel technology which is what allows them to be powered by bio-ethanol. The biggest technology upgrade for the Commodore Series 2 is the Holden iQ. This system is comprised of music, telephone, and satellite navigation in the form of a fully integrated, 6.5-inch full color multifunction LCD touch screen, a touch screen keyboard and supports CDDA, CD-R, CD-RW, MP3, and WMA playback. Take music right from your iPod, memory stick, CD, or your phone ti listen to all of your favorite jams in your car. Not the music type? The new system also provides the driver with live traffic alerts, speed advisory, and point of interest functions. Press release after the jump. Full story 2010 HSV ClubSport 20th Anniversary Edition
HSV has unveiled a special edition ClubSport sedan to celebrate the car’s 20th anniversary. This particular vehicle is somewhat special to the company because it is the highest selling vehicle in the brand’s line-up. It will be limited to only 100 units and will go on sale in late June at a price of $66,690 for manual and $68,690 for automatic. The 20th Anniversary Edition will be distinguished by HSV’s performance suspension, 20" Pentagon wheels in Millennium silver, and leather seats. There will also be a unique decal on the rear window which the HSV enthusiast will recognize as a modern iteration of the original VN "CS ClubSport" badge. The HSV Clubsport began its run with a 6.0 L Generation 4 Alloy V8 engine. In 2008, that engine was changed to a 6.2 litre LS3 V8 mated to a 6-speed Tremec T-56 manual transmission. ”If we step back 20 years to 1990, this really was a watershed year for the HSV brand. Not only did we introduce our first ClubSport model in June but 1990 also represented our first Bathurst victory with the Holden Racing Team, who are also celebrating 20 years of success this year. ”The ClubSport has such great history and meaning within our business, and it has always been our purists vehicle - bringing track focused performance and handling to a road vehicle,” Tim Jackson, General Manager of Marketing and Communications, said. Press release after the jump. Full story Holden SS-V Sportwagon by Walkinshaw Performance
Now that Pontiac has passed, we need to focus our attention to its Australian version; the Holden. Walkinshaw Performance has developed a 603hp Holden SS-V Special Edition Sportwagon that definitely has our attention. The price for the package is $43,990 AUS (excluding car’s price). The tuning company added a new exhaust system, a new water-to-air intercooler, larger injectors, and they obtained an impressive 603 hp and 770Nm of torque. As a result, the sprint from 0 to 60 mph will be made in under 5 seconds; an impressive number for a sport wagon. The car also gets new springs and dampers, 20-inch wheels, Walkinshaw-branded floormats and headrests, and a Rockford-Fosgate premium audio system. | Holden cars reviews2011 2010 2009 2008
* prototypes, future cars, modified cars (tuning) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Holden cars
|
|