Category: Holden

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COMMODORE STILL GOOD TO GO THE DISTANCE

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For close on forty years, the Holden Commodore, together with sibling Calais, were large sedans and station wagons capable of carting a family and its gear over long distances in comfort, while making good time. So now, how does the European-sourced, Australian-revised, replacement compare with the traditional Aussie-built icon? What better way to find out than by taking a family trip from the Gold Coast to Sydney and back? We were blessed with a Commodore RS-V V6 AWD Liftback for our big trip. STYLING Approaching the vehicle from all angles,… Read more

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2018 HOLDEN CALAIS TOURER

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We reckon the Holden Tourer wagon will be the one buyers will opt for, preferring it to the five-door hatchback. Why? See the Styling section of this review for details, but let’s give it a general look over to start with. Tourer is a European Opel design but features a V6 engine specific to Australia, all Euro models have a turbo four-cylinder. It competes mainly with European high-riding wagons such as Audi Allroad, VW Alltrack and Volvo Cross Country, as well as the Japanese wagon with the very Aussie name,… Read more

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HOLDEN COLORADO MOVES UPMARKET

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Pickup trucks are all the rage on the new-car market at the moment and Holden, a long time player in this field has just pushed its Colorado LSX even further upmarket with a couple of special editions. Big black alloy wheels are very much the in-thing with buyers so Colorado has 18-inch black alloy wheels that are highlighted by black fender flares. All terrain tyres add to the ‘tuff’ truck look. A black grille and matte black extended sports bar with ‘Colorado’ branded plate inserts, and a ‘Colorado’ branded rear… Read more

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2018 HOLDEN EQUINOX LTZ REVIEW

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Holden has added an all-new vehicle to the already crowded family SUV Australian sales race. Though it’s similar in size to the ageing Captiva Holden tells us the Equinox isn’t a direct successor. In fact, some Captiva models will be sharing showrooms with the Equinox. We don’t anticipate that situation to last, but Holden is keeping its plans to itself. Equinox is certainly a far more modern vehicle than the Captiva in style, technology and safety. A five-seat vehicle, the Equinox will be complemented by a larger SUV, the Holden… Read more

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HOLDEN ANNOUNCES ZB COMMODORE PRICES

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The German-built next-generation ZB Holden Commodore won’t be here till February 2018, but GM-H has released its recommended prices as part of the build up to its new high-tech models. Though you get a fair bit more car for your money Holden has deliberated kept prices at similar levels to the outgoing VF II, even significantly lower in many cases. That’s to counteract the negativity about the German Commodore from some quarters. The negativity being that this isn’t really a Holden as it’s not “built tough for Australia”. That’s despite… Read more

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HOLDEN’S FAMILY FRIENDLY EQUINOX

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Extremely keen to take an all-new direction following the closure of its factory Holden has introduced an all-new vehicle, tagged Equinox, into the hotly contested SUV field in Australia. The timing couldn’t have been better as buyers are almost queueing up to get into these practical vehicles. Though the Equinox isn’t a direct successor to Holden Captiva, with continues in some variants for a yet-to-be-announced period, it comes pretty close. Equinox is a far more modern vehicle than Captiva in every way. Modern styling, larger interior, high-tech drivetrains and, possibly… Read more

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FORD FIESTA 2004 – 2016

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2004 Ford Fiesta

Ford Fiesta is a European sourced small car that has the of on-road dynamics that please keen Aust drivers. In particular they love the hot-hatches, like the Fiesta Zetec, ST and the XR4. Though it dates back to the mid 1970s in Europe, Ford Fiesta wasn’t sold here till 1984 when Ford Australia realised it was losing sales to Holden because local buyers weren’t keen on the cheap n’ cheerful Ford Festivas that were imported from South Korea. The earlier models were built in Germany, from 2010 they came from… Read more

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MIDDLE TRAX EXTREMELY WELL CONNECTED

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While the Holden Trax small sports utility vehicle showed a 25 per cent increase in sales in Australia in 2016, Holden is not standing on its laurels and has added to the range with a mid-spec LT. Slotting in between the LS entry-level and range-topping LTZ, this intended to put Holden at the leading edge of in-car connectivity in the small SUV segment. Holden says it is estimated around 77 per cent of Australians own at least one smartphone and check them more than 150 times a day, so the… Read more

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2018 HOLDEN EQUINOX: PRICING ANNOUNCED

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Holden has released pricing and further details of its new Equinox SUV, the model that’s replacing the ageing Holden Captiva in December. Equinox is an all-new vehicle developed by GM-Chevrolet with significant input from Australian GM-Holden engineers going back almost to the earliest stages of the design. This medium-large Holden will be powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine producing 127 kW and 275 Nm; or a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol 188 kW and 353 Nm. These will be available at the launch of the Equinox in December. The turbo-diesel won’t come… Read more

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WILL OUR COMMODORE BE JUDGED “WORLD CAR OF THE YEAR”?

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Opel Insignia

Australian engineers working on the next-generation Commodore may have played a major part in having the Opel Insignia listed as a finalist for the 2018 World Car of the Year awards. Opel Insignia has had many positive reviews in Europe since its introduction a few months ago – and that’s with just the four-cylinder turbocharged engine. We feel sure they will love the performance of the V6 engine if they get to sample it. That powerplant wouldn’t have been engineered into the car but for pressure from Holden. The World… Read more