Holden
45 articles in this category
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William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com August 22, 2012 The dream of the Holden Ute coming to the states has made a resurgence when General Motors announced the Holden Commodore would be coming as the Chevrolet SS. Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news to the small group who cling onto this dream, but the Ute will not be coming. A report from the Herald Sun states that if Holden was to export the Ute to the U.S., the vehicle would fall under a light commercial tariff rate of 35%,
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By William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com February 9, 2013 Holden has pulled back the curtain for the new VF Commodore this morning in Australia. The VF Commodore according to Holden "the most technologically-advanced car ever created in Australia". This is an important car for Holden since sales of the Commodore and other big sedans in Australia have been on the decline. The VF Commodore retires the “geometrical” design theme used on the VE Commodore and uses the “scultptural” desi
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William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com December 16, 2013 We've been hearing a number of rumors concerning of the next the Commodore, most pertaining that it would switch from rear-wheel to front-wheel drive. It seems with Holden shutting down production in 2017, that rumor could become reality. News.com.au has learned from sources and documents that next Commodore will become a large front-wheel drive sedan that will be sold in Australia as a Holden and China as a Buick. The report
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William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com September 4, 2012 There's a lot of questions dealing with Holden Commodore after 2017. The facelifted Commodore, the VF, will be debuting next year on the Zeta platform. But when 2017, Zeta will not be used at all. “Zeta is not a global platform for GM,” said Holden boss, Mike Devereux, during a tour of the Elizabeth production facility. Holden has confirmed that it will produce two new Australian-made cars based on two global platforms as par
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William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com December 13, 2013 With the announcement of Holden closing up production and R&D by 2017, the battle to keep the Holden brand alive has only begun. News.com.au reports that General Motors is considering dropping Holden and transitioning to Chevrolet. The reasons for this begin with the Holden brand not having any distinction once the brand begins importing vehicles in 2017. There is also an image problem as the brand could be seen as damaged
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William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com December 10, 2013 The rumors were flying around only a week ago, but it has been confirmed now. This afternoon in Australia, Holden announced that after sixty-five years of production, the automaker will stop producing vehicles and "transition to a national sales company in Australia and New Zealand" by 2017. The move will affect 2,900 workers at the Elizabeth manufacturing plant and Victoria. It will also affect a number of suppliers in Austral
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Nearly three years after ending local production in Australia, General Motors announced this morning in Australia that Holden will cease to exist by the end of the year. The move will see 800 jobs going away and the closure of the Melbourne design studio and Lang Lang proving ground. In a statement, GM International Operations Senior Vice President Julian Blissett said the company made the difficult decision to close operations after varying attempts to try and rejuvenate the brand. “Over re
...the final curtain call for GM's Australian operations...
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Holden's high-performance sedans could live after their operations are shut down in 2017. According to Drive.com.au, General Motors is currently evaluating a new program that would utilize the Alpha platform for a number high performance applications of varying sizes and shapes for different brands. One of those vehicles is likely to be a rear-drive performance version of the Commodore and next Chevrolet SS. Alpha brings a couple things to the table. One is that Alpha can be scaled up or down t
Holden Might Not Lose Rear-Drive Sedans After 2017..
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Holden is doing something quite special for buyers of the final Australian-built Commodore. CarAdvice got their hands on an email sent from a Holden dealer showing that customers will have the chance to pick a build number on a first come, first serve basis for the Commodore. Here is how the ordering process will work: On April 10th, eligible customers will get a test email from Holden to make sure they have the correct email. A week before May 3rd, customers will get access t
Pick a number, any number
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Holden has revealed to everyone the final Australian-Built Commodore, the VF-Series II. The new Commodore, which will go on sale this October, gets some minor changes to the exterior such as a new grille, front bumper, headlights, and taillights. The big changes come under the hood. Commodore SS and trims above it get the 6.2L LS3 V8 with 304kW of power and 570Nm of torque (about 407 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque). A six-speed manual and six-speed automatic are available on the
The Final Australian Built Commodore Debuts
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We're one step closer to learning about the next-generation Holden Commodore as the automaker has begun testing the new model in Austraila. This news comes from Stefan Jacoby, General Motor's Executive Vice President Consolidated International Operations. “We are driving this car already in Lang Lang,” said Jacoby. “I love that proving ground [and] the Holden engineering team will have a part to integrate this vehicle into the Australian market. It is very obvious that the successor needs to b
The Testing Process Begins For The Next-Generation Holden Commodore
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Since the announcement came down that Holden would shutter its operations in 2017, the rumors and speculations began flying about the fate of the Commodore. Would it become a big front-wheel drive model or stick to its rear-drive roots? Was the nameplate destined to stay around? It seems we might have answer to the latter question. CarsGuide.com.au reports that Holden has been fighting with General Motors to keep the Commodore name around. Sources say Philip Brook, Holden’s sales and marketing
End of the line for the Commodore name?
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By William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com February 14, 2013 We're just a few days away from the introduction of the production-ready Chevrolet SS and to help us tide it over, Holden has unveiled the VF Commodore SS V Show Car. The VF Commodore SS V looks be the serious performer in the Commodore lineup. The front has a smaller grille, re-styled front bumper, and a sculpted hood. Along the side are new side skirts and twenty-inch black alloy wheels wrapped in beefy tires. In the bac
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In a couple years time, Holden will be ending production in Australia. But the performance arm is making sure it goes out with bang. Drive.com.au reports that Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) is hard at work on a special edition on a Commodore model that will have the heart of the last-generation Corvette ZR1, the LS9 V8. With 638 horsepower on tap, this engine would make for the most powerful muscle car built in Australia. Currently, HSV's Clubsport GTS holds the title for most powerful muscle
A Commodore with the Corvette ZR1's V8?
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Holden was relying on Opel to help supply its upcoming lineup with models such as the Astra and Insignia rebadged as the Commodore. But with the sale of Opel and Vauxhall to PSA Group, the future of Holden's lineup hangs in the balance. But GM is still committed to the Australian brand and the sale of Opel should not have any impact in the near future according to GM president Dan Ammann. “What I want to emphasise is we are 100 per cent committed to the business in Australia and New Zealand
GM is standing behind Holden despite the sale of Opel
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William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com October 30, 2013 2016 could mark the end of era. After 65 years serving the Australian marketplace, the Holden Ute could say good-bye. News.com.au has learned that Holden could end production of the Ute after the current Commodore is replaced in 2016. The Ute has been a staple of Australian automotive marketplace since the first model was introduced back in 1951. But in the past few years, sales have precipitously dropped. This is due to an inf
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With Holden's operations in Australia coming to a close in 2017, questions have arisen of what will happen to Holden Special Vehicles. Motoring.com.au reports that HSV's future might lie with Chevrolet. Motoring.com.au had the chance to speak with Ryan Walkinshaw, Chairman of the Walkinshaw Group which runs HSV. He explained that the group is considering working their magic on Chevrolet vehicles. But he goes onto say that General Motors has the final say on this. “We think something like that
Holden Special Vehicles Transitions To Chevrolet Special Vehicles?
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Automakers have a number of projects that never see the light of day. But sometimes, a shelved project will be revealed and cause many to wonder 'what if?' News.com.au reports a new book out next month says Holden was working on a top secret electric supercar that would have been faster than Bugatti Veyron. But this project was canned in 2008 as the global financial crisis began to take hold. The new book - Holden: Our Car - says Holden did the design and engineering work before presenting
One of those great 'What if?' questions
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Holden has been in a bit of turmoil for the past few years. With declining sales, plant closures coming in a couple of years, and big changes for the Commodore, steady leadership is key. But in the past six years, Holden has gone through six chairmans. The latest one, Gerry Dorizas only lasted eight months on the job. But there will be a new person in charge. Last Friday, Holden announced the appointment of Mark Bernhard as Managing Director and Chairman of the brand. This is an important miles
Big changes for Holden, along with new products
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The clocks tick down before the end of the rear-wheel drive Holden Commodore and Australian production. But Holden has plans to end it with a bang. News Corp Australia has learned that GM has given the go-ahead on Holden using the LS9 V8 from the last-generation Corvette ZR1 for special edition model. Producing 600 horsepower, this limited edition will be the fastest Commodore ever built. The sedan will only come with a six-speed manual as an automatic wouldn't be able to handle all of the p
A 600 horsepower, supercharged V8 in a Commodore?!
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The clock is ticking away before the end of the Holden Commodore and the Elizabeth in 2017. But Motoring.com.au says a Belgian Entrepreneur wants to buy GM's Elizabeth plant and the assets to the Commodore to build out a range of rear and all-wheel drive vehicles. In late November, Motoring first got wind of this plan. The person in question is Guido Dumarey, owner of the Punch Group (also known as Punch International). He has been working on a plan to buy the plant and all of the tooling si
The Plan to Save Holden's Elizabeth Plant and the Commodore (minus the name)
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As we have known for a couple of years, the next Holden Commodore will not be a rear-wheel drive based model. Instead, it will be based on the next-generation Opel and Vauxhall Insignia. This model isn't due to come out till 2018, but Holden has surprised everyone by releasing key details about the next Commodore. Holden has been working with Opel and Vauxhall for the past five years on developing the Insignia for its duties as the Commodore in Australia. In terms of looks, Holden has
Holden begins to talk about the next Commodore
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William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com October 26, 2013 Some big news coming out of Australia this week. Holden's Managing Director, Mike Devereux announced that he would be stepping down and moving to another position at General Motors at the end of the year. Devereux's new title will be the vice president of International Operations at GM. He will be overseeing GM's operations in a 100 countries, including Australia. “While taking on this expanded role, Mr Devereux will continue t
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By William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com April 9, 2013 Holden is cutting 500 jobs due to the strengthening Australian dollar, which has caused country's labor rates to be one of the highest in the world. “I can’t control what central banks do. The value of the Australian dollar, and importantly the currency plays being made by other countries, mean that we are not competing on a level playing field,” said Holden managing director, Mike Devereux yesterday. The Australian dollar ha
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With Holden transitioning the big Commodore from rear-wheel to front-wheel drive, there have been questions as to what will happen to Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) - the factory approved tuner that has created some of the widest performance vehicles in Australia - when this switch happens. Speaking with GoAuto, HSV's marketing and product planning general manager Damon Paull said they plan to continue working with Holden and the next Commodore. “We will certainly be looking to offer a Commod
Holden Special Vehicles Looks To A Front-Wheel Drive Commodore Future
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As the Holden Commodore and its variants ready for their final curtain call, there is the question of what would stand as the brand's hero car. Various GM executives have said the Australian brand would retain a V8 powered vehicle, most likely a sports car. The folks at CarAdvice were able to gleam a tiny bit of information about this new V8 vehicle. When asked if the sports car would compete with the Ford Mustang, Holden's executive director of sales, Peter Keley said it wouldn't. “No [
Holden has a sports car to take the place of the Commodore V8 as their hero vehicle
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Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) has been the creator of some of the maddest Holden performance vehicles like the GTSR W1 which features a 6.2L supercharged V8 with 636 horsepower. But the HSV name could be a thing of the past. CarAdvice has learned that HSV will be changing its name to Walkinshaw beginning next year. This information first was revealed by a source earlier in the year and was confirmed by three HSV dealers this week. This change means future HSV products will wear the Walkinsh
A big change is possibly afoot at HSV
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William Maley Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com December 17, 2013 Last week, we reported on the rumor that General Motors was considering retiring the Holden nameplate and use the Chevrolet name. This information comes from sources inside at Holden. Now a GM spokesman says the brand is sticking around. GM spokesman Greg Martin tells Automotive News that after 2017, the Holden nameplate will still be around. Vehicles that will be exported into Australia and New Zealand. As for sales, service
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The departure of the current Holden Commodore means Australians will not get their fill of V8 muscle. But it seems help could be on the way from America. A new report from Wheels says the Camaro will be heading down under to give the Ford Mustang some much needed competition. But don't expect to see the current Camaro make the trip. Wheels says it will be the next-generation model due in 2021 that will do battle. This is due to the engineering work needed to do a right-hand drive version.
Australia could soon be having a Mustang vs. Camaro fight
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The Zeta RWD platform had so much promise when it launched with 2006 Holden Commodore. Plans were drawn up for a number of models that would have included a number of the GM brands, including Cadillac. But the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent bankruptcy of GM saw many of those plans go into the trashbin and would ultimately mark the beginning of the end of Holden's local production. We have learned about one of those Zeta projects. Motoring reports that Holden was working on a Zeta-base
Some believe this could have kept local manufacturing going
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Back in December, we reported on the ambitious plan of Guido Dumarey, owner of the Punch International to buy General Motors' Elizabeth plant and the assets to the Commodore to build out a new range of rear and all-wheel drive vehicles in Australia. “Everything is planned. The next step is to inform all the parties with the right plan, and it happens next year. The announcement is that they will close in the end of 2017. In the first six months of next year we must work very hard to find sol
The plan to save the Commodore and the Elizabeth plant is axed
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As Holden transitions from a local manufacturer to importer, this brings up the concern of what kind of vehicles will be available to brand. Previously, Holden had a limited choice of vehicles to choose from due to the requirement of being right-hand drive. But now, General Motors is promising a larger selection of vehicles for Holden to choose from. This could open the door for various models from the U.S. and other countries. This change comes down to GM's vehicle architectures becoming m
Why you could be seeing more U.S. models arrive in Australia with Holden badging
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Those who crave a V8 model from Holden might not need to wait too long after the current Commodore finishes its run. Motoring has learned from sources that GM has given the go-ahead on sending the next-generation Corvette and current Camaro to Australia. The Corvette, which the report states will be the mid-engine model - will come as a right-hand drive model from the factory. The Camaro is a bit of a different story, however. According to Motoring, the Camaro will be converted to righ
V8's from America are possibly coming to Australia
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2018 has not been kind to Holden. Sales have been stagnant and the brand saw its worst monthly sales of 3,927 cars in July. Market share has also been dropping to below five percent during the year. Now, the brand has halted production of the Commodore and Equinox in an effort to reduce a massive stockpile of vehicles. According to Wheels, Holden ordered way too many vehicles before it ceased local manufacturing in late 2017. But the past year has proven to be difficult with sales dropping
They have too many sitting around
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William Maley Editor/Reporter - CheersandGears.com April 22, 2012 After a $1 billion dollar investment into Holden by the Australian government and General Motors, Holden is starting a new project to develop new vehicles for China. Holden announced a new design and engineering partnership with Shanghai General Motors and the Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC – an engineering and design joint venture between GM and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp) to help develop two new vehicles
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Please do not adjust your monitor. What you are seeing is a real vehicle. Today, Holden announced five new and refreshed models that would be appearing within the next year. The big news is the GMC Acadia will be sold as a Holden starting with the 2018 model year. The model will be offered exclusively with the 3.6L V6 and the choice of either front or all-wheel drive. Why is Holden waiting till 2018 to start selling the Acadia? Holden will be doing a development program to ready the vehicle
The Acadia gets an Australian accent
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At 10:45 AM this morning at Holden's Elizabeth plant in South Australia, the final Australian-built vehicle rolled down the assembly line - a VF II SS V Redline complete with six-speed manual. The vehicle marked the end of 69 years of Holden production in Australia with 7,687,675 vehicles built. It also marks the end of Australian car production with Ford ending theirs last year and Toyota wrapping up a few weeks ago. Holden held a private ceremony at the plant for the 945 workers whe
69 Years and 7,687,675 Vehicles Built
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Today, Holden built the last Chevrolet SS that is currently en-route to the U.S. This marks the end of Holden's export program for the Commodore for the U.S. The model in question was finished in black and comes paired with a six-speed manual. A Holden spokesperson told Motor and Motoring that the buyer of the SS had a special request for the vehicle. “Just as the vehicle was being produced, the Holden manufacturing team received a request from a US customer, asking the manufacturing e
Thanks Holden for letting us have the chance to experience the Commodore
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No one was quite sure what would happen to Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) after the end of the RWD Commodore. Rumors abounded from a modified Colorado to the importation of the Camaro. We finally have some concrete answers. Today in Australia, Holden and HSV made a joint announcement of a new agreement between the two companies. HSV will now use their engineering talents that created some mad Holdens into expanding Holden's range to new levels, along with importing various GM products.
This includes the Camaro and Silverado HD
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It hasn't been an easy go for Holden for almost the last decade. Sales have been declining for the past eight years and buyers haven't been wowed by either the new Commodore or their growing lineup of crossovers. This has reportedly brought the vultures out. The Australian Financial Review reported yesterday that Inchcape, one of the largest independent vehicle importers has started discussions with General Motors about possibly taking over the importation of Holden vehicles. According to s
Some more changes could be coming to Holden
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Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) has been the home to where some of the maddest Holden V8 sedans and utes announced their swan song to the Zeta-based Commodore with the introduction of their 2017 lineup which includes one being powered by the ZR1's LS9 supercharged V8. Before we get to that, let us begin with the 'entry-level' HSV models. Dubbed the '30 Years' range (30 years of being in operation), the eight models will see noticeable improvements in terms of performance and a number of goodi
How does Holden Special Vehicles say good-bye to the Zeta Commodore?
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We have known for a couple of years that Holden will end Australian production in 2017. Today, Holden announced that October 20th, 2017 will be the final day of production at their Elizabeth plant. This will end over 60 years of production at the plant. “While this confirmation isn’t a surprise for anyone and we’ve been working toward this for nearly four years, we can now confirm the actual date for our people and our suppliers. Putting our people first and foremost has always been our high
We now know the date of when Holden will end production
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It was a sad day when Holden announced that the next Commodore, the ZB, would switch from its rear-drive roots that it had since it was first launched back in the late 70's to front-wheel drive. We have been wondering if this decision was made back in 2013 when the news first came out or earlier. According to a report from Australian outlet Motoring, discussions about possibly using the next-generation Insignia date back to 2010 and the final decision would follow a year later. “It was real
The Rear-Drive Commodore was a dead man walking longer than we first thought
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When the final Australian-built Holden Commodore rolls down the line next month, it will mark the end a number things including the end of the SS nameplate. “Calais stays, but SS doesn’t. Outside of that, we’ll let you know. We’re still six months away from launch,” said Holden director of communications Sean Poppitt to CarAdvice. “The only product that currently has it [the SS name] in Australia is the V8 Commodore. So when we stop making V8s, that’s when we stop the SS. That doe
End of the road for the SS nameplate, for the time being in Australia
