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| Car review - Holden VY Commodore SV8 Manual |
| By Nathan Huppatz (From AutoSpeed Magazine) "Nearly 6 litres of hard revving V8 blip when I stab the throttle. Stopwatch ready, my passenger counts down to 1. The test strip is long and flat. 1600 odd kilograms launch forward voraciously, 465nm scrabbling for grip, with the tiniest of kickbacks through Holden's Traction Control system keeping the rear wheels from spinning too much. Revs urgently roar to 6000rpm, a hard shift into second causing the rear tyres to chirp loudly. Second gear over nearly as violently� the stopwatch reads 5.9 seconds. Was it really that quick? We laugh, turn around, and do it again." The SV8 is a large, powerful and sporty Australian family car, with accessible repeatable performance. Simple. Subtle changes, especially to that of the steering and a bargain price invite you to enjoy Commodore sports sedans more than you previously could. The SV8 is new to Holden's line up of cars, and offers SS performance for a bargain price, below that of Ford's new BA Falcon Turbo 6. Ford's turbo monster pushes out 240kw and over 400nm of torque throughout most of its DOHC 24 valve engine's rev range. While Ford relies predominantly on the engine characteristics of the XR6 - the driveline of the test vehicle we sampled was certainly nothing to write home about - the SV8 is a nicer overall package to drive. Standard, the SV8 arrives basically with Commodore Executive interior, but with uprated FE2 suspension, 17inch alloys, and of course the revised Gen III V8 engine producing 235kw. Inside the Commodore there are certainly some changes, although Holden hasn't gone to the same extremes in change as Ford has with the new BA series Falcons. Instrument binnacles have changed, and drivers are now presented with different clusters for each model type. The SV8, being the low cost performance makes do with a more 'standard' cluster, taken from the Executive. It contains speedometer, tacho and trip computer information. All switches and controls are easy to use, apart from the steering wheel mounted stereo unit controls which did not have a soft feel to them. Air conditioning and fan controls are noticeably large and clunky when used, obviously operating mechanical items directly behind the dash, as opposed to the slick new Ford BA controls, which operate easily and with better feel. The stereo itself is made for big aussie blokes, with large round dials, and easy to push buttons. Although the unit looks comprehensive, it is not very intuitive to use, and new owners will find themselves searching for the on/off button. Sound eminating from the speaker system is adequate, with reasonable volume and clarity available. Seating is comfortable, but not quite as supportive as the new BA range. Lateral support is adequate given the car's performance, and there is plenty of room for 6 foot tall driver and passengers, and a reach and height adjustable steering wheel makes it fairly easy for the driver to get comfortable. The seats are well cushioned. This leads us onto the steering changes made for VY, which receives re-valving of steering components, stiffer torsion bar, and some other minor changes. This lends to a much nicer 'feel' on the road, providing more feedback to the driver. Now it is possible to feel undulation and some car movement and behaviour through the wheel. All is not perfect yet though, as it is still possible to find yourself second guessing the handling changes that can be induced by the smooth powerful 235kw donk, and unsophisticated traction control. The engine receives a new full length twin exhaust, and a much nicer engine note. More bark, more edge, and more enjoyment for V8 fans while still retaining quiet cruise. Power delivery is smooth and strong from around 1500-2000rpm up. Bottom end torque seems to have improved slightly, and the top end still certainly has enough oomph to bring a smile to the face of most enthusiasts. The aural pleasure of the Gen III engine is something a lot of Aussies will appreciate. It is unfortunate then to have gearing that seems totally wrong. 6th gear provides little usable acceleration, even at 100 or 110km/h, and is certainly not appropriate in city driving. Only one gear change is used to reach 100km/h. Tall gearing? If you want to accelerate from 80km/h you can drop back to second and rev out to around 120km/h. Pretty stonking. Around 1500rpm at 100km/h makes sure sixth gear is definitely only an economy gear. Aside from ratios, the gearbox feel is quite reasonable, with direct shifting from the large �box. Sweeter and faster shifts than we found available in the BA XR6 Turbo along with a lighter clutch with slightly better feel make the SV8 nicer to tool around town in. Hard launches will see the car reach 100km/h in around 6 seconds flat, demonstrating the strength of the LS1 engine. It may not feel like the rush from a turbo Falcon, but it is similarly as fast as other testers can also confirm. This brings us to the traction control. It seems that more and more passenger cars these days, even in standard trim, are powerful enough to require traction control. It is a device that drivers will trust, but in the SV8 care is needed even with the system turned on. Wheelspin, and lateral attitude in the car is still achievable in the wet, and can catch the unwary driver out. Feedback to the driver is provided by way of pedal kickback. Our opinions remain polarised over this feature, some staffers citing the pedal kick as unnecessary and intrusive, others suggesting it is feedback the driver needs. Regardless, the system seems to work adequately on dry roads, but not well enough when the weather gets bad. Of course, given the fuel economy of the large V8 sedan, you are unlikely to push it hard all the time. Regular city driving yielded around 16-17L/100km. Freeway best was around flat 10, and more gently driving in urban conditions saw around 14l/100km. Overall vehicle dynamics for such as large (1600kg) budget family sports sedan are excellent. Turn in is fairly sharp, thanks to the 17inch wheels and lower profile rubber coupled with Holden's firmer FE2 suspension. Mid corner handling is neutral, with tendency to understeer slightly � progressive oversteer only when provoked. With traction control turned on, fast cornering on dry surfaces will yield mild understeer, as the traction control system effectively (on dry tarmac) stops the rear of the car drifting from it's line. So what is the verdict? It's a large family car with comfortable, spacious cabin, relatively simple controls, and not a lot of options. But, it has a 235kw engine, great exhaust note, excellent grip, decent handling and best of all, a low price. For $40,490 plus on roads, it is a large performance car bargain. Even after adding the power windows to the price, the SV8 is still cheaper than the Falcon XR6 Turbo, with very similar performance. Why you would � Attractive styling � Flexible, willing engine � Large and comfortable Why you wouldn�t � Power windows not standard � Thirsty on fuel |
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