Why the new Commodore is a beauty

To quote Prime Minister Ben Chifley when he unveiled the original Holden in 1948: “She’s a beauty”.

Social media is buzzing with people questioning just how ‘new’ is the new VF Commodore – but it’s a moot point. It’s as new as Holden and General Motors could afford in their financial circumstances amid falling large-car sales.

The core of the VF Commodore is the same as before – the roof, doors and glass are carryover parts, only the front and rear appearance have changed. But as the saying goes, if it aint broke don’t fix it. The Commodore’s body is already big enough, so Holden gave the VF a high-class nose job and bum tuck, and added lashings of chrome for good measure.

The VF looks wider because the headlights have been moved outwards – losing the previous Commodore’s bulging front fenders – but it is still exactly the same width as before.

The VF looks a little longer – because it is a little longer. The designers moved the rear roof pillars further back and lengthened the bootlid for better aerodynamic efficiency at freeway speeds. It’s an elegant, BMW-like execution.

The hundreds of millions of dollars Holden didn’t waste on building a new-from-the-ground-up car was wisely spent on adding technology and removing weight – about 40kg from the car’s overall mass.

Which is why even though the V6 and V8 engines carry over from before, the new Commodore will also be about 10 per cent more fuel-efficient.

Sure, the wagon and ute don’t come in for much love (their exteriors are largely unchanged from the windscreen back). And the crash alert system won’t slam on the brakes like it does in some European cars (the Holden system will flash and beep until you hit the brakes).

But once they see it in the metal – and judge for themselves how different it looks – I reckon the VF Commodore will exceed the expectations of most Australians and Commodore defectors across the country.

Holden’s done the hard yards to build the best Commodore ever – and the most advanced car designed, engineered and manufactured in Australia. The only challenge now is to convince buyers to give it one last chance when they’re in the market for a new car.

This reporter is on Twitter: @JoshuaDowling


VF Commodore by the numbers

Two
The number of 12V power sockets in the new Commodore (one in the centre console as before, and a new one in front of the gear lever).

$39.8 million
Taxpayer dollars into the VF Commodore’s weight-saving technology such as the aluminum bonnet, boot and underpinnings.

$2 billion
How much economic activity Holden claims the new VF Commodore will create during its three-year lifespan.

70kg
How much weight Holden managed to trim from the new VF Commodore’s body and structure.

30kg
How much weight Holden put back into the car in the form of new technology such as self-parking, lane-keeping, crash alert and blind-spot warning.

40kg
The net weight saving after taking some out and putting some back into the car.

2016
The year the homegrown rear-drive Commodore bows out to make way for a four-cylinder front-drive car that Holden says will wear the Commodore badge.