Holden Commodore LPG 2007 review

One of life's not-so-little mysteries is Holden's clever “dual-fuel” Commodore, which runs on petrol or LPG.

It's a puzzle because Holden doesn't seem to have made much of a fuss about it, and because people haven't exactly stampeded into economy-minded LPG cars, despite all the outcry over high fuel prices.

Personally, I loved it. Having two sources of fuel, and being able to use whichever is better value at the time, is mighty appealing. So is being able to go 1100km or so between visits to a service station — that's diesel-like motoring.

Explore the 2007 Holden Commodore range

• Holden Commodore LPG 2007 review
• Holden Commodore 2007 review

The Commodore is certainly versatile, able to go from petrol to LPG at the flick of a switch. The changeover is seamless, even when on the move. It starts easily, feels normal, sounds normal.

Whichever fuel it is using, this is a modern-looking and modern-feeling car, surefooted and stable.

Driving the LPG Commodore is as good as a regular Commodore, you can find reasons potential buyers might be deterred.

Some will look in the boot and see that a lot of luggage space has been lost to the whopper cylindrical gas tank.

Others will be deterred by the cost of saving money on petrol. The LPG conversion adds $3900 to a standard Omega or Berlina sedan. Even when the Federal Government softens the blow by coughing up its $2000 rebate for having an LPG system fitted, buyers still face a $1900 premium.

That's a lot of kilometres on low-priced gas before the extra outlay is recouped.

The Commodore's LPG-compatible Alloytec V6 engine delivers 175kW of power and 325Nm of torque or pulling power (not far down from the standard car's 180kW/330Nm).

From the driver's seat, it seems just like a regular Commodore: plenty of urge for take-off, smooth when cruising, sounding a bit raspy when asked to get to work.

Holden says owners will find little difference in service costs.

The only indication this is not a “normal” Commodore is the LPG-petrol switch on the central console and, beside it, a series of lights which show how much gas is in the tank. No matter if you don't watch them closely — the fuel system automatically switches over to petrol if the LPG tank runs low.

Running on LPG, the official fuel economy rating is 16 litres per 100km. On petrol, it is 11.7 litres per 100km (compared with a lighter “normal” Commodore's 10.9 litres per 100km).

Theoretically, it could go about 450km on gas alone, plus 600km-plus on petrol. Dollar-wise, a lot of any LPG car's desirability depends on the price gap between gas and petrol. The farther you go, the more the sums lean in the LPG car's favour. But it seems not too many normal motorists reckon the maths add up for them, because sales of new LPG cars to private buyers are a mere trickle, while fleets  whose cars travel longer distances tend to buy such cars by the thousand.