2012 Holden Colorado 7 Reviews

Holden hasn't had a genuine off road passenger 'fourbie' for more than a decade, ever since the demise of the Holden Jackaroo and before that, the 'postcode' size Holden (Chevy) Suburban.Smaller Captiva SUV has limited dirt credentials and the Colorado ute on which the 7 is based is too much of a tradie truck for people wanting a family vehicle with off road capability.Colorado7 was developed alongside it's ute sister and is built on the same Thai production line but differs in a number of areas, in particular, the rear live axle/coil spring suspension and the wagon body (on-chassis ute style). Front suspension remains a double wishbone setup.With a Toyota Prado GX five-door diesel wagon nudging the $60 grand mark on the road, Holden's new Colorado7 medium large, genuine off-roader seems like a real bargain at a starting price of $46,990 for the LT model. It's more of a competitor for the awful Mitsubishi Challenger and costs about the same.Two models are available; the LT and leather equipped $50,490 LTZ which scores 18-inch alloys, LED tail lights, chrome body hardware and climate control among a somewhat generous equipment list for the ask.Both vehicles have plenty of kit - the usual stuff you'd expect in a new model like Bluetooth, multi-function steering wheel, trip computer, power ancillaries and cruise control. Nothing really clever though... like some of the Europeans.We only got to drive the LTZ with leather, climate control and electric adjust driver's seat. It was OK. The seat is a bit flat and that overpowering grey plastic is not nice. It shares a similar boof-head style with the Colorado ute which might be to some people's taste (not ours) and is a good size for general duties - not too big though it's a fair hoik up into the cabin.The third row of seats folds into the floor and is relatively easy to access for smaller people. Second and third row seats tumble-fold into the floor to create a large load space.Power comes from the same 2.8-litre four-pot turbodiesel out of Colorado ute that achieves a strong 132kW/470Nm output while consuming fuel at a claimed average of 9.4-litres/100km. The engine and a six-speed conventional auto transmission are standard on both models.As is selectable 4x4 with 2WD and 4L and 4H available by turning a dial in the centre console (on the fly too) though we couldn't get it to work on our test drive. This type of 4x4 system is old-school but preferable for serious off road driving.Crash rating is five stars and it has safety features such as a reversing camera and rear park assist.Despite it's on road ride/handling shortcomings (like a truck), Colorado7 is quite handy off road where the soft suspension comes into its own as does the ride height/ground clearance and other off-road features. Still, one of the drive cars got stuck on a slippery hill off road due to the road biased tyres losing traction.It will tow 3.0-tonnes though we wouldn't like to do it to a Colorado7 we owned. There's a sump guard for rough roads and other handy stuff like hill start assist and a limited slip rear diff. We were left in two minds about this vehicle. It's only average on sealed roads, bit of a bus actually but is pretty good off road.So... good if you get out into the bush or tow a smallish trailer/boat/van, not so much if you intend using it as a people mover around town.

Holden has finally gotten serious about the large SUV market. After years of watching its rivals migrate buyers out of big sedans and into even bigger off-roaders, the Red Lion has launched a proper four-wheel drive of its own.The Colorado 7 is based on the Colorado pick-up, meaning a ladder-on-frame chassis and four-wheel drive with a transfer case for work far off the beaten track. So it’s tough.A reversing camera with overlaid guidelines on the rear-view mirror is standard on both the LT and LTZ models, as is Bluetooth and USB connectivity and cruise control. A six-speaker stereo system is capable but not class-leading.The LTZ picks up another pair of speakers, climate-control airconditioning and highlights like chrome accents and leather seat trim. The direct-injection turbodiesel engine is a robust performer without being the most refined donk in this field. It is matched to a six-speed auto - that’s an extra cog over its rivals - but uses marginally more fuel at a claimed 9.4 litres/100km.The Colorado 7 is a part of the GM global range. It is a re-nosed Chevrolet Trailblazer that is built in Thailand and was designed in Brazil. The slab-sided design gives it a solid look that’s softened by the scalloped doors and the side steps and fog lights give it a decent upmarket look.The inside is more utilitarian - especially on the LT model - though the driver’s display graphics are relatively modern and the rotary dial in the centre stack is easy to operate. Cargo space is a light-car like 235 litres but that extends to 878 litres with the third-row seats folded into the floor. Flick a latch and the tumble-down second row seating expands space to a van-like 1780 litres.ANCAP accepts the Colorado 7’s pick-up heritage as cause to rate it a high five stars. Only the Toyota Prado and ML Mercedes top it and in the case of the Prado, only just. Front airbags and full-length curtain bags are standard, along with the expected brake-based software nannies.The diesel engine is noisy. It’s not tractor-like but a bit more insulation in the firewall could have softened it. That’s the only complaint about noise; for a big bus there is very little wind rush or tyre roar, even on coarse chip surfaces.The five-link rear suspension also does a decent job of softening pitching and rolling usually found in ladder-on-frame platforms. And those on-road manners only get better when the going gets rough. Switch the rotary dial mounted between the front seats to low range and the Colorado 7’s crawls over rocks and wades through slush far better than it should given the road-biased rubber it runs on.Toss a decent set of off-road tyres on it and there would be very few places it isn’t capable of travelling. A sump guard is standard and ground clearance is more than adequated, as is the 600mm wading depth.

Led by an engineering and design team based in Brazil (made up of representatives from GM's empire, including Australia) and built in Thailand, the all-new Holden Colorado will be sold in more than 60 markets.Already the third best-selling model in the Holden portfolio, the Colorado has racked up 1500 orders before going on-sale this week. With pricing from $26,990 to $51,990 covering three body styles, four trim levels and 14 different models there's a Colorado to suit just about everyone. And while many of its competitors offer the choice of both a petrol and diesel engine, Holden has opted to offer the choice of two diesels.Against the established players, the all-new Holden Colorado represents decent value. It will extend its capped price servicing to Colorado - that is: $295 per service for the first three years. At the launch, we spent the bulk of our time in the range-topping dual-cab LTZ ($49,990) which looks properly tough.It gets, as standard, things like 17-inch alloys (and a full-size spare), alloy sports bar and side steps, eight-way adjustable driver's seat, Bluetooth and iPod connectivity (as does every model), alarm, air-con and a multi-function steering wheel. No sat-nav to be had though.With more than 90 per cent of all four-wheel drive LCVs sold with a diesel engine, the petrol option won't be missed. Instead, there's the choice of either a 2.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel making 110kW/350Nm at 2000rpm or a 2.8-litre four good for 132kW/440-470Nm.Bolted onto the back is the choice of either a five-speed manual or a six-speed automatic transmission. Fuel consumption ranges from 7.8-9.0L/100km for the 4x2 range and 8.1-9.1L/100km for the 4x4 range, and that's average rather than class-leading.What is class-leading, though, is the 3500kg braked towing capacity across the 2.8-litre turbo-diesel range. The 2.5-litre turbo-diesel-toting Colorado has a 3000kg braked towing capacity. And, impressively, every model in the line-up has a one-tonne payload. The four-wheel drive system is an electronic shift-on the fly arrangement (you can shift from 4x2 to 4x4 high-range at up to 112km/h) with a two-speed transfer case.The first vehicle to be designed at GM's design studio in Sao Paulo, the high-riding dual-cab looks every bit as attractive, nay, tough and muscular in the metal as it does in pictures. Climb inside and you're met with a stylish looking interior that's dominated by the cool-looking HVAC dial, it's just a shame that, even in the top-spec LTZ, the plastics are cheap looking and both hard and scratchy to the touch.There's plenty of room in the front and, despite the absence of reach adjustment on the steering it's a cinch to get comfortable behind the wheel. In the back, there's decent head, shoulder and legroom (which has been increased over its predecessor). As far as the tray's concerned, in the pick-up, it measures 1.48m x1.53m (wise) which is pretty good, but the four tie-down points don't seem to have been particularly well located and there's no lip on the tray.Holden is confident of good crash safety score. There are airbags for the driver and passenger as well as full-length curtain airbags for front and back seat passengers, stability and traction controls are standard, as is ABS with electronic brakeforce distribution, there are three child-seat anchor points across the back, as well as remote keyless entry, engine immobiliser and an alarm.Despite a healthy 470Nm from just off idle at 2000rpm, the Colorado doesn't feel particularly sharp off the line. This is probably due to the six-speed automatic (from the same family as the Commodore's transmission) which seems clumsy. Indeed, on part throttle, or in slow corners, the Colorado lurches from all to nothing and back again. It's better through faster corners.It doesn't deliver on Holden's claims for SUV-like ride and handling. It's soft at the front and hard at the back (thanks to the cart-sprung bum) and so tends to skip on bumps and have the traction control working over time in tighter corners, or on dirt. And this skittishness, in two-wheel drive mode at least, is exacerbated by the ponderous steering and the spongy brake pedal.Take the Colorado off-road and you won't be disappointed. If anything, it feels better in the rough stuff than around town. The ride settles down, and there's plenty of engine braking when you manually select a gear. But, we'll have a better handle on the Colorado once we've had it in the office and put it across our own test roads.