Holden Commodore Problems

In the past carmakers have generally held parts for cars up to 10 years old, but that could be changing with the impact of things like the global financial crisis and the high cost of maintaining the inventory. The short answer is that you shouldn’t have to wait for such a part, and you certainly shouldn’t have to wait for what looks like being 16 weeks. That’s simply unacceptable. Go back to Holden Customer Support and demand their action, you could also seek out an air-conditioning specialist who might be able to fix your car faster and more cheaply.

Make sure the fuel pump is up to scratch; it sounds like it’s taking too long to get fuel to the engine.

Holden claims the Berlina will average 9.3 L/100 km so I would say yours is in the ballpark, but bearing in mind that is just two weeks old it should get a little better once it's run-in. As for the speedo, if it is showing a lower speed than the actual speed then it is illegal and you should take it back to the dealer to be fixed. The law allows the speedo to read as much as 10 per cent over the actual speed, but it can't read lower than the actual speed.

I'm not aware of any reviews of such installations you could refer to. Vapour-injection systems weren't around when the VT was launched, so it's unlikely many have been fitted with them. I've driven a couple of later model Commodores with the Gen 3 V8, like the engine in the VT II, that have been fitted with injection systems and they have driven and performed well. If you want to find out more about them it's best to talk to the system manufacturers directly who should be able to put you in touch with owners who have had the conversion done.

It's impossible to predict what might happen in the future, but I would tend to agree with you. I don't see any reason to sell it; it's only six years old and providing you keep it well maintained there's no reason to think it won't continue to give you good service for some years to come.

Adding a third seat to wagons was once quite common, and carmakers have even offered a third seat option in the past. But with the availability of so many seven-seater SUVs and people-movers now, it's not so popular. The demands for compliance to Australian design rules have also made it more difficult. I would suggest you look at people-movers such as the Honda Odyssey and the compact VW Caddy Life, which is a Golf-sized vehicle able to seat seven.

Let's put it this way, it's not unusual, it's a sign it needs a service. Go through the ignition system and make sure all is well, perhaps replace the spark plug leads to make sure there aren't any random sparks that could ignite the air/LPG mixture in the intake manifold.

Two years is a long time. I'd be tempted to sell it, even though you will suffer a substantial slug of depreciation. Leaving a car to sit unused for two years will adversely affect it, no matter what you do.  But if you do store it and you can have someone drive it regularly, I would simply cover it and leave it. If that's not possible, put it up on blocks and disconnect the battery. The fuel tank shouldn't be left empty but there should be no more than about a quarter of a tank of fuel left in it. Lightly smear some lubricant over the door and boot seals to prevent them from sticking, and cover it to stop dust building up on the paint.

The paint would only be covered by the warranty if was defective in some way from the factory, normal wear and tear wouldn't be covered. But to have it visibly fading after just two years is not acceptable and I would certainly press the dealer, and Holden, to repair it. For the dealer to say it's expected is even more unacceptable. We've approached Holden for their view and will print it when we get it.

If you take-off at the stall speed of the torque converter the auto will have the quicker get-away because of the torque multiplication of the converter. At speeds below the stall speed the manual will get away quicker because the torque converter is, in effect, slipping during the initial phase.