Holden Commodore 2007 News

GM and its Australian arm, GM Holden, however, have given technological and financial support to challenge entrants as part of the car maker's interest in potential future fuel needs and energy efficiencies, which mean lower carbon dioxide emissions.The Panasonic World Solar Challenge begins in Darwin on Sunday on its 3021km-run south across the Outback to Adelaide.The GM-backed entrants include a petrol-electric hybrid car, sun-powered solar cars and a production car running on fuel that is 85 per cent ethanol; a renewable energy resource.GM Holden director of innovation engineering Richard Marshall said although the company was committed to alternative propulsion break throughs, diesel fuel now was the best solution for typical Australian driving needs.“We think drivers will begin to understand and choose the alternative powertrain solution that suits their transport needs,” he said. “Where drivers spend most of their time in heavily-congested traffic, petrol hybrids may offer the appropriate level of performance with low fuel consumption."“For people whose driving habits typically include a mix of inner city, suburban and country driving, diesel vehicles may be more likely to deliver powerful performance and better fuel economy."“In Australia, most driving falls into this latter category where relatively low-density residential suburbs, rapidly-spreading coastal fringes and long distances between rural population centres are generally more suitable for diesel power trains.” Mr Marshall's assessment is all the more interesting because no hybrid or diesel car is made in Australia.GM Holden is experimenting with a diesel Commodore but says at $50 million to develop, plus tooling costs, it is too costly to put into production yet. A hybrid Commodore would be priced too high to attract buyers; unless government incentives and subsidies were given.GM Holden spokesman John Lindsay said the company offered diesel engines in imported models, the Atra small car, Captiva SUV and Rodeo ute.The government's green vehicle guide website rates the Astra diesel fuel use at just 5.9 litres/100km, which is 20 per cent more frugal than the petrol Astra's 7.4 litres/100km.The diesel Captiva is rated at 8.6l/100km, or 25 per cent more economic than the petrol Captiva's 11.5l/100km.

They won only 17 per cent of a record October sales total, losing ground as family-focused four-wheel drives pushed back after a slight slump in September.The Holden Commodore was still Australia's favourite car, but light and small cars continued to drive the action in a year, which is set for an all-time result that could go as high as 1.1 million sales.The showroom total for October was 89,289 vehicles, up 9359 and 11.7 per cent on October 2006.Overall sales are now up 8.6 per cent, or almost 70,000, on the first 10 months last year.But the strength of the Australian dollar, which has contributed to massive competition among import brands and the renewed strength of four-wheel drives, took the edge off the results for Toyota, GM Holden, Ford and Mitsubishi.All four now report the difficulties of making money, with Toyota and Holden's booming export business also being hurt by the strong dollar.But the head of the motor industry's peak body; Andrew McKellar, chief executive of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries; denies they are making the wrong cars for Australia in 2007.“The fact is the market continues to get more competitive,” he said.But he conceded that, apart from some exceptional results in individual months, the locals' share of the market was as bad as it has been.“In part it's a reflection of the competitive position they are facing. Beyond that, I don't think it's easy to discern why the Commodore had a flat month, although the Falcon result is related to the model cycle,” Mr McKellar said.“It's the product and the mix of competitive price. The reality is, for the local manufacturers the fundamentals are making the competitive situation that much more difficult.”Mr McKellar said record new-car sales should not be a potential trigger for a rise in interest rates.Competition is toughest in the compact classes, with sales of light cars up 1150 and 11.5 per cent in October and small-car demand up 1472 and 8.3 per cent.The overall result for the month was more than 8000 sales ahead of the old record, set in October 2004.Toyota continued its run on top of the sales table, with a total of 20,212, which beat the combined results of GM Holden and Ford. 

The trend comes because smoking while driving is now considered not only a health issue, but also a dangerous driver distraction in some countries where bans are now in place.Many car manufacturers have already converted cigarette lighters to power outlets for satellite navigation systems and mobile phone chargers, leaving smoking motorists to pay for a lighter as an optional extra.Ashtrays are also on the way out, often appearing as cup-sized receptacles that can be removed, leaving a bottle holder in its place.Even the new workman's ute from Holden is a smoke-free environment with neither a cigarette lighter nor ashtray.The phasing out of cigarette lighters and ashtrays is expected to pick up pace as rules tighten around the world on smoking while driving.Since the introduction of Queensland's smokefree workplaces in 2002, there has been a ban on smoking in work vehicles when more than one person is present.In July, Health Minister Stephen Robertson foreshadowed a prohibition on smoking in cars carrying children during the review of tobacco legislation expected to start soon.But Queensland is not alone in a clamp down on smoke-driving.Earlier this month, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill to come into effect in January banning anyone smoking in a car with a person under the age of 18 present. The fine is $US200.Cyprus and three other US states have similar bans, while several countries including Ireland and South Africa plan to introduce the smokefree cars with children reform.South Australia implemented a ban on smoke-driving while children are present in May and since then, police have issued 29 on-the-spot fines and 11 cautions.Tasmania will introduce the ban in January and NSW has flagged smokefree cars carrying children as the next area of reform. But the issue is not just a matter of health.Last month, the new UK Highway Code declared offenders could be charged with driving without due care and attention and New Delhi has a total ban on smoking while driving as a road safety driver-distraction issue.The latest UK crackdown has been reflected in a recent survey which revealed that 75 per cent of people would now buy a car without an ashtray.The RACQ supports a ban on smoking when there are children in a car, but does not yet support a total ban while driving as a road safety issue as in the UK and New Delhi.“The passive smoking issue is a valid concern,” said spokesman Jim Kershaw. “It would be a different matter to make a case on driver distraction. It's probably no more distracting than fiddling with the radio or other actions that are legal.“Using hands-free mobiles while driving would probably be more distracting than lighting a cigarette.“I think we would not single out smoking while driving as a safety issue at this stage unless we see evidence to the contrary.”A UK insurance company survey found more than 3 million motorists have had accidents, near misses or lapses in concentration as a result of in-car smoking distractions.It also found 80 per cent took their hands off the wheel to light up, 46 per cent had dropped a cigarette in the car and 26 per cent had taken their eyes off the road to retrieve it.Do you agree with the phasing out of cigarette lighters in new cars? 

There has been a rash of locally developed high-performance off-roaders such as the Ford Territory FPV F6 and Toyota's HiLux TRD. Now Holden Special Vehicles is looking to get in on the act.

A new GM car with its roots in the Holden Torana and a mechanical package developed from the VE Commodore, could be on the road by 2011. It will be rear-wheel-drive like the Commodore, but smaller and linked to the Torana TT36 concept seen at the 2004 Australian International Motor Show.The idea for a born-again Torana; probably to be called the Pontiac G6; was first floated by the former head of GM Holden, Peter Hanenberger, who believed it was the right car to give GM a prestige rival to the BMW 3 Series.Development of the car is now under way and General Motors vice-president of product development, Bob Lutz, confirms details first leaked through the powerful United Automobile Workers union in the US.Lutz, speaking during a visit to Melbourne to check on technical work at Fishermans Bend, says the compact will be in production within five years.The UAW has already revealed it will be built at a factory at Lordstown, Ohio and will be developed from the Global Alpha mechanical platform.Lutz says the Torana TT36 is a good pointer to the newcomer. “From a size and proportions standpoint that's what we're looking at,” he says.“That's about the size were looking at, but that wasn't completely worked out. That was a sort of truncated Commodore, the components in that.”Lutz says the new compact would work well with the Pontiac brand, which is already committed to a re-badged and re-styled Commodore which will be sold as the G8.“Pontiac wants to be a sporting rear-wheel-drive brand,” Lutz says.“So we have several brands that would be potential beneficiaries of a small rear-wheel-drive architecture and ... Holden is, obviously, one of the logical ones.”He says the car could give GM a crucial point of difference in a crowded marketplace. “Because everybody has highly competent front-wheel-drive sedans and they all look more or less the same,” Lutz says.“And the way to get a slightly different proportion and to do something different, because I'm a firm believer nowadays that if you want to grab market share you have to do something different. "“If you do the same thing that everybody else is doing and you just do it a little bit better you'll kind of hold your own. But I'm a firm believer that, hey, when everybody else is doing small front-wheel-driver cars, which are excellent cars; but let's do something different for Pontiac.”Even if the car is targeted at the 3 Series it will be cheaper.“Well, you'd definitely never price at that level,” Lutz says. “That's the whole premise ... a 3 Series-type car but priced at a more affordable level."“You'd basically have 3 Series ride, handling, steering, all of the dynamic qualities of a smallish rear-wheel-drive sedan; the lighter weight, the ability to use four-cylinder engines; and not have to carry around a big V6 or V8 lump of an engine up there."“And you'd have a very nimble, very agile, dynamically pleasing car reminiscent or great driving German rear-wheel-drive sedans but at a much lower price point.” 

Australia's number one party strip roared into gear yesterday with about 50,000 people arriving in Surfers Paradise for the country's most colourful motorsport carnival.The first cars screamed on to the track for practice yesterday but, with more than 300,000 people expected in the tourist mecca by Sunday, Indy week is as much about partying as it is racing.The best hotels in Surfers have been booked out for months, while landing a flight to Coolangatta airport is like finding full-strength beer at the cricket.For all the latest coverage on Indy this weekend, go to www.goldcoast.com.auBut while the hard stuff might be privy to the members at the SCG, getting a drink in Surfers Paradise is no harder than finding a bad pick-up line on Cavil Ave at 3am.With about 100 bars; not to mention the strip clubs sure to be packed over the next three nights, Indy week on the Gold Coast has been dubbed “Schoolies week for adults.”But you won't find any fake IDs in town this weekend, just a sea of black and white as grid fever grips the Gold Coast. The streets have been swamped with checkered race flags while local burger joints are serving up motor racing happy meals “V8 burgers” and “burnout fries with a large serving of high-octane cola.”The V8 Super Car Challenge; the fourth last round of the V8 championship; will take place after the Lexmark Indy 300 on Sunday afternoon. Regarded as a feeder competition to Formula One, the Indy series features the world's best up-and-coming drivers who race on tracks throughout the world in Champ cars.Although they look very similar to Formula One cars, the Champ cars are far less advanced and come at a fraction of the price.Those new to motorsport could have been forgiven for thinking Bathurst champion Craig Lowndes had parked his car in their hotel lobby; with about 15 replica 888 Fords doing the resort rounds.But V8 star Lowndes was yesterday dining with the stars of Australian motorsport at a lavish lunch at Jupiter's Casino.And while admitting even the drivers had been swept up by the party atmosphere, Lowndes declared Team Vodafone was on track to make it back-to-back series wins.“Our championship was lost here last year so we want to turn that from a negative to a positive,” Lowndes said. “We walked the track this morning and had a good chat about what went wrong last year and we have learnt from that.“We have always had a good car here and, as everyone will say, it is a great circuit because it is a street circuit with a lot of concrete walls and the crowding of the road.“We really need to put a lap together and I think it is really going to be a great weekend. We have four rounds remaining and I think this will be one of the most crucial ones.”After Holden's showing at Bathurst two weeks ago, you could forgive the red army if they decided to watch the girls instead of the race, with 30 Miss Indy finalists set to join the Gold Coast's famous meter maids for an eye-candy extravaganza. But HRT star Mark Skaife yesterday gave Holden fans a glimmer of hope when he declared the Holden team could still win the series.“We have had some opportunities to win some events and we haven't,” Skaife said.“Our speed has been good and now we have to get on with the four last rounds. Mathematically we have a hope. It is pretty remote but we are going to do the best job we can.”Fellow Holden driver and last year's Indy champion Todd Kelly said the new VE would be suited to the deadly track known as concrete canyon.“The cars are very good at Indy every year and I think our car will work well for this style of track,” Kelly said. “I can't wait to get out there.”  

The race is estimated to generate about $60 million a year for the Queensland economy, and it is regarded by the United States-based Champ Car organisation as the 'jewel in its crown.'While the Champ Cars previously held top billing they now share equal status with the Aussie-bred V8 Supercars.While the Champ cars are purebred, state of the art racing machines that scream through the streets of Surfers Paradise at speeds of close to 300km/h. The V8s are not far behind in speed and thunder through one of the toughest overtaking tracks on the motoring calendar.For all the latest coverage on Indy this weekend, go to www.goldcoast.com.auThe traditional V8 rivals; Ford and Holden; command huge armies of followers that descend on the Coast each year to witness their heroes battle, it's ours on the demanding street circuit.The event is held in late October each year (18-27 October, 2007), providing organisers with a huge logistical challenge, to erect a 4.2km track through the streets of Surfers Paradise.The heart of the holiday capital is transformed into a motoring mecca which boasts not only the Champ Cars and V8 Supercars but also drag races, Carrera Cup (Porshces), V8 utes and a bevy of other motoring attractions.And if you can’t get here then you can join the estimated half a billion television viewers that tune in to watch the motoring extravaganza each year.But it hasn’t always been smooth driving for the race that winds through the streets of Surfers Paradise and boasts the best scenic backdrop of almost any motor race in the world.When the event was established in 1991, Queensland’s political leaders were sceptical of its long-term future and when it hit the skids in 1998, losing $8 million, it took a courageous Queensland Government to come forward with a $10 million a year funding grant to keep it afloat.Now, to complement the racing schedule, scores of off-track events are held, including a Brazilian street parade and the Indy ball, which attracts 800 heavy hitters.Indy chairman terry Mackenroth says the event’s future is secure after negotiations took place recently to extend the contract with Champ Car bosses to 2012.“It’s the pre-eminent major event in Queensland and we want to keep it that way,” he said.“I think the success of Indy is very much a reflection of what can happen when a go-ahead city like the Gold Coast embraces it with such enthusiasm.”  Will you be watching the Indy race from your lounge?   View great photos of the 2008 Bartercard Miss Indy finalists 

Gore will be forced to watch the motor racing event on television at his home after suffering a burst ear drum.

It is fitting that GM-Holden's engineering guru, Tony Hyde, drives the car that best represents his work; a 2006 Holden Monaro CV8.Hyde and his department were responsible for the modern reincarnation of the venerable Monaro coupe, the modern version of which started as a concept car at the 1998 Australian International Motor Show.As GM-Holden's executive director, engineering, for the past seven years, Hyde has been responsible for some of Holden's most exciting products; Monaro among them.Now, after 39 years' service he will vacate his engineering role to retire at the end of the year.“It was an outstanding project and experience,” he says of the Monaro.Boasting an annual engineering budget of more than $300 million and counting 1250 people on the engineering staff, Hyde hopes he'll be remembered most for allowing his staff the freedom to push the boundaries.“From a management point or leadership point of view, I think I've tried to let the team push the boundaries and, to a certain extent, the Monaro was a bit of that,” he says.“I think that the people who have worked for me have hopefully enjoyed the amount of freedom I've given them."“From a project point of view, I'd say the work I've done on the original disc brakes for Holdens back in the mid-1970s ranks as a piece of work as an engineer that I remember fondly.”Hyde's brake work actually appeared on the Torana A9X concept car from the 1970s.With the new VE Commodore and WM Statesman and Caprice models now bedding in and the arrival of the just-launched VE Ute, Hyde says it's time to go.“I'm 60 in February and I just really think it's about time,” he says. “We're getting to the point of saddling up for the next all-new products and I'm certainly not going to be here for that so I think it's appropriate for new leadership for the team.”The quietly spoken Hyde started with Holden in July 1968; as a technical report writer in experimental engineering.His most favourite Holden is, perhaps not surprisingly, the latest VE Commodore and WM Statesman.“It's perhaps trite to say that but I would, on the basis it is 100 per cent Australian,” he says. “They are our technical tour de force."“However, the VM (Commodore) enabled us to break away from the copies of European vehicles and we were able to get back to the large cars we previously did.”Hyde has held several positions with the company within its engineering organisation, including three overseas postings.Early in his career he had a two-year scholarship to General Motors' Institute in Michigan in 1971; where he was subsequently awarded an overseas fellowship with GM.This was followed a few years later by a two-year assignment with Opel in Germany.After a brief interlude in 1984 in the role of manager, technical services, Hyde was promoted to chassis transmission and drivetrain engineer, which led to the role of manager, mechanical engineering in 1986.In recent years Hyde has expanded the breadth of his portfolio within Holden in other engineering and planning roles.In August 1997 he was promoted to the position of director, engineering and design, at GM Holden before taking on his current position as executive director, engineering, in 2000.One of his tasks has been to take Holden engineering to the GM world, by making Holden responsible for rear-drive platforms for GM.In 2002, he was also appointed to the Holden Special Vehicles board.Apart from his jet-black Monaro, Hyde also has a 1976 Chevrolet Corvette in his garage to tinker with in retirement.When he's not driving on the road, he'll be on the golf course trying to better his 3.5 handicap.Hyde will be replaced by Greg Tyus, who is currently general director, engineering and product planning, at GM Canada.Tyus will begin transitioning into his new position next month. 

It may be 54-years-old, lacks air conditioning, power steering and a CD-player, but it's the vehicle that started the love affair with the tray in Australia.And its already proving to be a favourite at this year's car show extravaganza.Both the earliest and latest forms of the Holden utes are on display at the Australian International Motor Show, with the 1953 FX Holden ute up for auction and the 2007 VE Commodore ute starring at the Holden stand.And while more than five decades have passed, the origins remain the same for Holdens utes, possessing a whole lot of Aussie DNA.There are noticeable changes in design and features but both were designed, engineered and built in Australia.The Spearmint Green FX 50-2106 Coupe Utility was the very first of its kind for Holden and was surprisingly fast.At the end of its first year of sale in 1951, the waiting list grew to 70,000.Farmers thought it was useful for rounding up sheep, and others found it came in handy at the drive-ins, where it could be turned around and used as a bed.The concept of the ute has come a long way, from the farm to the city streets.Over at the Holden stand the new VE Commodore ute, is the first new design for Holden in seven years and shows a much more sporty and sleek look to the 1950s version.On top of the $1 billion invested for the Commodore sedan, Holden also spent a further $105 million on the ute. The cars starWhere: Exhibition and Convention Centre Darling HarbourHours:  weekdays 10am-10pm, Saturday 9am-10pm & Sunday 9am-7pmHighlights: Some of the star cars include Maserati GranTurismo, Murcielago LP640 Versace, Exige Sport 240 and BMW CS concept.