Holden Commodore 2009 News

...reigning V8 Supercar champion Jamie Whincup has stepped on to another hot Holden.In a recent advertising campaign photo shoot, Whincup is seen sporting a crown and cape, while standing on a smouldering old Commodore wreck. It is perhaps a tongue-in-cheek reference to Team Vodafone's recent controversial announcement that drivers Whincup and Craig Lowndes will switch from Falcon to Commodore next year.The ad campaign is for Von Zipper, a Billabong brand. It is the first time the Australian surfing company has chosen a non-surfer to be an ambassador for the iconic brand."The photos are on my website and I have to say modelling is not my future career," says Whincup. However, his female fans would have to disagree judging by their comments on his website.They are not the only ones admiring the talents of the 26-year-old triple-Bathurst winner. He also has been voted as the best driver so far in 2009 by his peers in the annual AutoAction V8 Supercar Drivers Poll.Sixteen or 55 per cent of of drivers rated his achievements as field-leading. He was also the most respected driver (24 per cent) and the driver most likely to win this year's championship (79 per cent and 23 nominations)."It's fantastic to be rated by your main rivals because from the outside, many people say I go all right, but your actual rivals take into consideration the car you're driving as well," he told AutoAction."Although I feel like I'm driving well, at the same time I've got the best car out there, too. "My main rivals understand that and are taking that into account. What can I say? I can only say that it's a great honour." 

The abject failure of the last four-cylinder Commodore - nick-named the ‘backfire’ - has convinced GM Holden not to do it again. Despite the appeal of a four-cylinder economy drive, and the chance to go head-to-head with the frugal new 2.0-litre Falcon in 2011, Holden says it is not even considering a baby engine for its family favourite.Rather than downsize its Commodore engine, GM-Holden chairman, Mark Reuss, says the company plans to ‘out-engineer the competition’. "Dropping cylinders would be the last result because people still like the power and the towing, all the things that we get with this engine and with this car."Ford and Holden are adopting different strategies to deliver improved fuel consumption and lower emissions. Reuss says the Commodore can achieve four-cylinder-like economy from its new engines and promises further technology gains to lift economy.At the launch of the company's greener direct-injection V6s last week, Reuss says the company was committed to achieving ‘further fuel efficiencies’ out of its new 3.0-litre and 3.6-litre engines. Apart from hi-tech engine management solutions, Reuss says shedding weight is also a priority for future Commodores.The company does have another smaller capacity V6 in the wings though. GM-Holden builds a smaller capacity 2.8-litre V6 for its export markets and Reuss has not ruled such an engine joining the lineup."I'm not saying we would never go below 3.0; but 3.0 is the sweet spot for the architecture, the car and the fuel economy and performance," Reuss says. "We look at all of those things and the displacement it would have. You don't rule out any of that stuff.""Our Port Melbourne plant is the most flexible engine plant in General Motors so we can always do that and relatively quickly if we need too. Right now we think this is the answer that we're looking for and the customers really asking for. But this is a journey and we will react to the market."Versions of Holden's new direct injection V6s will be exported to GM plants globally and will appear in several different brands, including some Saab and Alfa Romeo models. GM's Mexico plant will receive engines for the new Cadillac SRX and other markets in Europe are lining up for the new V6.GM-Holden's incoming new chairman, Alan Batey, says he was surprised by Ford's decision not to build the Focus four-cylinder. The Ford decision ‘creates an even bigger opportunity for us’ with the Cruze, he says. "I was a little bit surprised that Ford did make that announcement based on where we think our program is," he says. "Having said that they started with a European starting point.""We started from a global perspective where ours is a global platform that will be used around the world. From where I sit today I'm absolutely sure we can do really well with our car."GM-Holden's Elizabeth plant in Adelaide is gearing up for the local Cruze, which will start production next year and include a hatchback version of the small sedan.

Yes, Craig Lowndes is back in racing red in 2010, but Mark Reuss is not going to a top-10 job at new GM in the USA.But the Reuss news, like the signing of Triple Eight and Lowndes, is good news.In fact, the outgoing president of the red team has been promoted to a top-five job at GM from next month. He becomes the worldwide head of product development, a job which effectively makes him the replacement for the heroic Bob Lutz in the GM engineering world.That's great news for Reuss, but potentially even better news for Commodore exports.The US sales plan for the VE Commodore was originally put in place by another former Holden head, Denny Mooney. He helped sell the Holden into America as a Buick, partly off the back of the Monaro experience in America.The latest G8 Pontiac is officially dead at the end of the year, even if there are hopes of small-scale Commodore exports for police use, but that could change with Reuss in the top product job.He is well aware of the car's strengths and has said privately for some time that is hopeful of some sort of new deal, with most people assuming it would be through the Chevrolet sales channel.We'll have to wait, but the signs are positive.But things are not so good for Mooney, who took early retirement last week as part of the GM corporate re-shuffle. He is promising to be back and, at 53, still has plenty of good years to contribute somewhere in the motoring world.

The Toyota four cylinder eclipsed the Holden Commodore by just 35 cars last month to become the biggest seller. It is the fourth time in 18 months it has turned the tables on Holden's locally built big six. The Japanese carmaker sold 3856 Corollas versus 3891 Commodores last month.The Corolla led a modest small car sales spike last month as buyers continue to chase economy purchases over large sedans. Apart from small cars, the latest VFACTS industry sales figures for July reveal that sportscars and off-roaders also recorded positive sales gains.Small car sales were up 2.7 per cent in July compared to the same month last year. Sportscars increased 10.3 per cent while medium and luxury off-roaders were up 2.4 per cent and 7.2 per cent.The FCAI's sales figures show that 75,333 vehicles were sold last month, 8643 fewer than the same month last year. Year-to-date 530,556 new vehicles have been sold, down 15 per cent or 96,115 vehicles, compared to the same period last year.Toyota continues to dominate as sales leader. It has sold 110,897 vehicles so far this year to secure a dominate overall market share of 24 per cent. Toyota's lead is almost double that of its nearest rival, Holden with 66,418 sales with Ford in third spot with 54,239 sales.The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries chief executive, Andrew McKellar, said the Federal Goverment's business tax stimulus continued to have a positive knock-on effect on sales.Despite overall sales being down 10 per cent last month compared to the same month last year, business sales remained strong, he said. There was evidence of a flow-on from the very strong June sales result with strong demand for work vehicles, he said. "Particularly from buyers accessing the business tax break on new investments," he said.Some dealers are also reporting waiting lists of several months on certain models because of a backlog of orders on work utes and light commercial vehicles.Top Ten sellers (July) 1 Toyota Corolla 38912 Holden Commodore 38563 Ford Falcon 28344. Mazda3 27855 Toyota HiLux 25636 Hyundai Getz 21477 Mitsubishi Lancer 21298 Hyundai i30 20459 Holden Cruze 198210 Toyota Camry 1717Top Ten brands (July) 1 Toyota 16,6642 Holden 10,2663 Ford 77834 Hyundai 62265 Mazda 60246 Mitsubishi 41667 Nissan 37568 Subaru 28079 Honda 265710 Volkswagen 2361

And it signals that Holden and Ford's new battle ground will be at the bowser. GM-Holden yesterday fired a salvo across Ford's bows by launching what it describes as the most fuel-efficient Australian-built six cylinder car available. It has unveiled two new hi-tech six-cylinder engines for the Commodore range just a week after Ford said it would build a four-cylinder Falcon. GM-Holden chairman, Mark Reuss, said Holden was going to ‘out-engineer’ its rivals with cutting-edge technology. "Dropping cylinders would be the last resort," he said. The new direct-injection 3.0-litre and 3.6-litre V6 engines will hit showrooms next month in the face-lifted Commodore and Statesman range. Not only is Australia's best-selling family sedan now cheaper to run, it emits less harmful greenhouse gases, Reuss said. "We've been listening to what the customer wants," he said. "We've invested in changing what matters most to motorists, increasing fuel efficiency, improving refinement and developing performance." The new petrol engines will be joined by a more economical LPG Commodore engine. Reuss said the new 3.0-litre Commodore was so efficient, families could drive from Melbourne to Sydney, a distance of 870km, on one tank of fuel. "We know because we've done it," Reuss said. "The car we drove actually got 7.5l/100km in actual real-world driving, that's right in there with our four cylinder entries in the smaller car market." Owners will also be able to save $325 in annual fuel costs too, he said. Reuss said the Commodore's direct-injection technology was a big step forward for the local car industry and Australian manufacturing and was applauded by the Industry Minister, Senator Kim Carr. "We are defining our own future, creating our own luck," Reuss said. "It places a more refined Commodore amongst four cylinder competitors while delivering the space and flexibility which Australian car buyers clearly want." Both V6s adopt what Holden calls spark ignition direct injection, to deliver up to 13 per cent better economy and up to 14 per cent lower CO2 emissions, combined with a new six-speed automatic transmission. The new Omega 3.0-litre gets 9.3 litres/100km, more than 13 per cent better than the existing model's 10.7 litres/100km. This engine also produces 600kg less CO2 emissions than the existing engine. Apart from lower fuel consumption, power is up. The 3.0-litre develops 190kW, up from 175kW of the previous engine, while the 3.6-litre develops 210kW, up from 195kW. Holden's popular dual-fuel LPG range will retain the 3.6-litre AlloyTec V6 but it has been reworked for better economy and lower CO2 emissions. Apart from powering local Commodores, GM-Holden plans to export the engines to several other GM plants globally, including Mexico where it is expected to go into a new Cadillac off-roader. New Holden Global V6 direct-injection engines 3.0 and 3.6-litre double overhead cam alloy V6. Uses 91RON ULP, Euro IV+ emissions rating Power: 3.0 - 190kW @ 6700rpm 3.6 - 210kW @ 6400rpm Torque: 3.0 - 290Nm @ 2900rpm 3.6 - 350Nm @ 2900rpm Fuel economy (l/100km)/emissions: 9.3/221g/km - 10.3/245g/km. Between 9 and 13 per cent fuel consumption improvement, 9-14 per cent emissions improvement. Superceded V6 3.6-litre double overhead cam, variable inlet camshaft, 24-valve alloy V6 (High Feature in top-spec models). Power: 175kW @ 6500rpm HF 195kW @ 6500rpm Torque: 325Nm @ 2400rpm HF 340Nm @ 2600rpm (ECE, Nm) Fuel economy (l/100km)/emissions: 10.6/252g/km -11.6/274g/km  

You have to admire any chairman of GM Holden who lands from the USA wearing an HSV lapel pin and then parks a 48-215 in his garage, before upgrading his private ride to a restoration job on an FC Holden.But that is personal opinion and Reuss deserves admiration for what he has done in just 18 months at Fishermans Bend. It's no stretch at all to say he has saved Holden.Reuss rationalised and reorganised the Red Lion brand locally and, crucially, won approval and finance to begin small car production in Australia. The introduction of the Holden Cruze is the key to the company surviving the massive downturn in large car sales in Australia and building a viable future as the Commodore declines.He also cemented the financial plan that allowed the company to survive the global shake-out triggered by GM's move into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. He might be an engineer but the son of former GM president Lloyd Reuss also has a keen ability on finances.Rivals say he can also be a tiger in a meeting.Reuss is succeeded as Holden's chairman by the livewire sales chief Alan Batey, who also began in engineering. He knows what the company needs and what his boss has in place.The only question to be answered now is what Mark Reuss will be doing in the 'new GM' organisation. He heads back to a top-20 job at the company, but his exact post will not be revealed until later today. 

V8 Supercar champion Jamie Whincup starred instead as his team, Triple Eight Racing, confirmed a switch from Ford to Holden and revealed a Commodore in TeamVodafone's racing colours.Lowndes avoided the event to continue a commitment with Ford which does not finish until his personal contract with the blue oval brand ends on December 31. He was not even answering his phones yesterday."I'm expecting we'll have him in a Commodore on January 1," Triple Eight boss, Roland Dane, joked yesterday as he explained the absence of his star driver."Craig stayed away out of respect to his existing contract. That is very fair. And a measure of how he conducts himself. I would expect nothing less."But it was still a letdown for the Holden faithful, who are already trumpeting the return of the V8 Supercar hero who made his name and fame in Commodores before defecting to Ford in 2001.Lowndes is easily the best-known and most popular racing driver in Australia, a crown he claimed reluctantly after the death of his good friend, mentor and former team mate Peter Brock.He has now done a similar mentoring job on Whincup who, like him, began his V8 Supercar career with Holden before switching to Ford to get on the fast track to wins at Bathurst and in the championship."We are very excited about working with TeamVodafone and are thrilled to welcome back both Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup to the Holden family," the man who signed the multi-million deal, Holden's sales and marketing boss Alan Batey, said yesterday.He is expected to confirm a renewed deal with the Holden Racing Team as early next week as the red lion brand consolidates its V8 Supercar spending on teams it believes can win. The loser is likely to be Kelly Racing, which was set up this year by Todd and Rick Kelly with backing from Jack Daniels.As the deal was confirmed, Dane finally admitted he had fielded a call from Holden this year about bringing Triple Eight into the red team. But he denied signing as a get-square with Ford after it cut its funding to the team at the end of last year."That would be completely meaningless. I see it as a great opportunity to be aligned with one of the most iconic brands in Australia," Dane said. "And I see it as a challenge to Triple Eight. The sort of challenge we like. And a return to our roots with GM."Dane forecast early wins for the Vodafone Commodores in 2010 but said his company would continue with its existing supply contracts with Dick Johnson and Paul Cruickshank, which switched this year to the latest Triple Eight-built FG Falcon."Wins? That's the plan," he said. "We will continue our supplier relationship. We supply parts to every team in the V8 Supercar pitlane, bar two."Triple Eight already has a Commodore in its Brisbane workshop and its wizard chief engineer, Ludo Lacroix, has begun work on the team's racing version."He is excited about it. He likes the challenge," Dane said. 

Triple Eight Racing will become a Holden team in 2010, joining the Holden Racing Team as one of the company's two official racing arms in a deal worth at least $3 million.Ironically, the move will also put Lowndes back into a Holden Commodore. A three-year deal will be confirmed at 11am today in Melbourne, although no-one at Holden or Triple Eight was prepared to discuss the details yesterday."No comment at the moment. Try me again later tomorrow," the owner of Triple Eight and pitlane general for TeamVodafone, Roland Dane, told the Herald Sun yesterday.Holden's motorsport manager Simon McNamara would not return calls, although there has been open discussion inside the company since the start of the year about a plan to get the company back into the winner's circle."We do not like to lose," says one senior manager.The Triple Eight defection comes after the team was sacked by Ford at the end of last year, partly because the TeamVodafone racing colours were considered too close to Holden's red and too far away from the corporation's blue oval. Ford switched all of its funding to two teams, Ford Performance Racing and Stone Brothers Racing, which have failed to win in 2009.Dane retaliated by removing all Ford badges from the Falcons raced by Lowndes and reigning V8 Supercar champion Jamie Whincup, replacing the one in the grille with a Hog's Breath Cafe logo.But he still pushed ahead with development and construction of all-new FG Falcons for TeamVodafone, as well as Triple Eight's customers, Dick Johnson and Paul Cruickshank. How the Holden switch will affect those deals is not yet clear.The timing of the move to Holden has been made easier because Lowndes' personal contract with Ford ends at the end of 2009. Direct manufacturer deals with V8 Supercar drivers are banned but his was allowed to run its course, forcing Triple Eight to field him in a Falcon this year.Triple Eight's move to Holden is, in some ways, a homecoming.Its British division has run the official touring car team for Vauxhall - the equivalent of GM Holden - for many years and the new head of Holden, Alan Batey, is a former Vauxhall employee.The signing of Triple Eight will not have a significant impact on the Holden Racing Team, although it could take a funding cut. But other teams in the red camp, including Kelly Racing and Garry Roger's Valvoline team, could see their support trimmed or ended.HRT is moving towards a renewal of its long-term deal with Holden, which is tied to its relationship with Holden Special Vehicles, with an announcement likely as early as next week."We hope to have some good news on that in the next couple of weeks,"says a Holden spokesperson. "Holden has a great history with the team and it is the factory team." 

The Chevrolet Camaro might be built and sold in the USA, but it was designed, developed, tested and approved down under as a spin-off from the VE Commodore. It is named this week among the 31 finalists for the World COTY (see gallery above for full shortlist), and will be judged by a global panel of 60 motoring journalists before the winner is named at the New York Auto Show in April next year.The finalists carry badges from Audi to Toyota and are as diverse as the latest green-power Honda Insight and Toyota Prius to the super luxury Porsche Panamera."The list came from the manufacturers, who sent us their eligible cars for the year. There may be one or two more yet, because a couple of companies might have some extra models before the end of the year," says WCOTY co-chairman, Peter Lyon. "For example, there is the Mercedes SLS Gullwing. We don't know yet when it will go on sale."Apart from the World COTY contest, the same judging panel also decides the World Performance Car of the Year (see gallery), World Green Car of the Year and World Car Design of the year.So far there are 18 potential winners in the performance category, from the Aston Martin V12 Vantage to the Renault Clio 3 Renault Sport. Judging on all fronts now advances to the semi-finals, three cars in each case, which will be named at the Geneva Motor Show at the start of March. Then it is over to the judges to drive, assess and vote."This year we have 60 judges altogether. We've capped at that number, after adding a couple of new judges this year," says Lyon. "Originally we had about 44 judges. But 60 is the basic number of the North American, European and Japanese COTY awards and that seemed like the right number.""We've got judges now for Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. We've basically covered 25 or 26 countries, from Australia to Russia and everywhere between."Lyon says the basics of the award have not changed for the sixth judging and he makes no apologies for the list of contenders. "The German and Japanese cars are romping it in again. It's basically a reflection of the quality of car manufacturing today. The Japanese and Germans are making the best cars in the world, full stop," he says."But we think, of all the Car of the Year awards, this is the most natural. There is no pressure on any of the judges. They just vote for the best cars as they see them in their countries." 

The Pontiac G8 program finishes at the end of the year but there was hope of a new direction with trans-Pacific shipments from GM Holden under the luxury Caprice nameplate for use in the Chevrolet family.GM's product guru Bob Lutz, flagged a fresh opening for the Commodore last week when he said it was being considered for a born-again export deal.But Lutz has now back-flipped."The G8 will not be a Caprice after all," Lutz says.He has just been lured from the brink of retirement, at 77, to become the marketing and public relations chief for the company now known as 'New GM'. It is emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the USA much faster than anyone predicted, although there are still doubts over some sales — including Opel of Germany — and questions about the future product line-up.Lutz was expected to finish with GM in December and there has already been a serious shake-up among the heads of his former engineering division. But he still has big clout and is a major fan of the Commodore and its G8 clone."I'd mentioned it, and said we were studying it, giving it a serious look, because a car like the G8 was just too good to waste. That's all still true," Lutz says."But I have to say that, with my new 'marketing' hat on, upon further review and careful study, we simply cannot make a business case for such a program. Not in today's market, in this economy, and with fuel regulations what they are and will be."With budgets being what they are for the time being, the resources must be allocated elsewhere."Even so, Lutz has not ruled out some future role for Commodore-based cars in the USA.We have a tremendous rear-wheel drive team in Australia that gave us the beloved G8, a team that we will tap into at some point again in the future for its expertise and sheet metal."