Holden Rodeo News

Paul Holter, 54, of North Arm on the Sunshine Coast got his nickname from years of converting American cars, mainly Pontiacs, to right-hand drive.Over the years he claims he has restored, converted, traded and owned as many as 600 cars and now has a dozen in his backyard and shed as well as a few restoration projects belonging to mates.  "I've been collecting cars all my life," he says  "When I got married 35 years ago my wife threatened that if I got any more cars she would leave me. She's still here."Holter got his first car when he was 11 years old.  "My dad bought a Mk V Jag and sold off the tyres and battery and gave me the rest," he says.  "I sold it and bought a '48 Ford Prefect for $40."His daily drivers are a 2005 CVZ Monaro, a 2007 Holden Rodeo and a 2008 Honda Civic, while his collectible cars include a 1976 Chrysler VK Valiant Hemi, a 1968 Pontiac Firebird Convertible, a 1959 Plymouth Suburban sports wagon, a 1960 Pontiac Ventura, a 1962 S Series Chrysler Valiant and a 1983 Pontiac Trans Am race car.He bought the Trans Am for $2000 and converted it into a race car by pulling out the 305 Chevy engine and four-speed auto box and replacing them with a Gen III Commodore 5.7-litre V8, six-speed Tremec gearbox and adding GT-R Skyline rear suspension and brakes.  He claims it gets about 350hp (260kW) at the rear wheels and propelled him to 77th out of 185 cars at last year's Noosa Hillclimb.His current project is the Plymouth he bought for $8500 two years ago. It features nine seats, including a rear-facing row in the back.  He's leaving it in left-hand drive, but is replacing the engine with a 440 V8 he bought online.  "I don't know what it will all cost," he says. "I'd prefer not to know as it could get expensive."It's all the little bits and pieces you have to buy that add up."  Over the past six years he has spent up to $40,000 in a loving restoration of the Ventura he bought for $11,000 and plans to spend about $30,000 _ "or something stupid like that" _ on the S Series Valiant.  "When you do it a bit at a time it doesn't seem so expensive," he says.He plans to fuel-inject and turbo-charge the Valiant's 225 slant-six engine.  "It's rated at 145bhp (108kW), but I reckon I can get it up to the middle 300s," he says.  "I do all my own mechanical work, but I get interiors, paint and body done by experts."Holter is a qualified train driver who moved from Victoria to Queensland 21 years ago and started his right-hand-drive conversion business.  He also had a business importing Nissan Laurel four-door, rear-wheel-drive pillarless sedans but found compliance laws kept changing too often. He bought an Autobarn franchise six years ago and another a year later.Business must be good because Holter has been able to indulge his interest in American cars, travelling several times to the US to buy cars and ship them home for conversion and restoration.And Holter is always looking toward his next project.  He's currently considering trading his Firebird for a Grand Prix and he's always had a soft spot for a Valiant Charger although he reckons they cost too much these days, some fetching as much as $300,000.

The Colorado light commercial range will be launched with a choice of petrol or diesel engines, 4x4 or 4x2 models, and numerous body styles such as single cab, space cab and crew cab.The Rodeo name has been dropped because it belongs to Isuzu with which Holden no longer has any ties.Isuzu is taking the name back and releasing a Rodeo in Australia under its global name of D-Max.Meanwhile, Holden has released 60th Anniversary Special Editions of the run-out Rodeo LT and LX 4x4s with $3000 worth of extras and price reductions up to $8000.LX 4x4 Crew Cab Pick Up, LX V6, petrol and TD (auto and manual) get a chrome sports bar, side steps, towbar package, Bluetooth connectivity for compatible mobile phones and special 60th anniversary badge.The LT 4x4 Crew Cab Pick Up, LT V6 petrol and TD (auto and manual) get chrome sports bar, side steps, rear park sensors, Bluetooth connectivity for compatible mobile phones and badging.The 4x4 Crew Cab Pick Up LX V6 petrol manual now costs $32,990 compared with its previous price of $39,690, while the diesel is $33,990 down from $41,990.The 4x4 Crew Cab Pick Up LT V6 petrol manual is $39,490 down from $43,990 and the diesel is down from $46,990 to $41,490.Add $2000 for auto and $1000 for ABS.Holden has also unveiled its VE Ute 60th Anniversary Special Edition at the recent National 4x4 Show in Brisbane.It arrives this month with more than $2000 worth of extras above the standard SV6 ute, including leather-faced seats, alloy foot pedals, Onyx leather seat trim, Bluetooth, sports steering wheel, six-disc MP3/CD player, anniversary floor mats and badge.Prices are $36,990 for the manual and $37,990 for the auto, which is $1000 above the SV6 ute. 

The Rodeo is dead. Long live the Colorado.That's the new name for the trusty Rodeo badge which is being retired later this year.The Rodeo name belongs to Isuzu with which Holden no longer has any ties.In a strange twist, Isuzu is taking the name back and releasing a Rodeo in Australia under its global name of D-Max.However, it will be distributed by Mitsubishi, not Isuzu. And Mitsubishi Motors knows nothing about the vehicle.Mitsubishi Motors senior manager corporate communications, Lenore Fletcher, said they had nothing to do with it.“Mitsubishi is a large corporation and the link-up could be with another Mitsubishi company, not the motor company,” she said.Meanwhile, GM Holden product information manager Kate Lonsdale said the Colorado would be released later this year.“There is no official timing yet, but it will be called Colorado,” she said.Holden had an opportunity to badge the popular Thai-made ute with an Australian name, but has decided to go with the same name used in the Asia-Pacific region.Lonsdale said the Colorado would be “slightly different.”“It will be a similar offering, but with slightly different features,” she said.In a GM Holden media release, the company said the new Colorado range would continue to offer a choice of petrol or diesel engines, 4x4 or 4x2 models, and numerous body styles such as single cab, space cab and crew cab.GM Holden light commercial vehicles marketing manager Teresa Basile said; more details such as price would follow in the coming months.“The light commercial segment is a significant market for Holden and with this exciting new addition we will remain a major player with a highly competitive new entry,” she said.She said current Rodeo owners would continue to be covered by GM Holden's three-year/100,000km warranty and roadside assistance for 12 months.“Rodeo owners can rest assured that Holden remains committed to providing superior customer service and parts availability to the current range,” she said.The Rodeo has been a popular ute, at one stage the biggest selling.However, it has been usurped in the past few years by the Toyota Hi-Lux, which has dominated the sector and is the biggest-selling vehicle of any type in Queensland.While the Hi-Lux has led the field with its more modern and brutish looks, Nissan's Navara and Mitsubishi's Triton have followed suit, leaving the Rodeo looking a little anaemic and old-fashioned, outside and in.I prefer the less bloated look of the Rodeo's exterior and the functional, user-friendly interior.It has many other attributes which commend it to tradies and weekend warriors alike.For a start, it has one of the quietest cabins of the lot. There's almost no engine noise (except in the diesel at idle and full noise), no wind buffeting and surprisingly very little tyre noise.The interior may be a bit austere and old-fashioned, but the door and seat trim are very smart, even in the base model.Back seat passengers don't quite sit bolt upright and there is plenty of legroom.And no one could doubt the abilities of the airconditioning to make a beer truly frosty.If we are asking for anything in the new Rodeo/Colorado, audio controls on the steering wheel would be nice, less pitch and roll in the suspension would be handy and stability control is a must, especially in the rain.Just make sure it's switchable for the obligatory circle work in the car park at the next B&S. 

Holden, Ford and Mitsubishi are killing off several of Australia's best-known model names — including some which have been around since the 1960s — to keep pace with changing times.After years of slow sales, Mitsubishi halted production of its Adelaide-made 380 sedan last Thursday.The 380 replaced the Magna in 2005, adopting a new name in a bid to freshen its image.Mitsubishi Motors Australia president Robert McEniry said axing the 380 was a “very difficult decision.”“However, it is an inescapable fact that there is now a deepening trend away from large cars,” he said.“We can see no path for a return to viable production levels of the 380 sedan.”Mitsubishi is remaining in Australia as a car importer.Holden has announced that the imported Rodeo utility, one of the longest-running and strongest-selling names in its class, will be replaced by a model called the Colorado this year.Holden has lost the rights to the Rodeo name, which it has used for 30 years, because its agreement with Japanese carmaker Isuzu has ended.Isuzu, once part of the General Motors empire, has been building the Rodeo for Holden but is expected to introduce its own utility model, called the D-Max, in Australia.At Ford, the once-popular luxury long-wheelbase Fairlane and LTD models have already been killed off this year, and production of the Fairmont, Fairmont Ghia and Futura versions of the Falcon is about to end.Ford auctioned its last Fairlane, with the proceeds going to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, but it fetched only $48,100, compared with the list price of $58,625.It was the last of more than 250,000 Fairlanes and LTDs built between 1967 and 2008.Ford used cricket stars Andrew Symonds and Matthew Hayden to promote the eBay auction.A new-look Falcon series called the FG is due in April and in it the Futura name (used on and off by Ford since 1962) disappears and the Fairmont (used continuously since 1965) and Fairmont Ghia (around since 1979) will be replaced by G6 and G6E.However, the changes have sparked heated argument in internet chatrooms such as Ford Forums.A Fairmont owner calling himself Airmon said; “Shame on Ford!”Another fan, Bo0, said: “Ford can't be that stupid could they?”Ford vice-president of product development Trevor Worthington said it was “time to draw a line in the sand and move on.”   Yesterday's models Ford FairlaneThe flagship Ford has finally been axed after more than 250,000 Fairlanes and LTDs were built between 1967 and 2008Holden RodeoThe Rodeo, which has been around for 30 years, will be replaced by a model called the Colorado later this yearMitsubishi 380The 380 sedan replaced the Magna in 2005, in a bid to freshen its image. But the unpopular 380 has been dumped. 

It's not quite like the navy telling Holden the name Commodore has been taken, but the disappearance of the name from GM's local line-up means it's goodbye to a minor local legend. The popular model moniker will be withdrawn by mid-year after Isuzu, which owns the rights, forbade Holden its further use. In many ways it was inevitable — GM has not held a stake in Isuzu for almost two years.Although widely perceived as part of the local landscape (it was once the nation's best-selling commercial vehicle) the Rodeo is, in fact, manufactured in Thailand by the Japanese vehicle company and then rebadged for local consumption.The blow may be felt as keenly by Holden's marketing people, who have to coin a new name, as by its dealers. Sales of the five-year-old current generation Rodeo have been steadily surpassed by Toyota's all-conquering Hilux, although it continues to hold its own, racking up 9428 sales last year.American replacement names are being touted, though surely perhaps a more 'Strayan equine motif could be employed. Subaru no longer makes the Brumby, though the Waler — of Light Horseman fame — might well cause some confusion abroad.Later this year Isuzu will begin selling its own version of the current Rodeo, under its global model name of D-Max, through a national dealer network appointed by Mitsubishi.Holden will stay the course though. “It's far too important a segment for us not to have a presence,” says spokesman John Lindsay. “We will still be in there.”Last month there were 15,646 in the light-commercial segment for a total of 28,793 so far in 2008; an increase of 13.4 per cent year-to-date on the same period in 2007. 

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.

Both, if confirmed for the 10-day show at Brisbane's Convention Centre, are expected to be dual cabs and neither are far from the production lines.For the motoring world has discovered, rediscovered in some cases, the versatility of the four-door ute with either two- or four-wheel-drive. The big differences in the 21st century interpretations of the dual cab (aka crew cab or double cab) are the attention to a family's comforts plus a little more performance for the weekend jollies.The first dual cabs, back into the days of Nissan's Bluebird utes, were basic affairs and more for the local mob of railway fettlers than mum and the kids. These were hose-out machines, plenty of vinyl and painted steel panels inside.They were neither fast nor furious machines, but pluggers with some torque for lugging loads. Engine noise and differential howls determined top speeds.Today there is a growing band of stylish, more comfortable dual cabs which manage to retain a work ethic. These are two- and four-wheel-drive utes, Japanese-designed and often Thai-built.There's the ageing Ford Courier, Mazda Bravo and Mitsubishi Triton. There is the middle-aged Holden Rodeo plus the newer Toyota HiLux and Nissan Navara.All now arrive with a petrol V6 engine option.In the case of the Holden, around since 2003, there is now a new V6 — the 3.6 litre Alloytec engine as found in the Commodore. The move adds some fresh appeal to the Rodeo mob.Here it is tailored for commercial applications, delivering 157kW at 5300rpm (10kW more than the old 3.5 litre V6) and 313Nm at 2800rpm. There is flatter torque curve than in the passenger cars, plus the option of an upgraded four-speed automatic or new five-speed manual transmission..Top of the heap is the LT crew cab machine, driven here with new V6 and four-speed automatic. In black, the Holden Rodeo is certainly a handsome machine, even if it is not quite as radical in styling as some rivals which have arrived since 2003; setting off the paintwork here is a new alloy wheel design.It is a nice, flexible ute with good road manners and a modern, comfortable interior with six-stack CD player bonus.There remains some rear end bounce without a load and sometimes the Holden feels a little narrow-tracked but it holds itself well among the current crop.There are indications fuel consumption should be better than the outgoing engine, and the Alloytec V6 is never found wanting in day-to-day conditions.The automatic transmission is smooth but there are some questions about the indistinct gate on the shift lever; reverse was sometimes hard to place and, moving off, this driver often grabbed third rather than drive.But for $36,490 this is a stylish and useful machine, even while there remains that workhorse rear end.