No Holden back: last Commodores to be the fastest

Holden will quit manufacturing by rolling out large-capacity V8s in the fastest cars the company has ever made.

Last Holdens to be fastest ever

Holden will quit manufacturing in an explosion of horsepower as it rolls out large-capacity V8s in the fastest cars the company has made.

Defying the global trend ­towards more efficient turbocharged engines, the last Commodore comes with the most potent unit Holden has fitted: a 6.2-litre V8 with 304kW of power.

It also ditches a special feature that allowed the previous V8 to save fuel. Unlike most new cars, the VFII Commodore V8 is less efficient than the outgoing model.

Holden, which is scheduled to close its Adelaide plant in 2017, has defended its exit strategy and expects V8 Commodores to be more popular than ever.

“There’s no reason not to celebrate the Holden V8,” said sales director Peter Keley at the launch this month. “We want to play to its strengths. We expect V8 penetration to increase now, and again in 2017, when people decide, ‘I want one because there won’t be any more’.”

The original VB Commodore from 1978 was offered with an Australian-made 5.0-litre V8 with just 114kW. It was priced from $12,111.

The new 6.2-litre V8 comes in the VFII SS and Calais V, with ­prices starting at $44,490 for the six-speed manual SS sedan.

Holden has also broken with tradition in quoting acceleration figures for the car. The flagship SS V Redline, with six-speed manual gearbox, can reach 100km/h in just 4.9 seconds — quicker than some Porsches and alongside Mercedes-AMG and BMW M models in the four-second club. The 304kW V8 replaces the previous 260kW 6.0-litre V8, which had the ability to switch off four cylinders when cruising to save fuel. That engine averaged 11.5 ­litres per 100km in Australian tests, but without cylinder deactivation the new 6.2 litre engine ­averages 12.9 litres.

“It’s a bigger engine and it was never going to be more fuel ­efficient,” said Holden spokeswoman Kate Lonsdale.

“Fuel efficiency wasn’t a ­priority for this sports model. However, the engine does meet the Euro 5 standard, which comes into effect in Australia in November 2016.”

As fleet sales of Holden’s six-cylinder Commodore have ­declined, the share of V8s has risen, from 15 per cent in 2006 to 35 per cent today.

Holden is hoping up to half of all VFII Commodores will be V8s, as enthusiasts snap up the last ­locally made Holden V8 performance models.

Holden will lack a V8 model when the Commodore ceases production in two years.

However, Ford will start delivering Mustang V8s in December with a 313kW V8 that will give ­enthusiasts an option when production of the XR8 Falcon ceases in October next year.

With a supercharged 335kW 5.0-litre V8, the XR8 averages 13.7 litres per 100km and starts at $53,490.