fschambe
06-11-2003, 11:02 AM
The Best You Can't Get
If it makes you mad that GM's most affordable performance cars are off limits to Americans, then don't read this.
By Johnny Hunkins
Photography: Johnny Hunkins, General Motors
When I first laid eyes on the 2001 Holden SS Ute, I thought I had died and gone to car-guy heaven. Stylistically, it's a cross between a Chevy El Camino and a 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix. Mechanically, it's a cross between a Camaro Z28 and a C5 Corvette. Checkbookwise, it's the equivalent of $20,000 US dollars. The only problem is that you can't buy one--here.
Holden, GM's Australian division, has been making bad-ass cars for years. The fuel crunches of the '70s and '80s that so crippled the American performance car market never hit Australia, and as a result many of the tarmac pounders that crawl the streets Down Under perform like the musclecars of yore. Think of it like this: Australia is just like the United States, only it's been in a cool parallel universe for the past 25 years. There, automakers like GM and Ford make car-guy cars at a price virtually everyone can afford.
The SS Ute is a member of Holden's rearwheel drive family of cars known generally as the Commodore/Calais line-up. (The current Holden range also contains a slew of other cars, which we'll explain later on.) This means they all share similar (if not identical) chassis, suspensions, powertrains, and styling. In understanding the Holden vehicle line, it helps to abandon your current notion of American platform engineering and branding; most of GM's US cars have totally different platforms, manufacturing plants, powertrains and styling, which means less economy of scale, subcontracting and shipping nightmares, lots of marketing tomfoolery, and extra cost passed on to you and me. The Aussies cut right to the meat of things: the cars are all the same, so pick your price/trim level and pick your engine (think Chevrolet circa 1957).
The SS Ute is an engineering marvel, considering its modest cost. Like all rearwheel-drive Holdens, it's based on the unit-body GM2800 platform, which is a highly-evolved Opel Omega chassis. Sharp readers will recall that the current Cadillac Catera is based on the GM2800, albeit with an emasculated Opel 3.0-liter engine. Among the SS Ute's technological goodies are a fully independent suspension (that's right, the SS Ute has IRS, like all the vehicles in the Commodore VX range), traction control, ABS, a 312-hp LS1 V8, and your choice of 4L60E automatic or T-56 manual 6-speed transmission.
If it's starting to sound like the Ute SS is a souped-up modern-day El Camino, you'd be right. With a curb weight of 3574 lbs., the 225kW (312-hp) Camaro-spec LS1 easily pushes this little truckster to high 13s, that's with an automatic trans and numerically-low 3.08 gears according to our smug Australian friends.The unfairness of it all jumped right in our face when we had the miraculous opportunity to drive an SS Ute for most of the day. The chance came during an innocuous press junket sponsored by Vortec Powertrain. The invitation to fly down to beautiful Pasadena was ostensibly to introduce us to the 2002 Z06 Corvette (which we'll drag test for you at a later date) and to sample such inspired Vortech-powered products as industrial fork lifts and swamp boats. As an afterthought, one of the few remaining fun-loving GM techies (a Motorsports guy if you must know) had the presence of mind to snag a 2001 Holden SS Ute which had concurrently completed some hot-weather testing at the Mesa, Arizona proving grounds.
Considering that this sole pilot-line vehicle was shipped to the US at great expense to GM, we were surprised that our request was granted, so we made the most of our one-day shore leave. We immediately squirted off to the Angeles National Forest near Glendora, California for some impromptu testing on some curvy mountain roads. We found out just how good the IRS and the four-wheel vented disc brakes in the Ute SS really are, and that's saying something considering that we were a bit woozy driving from the "wrong" side of the car.Within 30 seconds, I was acclimated to the right-hand drive. It's not really that hard to get used to; the position of the turn stalk on the right side of the steering column was the only freaky thing to remember. (We're guessing a manual 6-speed would take a little more getting used to--perhaps a minute or two.) Most fun of all was heading back to civilization after the photo shoot. We cruised through the streets of Glendora, West Covina and Pasadena on a Friday night and got tons of stares and compliments.
The first thing people are blown over by is the Ute's good looks. Then they realize that nobody is driving the car. Then they realize that the passenger is really the driver; that's when the light bulb turns on and the questions start coming in like a Vietcong artillery salvo. The most memorable moment was pulling up to the valet parking attendant at the Ritz-Carlton in Pasadena. The look on the attendant's face was priceless as he mentally masticated over the thought of parking this job while sitting in the "passenger seat." Hell, the shock value of a right-hand drive alone is worth owning one here in the US!One other thing: we actually got a chance to drag test the SS Ute. A makeshift 1/8-mile drag strip had been set up in the parking lot of Irwindale Speedway. (Bad idea guys, let's stick to roundy-round!) Using a vacuum-tube timing system which was undoubtedly left over from the original Irwindale Dragway, we clocked a lackluster 9.70 at 76 mph. (That was with a really hot motor and lots of non-driving newspaper suits flogging it before us.) Did we mention no traction compound or even a burn box? Obviously, under proper testing conditions, we have no doubt that the SS Ute could pound off innumerable 13-second ETs given its power and weight.
Are You "Holden" On?
We must admit that our experience with the Holden SS Ute was our first introduction to anything Holden. However, we didn't feel so bad about our ignorance when we discovered that nobody at the GM press function knew a damn thing about it either. Our research data came via the world wide web, largely through www.holden.com.au. (The "au" tells your computer to look at Australian sites. Don't forget to punch it in on your browser!)
What we immediately discovered is that the Australian market--and Holden in particular--is literally jam-packed with performance bargains. We became giddy with the possibilities. Literally the entire mid-size and large car range at Holden is available with a choice of two killer engines.
Turns out the LS1 isn't the only performance powertrain. Just under the 225kW LS1 (called alternately the Generation III V8 or the Heritage V8 in Australia), is the Ecotec supercharged V6. Rated at 171 kW (that's 240 hp for us Yanks), the Ecotec supercharged V6 is none other than the Eaton-inflated 3.8-liter Buick V6 found in the Pontiac Grand Prix GTP and the Regal GS. The big difference is that it's driven by the proper wheels via a Hydramatic 4L60E. Even more exciting is that next year's Australian version of the blown V6 will be uprated to 200 kW (approximately 270 hp) and be available with a 5-speed tiptronic automatic trans.The combination of Holden cars and powertrains is staggering. It's like the old days when you checked off the order blank with whatever engine you wanted. You can get pretty much every car in the line-up with any engine, from the bottom of the line Executive VX, to the top of the line Caprice. Make sure you're sitting down for this next one--preferrably with a box of tissues: We priced out a Holden Executive VX (the entry-level four-door sedan) with the 312-hp LS1, automatic four-speed trans, air conditioning, power windows and door locks, dual airbags (they're optional in Australia), traction control, limited slip differential, FE2 performance suspension, standard IRS, and cop-sized 205/65R15 tires (for the sleeper look) and came up with a list price equivalent to $19,730 US dollars. Un-frigging-believable.
Why so cheap? Other than a trio of econo boxes, GM's entire vehicle line-up in Australia is based on this one platform--the Opel Omega-derived GM2800. Australia being a modest-sized market (only 19 million blokes total), GM correctly decided to limit the number of platforms to keep costs down. Costs are further reduced by importing all of its engines from the US--the number of those also being limited to just three across the entire Commodore line. (The entry level is the Ecotec V6, a renamed naturally-aspirated 3800 Buick, rated here at 200 hp.)
One last tidbit of heart-wrenching technical info. The powertrains for the LS1-powered Commodores are directly from the F-body parts bin, that is to say the engine and trans (both A4 and M6) are the same as Camaro and Firebird. There are only minor differences in calibration due to the reduced quality of Australian fuel.
If it makes you mad that GM's most affordable performance cars are off limits to Americans, then don't read this.
By Johnny Hunkins
Photography: Johnny Hunkins, General Motors
When I first laid eyes on the 2001 Holden SS Ute, I thought I had died and gone to car-guy heaven. Stylistically, it's a cross between a Chevy El Camino and a 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix. Mechanically, it's a cross between a Camaro Z28 and a C5 Corvette. Checkbookwise, it's the equivalent of $20,000 US dollars. The only problem is that you can't buy one--here.
Holden, GM's Australian division, has been making bad-ass cars for years. The fuel crunches of the '70s and '80s that so crippled the American performance car market never hit Australia, and as a result many of the tarmac pounders that crawl the streets Down Under perform like the musclecars of yore. Think of it like this: Australia is just like the United States, only it's been in a cool parallel universe for the past 25 years. There, automakers like GM and Ford make car-guy cars at a price virtually everyone can afford.
The SS Ute is a member of Holden's rearwheel drive family of cars known generally as the Commodore/Calais line-up. (The current Holden range also contains a slew of other cars, which we'll explain later on.) This means they all share similar (if not identical) chassis, suspensions, powertrains, and styling. In understanding the Holden vehicle line, it helps to abandon your current notion of American platform engineering and branding; most of GM's US cars have totally different platforms, manufacturing plants, powertrains and styling, which means less economy of scale, subcontracting and shipping nightmares, lots of marketing tomfoolery, and extra cost passed on to you and me. The Aussies cut right to the meat of things: the cars are all the same, so pick your price/trim level and pick your engine (think Chevrolet circa 1957).
The SS Ute is an engineering marvel, considering its modest cost. Like all rearwheel-drive Holdens, it's based on the unit-body GM2800 platform, which is a highly-evolved Opel Omega chassis. Sharp readers will recall that the current Cadillac Catera is based on the GM2800, albeit with an emasculated Opel 3.0-liter engine. Among the SS Ute's technological goodies are a fully independent suspension (that's right, the SS Ute has IRS, like all the vehicles in the Commodore VX range), traction control, ABS, a 312-hp LS1 V8, and your choice of 4L60E automatic or T-56 manual 6-speed transmission.
If it's starting to sound like the Ute SS is a souped-up modern-day El Camino, you'd be right. With a curb weight of 3574 lbs., the 225kW (312-hp) Camaro-spec LS1 easily pushes this little truckster to high 13s, that's with an automatic trans and numerically-low 3.08 gears according to our smug Australian friends.The unfairness of it all jumped right in our face when we had the miraculous opportunity to drive an SS Ute for most of the day. The chance came during an innocuous press junket sponsored by Vortec Powertrain. The invitation to fly down to beautiful Pasadena was ostensibly to introduce us to the 2002 Z06 Corvette (which we'll drag test for you at a later date) and to sample such inspired Vortech-powered products as industrial fork lifts and swamp boats. As an afterthought, one of the few remaining fun-loving GM techies (a Motorsports guy if you must know) had the presence of mind to snag a 2001 Holden SS Ute which had concurrently completed some hot-weather testing at the Mesa, Arizona proving grounds.
Considering that this sole pilot-line vehicle was shipped to the US at great expense to GM, we were surprised that our request was granted, so we made the most of our one-day shore leave. We immediately squirted off to the Angeles National Forest near Glendora, California for some impromptu testing on some curvy mountain roads. We found out just how good the IRS and the four-wheel vented disc brakes in the Ute SS really are, and that's saying something considering that we were a bit woozy driving from the "wrong" side of the car.Within 30 seconds, I was acclimated to the right-hand drive. It's not really that hard to get used to; the position of the turn stalk on the right side of the steering column was the only freaky thing to remember. (We're guessing a manual 6-speed would take a little more getting used to--perhaps a minute or two.) Most fun of all was heading back to civilization after the photo shoot. We cruised through the streets of Glendora, West Covina and Pasadena on a Friday night and got tons of stares and compliments.
The first thing people are blown over by is the Ute's good looks. Then they realize that nobody is driving the car. Then they realize that the passenger is really the driver; that's when the light bulb turns on and the questions start coming in like a Vietcong artillery salvo. The most memorable moment was pulling up to the valet parking attendant at the Ritz-Carlton in Pasadena. The look on the attendant's face was priceless as he mentally masticated over the thought of parking this job while sitting in the "passenger seat." Hell, the shock value of a right-hand drive alone is worth owning one here in the US!One other thing: we actually got a chance to drag test the SS Ute. A makeshift 1/8-mile drag strip had been set up in the parking lot of Irwindale Speedway. (Bad idea guys, let's stick to roundy-round!) Using a vacuum-tube timing system which was undoubtedly left over from the original Irwindale Dragway, we clocked a lackluster 9.70 at 76 mph. (That was with a really hot motor and lots of non-driving newspaper suits flogging it before us.) Did we mention no traction compound or even a burn box? Obviously, under proper testing conditions, we have no doubt that the SS Ute could pound off innumerable 13-second ETs given its power and weight.
Are You "Holden" On?
We must admit that our experience with the Holden SS Ute was our first introduction to anything Holden. However, we didn't feel so bad about our ignorance when we discovered that nobody at the GM press function knew a damn thing about it either. Our research data came via the world wide web, largely through www.holden.com.au. (The "au" tells your computer to look at Australian sites. Don't forget to punch it in on your browser!)
What we immediately discovered is that the Australian market--and Holden in particular--is literally jam-packed with performance bargains. We became giddy with the possibilities. Literally the entire mid-size and large car range at Holden is available with a choice of two killer engines.
Turns out the LS1 isn't the only performance powertrain. Just under the 225kW LS1 (called alternately the Generation III V8 or the Heritage V8 in Australia), is the Ecotec supercharged V6. Rated at 171 kW (that's 240 hp for us Yanks), the Ecotec supercharged V6 is none other than the Eaton-inflated 3.8-liter Buick V6 found in the Pontiac Grand Prix GTP and the Regal GS. The big difference is that it's driven by the proper wheels via a Hydramatic 4L60E. Even more exciting is that next year's Australian version of the blown V6 will be uprated to 200 kW (approximately 270 hp) and be available with a 5-speed tiptronic automatic trans.The combination of Holden cars and powertrains is staggering. It's like the old days when you checked off the order blank with whatever engine you wanted. You can get pretty much every car in the line-up with any engine, from the bottom of the line Executive VX, to the top of the line Caprice. Make sure you're sitting down for this next one--preferrably with a box of tissues: We priced out a Holden Executive VX (the entry-level four-door sedan) with the 312-hp LS1, automatic four-speed trans, air conditioning, power windows and door locks, dual airbags (they're optional in Australia), traction control, limited slip differential, FE2 performance suspension, standard IRS, and cop-sized 205/65R15 tires (for the sleeper look) and came up with a list price equivalent to $19,730 US dollars. Un-frigging-believable.
Why so cheap? Other than a trio of econo boxes, GM's entire vehicle line-up in Australia is based on this one platform--the Opel Omega-derived GM2800. Australia being a modest-sized market (only 19 million blokes total), GM correctly decided to limit the number of platforms to keep costs down. Costs are further reduced by importing all of its engines from the US--the number of those also being limited to just three across the entire Commodore line. (The entry level is the Ecotec V6, a renamed naturally-aspirated 3800 Buick, rated here at 200 hp.)
One last tidbit of heart-wrenching technical info. The powertrains for the LS1-powered Commodores are directly from the F-body parts bin, that is to say the engine and trans (both A4 and M6) are the same as Camaro and Firebird. There are only minor differences in calibration due to the reduced quality of Australian fuel.