Holden Commodore MY18 177
Holden Commodore MY18 053
Holden Commodore MY18 095
Holden Commodore MY18 105
Sam Charlwood26 Oct 2016
REVIEW

Holden Commodore prototype 2018 Review

Holden’s fully-imported large car is still a Commodore at heart

Holden Commodore
Prototype Drive

Lang Lang, Victoria

Welcome to the new world order. After nearly 40 years’ worth of Australian production, Holden’s Commodore is undergoing arguably the biggest change since its inception. Developed on the same platform as the new Opel Insignia before being shipped to Australia re-badged with the Lion logo on its snout, the new model is purportedly safer, better integrated, laden with more standard technology and is markedly more efficient thanks to a fleet of four-cylinder and six-cylinder powertrains. But can it be the car Australians know and love?

The car built in Australia, for Australia. For nearly 40 years, the formula behind one of our country’s most enduring nameplates has been proven and uncontrived; the former feature across the world’s toughest real-life proving ground.

Now, Holden’s enduring Commodore is about to turn over a new leaf. A changing of the guard that formally commences from General Motors’ Rüsselsheim factory in Germany - following extensive input from several global outposts within the company hierarchy - and finishes in Australian showrooms from February 2018.

It is smaller, lighter, more efficient and eschews the current VF platform and rear-drive heritage for a completely new configuration. Yes, the worldly formula is markedly different from before, but even withstanding that, the fifth-generation model is not a wholesale departure in the flesh from the Commodore we know and love.

Holden Commodore MY18 029

That much is evident from the moment motoring.com.au steps foot in the cabin of an early prototype 2018 Commodore at Holden’s Lang Lang proving ground outside of Melbourne this week.

Covered in camouflage inside and out, the two engineering mules have been undergoing extensive development work in Australia since July. They are deemed 65 per cent development vehicles – a reflection of their overall build, engine, ride and handling calibrations. One is a lift-back style sedan that will eventually be dubbed ‘Sportback’, the other a lift-back masquerading as a Sportswagon courtesy of about 100kg worth of ballast in the rear.

The enormity of our drive is not lost on your humble correspondent. Bending one of these two test mules could physically push back the launch of this all-important new model. It would be an unmitigated PR disaster.

Holden Commodore MY18 011

Fortunately, there are still some inherent Commodore-isms about the new model and it isn’t long before we feel right at home. First and foremost, students of the current VF nameplate will recognise some of the same switchgear, such as the starter button, or the familiar indicator chime. A new, low slung driver seating position is welcomed once inside the cabin, which bristles in lush new materials even in prototype guise. Despite the dashboard and centre fascia being shrouded in disguise, elements of a new eight-inch digital instrument cluster, eight-inch central display, LCD climate control panel and next-generation head-up display are still within clear view. Suffice to say we didn’t bother making use of the car’s new Apple Carplay or Android Auto capability.

That said, there are still some Commodore foibles on the ‘Insignidore’, like the test mule’s bulky A-pillar design. Here’s hoping Holden can re-position the electric park brake to the right side of the car’s centre console, too.

The welcome news surrounds the car’s interior proportions. Despite being 74mm shorter in overall length and riding on a wheelbase that is 86mm shorter, it is clear the Commodore will still happily play the role of family chariot. Rear knee room remains unchanged, rear head room has been snipped by 13mm and shoulder room has decreased a relatively marginal 36mm.

The latter feature means the car is now better suited to two rear passengers rather than three. But a smaller transmission tunnel, well-proportioned boot and, for the first time, split-folding seats, are sure to bolster the car’s everyday amenity.

Holden Commodore MY18 186


The drive component begins rather unceremoniously. Turning over the engine doesn’t elicit the familiar crack and flutter of a V8 engine; simply because unlike the current Commodore, there will be no eight-cylinder version of the new fifth-generation model. And Holden insists a twin-turbo V6 is also off the cards because it doesn’t fit the architecture.

Instead, the range-topping V6 offering 230kW and 370Nm carries evolutionary progress over of the current 3.6-litre fitted to the VF; the biggest changes being the adoption of cylinder de-activation technology and stop-start idle function. The flagship will send drive to all four wheels, unlike the lower-spec front-drive versions.

First, it’s off to the high-speed bowl. “Get it up to 160km/h,” enthuses Holden’s lead dynamics engineer, Rob Trubiani.

The engine seems to gain a second wind from the 2500rpm mark, as before pulling hard until its circa 7000rpm cut out. The official line is a 0-100km/h time of under six seconds, accompanied by a willing elasticity from the engine during overtaking manoeuvres.

The bigger revelation with the V6 is its accompanying nine-speed automatic transmission, a new addition that spins the engine at a miserly 1200rpm at 100km/h. The auto feels more intuitive than the outgoing six-speed and will be offered with steering wheel-mounted paddles on sportier models. It also promises to make the car more efficient: we averaged as low as 8.0L/100km according to the car’s trip computer, with one insider suggesting the real-life reading will be well into the sevens on the production car.

Holden Commodore MY18 018

The flagship’s new all-wheel drive system shows promise as well, making sharp but encouraging interventions that Trubiani believes can be honed with his precise tuning skills. The system is fully adaptive, shuffling torque up to 100 times a second between the front and rear wheels, the rear via a twin clutch rear differential. The maximum 50:50 torque split will lend the flagship Commodore an ability to oversteer, especially with its Sport button enabled, engineers insist.

Holden is also preparing a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol and 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel for the 2018 Commodore, neither of which is available on test. Finer details are like-wise scarce, however stakeholders promise the four-cylinder petrol will be “the quickest base model Commodore ever built”.

What Holden is making a song and dance about is its own input in the car’s ride and handling. A team of engineers including Trubiani have played an extensive role already in the car’s calibration – some travelling to the Nurburgring for official General Motors testing. The team has an intimate day-by-day guide mapped out for the remaining duration of the six-month Australian tuning program.

Holden Commodore MY18 053

Ultimately, the engineers want to endow the new car with a real Commodore affiliation, and the truth is they already have. The car’s pre-development ride and handling shows promise, and with more time, stakeholders are brimming with optimism around the car’s final sign-off.

“It’s funny what happens when you put the same VF engineer in charge of the new model,” Trubiani laughs.

Holden engineers were reticent to quote a weight split between the car’s front and rear, but they are confident the quoted 200-300kg worth of weight reduction will contribute to better ride and handling.

The first impression is that the car feels a tad nose-heavy than before – perhaps a reflection of its new all-wheel drive underpinnings - contributing to understeer through sharper corners. The car’s shrunken proportions aren’t infallible over a simulated ride and handling course either, with some notable body roll and some vague kickback through the steering wheel.

Holden Commodore MY18 261

What’s evident already though is the car’s relevance to our big car-big country blueprint. The development vehicles are imperious at highway speed, easing comfortably into soft, floating and quiet long distance haulers. You get the feeling the occasional sharp thud through the cabin will be removed by the time a production car arrives with a new adaptive damper suspension system.

By 2018, Holden is confident its proud manufacturing dynasty will have been transformed into a thriving import and engineering business.

Whether the imported Commodore can be the car to lead that transformation remains to be seen, but the new model is certainly representative of the times in a dynamic, packaging and efficiency sense.

The bigger question is whether local buyers agree.

All you need to know about the MY18 Commodore
MY18 Commodore - a detailed rundown
MY18 Commodore - why it promises to succeed
MY18 Commodore - is Australia ready for an imported ‘icon’?
MY18 Commodore -

MY18 Commodore - by the numbers

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Our team of independent expert car reviewers and journalistsMeet the team
Pros
  • Technology and packaging
  • Rear seat space
  • Nine-speed automatic/AWD combo
Cons
  • No V8 or TTV6 option
  • Thick A-pillars
  • Lacks X-factor
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