HSV GTS GEN-F2 2015 Review

HSV GTS (GEN-F2)
Road Test

Since 1992’s VP-series, the GTS badge has adorned the hottest ‘regular’ model in the HSV range. With the addition of a 430kW supercharged V8 in the GEN-F, it became capable of taking on the world. The GTS, now further refined in GEN-F2 form, hits hard in every way: from price-for-performance ($98,490 plus on-road costs in tested six-speed automatic form) to appearance, traction and handling. Sadly, it’s now time to say goodbye.

The roads surrounding Mansfield in Victoria are reverberating to the sounds of Targa High Country. Flat-six Porsches, heavily-turbocharged Lancer Evolutions and the incomparable snarl of a Jaguar V12 peak and trough as they climb for Mount Buller’s summit.

Sat behind the road closure tape, I have the keys to HSV’s last GTS, the GEN-F2… and I want to make some noise.

Unlike the GEN-F2 ClubSport R8 little has changed for the GTS range-topper. Now priced at $98,490 (plus on-road costs) in six-speed automatic form, the GEN-F2 GTS hikes $1500 over its ground-breaking predecessor. What’s changed?

There are some visual styling tweaks, including the bonnet vents that are also seen on the racier Holden Commodore VF Series II nat-atmo V8s. Interestingly only three of the five heat-extracting vent slots are open to the underbonnet.

Lower air intake ‘spears’, a front splitter, pitch black exterior mirror accents and a new side skirt design subtly update the beast.

Slipping into the generously-proportioned Performance Seats, here trimmed in Onyx leather with cost-optional ‘Red Hot’ leather inserts, there’s now eight-way power adjustment for both driver and front passenger. Seat heating is also welcome in the cool afternoon air at altitude, as is the cleaner centre console design with removed auxiliary gauges for simpler storage access.

Less welcome in the day’s earlier heat, however, was the performance of the dual-zone climate-control; cooling the large interior space, even at high fan speeds with the temperature set to ‘LO’ took longer than expected, especially given the brand’s native Aussie status.

There’s a reasonable equipment list for the cash, including 8.0-inch touchscreen (which can be difficult to reach in motion, and clunky to navigate), nine-speaker BOSE audio, Enhanced Driver Interface (now optional on lesser models), four-mode driver preference dial (others have only three) and enhanced Bluetooth connectivity.

Side blind-spot alert with reverse cross-traffic alert, head-up display, passive entry and start for the auto variant, park assist, lane-departure warning, and forward-collision alert also add peace of mind.

What hasn’t really changed is the GTS’s presence. The updates have retained its menace but have made it more cohesive, at least to these eyes… and judging by the spectator’s response to it sitting alongside the Targa stage – rather than competing in it – speaks volumes.

Speaking of volume, those quad exhaust pipes pump it out – hard. From the tempting flare as the engine catches, the GTS will settle to a reasonably smooth, but undoubtedly V8, idle. Switch the driver preference mode across from Tour to one of Sport, Performance or Track, and the bi-modal system opens to give an old-fashioned grumpy idle rumble.

There’s no more potency under the bonnet; the GTS-spec supercharged LSA remains at 430kW (produced at 6150rpm, 150rpm over the indicated HUD redline) and 740Nm at 3850rpm. However, fuel consumption for the auto variant has dropped from 15.7L/100km previously to 15.0 in this GEN-F2. HSV says it’s the result of ‘fine tuning of engine calibration plus on-going software development.’

From here, you have a choice:  select Drive and have the ageing six-speed torque converter automatic shift on your behalf; slot the lever across from ‘D’ to ‘S’ in the parallel gate to prepare sport mode (giving it a heavy dose of throttle activates ‘Performance Shift Mode’, which will automatically change, but far more aggressively, holding gears and downshifting under brakes); move lever to ‘S’ then up or down to change sequentially at times of your own choosing; flip the steering-wheels mounted paddles.

This multiple choice permeates across the GTS experience, with noticeable changes to damping, and steering response as you cycle through the driver preference modes. There’s also a loosening of stability and traction control parameters, as well as the engagement of torque vectoring to maximise traction.

The first section of road is flat with several sweeping corners, some with mid-corner roughness, and the GTS is in its element. Here, there’s room for its undoubted girth and time for its 1858kg kerb weight to settle between steering inputs.

Obviously, the engine maintains pace with little in the way of throttle application, and the aforementioned bumps do little to affect the GTS’s trajectory. The steering feels light and lacking feedback in this mode, but is accurate enough. In short, the HSV is a finely-honed Grand Tourer with comfortable seats, heaps of storage and a pulsating – though not intrusive in Tour – soundtrack.

Trading flat and open for uphill and twisty, the GTS still manages to impress… though there’s a little to nit-pick.

Even in the more performance-oriented modes, which progressively sharpen damping response and add steering weight, the sheer mass of the GTS can be felt, especially when faced with consecutive third-gear corners. In the transition from, say, left to right lock, there’s a little pause through the centre as the front end takes a split second to catch up.

Additionally – and this feels ludicrous to write – is that the GTS doesn’t have an ‘other-worldly’ rush through to redline.

Where something like a BMW M5, even in ‘Pure’ 412kW/680Nm form, feels utterly ballistic in the top-end, the GTS feels ever-so-slightly strained; even with the bi-modal exhaust thumping open at 4000rpm and drowning out half the Targa field in an artillery barrage of noise.

Once it’s time for a gearshift, you need to plan slightly in advance, as the dated automatic will push into the limiter if you don’t time your shift a few hundred revs early. Actually, planning becomes a buzz-word throughout the drive, particularly on down-shifts where you want to balance engine braking with that generated by the ultra-impressive six-piston braking system. If you recalibrate your brain to flick the button/bump the sequential shifter down a cog a second earlier than you want it to engage, you will achieve the desired effect.

These issues aside, the GTS pulls strongly out of sharp uphill hairpins with strong ‘natural’ traction and little in the way of systems intervention, while braking on the way back down is outstanding in its feel, fade resistance and raw retardation.

Of course, heavy throttle use will see the fuel consumption sky-rocket over 20L/100km, though overall we managed 17.3.

A strong mix of Grand Tourer and Muscle Car, the HSV GTS remains at the pinnacle of Australian-built machines. Factor in its dollar-per-kW ratio (not to mention its size, comfort and spec) and there’s not much in the way of new metal that can touch it.

It’s just a pity we will never see its like again.