Astra Turbo Diesel; Barina sedan added to Holden line-up

Showgoers had little time to mourn the Munro on the Holden stand. Though the General officially said goodbye to its cool V8 coupe with a special car set to auctioned for charity, the company's future focus was firmly on four cylinders.

Holden unveiled a four-cylinder turbodiesel engine option for its Astra line-up, and a sedan variant for the Barina range at Melbourne. The two new small cars were revealed alongside the T2X -- Holden's second sports utility concept in six months.

The T2X is a blend of SUV and sports coupe, says Holden. It features 20-inch wheels, a high and wide offroad stance and "athletic and sporty" proportions. The concept was designed by a team headed by young Aussie designer, Max Wolff, based at GMDAT (General Motors-Daewoo Automotive Technology) in South Korea.

The four-door (with RX-8-style rear hinged rear doors)  is based on the same architecture as the S3X which featured at Sydney show.

"The T2X is a segement-buster which will appeal to nearly everyone, particularly those in their 20s and 30s who aspire to a sportscar look and need the off-road flexibility and configurable load space of a SUV,"  said GM Holden Chairman, Denny Mooney.

Back in the realms of production cars, the new Astra turbodiesels feature a 1.9-litre common rail four-cylinder mated to a six-speed manual gearbox as standard and rated at 110kW and 320Nm. An optional six-speed automatic will also be available. In this guise, the engine is rated at 88kW/280Nm..

"We think this will be a certain winner for Holden because it ticks all the boxes: performance, economy, environment and style," said Mooney.

"The diesel market is growing as drivers are becoming increasingly aware of the economical and environmental benefits," he said.

Holden says both Astra turbodiesel variants will be available later in 2006. Pricing will be announced closer to launch.

And they're not the only turbo set to join the Astra range in 2006 either -- chief Mooney said a turbo petrol Astra SRi would debut before year's end -- priced well under the HSV-aimed VXR we assume.

Meantime, the introduction of the Barina sedan brings Holden's small car line-up up to a generous 20 variants. All models in the Barina range, which starts at $12,990, are equipped with driver and front-passenger airbags, air-con, power steering and MP3-compatible sound system with CD player and steering wheel-mounted audio controls.

V8 fans weren't totally left out, however. As well as the 'very last' Monaro, the Melbourne show saw HRT's 2006 livery unveiled and was the first event for the L76 fourth-generation small block 6.0-litre V8 engine which shown in the Commodore SS, Caprice and Ute SS models on the Holden stand.

The 2006 Holden range is the first application of the engine within the General Motors group. The engine will also be installed in 2007 model year SUVs for the US market.

Also on the stand was the Efijy concept -- still wowing the crowds four months after its Sydney show debut.