GTS joins 4sec club
HSV's top-of-the-range sporty, the new E-Series GTS has propelled the company into the elite 4sec clubHolden Special Vehicles (HSV) has joined an elite club with its latest E-Series range -- the manual versions at least.
Thanks to a new 307kW/550NM 6.0-litre V8, revised T56 M10 Tremec manual gearbox, bespoke 3.70:1 limited slip differential, the GTS and its identically equipped ClubSport R8 stablemate are officially 4sec cars.
The label relates to the car's ability to accelerate from rest to 100km/h in less than 5.0 seconds. At this stage the margin is scant (HSV claims identical 4.96sec sprint times for the GTS and R8) but it's a margin nonetheless. With the performance benchmark broken, the home-grown hotties join a small but growing group of automotive exotic.
HSV boss Phil Harding says no car Eurpean car under $200,000 can approach the performance of the new HSVs. He may have missed out on the accelerative credentials of the just released Lotus Exige S, but his sentiments are valid -- the Lotus is a pocket rocket but the GTS and R8 firmly sit among the fastest four-doors on sale today. That their price tags sit at around a third or less of the V8-engined Euro super-saloons is not a fact that will be lost on performance car fans worldwide.
The GTS tops out the sports side of the HSV range -- for the time being. HSV won't be drawn on what else is coming, but you can almost bet the farm on the appearance of a GTS-R -- perhaps as early as Melbourne Motor Show (March 2007). Speculation has this car featuring a 6.2-litre or larger 330kW-plus engine.
For the time being the $74,990 ($76,990 auto) GTS is the hero car of the range. This pricetag is the same as the 297kW Z-series GTS.
The new car's mechanical and cosmetic enhancements are much the same as the ClubSport R8 (for more click
). In terms of accoutrements, the GTS gets different graphic and colour treatments externally (matt black bonnet header strip, fender vents and rear spoiler supports) and inside comes standard with a two-tone dash more heavily bolstered leather and suede-style all-electric seating (the R8 makes do with semi-manual controls) and some other minor detail changes including a reprofiled twin-bucket style rear seat. Fast families fear not -- it still seats three!The GTS rolls on 20-inch wheels as standard (with specially-developed Bridgestone hoops) but also shares its braking componentry with the rest of the E-Series range. The standard HSV brake package is claimed to be 15 per cent better than the outgoing premium six-piston set up! (See our R8 story link above for more).
The GTS's ace-in-the-hole, however, is the exclusive-to-HSV Magnetic Ride Control suspension technology.
Seen on the Corvette (and new Audi TT and Ferrari 599 GTB), MRC absorbed over $4.5m of HSV's development budget for the E-Series. To put this in perspective, according to HSV boss Harding, the 42-month MRC program cost more than the full HSV Z-series update!
MRC uses a magnetic field to alter the viscosity of a special magnetorheologic fluid inside the car's shock absorbers. By varying the fluid's flow characteristics it is possible to alter the compression and rebound damping characteristics of the shock instantly.
Designed and manufactured by Delphi in the USA in conjunction with local suspension component supplier Monroe, the system has been re-engineered for the E-Series range and features unique calibration and algorithms for the GTS and HSV's other top-liner, the Senator Signature.
Two different MRC calibrations are offered across the GTS and Senator Signature. In the case of the GTS, the 'Performance' setting is the default with the uprated setting termed 'Track'. According to HSV this setting approximates to the settings of the recent limited-run VZ ClubSport DTS.
MRC is not the only recalibration HSV has undertaken. All the dynamic safety aids fitted to the E-Series cars have been modified from standard VE settings for their role in the new HSV line-up. The company has tweaked the standard Commodore's ESP system to better suit the more sporting drivers that typically purchase HSV product -- in the case of the GTS it reportedly allows enough tail out action to keep drivers entertained.
The traction control and ABS anti lock braking systems have also come in for modification. The former is optimized for fast launches (as witness, the 4.96sec 0-manual 100km/h time and 5.04sec auto) though HSV has stopped short of offering a true M-car like launch control. For now…
And fuel economy? If you really want to know, arguably you're looking at the wrong car. For the record, in ADR 81.00 testing the E-Series cars are a touch thirstier than their predecessors at 14.6/15.3lt/100km (auto/manual). HSV says in real world conditions the new cars match or better the Z-Series offerings.
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