Holden eyes more American SUVs

With its market share languishing at less than five percent, Holden is looking to the US to fill more gaps in its Australian model catalogue.

However, it could be years before any additional SUV models are produced in right-hand drive and available in Holden showrooms.

Speaking at last week’s launch of the Holden Acadia – the first GMC model to be sold in Australia by Holden -- GM Holden chairman and managing director Dave Buttner said he had just returned from Detroit, where he examined future GM products that could eventually become Holdens in Australia.

“What I realised was the size of the stable, the varied and different products we can draw on to enhance our portfolio to meet the needs of Australian consumers over time,” he said.

Buttner said that while “everything is on the table” for release in Australia by Holden, SUVs and LCVs (light commercial vehicles) are what the Australian market wants.

“[Holden will] leverage GM’s stable of products, their strengths, their heritage, particularly in LCVs and SUVs,” he said.

Buttner said Holden invested heavily to re-engineer the GMC Acadia to meet the needs of Australia, where the Michigan-made large SUV will replace the strong-selling, Korean-sourced Captiva and rival petrol-only seven-seat SUVs like the Toyota Kluger.

Holden joined the development program for the second-generation Acadia in 2013, two years after it began, and that stage no right-hand drive production had been planned.

The cost of the RHD Acadia program was “about $100 million”, according to Buttner, who added that if RHD has been part of the program from the start, it would have cost “one-third of what it did”.

While hybrid and all-electric versions of the Acadia are also likely to be in the pipeline, Holden could import the turbo-petrol 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine that already powers the US-market GMC Acadia if it wanted a more fuel-efficient model in the short term.

According to Jeremy Tassone, GM Holden’s Vehicle Development Manager, the petrol-four Acadia would need to be tested under European emissions regulations and not the US federal requirements it already meets before it could be sold in Australia. This certification work could be done quickly, but “it would cost millions”, said Tassone.

Beyond the new Acadia, it appears to be slim-pickings for new Holden SUVs.

GM is about to embark on a renewal cycle of several SUVs and LCVs, but none of them have been engineered for RHD -- so far.

An all-new 2019 Chevrolet Blazer arrives in North America in January and could be a chance to join the Holden range between the mid-size Equinox and large Acadia – of it’s produced in right-hand drive.

The fourth-generation Chevrolet Equinox, again built in Mexico, is due for release in the US in 2023, based on GM’s new VSS-F platform. The Chevrolet Bolt EV is also due in 2023 on the same platform, but may remain a LHD-only model.

The all-new MY19 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 pick-up arrives in US showrooms later this year, and it will be followed a year later by a new Suburban SUV sister model also based on GM’s new T1 ladder frame.

Both the 2019 Silverado 1500 and 2020 Suburban are candidates for local RHD conversion by HSV, which already converts the MY18 Silverado 2500 and 3500 and MY18 Camaro coupe, and sells them via selected Holden dealers.

However, the all-new Silverado is yet to be confirmed for local release, and the upgraded 2019 Camaro also remains in limbo for Australia.

All that could mean Holden’s next new SUV will be a redesigned version of the Trax, which was originally launched here in 2013, facelifted last year and due for replacement in 2020 – the same year Holden’s German-sourced ZB Commodore is also due a refresh.