Holden to 'do an Altima' with Commodore
New front-driver to spawn Nissan-style V8 Supercar?Holden has hinted it will race on with Commodore even if that means the racecar will have even less in common with its road-going donor model.
In a statement today, GM Holden Motorsport and Sponsorship Manager, Simon McNamara, said that it was the Red Lion's intention to "retain Commodore as the brand's flagship racecar". This is despite the fact the next generation Holden large car will be a rebadged model from General Motors international line-up and almost certainly front-wheel drive.
Holden re-confirmed the retention of the Commodore nameplate for roadcars today. McNamara comments followed, however, the third leg of the Holden performance triumvirate, Holden Special Vehicles (HSV), is yet to make any announcements regarding the future of its large-car-derived performance stable.
V8 Supercars use a common chassis so the vast majority of the mechanicals used in current Commodore racers are not in fact made by Holden – or even General Motors.
In effect Holden will follow Nissan's lead with Altima to build the next-generation Commodore racecar. Like the former, the next-generation racer will use massaged versions of the as yet unveiled front-drive car's panels mated to the 'control' chassis.
What it does not confirm is that the new large car will feature the option of a V8 engine. In fact, nothing in the announcement confirms Holden will even use a V8 in the new racer.
McNamara said Holden would continue talks in relation to V8 Supercars' recently announced 2017 Gen 2 Supercars strategy. These regs open up the competition to turbo and supercharged four- and six-cylinder engines.
"Racing is an integral part of Holden's DNA and Commodore is the most successful nameplate in Australian Touring Car and V8 Supercar history, and we are looking forward to winning races and championships with Commodores in the future," McNamara said.
"We have every intention of racing Commodore for many years to come, but obviously we need to keep working with the regulators and ensure the specific program is the right one," he stated.
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