Holden VX II Commodore SS 2002 Review

It's a sign of the Commodore's unrivalled sales success that Holden can devote a mid-life update entirely to the smaller things. No sheetmetal changes here, no wholesale engineering breakthroughs, no interior redesigns. Nope, just an extra link on the rear suspension and new indicator stalks.

Which makes sense really. If it ain't broke... and all that. And the Commodore's definitely not broke. Far from it.

The biggest indicator of the Commodore's success is the fact that it has been the best selling vehicle in Australia for more more than three years running. And there's no worthy challenger anywhere on the horizon.

So why is that? porbably because the Commodore's got the major disciplines covered. It's family practical, is safe, looks good, and has plenty of power.

CarPoint test drove the new VX Series II Commodore SS V8 with the six speed manual gearbox, priced at the time of writing at $47,370. Launched in August, 2001, the Series II upgrade served mostly to give attention to the finer details.

"In this case, our challenge was to improve on the qualities that have made this Commodore the most popular in the history of the nameplate," said Commodore marketing manager John Elsworth.

The major change is the inclusion of an extra link arm in the Commodore's independent rear suspension. Holden call the modified setup Control Link IRS, and claim it improves rear end grip and also ride quality.

We agree. The Commodore has never been so easy to punch out of a corner without the fear of the rear end stepping out. One extra link may not sound like rocket science, but it enables you to get on the power much earlier than before, and takes away some of the mid-corner nervousness previously associated with this high powered, rear drive car.

And, even though we drove the sportiest Commodore available, the hard tuned suspension is surprisingly compliant and soft in just the right areas. It wasn't so long ago that you either had a hard-riding sports suspension or a smooth, compliant one. Not both. Until now.

Picking the Series II VX from the crowd is a hard one, unless you spot a Hyper Yellow one. This vibrant addition ot the Commodore colour charts is available on Executive, Acclaim, S, SS and Ute, and will definitely polarise opinions down the pub.

The only other external clue to this model is the Series II badge below the repeater lenses, and some minor grille changes on some models.

Holden has finally ditched the atrocious indicator stalks - expecially the cruise control with its tiny push buttons and rocker switches in favour of more conventional cylindrical ones. Now the cruise control is as easy to use as it should be.

New look interior trim is also a feature of the VX Series II upgrade.

Holden's bulletproof 5.7 litre Chevy sourced V8 engine is as addictive as ever. Strong, responsive and enthusiastic, the engine will reward the keen driver again and again, and yet it's no chore to drive slowly, say, crawling in peak hour bumper-lock.

The vehicle we tested included the six speed manual gearbox, which in daily driving is a waste. The sheer mountains of torque available from the engine make a mockery of having six gears in city traffic, and it's really only on the open road where there's any advantage in using them all.

Acceleration from a rolling start is more than adequate in any gear, the Commodore even pulling willingly from 40km/h in sixth - at a rumbling 800rpm!

There's no denying big engines mean big fuel bills, and the Commodore's no different, though it fares slightly better than some. Even so, remember that all that power does have a downside, though we reckon the ear-to-ear grin more than makes up for it.

After all, with the performance on tap from Australia's big sixes, owning a V8 these days is purely an emotional decision.

Damn right it is! Put us down for two.