Holden's last V8 Commodore in big demand

Australia's first new V8 Commodore in a decade will also be its last, which is why Holden expects demand to reach unprecedented levels by the time its factory doors close in two years.

Commodore sales are at an all-time low with just over 20,000 sold in the first three quarters of this year (almost 15 per cent down on last year, but still nearly double Holden's next biggest sellers – the Colorado ute and Cruze small car), but V8 sales have never been stronger.

Sports models now make up almost four out of every five Commodore sales, with six-cylinder SV6 models accounting for 48 per cent of the mix and V8s comprising upwards of 30 per cent.

Holden sales chief Peter Keley expects the launch of the MY16 VFII Commodore – the headline act of which is an upgraded 6.2-litre LS3 V8 – to increase that figure to as high as 50 per cent by the time the last Australian-made Commodore rolls off the line in late 2017.

"Fifty per cent wouldn't surprise me," he told motoring.com.au at the VFII Commodore media launch in Adelaide last night, adding that initial demand was likely to spike, in line with the traditional model cycle, before ramping up again at the end of production.

General Motors has confirmed the end of V8 power for its next-generation Commodore, which is expected to be a localised version of Opel's new German-made Insignia.

Holden has said it will stockpile supplies of its last Commodore V8 for sale into 2018 – the same year Holden's first imported Commodore is due on sale.

In the meantime, Keley said it would be hard to predict precise demand for the final V8 Commodore, which could be the subject of limited-edition treatment, but is unlikely to bring further major mechanical changes.

"There won't be another V8, so there will be the ones who want the last one and the ones who come first and then come back. We have six months to decide [V8 production levels]. It's a quality problem to have, but I'd encourage them to buy one today and get another one tomorrow..."

Keley said the VEII, production of which is now ramping up, was a tribute to the 37-year-old Commodore nameplate, which was Australia's top-selling model for 15 years between 1996 and 2010, and has attracted 3.13 million buyers since the first VB Commodore arrived in October 1978.

Unlike the much-hyped 'billion-dollar' VE Commodore of 2006, Holden won't say what it spent to develop the VFII, but admits the focus was unashamedly on sports models led by the upsized 6.2-litre LS3 V8 previously reserved for HSV, as we were the first to reveal it would a year ago.

"It was important with VF that we generated appeal," said Keley. "The emphasis was on refinement and technology – why buy European when you can have all the features for less?

"Now with the local car ending, VFII is a celebration of what the car is, so the focus is on the V8 because that's what buyers want. There's no future V8, so we want to reward our loyal customers."

While other models come in for little more than new wheels and suspension tweaks, Commodore SS and SS-V models bring the first V8 engine upgrade since 2006 in the form of 304kW at 6000rpm and 570Nm of torque at 4400rpm for both six-speed manual and automatic models.

Fitted with shorter final drive ratios (3.27:1 auto, 3.70:1 manual), the bigger 6162cc Gen IV pushrod V8 – which also features a higher 10.7:1 compression ratio and higher 6600rpm redline – is claimed to accelerate SS models to 100km/h in just 4.9 seconds (manual) and five seconds (auto).

Holden, which has always been loath to state performance figures for its models in the past, also states VFII SS models deliver quarter-mile acceleration in just 12.6 seconds (manual) and 13 seconds flat (auto).

Topping it all off is an HSV-style bi-modal exhaust and 'mechanical sound enhancer' that make the bigger V8 twice as loud as the 6.0-litre L77 it replaces, which will be the focus of Holden's "Hearing is believing" VFII LS3 marketing campaign from later this month.

The neighbours won't miss it even if they don't hear it though. Apart from aggressive new bonnet scoops and a new grille with gaping side air intakes, the new VFII SS front-end design is heralded by 'LS3 6.2-litre V8' badging.

With pricing unchanged, the downside appears to be efficiency. Holden has dropped its fuel-saving Active Fuel Management cylinder-deactivation technology from V8 models, which now slurp a litre more fuel per 100km at 12.8L/100km (manual) and 12.9L/100km (auto).

Watch this space for our first drive of the new VFII Commodore range from Thursday morning.