HSV GTSR W1 2017 Review

HSV GTSR and GTSR W1 (Prototype)
Australian Launch Review
Phillip Island, Victoria

The end of an era
The HSV GTSR W1 will become to Gen Xers what the Falcon GT-HO Phase III was to Baby Boomers: an astoundingly fast and conspicuously collectible example of Aussie muscle done right.

Crowning HSV’s two-family MY17 range, the ‘W1’ sits atop the three-variant GTSR line-up, and boasts all of the hallmarks of a proper rear-drive, V8 supercar ‘sleeper’.

Its aggressive body styling, carbon-fibre accents and outlandish performance – try 474kW and 815Nm – place the W1 in esteemed company, a fact set to remain unchallenged thanks to a build limitation of just 300 units ... at $169,900 a pop!

HSV has yet to quote performance times for the GTSR range, but tells us the flagship GTSR W1 should better a 0-100km/h time of 4.2sec, cover 0-400m in 12.1sec and has already smashed HSV’s Winton lap record by four whole seconds at 1:33.2.

The figures eclipse the original VL Commodore SS Group A SV, its 180kW/380Nm 5.0-litre V8 managing a 6.9sec 0-100km/h sprint and 15.1sec quarter-mile.

The W1 is also 63km/h faster than the VL at v-max with a theoretical full whack of 293km/h (electronically limited to 250km/h).

If those figures don’t sound special, it’s because wheelspin robbed the GTSR W1 of a decent launch. Yes, even with fatter tyres and launch control.

Hence, HSV says the more revealing side of the Dubbyaone’s performance is during roll-on acceleration, quoting a 2.16sec sprint over 80-120km/h in second year, 2.96sec in third gear, 3.7sec in fourth gear and 5.2sec in fifth. Yep, it’s properly quick.

And let’s not forget the remaining GTRS duo, the GTSR Maloo and sedan, priced from $96,990 (plus ORCs). Like the GTS on which they’re based, the pair features HSV’s most powerful supercharged 6.2-litre LSA V8, tuned to deliver 435kW (up 5kW) and 740Nm (unchanged).

In introducing the LS9-powered W1 to its line-up HSV has extended its offering to a total of eight models across two distinct streams, all of which we had a brief chance to sample at Victoria’s Phillip Island circuit.

Australia’s most powerful production car
HSV’s re-introduction of the GTSR range revives a nameplate last seen on the overt ‘XU-3 Yellah’ painted VS-series of 1996.

The three-model line-up includes the manic LS9-powered GTSR W1 – a car that can lay claim to the title of Australia’s most powerful production car ever, with official outputs of 474kW/815Nm.

GTSR sedan models are derived from the ‘regular’ GTS sedan, with GTSR Maloo variants plucked from the same stock as the Maloo GTS. Each is powered by a lightly fettled version of the derivative LSA engine to make 435kW (up 5kW) and 740Nm (unchanged).

Related reading:
Official HSV slams down 474kW GTSR W1

It’s the most powerful LSA range HSV has offered, the increase down to a recalibration of the engine management software and the addition of a hi-flow K&N air filter.

GTSR Maloo and sedan variants are differentiated by Dark Stainless 20-inch forged alloy wheels, half an inch wider than the balance of the MY17 range, and shod with Continental ContiSportContact 5P rubber.

Both the ute and the sedan are equipped with HSV’s Magnetic Ride Control semi-active dampers and newly calibrated bi-modal hi-flow exhaust system with dual diamond-shaped tips.

You can read more about the features and equipment offered in the GTSR range in our pricing story here.

W is for wicked!
For the ground-pounding ‘W1’ the story grows more complex. Using engines sourced from the Corvette – and bargained away from GM’s monster engine warehouse in the US – required a wider front track (+3mm offset) and fatter polypropylene front guards (+12mm per side).

The wider front-end serves not only to house the LS9 powerplant, but also to deliver cooling to the radiator (set back six degrees to accommodate the OTR carbon-fibre cold air intake) and nine-plate air-to-water-cooled dry sump engine lubrication system.

HSV had to up the cooling capacity of the system by 49 per cent to allow for the increase in overall weight over Corvette (+350kg), the larger supercharger intercooler and hi-flow water pump, allowing the W1 to “go harder for longer”.

The four-lobe supercharger delivers 2.3 litres of air per revolution, and is capable of rotor speeds up to 15,000rpm. If you do the maths, that’s more air per minute than a human adult would respire in three days!

On the exhaust side – and in addition to the recalibrated bi-modal set-up and diamond-shaped outlets familiar to the balance of the GTSR range – the W1 features a ceramic-coated stainless steel 4-2-1 system with integrated catalytic converter. A quarter-inch larger in diameter than the GTS’ (at 2.5 inches), the system sounds like a real V8 should, yet somehow still manages to meet all Australian regulatory and drive-by noise limits.

HSV says the W1’s cam is unique, as is the (modified) dry sump system, forged titanium connecting rods, titanium inlet valves, hollow-stem exhaust valves and forged aluminium pistons (with spray cooling). Redline is set at 6600rpm, the engine ‘restrained’ to maintain warranty certification and Euro 5 emissions regulations.

HSV has yet to provide a CO2 figure for the W1, but says combined fuel economy is 16.5L/100km.

Too tough for two pedals
With no automatic available in the GM parts bin to handle the output on offer, the regular six-speed Tremec TR6060 triple-synchro gearbox required its own bespoke input shaft and unique close-ratio (MH3) gear-set to handle the surfeit of torque. Clutch duties are handled by a 240mm ZF Sachs twin-plate set-up while the single-piece forged flywheel is exclusive to the W1 and rated to at least 850Nm.

Braking duties fall to AP Racing six-piston monoblock callipers constructed from 6061-grade aluminium. The retaining bolts are moved both to increase the size of the pad fitted, and reduce weight (-10 per cent), while the 410mm rotors – cooled by unique ‘S-shaped’ internal vanes – and Ferodo 4488 brake pads offer a 25 per cent increase in swept area. The rear discs measure 390mm (on all GTSR variants). The brakes are the largest ever fitted to a HSV, the wheel specially sculpted to house the larger callipers.

GTSR W1 models ride on all-new, five-spoke 20x9.0-inch front and 20x10.0-inch SV Panorama forged alloy wheels. The wheel-spoke’s waisted undercut sides improve cooling to the brakes and reduce weight, the matte black finish differentiating it from the remainder of the GTSR range. The W1 is shod with road-legal Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R semi-slicks measuring 265/35 (front) and 295/30 (rear).

The W1 adopts all-new SupaShock suspension, similar to that used in Walkinshaw Racing’s Supercars. The upside down coil-over front, conical rear set-up is described by HSV as a “track-focussed set-up” that offers a tune “comparable to a street-circuit tune of V8 Supercar racers”.

The unapologetically firm set-up utilises linear-style damper pistons to deliver the lowest frictional losses of any commercially-available damper, and to give you an idea of just how firm the ride is HSV says the front coil-over alone is rated at 2.2 times that of the current GTS.

All three GTSR models include Torque Vectoring (by brake) and HSV’s Enhanced Driver Interface (EDI) screen. The familiar driver preference dial remains. This controls traction and stability settings, launch control, torque vectoring, bi-modal exhaust and electric steering weighting. All electronic aids are recalibrated for GTSR and GTSR W1 models.

Time to track it
A couple of laps around the Phillip Island circuit may not allow for the most comprehensive look at the GTSR range, but it certainly gives you an idea of the horsepower and handling on offer.

Sampling the GTSR Maloo and sedan first shows an increase in refinement over the donor models (GTS Maloo and GTS sedan), though we wouldn’t say it’s chalk and cheese. There’s a touch better response to hard turn-in action, thanks no doubt to the recalibrated torque vectoring system, and a noticeable change in exhaust pitch. This is how the GTS should have sounded all along.

The bigger brakes provide plenty of stopping power. The pedal stroke is ideally metered to track driving, and in manual models is set just right for heel-toe action into sharp turns, like Honda and MG.

Otherwise, it’s a case of more of the same – and we mean that in the kindest way possible. The GTS range was terrific to begin with, and enhancing the line-up for one last time has made a great car brilliant. It looks the business, gives an experience behind the wheel deserving of the badge, and, this can’t be stated strongly enough, sounds every bit like a real V8 muscle car should.

Perhaps surprisingly, the GTSR W1 feels every bit as refined as its ‘lesser’ siblings. I say surprisingly because given the horsepower on offer – and the fact we were driving engineering program ‘mules’ (or prototypes) – it’s a car that feels both polished and communicative, even when the rear tyres are doing their best to go up in smoke.

Rolling out of the pit lane in second gear the W1 takes little provocation to put on a smoke show, so it's little wonder HSV had a hard time locking down performance times!

The W1 races to our pre-agreed limit of 200km/h, and files cleanly through the first fast bends of the island. In no time you’re attuned to the chassis and ready to explore its limits.

By turn four we’re sideways on exit and feathering the throttle for a hard run up the gearbox into the Hay Shed. The W1 eats track quicker than any four-door sedan should have the right to, and pulls up just as effortlessly. By the final turn onto Gardner Straight we’ve again reached our insurance-enforced speed limit, cruising the remainder of the straight at what feels like a dawdle.

The second lap is quicker again and the W1 has consented itself to a charge at the limits, the digits of the HUD rising and falling as if it were the on-screen telemetry of a V8 Supercars telecast. It’s addictive stuff, the tyres protesting their limits early to prevent any misunderstanding.

You don’t know what you’ve got…
This really is a car that speaks of what we are (were) capable of as a car-building country, and what I for one will miss dearly in only a few short months.

It’s a credit to HSV’s engineers that such enormous numbers can punch so convincingly through a chassis designed for families and salesmen. We’ll miss this car. We’ll miss rear-drive V8 performance. And sadly, most of us will miss the chance to ever get behind the wheel.

I’m glad I had my turn. And I encourage anyone with the interest and the means to fight tooth and nail to secure one for their own. This is Aussie muscle at its finest – and a fitting farewell to 30 years of very special vehicles.

2017 HSV GTSR pricing and specifications:
Price: from $96,990 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8 petrol
Output: 435kW/740Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual (six-speed automatic, optional)
Fuel: TBC
CO2: TBC
Safety Rating: TBC

2017 HSV GTSR W1 pricing and specifications:
Price: from $169,990 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8 petrol
Output: 474kW/+815Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual (only)
Fuel: 16.5L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: TBC
Safety rating: TBC