New-look 2017 Holden Barina arrives

Holden is spruiking its new-look Barina light car as "all grown up" by virtue of a fresh new facelift, improved features such as parking sensors and cameras across the range and lower pricing.

The Barina sedan has been ditched and Holden has dropped the go-fast Barina RS hatch, meaning the plucky 1.4-litre turbo (103kW/200Nm) is no more.

The $14,990 entry-level Barina LS represents a price drop of $400 over its predecessor and comes standard with 16-inch alloy wheels, a 7.0-inch touch-screen with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay functionality, dusk-sensing headlights and LED daytime running lights.

All models now gain reversing sensors and camera as standard and retain their five-star ANCAP safety rating.

Next up is Barina LT which is priced at $20,390 and comes with everything listed and adds larger 17-inch alloy wheels, a leather steering wheel, Sportec seat trim, heated front seats and a proximity keyfob with passive entry and push button engine start.

All models carry over the 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine (85kW/155Nm), with entry-level Barina LS models fitted with a five-speed manual transmission. A six-speed auto takes the price of the LS to $17,190.

The Barina LT comes standard with the six-speed auto.

Redesigned front and rear fascias, crafted by the GM Australia Design team, which have been adopted in global markets, were inspired by the Chevrolet Camaro.

"It was time for the Barina to grow up at bit and expand its global appeal beyond the young adult market," GM Australia's exterior design manager, Justin Thompson, said.

"Barina has always been a fun-to-drive car and we wanted to somehow maintain that quality but also offer a more mature and sophisticated design for a more complete package overall."

The reason Holden has ditched its CD/CDR/CDX/RS naming convention while killing the sedan was to simplify the range says Holden's product communications manager, Mark Flintoft.

"We wanted to make the new Barina the best it could be, so we simplified the range, reduced the price of the LS and added more standard features. We also focussed on the design."

Sales of the Holden Barina have dropped almost 30 per cent in the first 10 months of 2016 compared to the same time last year. Barina sales of 4934 cars in 2015 have dipped to 3503 this year.

The new 2017 Holden Barina is now available at Holden dealerships nationally and comes with a three-year, 100,000km warranty. Holden also offers a lifetime capped price service program.

2017 Holden Barina pricing (plus ORCs):
LS manual — $14,990
LS automatic — $17,190
LT automatic — $20,390