VE under the skin: worth the weight

The secret is out -- well, part of the secret anyway. Holden engineering chief Tony Hyde spilt the beans on day one of VE's engineering briefings that the new Commodore is "more than 100kg" heavier than the car it replaces.

Indeed, while there is no mention of weights in the VE Engineering media kit, according to Hyde, the Omega weighs in at 1690kg. That's 122kg heavier than Holden's current mark for the VZ Executive (1568kg).

Given the current Calais tops the 1640kg mark, the heaviest short-wheelbase VE models could breach the 1800kg mark -- more than the current long-wheelbase Caprice.

According to Holden engineering sources, the weight budget for the new car was met: in other words the Omega was designed to weigh in at nearly 1700kg.

At first glance this might shock some -- especially those transfixed on fuel prices. However, by way of comparison Ford says its base Falcon weighs in at 1694kg while cars against which the VE was benchmarked, such as the BMW 5 Series and Audi A6, are around 2000kg depending on engine and trim specifications.

Holden's reluctance to quote weights is therefore puzzling. Even the new car stats provided for CarPoint (see here) by automotive data specialist Polk still did not include weights as this story was prepared.

That said, Hyde was happy to share some key weight comparisons between VE and VZ.

According to Holden's top engineer, doors, exterior parts and electrical sub assemblies add 5, 6 and 10kg respectively. Chassis parts including items like the all-new front and rear suspensions, bigger brakes and wheels and so on only add a nett 33kg to the car. Knowing how to win friends and influence people, Holden's interior team has managed to lose 16kg from the base VE.

The lion's share of the increase is in fact in the base structure of the car -- the so-called body in white. According to Hyde, it's here that Holden has added 70kg.

Given the fact that 81 per cent of the steel used in the VE's 'skeleton' is advanced steel (including high strength and ultra high strength extrusions which are lighter and stronger than conventional steel sections) the weight increase is an indicator of the class-leading strength of the new car.