VF Commodore: Zero to hero

Holden’s new VF Commodore isn’t the full reskin of the 2006 VE that Holden originally planned, but Australia’s last fully indigenous Commodore is far more than the minor facelift necessitated by the GFC.

The VF was never going to be an all-new car after Holden spent a billion dollars developing the VE Commodore and its new Zeta platform, which also underpins North America’s Camaro.

But Holden always planned to produce a fully reskinned body riding on Zeta architecture, with one early design even proposing an 80mm-shorter five-door hatchback not dissimilar to the mid-size TT36 Torana concept of 2004.

However, by the time Holden had to lock in the design of the VF in October 2009, GM had filed for bankruptcy following the GFC, its Australian profits were plunging due to a large-car market in serious decline and Holden itself was in danger of closing its factory and becoming a full-line importer of Chevrolet models.

The result was a tight budget that limited Holden’s designers and engineers to creating new front and rear styling on the same bodyshell, to differentiate VF from VE as much as possible with limited funds.

“We sat down in a room and asked ‘what do we need to do, what can the business afford?’. It started off very small, a lot smaller than the program ended up being,” Mark Sheridan, Holden’s Director of Body Exteriors, Interiors and Dimensional Engineering, told motoring.com.au.

“It was driven by a small budget more than anything. Financially this was around the time we were going through the GFC. Obviously we already had plans around MY11 and powertrains and all that and it was ‘what can we look at going forward and how can we extend the life of the architecture?’ and financially it came down to ‘what we can afford?’ It started off as a facelift -- fenders, fascias, hood, and decklid and rear lights.

“The GFC fundamentally changed GM because GM was bankrupt and so all grand plans for every architecture around the globe were looked at and redeveloped based on more stringent budgets and more financial control in the organisation,” said Sheridan, who was chief engineer for the Commodore for five years until late 2012.

Poached from BMW to become the body architect of the VE Commodore sedan, wagon and ute, before working on the Camaro then returning to the VE as chief engineer from MY9.5, Sheridan said persistent requests for more finances to grow the VF program eventually paid dividends, resulting in a heavily upgraded Commodore sedan with all-new sheetmetal except the roof and doors, a fully redesigned interior and GM’s latest infotainment and driver safety aids.

“From there we had a whole wish list we wanted to do to the car and over time we gathered more data, gathered more information about why we really needed to change to things like Global A (electric architecture), why we needed to do the IP (instrument panel, or dashboard).

"Because we had gone through MY11 with only minor changes, we really needed an all-new IP and we really needed an all-new electrical architecture because of the technologies that go with the architecture, and we wanted to push the boundaries from a fuel economy point of view.

“Obviously (door) closures are a big thing, and we threw all that in the pot and went back to the organisation maybe three times looking for more funding to generate more stretch in the architecture. So it started off being a pretty small program and ended up being a pretty big program.

“Over time evolution helped us get to a point where dynamically this car is the best Commodore we have ever made. In terms of quality this car is far better than what we have today (VE) – in terms of the improvements we have made; gaps, margins, flushness, even the tactile feel of the interior.”

Links to motoring.com.au’s VF Commodore news
>> Mission accomplished: Holden had simple aims for VF
>> Steering a new path: EPAS is the headline item but VF’s chassis represents significant change
>> Aero Dynamic: Pedestrian safety and aerodynamics have shaped VF
>> Inside Job: Fewer parts and better materials drive VF Commodore’s interior upgrade
>> Large car future proofed: VF’s new electrical platform plays a vital role
>> Power games: Carry over powertrains don’t detract from VF story
>> Getting connected: VF delivers impressive connectivity
>> Safely integrated: No US-spec kneebag but Holden says VF is safer

Links to motoring.com.au’s VF Commodore: First Drives
>> First Drive -- VF Commodore SS
>> First Drive -- VF Commodore Evoke
>> First Drive -- VF Commodore Calais V
>> First Drive -- VF Commodore SV6 Ute
>> Along for the ride: In a very small way motoring.com.au played its part in the VF

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