HSV Turns up the heat (updated with official details)

[ltd]

Ha ha ha, according to Joshua (I've written the article, now where's my money holden?) Dowling, they could only manage a 5.2 0-100km time. Ha, my G6 beats that stock, and cost half as much as the ugly stick battered HSV.

[Transfiguring R]

With only an 8kw increase to the GTS's peak power and no increase to the torque, the i6T was never going to be pipped from its position. The i6T makes its power just too quickly.

[WASP]

Originally Posted by Transfiguring R

With only an 8kw increase to the GTS's peak power and no increase to the torque, the i6T was never going to be pipped from its position. The i6T makes its power just too quickly.

If only it had the grip of the GTS. You have to hand it to HSV for focusing on this area to make the car faster (and look good to). It's one thing to have the power and another to make it useable. Lets face it, the F6 in the real world is making more like 350kW's and God know's how much turbo boosted torque. Even the 315BOSS GT's are in the real world making GTS output numbers or more. The FPV's rear suspension and 245mm SP Sports Maxx were never going let these cars show their true potenial.

[WASP]

Originally Posted by ESP

I've seen it in the flesh and it certainly polarises opinions. Some angles it looks OK and others its just plain wrong. The wheels which have always been an HSV strength, are just not inspiring on the GTS. They look funny. The front is very heavily laden with too many trinkets and the front overhang is longer than the original VEGTS which adds to the "weighty" look.

The rear also takes a while to get used to, with an obvious attempt at Ferrari styling but with a pinch of BOGAN thrown at it to appease the demographic target. ( read additional plastic vents and exaggerated proportions)

This car will certainly make an impact on the road. It will be very obvious that it is a GTS and not a CLUBSPORT.

The attempt is brave.........but as I previously posted, it smacks of USA export design that was perhaps canned at the last moment.......meaning the local cars now must wear the POKER FACE.

Fair enough. I have not seen one in the fresh but will do soon. I guess I admire the brave and bold move more than anything. Years ago I owned a galaxy blue AU1 XR8. In order to make up for some of the less desirable design proportions, I fitted the full Tickford body kit including the bi-plan rear spoiler and a V8 Supercar deep front spoiler. It even had extra badges made with 250i featured under the Tickford front fender badges (yes it was modified). Point being it was over the top, even slightly outrageous, but I personally loved its unique appearance compared to the normal XR’s. This car used to stop traffic and attracted many admirers including Holden fans which is saying something when at the time, most disliked the look of any series1 AU Falcon model.

There is no mistaking the GTS. It promises to be over the top and as long as it delivers this equally in performance then I have no issue with its exterior presentation.


Colville

[Noddy]

Originally Posted by CDAA

If only it had the grip of the GTS. You have to hand it to HSV for focusing on this area to make the car faster (and look good to). It's one thing to have the power and another to make it useable. Lets face it, the F6 in the real world is making more like 350kW's and God know's how much turbo boosted torque. Even the 315BOSS GT's are in the real world making GTS output numbers or more. The FPV's rear suspension and 245mm SP Sports Maxx were never going let these cars show their true potenial.

This is one area fpv have decided not to address, adding some rear grip would make a real difference to the straight line speed. The only thing i can thiink of is their not confident in the strength of the drivetrain/diff/axles. To many warranty claims.

[ltd]

Originally Posted by Noddy

This is one area fpv have decided not to address, adding some rear grip would make a real difference to the straight line speed. The only thing i can thiink of is their not confident in the strength of the drivetrain/diff/axles. To many warranty claims.

I expect theres quite a bit of truth to this, but don't ford and holden get their diffs from the same place? Or is Holden getting that from Korea as well?

[T3ts50]

Originally Posted by ltd

I expect theres quite a bit of truth to this, but don't ford and holden get their diffs from the same place? Or is Holden getting that from Korea as well?

I think Holden have been using ZF diffs since the start of VE. Im pretty sure ZF have a factory in Adelaide.

[irlewy86]

Originally Posted by ltd

Ha ha ha, according to Joshua (I've written the article, now where's my money holden?) Dowling, they could only manage a 5.2 0-100km time. Ha, my G6 beats that stock, and cost half as much as the ugly stick battered HSV.

You forgot that the HSV was weighed down by Josh Dowlings Ego, which at last estimate was having an alarming effect on the tides.

[R-Design]

Originally Posted by By PHILIP LORD 23/09/2009

Our opinion

We like
Performance, handling and ride, Competition ESC and Launch Mode for the track and licence-saving Extended Cruise Control to get there

Room for improvement
Lack of spare wheel as standard, standard VE issues of thick A-pillars and small side mirrors

PLENTY of ‘Series 2’ cars have represented only a once-over-lightly of the previous model, but the HSV E Series 2 is not one of them.

For a start, it is hard to miss the E Series 2’s new looks. While the E2’s new nose and tail treatment may not satisfy everyone, for the most part it is a well-executed design change that clearly separates the HSV range from Holden’s hot Commodores.

You do not have to be an enthusiast to pick the differences any more, and importantly for HSV, you do not have to be an enthusiast to like them.

Maybe the E Series 2 does not look like an instant Audi S, BMW M or Mercedes Benz AMG alternative, but for about $60k-$80k, not much else provides HSV’s bang for buck.

To reiterate the potency of the HSV range, HSV sent us on a meandering drive through the Yarra Valley – with Winton Raceway as our destination. The easy and slow road loop showed the new model to be a comfortable, lazy cruiser, although the optional 20-inch wheels and performance suspension on the ClubSport R8 felt a little hard when belting down patchy back roads.

Lugging along in sixth gear allowed us to play with the new cruise control. It unobtrusively reigned in speed creep with the smoothness and subtlety of a career diplomat, saving us from the ever-present and pernicious VicPol radars.

When a slow meanderer needed to be dispatched on a long straight, the 6.2-litre LS3 did not need much encouragement to economise on its use of wrong side of the road. The baritone bark of the new bi-model exhaust system made itself known here too, with none of the vibration and droning that seems to constantly dog most customised exhaust systems

While the 6.2-litre V8 will lug along in top gear, rev its heart out or anything you like in between, the six-speed manual does not exactly hold the promise of whip-crack gearchanges at first acquaintance. Yet get to trust it, and ignore its feigned balkiness, and you will not need to wait for long between orders of bulk kilowatts to the rear wheels. The seemingly slow-changing gearbox somehow can be prodded into fairly quick changes.

On the track, the GTS, with its optional six-piston calliper brake set-up and standard Magnetic Ride Control, was clearly a sharper track-day tool than the ClubSport R8 sedan that we also sampled.

The GTS’s power gain is hard to pick, but the optional brake package is fairly obvious for its better bite.

Yet the ClubSport R8 acquitted itself well, with good balance. Of course ‘balance’ is a relative term for a big, heavy car on such a tight track, but the HSVs held tight lines prescribed by someone who would not know a racing line if they fell over it. Ultimately, understeer was a trap.

The ClubSport and GTS both seemed to entreat you to drive more smoothly and pick a better line. The Competition Mode also proved that even a driver whose skill is best described as average can be made to look talented. That is, of course, until the HSV race drivers at the track did hot laps in the cars to show how it was supposed to be done.

Competition Mode is no competition on that front, but tellingly, even the race drivers could achieve better lap times using this mode rather than the standard ESC mode.

The race-track experience not only highlighted the excellent dynamics of the new HSV range but also the persistent VE design flaw of thick A-pillars. We all know that Holden says this offers better crash safety, but it comes at the cost of vision, especially in tight corners.

The bolstered front seats curiously seemed a little flat on first sitting, but laps of the track proved beyond doubt their ability to keep you planted.

We also got to sample launch mode at Winton. The ability to get away cleanly and quickly for sprints or time trials is a bonus. As for road use, perhaps it’s like the low-range transmission in an urban-use four-wheel drive – it will probably will not – or should not - be used by many owners.

A big sedan that looks good and that has the ability to devour big long stretches of Aussie highway at a comfortable lope just as easily as it shaves lap times on the track for half the price of the top-shelf hi-po Euros is a heady mix. The new E Series 2 might be a bit big and boofy for some, but benefits of the refinements in styling, features and engineering in this latest evolution of HSV’s E Series are hard to ignore.

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...257639001A7757

[R-Design]

It's meaner than ever, but the fastest, most powerful GTS ever now comes with smarter electronics to optimise the driving experience.

Originally Posted by Steve Colquhoun, drive.com.au, September 23, 2009

HSV has put the mongrel back into the Aussie muscle car.

It has assembled a hairy-chested range for its VE mid-model update, dubbed E-Series 2 (or E2 for short) that has less to do with its previous attempts to attract conquest sales from European performance car enthusiasts and is more about reconnecting with the company’s former catch-cry of “race relations”.

Featuring track-oriented innovations such as a “competition mode” that desensitizes the car’s safety systems, a race-start launch system, performance-oriented suspension tuning and more power and grip for the hero HSV GTS model, HSV is going back to its grass roots and even invited the media to put its cars through their paces at Winton Raceway in northern Victoria.

In another return to its roots, HSV is also making sure its new E-Series 2 cars are the centre of attention everywhere they go by giving them perhaps the most distinct – and polarizing – looks since the first HSV, the celebrated “Batmobile” 1988 Group A Walkinshaw Commodore.

The busy front fascia features twin flared nostrils on the bonnet atop a snarling twin intake and a menacing lower air dam, bejeweled on either side by brilliant daytime running lights.

A wild interpretation of the original E-Series’ rear end channels a bit of Ferrari’s design language, especially on the GTS model where massive chrome exhaust tips protrude from a frowning rear diffuser.

With its stiffer performance suspension that drops the car lower than its E-Series 2 brothers (such as the ClubSport R8, Senator Signature and Maloo), the GTS is certainly eye-catching – just as HSV intended.

Seen in the metal, the design is more coherent than it appears in photos, although we still vastly prefer the more sedate appearance of the Senator Signature model.

If it’s a performance sedan you’re after – and most HSV customers are – it’s a straight choice between the cars we spent track time in at the launch, the $65,990 Clubsport R8 or the $80,990 GTS.

Both get a liberal dose of gear from the HSV go-fast parts bin, although the GTS’s 6.2-litre V8 has been beefed up by 8kW to 325kW, while the ClubSport makes do with the 317kW carry-over unit.

The difference between the two engines on the road or a racetrack is almost undetectable, with the GTS sporting a meatier exhaust note and a marginally taller power band.

Adding a further dose of lair to all this grunt is the addition across the HSV E-Series 2 range of “competition mode”. At the press of a button, it takes the edge off the car’s standard safety systems such as stability control, traction control and anti-lock brakes.

What this means on a racetrack is liberal doses of easily controllable oversteer, where the rear wheels slide noisily wide.

You’ve also got plenty of latitude to push hard into corners, secure in the knowledge that if you’ve over-committed yourself the car will be up to the task of arresting your sliding front wheels and returning steering control to the driver.

It’s enormously good fun to explore the limits of the big car’s awesome grip in the safety of a closed track environment, although we wouldn’t recommend doing so on public roads as you have to work pretty hard to break the outstanding connection to the tarmac enjoyed by each HSV we drove.

A secondary function of the competition mode (on manual cars) is a launch control system, designed by HSV to deliver its performance-focused customers the perfect standing start.

Select competition mode and engage first gear, then step hard on the accelerator. The car will dial up about 4600rpm and hold there, ready for you to step off the clutch.

The engine will bellow and the tyres will chirp repeatedly, but if you’ve followed the rules the car should hook up and send you on your way to a 0-100km/h time of between 5.0-6.0 seconds. And if you want to perfect your technique you can do it time and again, all without voiding the manufacturer’s warranty, HSV assures us.

The HSV GTS further justifies some of its significant premium with its recalibrated Magnetic Ride Control, which changes the molecules in the dampers to deliver a more reactive suspension tune. Body roll is reduced under fast direction changes, enhancing the superbly crisp and communicative steering.

It also packs a high-flow version of a new “bi-modal” exhaust used across the range. The system uses a valve to channel exhaust gases through one of two mufflers - a quieter one muffler under light acceleration or steady throttle, or a louder one when the foot goes to the floor.

Bystanders benefit the most from the GTS’s lower, raspier note, while inside the cabin it’s more difficult to distinguish between the GTS and other models in the range fitted with the standard exhaust set-up.

The HSV GTS also puts more rubber on the road with 20-inch wheels that trump the rest of the range’s standard 19’s. For this update HSV has also widened the GTS’s front wheels to 8.5 inches, lending the big car just a little bit more bite when turning into corners. It probably won’t help with low-speed manoeuvring in supermarket car parks, however.

And even though the GTS gets a little more visual “bling” with some more chrome, a distinctive wheel design and intricate fog lamp bezels, for the slight improvements in performance we’d find it hard to go past the highly capable and $15,000-cheaper Clubsport R8.

Both proved to be supremely relaxed tourers on a winding drive through Melbourne’s foothills where we had the chance to utilize another new-for-E2 feature, extended cruise control. This function effectively prevents the car from exceeding the set cruise control, even on downhill sections of road. There are no other major changes inside the cabin.

HSV says it has improved fuel economy across the range, quoting a 4.5 per cent improvement to the Clubsport R8 to a combined 13.9 litres per 100km.

Cars on the media launch performed significantly better, based on undulating country roads with three adults on board. A manual HSV GTS clocked up 11.1L/100km and an automatic Clubsport R8 returned 11.9L/100km.

A manual Clubsport R8 Tourer – the HSV version of the Holden Sportwagon – also managed 11.9L/100km despite weighing 100 kilograms more than the sedan.

It’s an encouraging sign for a performance car company that is making noises about alternative fuel technologies, although we’ll reserve our final judgement on the GTS and other models in the revised HSV range until we can put them through a mix of typical suburban, city and country driving.

http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/Ar...&vf=12&IsPgd=0

[Transfiguring R]

Originally Posted by CDAA

If only it had the grip of the GTS. You have to hand it to HSV for focusing on this area to make the car faster (and look good to). It's one thing to have the power and another to make it useable. Lets face it, the F6 in the real world is making more like 350kW's and God know's how much turbo boosted torque. Even the 315BOSS GT's are in the real world making GTS output numbers or more. The FPV's rear suspension and 245mm SP Sports Maxx were never going let these cars show their true potenial.

True. Well said.

[calais]

Today I saw one these supposedly god-awful pieces of australian automotive design.

It caused an accident on Mulgoa Rd in Penrith near the Harvey Norman complex entrance. (take that as you will) and I saw the whole shebang unfold as it drove through the intersection.

It was a silver Senator Signature, and I thought it looked really good. Not too outrageous, mind you it was on a trailer and didnt have the DRL's ruining the look.

As for the GTS, the online pics I have seen do not make me look forward to meeting one in the flesh.