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15-07-2009, 04:57 PM | #1 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
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AFTER THE SHOCK-WAVES of the global financial crisis hit, followed by a world oil price that first fell but has since marched skyward, many tipped that the days of the big Aussie V8 were numbered.
Not so, apparently. Last month, Holden sold a sizeable 1682 V8-powered vehicles - the best monthly sales figure since November 2004; an achievement Holden attributes to its new fuel-saving Active Fuel Management cylinder deactivation system. The AFM system shuts down half of the engine’s eight cylinders during highway cruising and prolonged deceleration, and Holden claims that it can save up to 1.0l/100km off the fuel economy rating of a car equipped with a non-AFM engine. AFM is currently only available on cars fitted with an automatic transmission, however with the majority of Holden V8s being optioned with a slushbox, thats no big issue. With 6570 Commodores and Statesmans sold last month, V8 sales accounted for 25.6 percent of Holden’s large-car sales. The Australian automaker’s bent-eight models have always been popular, but last month’s numbers are a solid improvement over the 20 percent share those models usually command. It’s such an improvement that inventory for V8-equipped Commodores and Statesmans is running low. Demand is steadily outstripping supply and Holden’s order books are 50 percent fuller than the same time last year. In a world increasingly fixated on alternative fuels, hybrid motors and super-compact city cars, V8 enthusiasts are still prepared to open their wallets to capture the singular joy of a V8 on song. With Holden’s AFM technology now delivering considerable fuel-efficiency and emissions gains, it seems the V8 will remain a powerful force in the Australian industry for a good while yet. Again FORD has lost the plot and dropped the V8 from the G Series ! Just like they did in the 80's. When will FORD learn !!! my comment
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15-07-2009, 05:01 PM | #2 | ||
Professional Mouse Jockey
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: SE Vic
Posts: 3,185
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The fact that the Holden (Chev) V8 is bloody good in the VE and the V6 woefully bad probably helped things along.
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15-07-2009, 05:05 PM | #3 | |||
Trev
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Was Perth, now country Vic
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Quote:
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15-07-2009, 06:01 PM | #4 | ||
Peter Car
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: geelong
Posts: 23,145
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I seriously doubt wether AFM had anything to do with higher V8 sales, it does bugger all.
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15-07-2009, 06:09 PM | #5 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 22,922
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AFM did nothing for sales...
They lost power and gained stuff all in fuel consumption... V8 sales were up because of the investment allowance and company directors updating their lease cars, no doubt Fords V8 sales were up for the month aswell however Ford really need a G8E model...
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15-07-2009, 06:11 PM | #6 | ||||
Force Fed Fords
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Quote:
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15-07-2009, 07:16 PM | #7 | |||
Guess Who's Back?
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 1,369
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I think Fords idea is to wait until the Coyote V8 is released before they reintroduce the V8 across the range. I for one, can't wait! |
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15-07-2009, 07:31 PM | #8 | |||
Giddy up.
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Kramerica Industries.
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We Can not argue with the fact's, the V8 for the general has sold very well recently. |
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15-07-2009, 08:10 PM | #9 | ||
Donating Member
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Melbourne
Posts: 4,523
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You guys are missing the point.
AFM allows the Mr Average to get his V8 past the Mrs. I know of a Holden dealership that ordered up to the point where the big boss nearly had a heart attack, V8's all gone. Yes it (AFM) is a useless gimmick but if it sells cars....
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15-07-2009, 08:56 PM | #10 | ||
Workshop & Performance
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Location: Hewett SA
Posts: 4,130
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Giveaway pricing also helps. Can't believe what you can get for your $ compared to my old VX now.
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When close is good enough and the 6 MPS in the driveway has FoMoCo written all over the place. Xr5 for sale shortly...just not a hatch guy |
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15-07-2009, 09:05 PM | #11 | |||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
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If sales have spiked because of AFM the spike will be short lived because its ineffectiveness will soon become apparent to everyone, i think sales have spiked for natural/seasonal reasons like end of financial year deals/cash spends, and lets face it, V8 commodores are popular again.
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15-07-2009, 09:24 PM | #12 | |||
Donating Member
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Think about how the majority of these cars are sold. It's not 1985 anymore
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15-07-2009, 09:47 PM | #13 | ||
Banned
Join Date: May 2009
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Apparently Australians are the worst dressers in the World when it comes to clothes.
Their taste in cars is not much better, there never has been a Commodore good enough that I would purchase it over a V8 Ford....mind you Im old school...as in Holden backing down in V8 form altogether on the race track in the face of the GTHOs Commondore ? sorry no way....never. |
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15-07-2009, 11:33 PM | #14 | ||||
You dig, we stick!
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I strongly agree with Powdered Toast Man. With massive discounting and a V6 that is a major failure it's not too hard to see why the V8 is selling. Elks hit the nail on the head... "honey, it runs on 4 cylinders!!" would have no doubt been said by every potential holden buyer to his other half. Quote:
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16-07-2009, 12:04 AM | #15 | ||
Walking with God
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Location: Melbourne
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They've just got a whole new market for their crummy V6 so what's it matter if sales of that engine drop a little at home!
GK
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16-07-2009, 12:14 AM | #16 | |||
Banned
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Location: Adelaide's Southern Subs
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The only commodores i see now in adelaide are all SS packs While i understand its a FORD Forum, its getting pretty ricdiculous and rather Juvenile. Everytime a Holden comes up even if it is the "Dogs bollocks" AKA Top . its sledged regardless of how good it is. How many of you can actually put ur hand up and provide a FIRST HAND opinion on THIS holden V8.
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16-07-2009, 12:31 AM | #17 | ||
Walking with God
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Melbourne
Posts: 7,321
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Ease up mate.
There was a very good long range test done on a few V8s up the Hume a while back, and Holden's glory package hardly did much at all. It was a shallow improvement (providing it was driven at 90kmph) on a normal V8. I guess us being Ford fans just makes it that little bit easier seeing through the hype of the holden advertising machine! LOL! GK
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16-07-2009, 12:38 AM | #18 | ||
Workshop & Performance
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Hewett SA
Posts: 4,130
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Yes but if it added up to half the fuel consumption then it'd truly be something. What's even Holdens claim 1l/100 or the like and it does bugger all except under cruise conditions. It's a better selling tool than ownership experience.
Nobody claimed Holdens V8 isn't a good jigger. But their marketing machine is even better.
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When close is good enough and the 6 MPS in the driveway has FoMoCo written all over the place. Xr5 for sale shortly...just not a hatch guy |
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16-07-2009, 11:44 AM | #19 | ||
hmm eyebrows
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Lower Hunter Valley, NSW
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My question is: what is a "big Aussie V8"? Nothing Australian about the GM V8 is there but it certainly performs.
Oh and another thing. I'll get burnt for this. What is bad about the Holden V6? Due to the generous gearing from the automatic, the V6 actually goes pretty good especially down low(I drove a factory LPG version too). Sure it's not an enthusiasts engine of choice, but it is a very capable motor for the car it is in. I truely believed what I read here about it until I actually drove it and what is often stated here about it is pretty much BS. What I will say is that the VE wiring gremlins are alive and well.
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16-07-2009, 11:58 AM | #20 | |||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
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Regards, Dave
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16-07-2009, 12:06 PM | #21 | |||
XP Coupe
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It will be interesting to see what actual long term users report. I don't put much stock in published figures, neither factory nor car mags. I have been running my trip computer for nearly three years now and it shows 12.8l/100 average on the 6.0. That corresponds pretty well with actual fuel bought and klicks travelled. |
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16-07-2009, 12:15 PM | #22 | |||
XP Coupe
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16-07-2009, 12:17 PM | #23 | ||||
Force Fed Fords
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16-07-2009, 12:39 PM | #24 | |||
Regular Member
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Posts: 120
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Have you seen how many V8 Calais and Calais V there are around? trust me Ford would love some of that action. |
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16-07-2009, 12:40 PM | #25 | |||
Getting it done.....
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 2,219
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Quote:
While the alloytec isn't the worst engine ever made (or even on sale right now) the FG (including recent fuel burn/emissions improvements) exposes it as as quite inferior to the Ford I6. Combine with generally accepted inferior gearboxes doesn't help matters. Sure it revs out more than an I6, but not by all that much and doesn't sound all that good doing it. I was amazed at how Ford has continued to improve the revability of the I6 when FG came out....it revs quite cleanly and smoothly right up 5500rpm + which is great when you consider how it used to sound in older models. I think Holden has done reasonably well to make reasonable torque lower down but compared to an I6 it is no comparison in my view. I dont' for the life of me know why Holden fans (or even just car nuts generally) think the alloytec is even halfway to what Ford has achieved with the barra onwards I6s. For me it is one of if not the major thing holding the VE back as a car. without DI the alloytec is not even worth considering IMO. It is this issue as much as anytying else that has so many V8 commodores going off the dealer floor. I recon if you foudn out the % of V6 commodores going to private owners it would be pretty poor indeed....almost equal to v8s. So in effect private sales only its 50:50 - get the V8 or give the car a miss i think.
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16-07-2009, 12:50 PM | #26 | ||
Banned
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Holden’s V8 sales have always hovered around the 20-25% mark (of total volume). That includes pre-AFM history.
It's not exactly news.
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16-07-2009, 03:12 PM | #27 | ||
Starter Motor
Join Date: Feb 2007
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Just cause AFM is not great right now doesnt mean that it cant be developed further in the future to include more conditons in which it can activated.
The fact is holden brought it out as currently it can provide some fuel savings. It doesnt matter if it is huge or small, either way it is progress and progress requires work. Its out there now so there going to be able to test and develop it further, and one day it may give a huge saving which would be great and then other makers can use similar technolodgy, at least if it does fail they have given it a go and they can chalk it up to another lesson learnt. |
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16-07-2009, 03:16 PM | #28 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 14,654
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AFM is pure marketing BS, sorry but its proven to NOT work in any measurable way in real world every day conditions, if people are stupid enough to buy it based on the hype, or have had the wool pulled over their eyes they'll quickly see it has no + effect at the bowser or on their hip pocket, its "popularity" will be short lived because as we all know, bad news travels allot faster than good....
Any savings seen on the current auto powered V8's come from a loss of performance and power output..
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16-07-2009, 04:41 PM | #29 | ||||
Force Fed Fords
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No, I stand by what I said, a 290kw XR8 motor in a G6 would be a good thing; a 230kw motor bad.
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16-07-2009, 04:45 PM | #30 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Dec 2004
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In the luxury v8 market timeslips mean very little, but comparing a 230 kw v8 to a 270 kw v8 and you lose..
On the other hand a 290 Kw G8E would be very popular in comparison to a 260 Kw AFM V8 Calais. We have a VE Calais 6 Litre due for replacement but my old man refuses to trade it, A) Because hes already got a 270 kw Turbo Territory F6X and doesnt want a G6ET with the same motor and B) the new Calais with AFM has less power, therefore it would be a downgrade to replace his current 6 Litre. If Ford on the other hand offered a G8E then he would be buying one now.
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