Review: Holden Viva Gets Two Stars

[JoeT]

Review: Holden Viva

Bill McKinnon
26 May 2006
www.drive.com.au

Don't be fooled by the badge - or the price - on this Korean car.

Good

Sharp price. Ample occupant space. Tractable, economical 1.8-litre engine. Comfortable ride. Reasonable dynamics. Attractive interior. Stylish, functional dash. Adjustable driving position.

Bad

It is a Daewoo, so it has baggage. Durability, reliability and safety may prove problematic, so we cannot recommend it. Engine lacks refinement. Loose gearshift. Unsupportive back seat. Impractical load area. Resale value is an unknown.

Overall Verdict

Two Star

Recommended retail

$17,990; wagon $19,490. Street price: Some dealers are throwing in the alloy wheels-rear power windows-anti-lock brakes option pack.

Warranty

Three years/100,000 kilometres (average).

Engine Size/Type

1.8-litre 16-valve fuel injected four-cylinder.

Power

89 kW at 5800 rpm (slightly below average).

Fuel Consumption

7-8 litres/100 kilometres highway; 9-10 litres/100 kilometres city (regular unleaded; average. Premium produces slightly higher performance.)

0-100km/h

12 seconds (slow).

Brakes

Discs (average).

Main Options

Alloys, rear power windows, anti-lock brakes $1290; alloys, anti-lock brakes (wagon) $1190; four-speed auto $2000; metallic paint $300.

Residual Value

New model with no resale history as yet.

Old Dog, New Tricks

There's a Holden badge on it and a curious moniker from the 1960s but, under the skin the Holden Viva is Korean, right down to its crankshaft. It is, to be precise, what was once known here as a Daewoo Lacetti.

This is not necessarily a problem. Some Korean cars, notably Hyundai's recent efforts (Sonata, Grandeur and Santa Fe) are well built and have a five-year warranty.

Daewoos, however, have a reputation for poor quality, durability and reliability. Drive's local mechanic, a veteran independent who puts his spanners on everything from ancient Falcons to new Range Rovers, had a weird, anguished look in his eye when we asked what he thought of Daewoos.

"I don't go there," he muttered. "What's wrong with them?" we enquired. "Everything," he replied.

Holden argues that since General Motors' acquisition of Daewoo a few years back, it has begun turning around the brand's reputation. Holden is heavily involved in the process. The next generation of cars from its Korean affiliate, it argues, will be good things.

That is probably true, but the 2006 Viva (and the Barina, a rebadged Daewoo Kalos) both have engineering links to the late 1990s, when quality, safety and reliability were not highlights of the Daewoo culture.

A low price, however, is a powerful short-term attraction, for Holden and the majority of buyers in this class. The Viva costs just $17,990 for the five-door hatch and the sedan; a wagon is also available, at $19,490.

All models are powered by an 89 kW 1.8-litre "Family 1" engine, with a five-speed manual gearbox. A four-speed automatic adds $2000.

Standard equipment includes air-conditioning, a CD player with steering wheel mounted audio controls, front power windows (rears as well on the wagon) heated side mirrors and 15-inch steel wheels.

Daewoos have consistently been among the worst performers in European New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) crash tests around the world, with several models recording two stars (including the current Holden Barina), or two stars with one strike through, which indicates an unacceptably high risk of life-threatening injury.

NCAP has yet to test the Viva. Holden has fitted it with front and front side airbags. Anti-lock brakes are an option.

The Family 1 engine has been around since the ark, and is constantly updated for various world markets and standards. It complies with the tough Euro 4 regulations, so it is clean and economical.

A long stroke configuration gives it strong midrange pulling power and a relaxed, tractable character. Holden's engineers have tweaked the Viva for snappy launch feel - in fact it is a bit too sensitive on light throttle applications - but the top end is a non-event. The Viva is heavy for its size, which contributes to relatively slow acceleration.

As with its predecessors, the 1.8 flares when you change gears in the manual, and responsiveness can be inconsistent at times. Both attributes are annoying in traffic; they would probably be less evident in the automatic version.

The manual shifts smoothly enough in a straight line, but if you have to push the lever through a couple of right angles it doesn't know where to go.

Holden claims it had extensive input into the Lacetti/Viva to get the car's suspension, steering and braking to work properly for Australian conditions and driving styles.

The Viva handles more confidently than most models in the sub-$20,000 zone, including Toyota's Corolla, the Kia Cerato and the Hyundai Elantra.

Suspension spring and damping rates are spot-on for the Viva's purpose in life - which is comfort rather than speed - tyre grip is reasonable and the car is acceptably balanced when cornering, with a predictable amount of understeer.

Steering itself is light and accurate and the brakes (all discs) are average in power and feel.

Ride comfort is fine on all surfaces. There is a touch of bounce on undulations. Noise, vibration and harshness are effectively suppressed, apart from some coarse-chip bitumen noise and texture felt through the wheel at highway speeds.

The interior demonstrates that cheap can be make to look and feel surprisingly upmarket if you pinch your styling cues from Europe. The slim, sleek dash, with the requisite fake metal tizz to break up the grey plastic, is shaped to make the car feel wide and spacious. It is also efficient and simple to use. A big central speedo with bright numerals is easy to read, the audio controls on the wheel are a bonus and there is ample storage handy to the driver, including a split glove box and a centre console box, lined to prevent bits and pieces rattling around.

At first, the air-conditioning made a whining noise that stopped later in the test. The seek function on the no-name radio was hopeless. The test car's interior, though, was squeak and rattle free.

Holden has attracted criticism for replacing two highly regarded, safe European cars - the previous Barina and the Astra Classic, both built by its Opel affiliate - with the Daewoo duo.

Holden argues that it has to compete in a white-hot market and will bring in its cars according to the business case they make and the role they play in its line-up.

Fair enough but, beyond the short-term, Holden imperils its significant investment in the reputation it has crafted into a premium Australian brand over the past 15 years.

[Martino_z]

Well... It's a daewoo theyre meant to be ****************. Lucky for holden people dont care about what car they are buying anymore.

[Stormin]

Originally Posted by JoeT

There's a Holden badge on it and a curious moniker from the 1960s but, under the skin the Holden Viva is Korean, right down to its crankshaft.

All models are powered by an 89 kW 1.8-litre "Family 1" engine,

I don't believe this is correct. Isn't the Australian model running a Family II motor, and this is manufactured in Melbourne? So it's hardly "Korean, right doen to its crankshaft".

[from oz]

I don't know all the facts about these models but most of the cons of that review were inconclusive speculation.

"It is a Daewoo, so it has baggage. Durability, reliability and safety may prove problematic, so we cannot recommend it..."
"Resale value is an unknown"
"...when we asked what he thought of Daewoos.
"I don't go there," he muttered. "What's wrong with them?" we enquired. "Everything," he replied."
Way to conclusively answer a question

[Butz]

The Viva handles more confidently than most models in the sub-$20,000 zone, including Toyota's Corolla, the Kia Cerato and the Hyundai Elantra.

Suspension spring and damping rates are spot-on for the Viva's purpose in life - which is comfort rather than speed - tyre grip is reasonable and the car is acceptably balanced when cornering, with a predictable amount of understeer.

That's expected from a car that participates in the WCCA.

[Richard1098]

Has there been a article from drive.com.au yet that didn't knock Holden generally, trash a particular Holden model, or blindly assert that Holden is doomed?

[Barinafan]

Should I agree with you all? Should I too ask "what was HOLDEN thinking when they decided not to import a FIAT as the next Barina?"

What was Holden thinking in buying a 40% controlling stake in DAEWOO automotive three years ago? Hmmm? Could it be to influence their product development? DUNNO?

OOooooo???? Could it be that Daewoo may well be building the next (Post 2008/09) Corsa's in China and Thailand? Perhaps it might even be that Holden have a serious ammount of development invested in the next series of small cars.

In all seriousness, Holden don't care greatly about the current Viva and current Barina. They did enough to make them look and feel generally like small Holdens (Even though yes we all agree that they still have that freshly vomitted in Taxi smell to their plastics when they are new ... Ohh my GOD in heaven they do indeed stink of vomit). They (Holden) know that these cars are old DAEWOO crap and are prepared to take the hits on credibility for the sake of increasing market share. The golden apple for Holden is in the next (read it ..... Post 2007) generation of Daewoo built product. Holden have had an enormous degree of influence in these vehicles and their design. GET IT!

Melbourne's Herald Sun today summed the whole thing up nicely in comparing the FIAT Corsa with the Holden Barina. Yes they are chalk and chees and several years removed. Holden accept that and will share a global DAEWOO platform from 2007/08. They un-boldly predicted that the next Corsa's, Barina's, Aveo's and Swifts will be built in Thailand and China. (Bloody Bhudhist Thai's and Godless Commie Chinese )

Well ... Is there no GOD?

Is GOD a Holden man or a Ford woman?

You can all harp on as long as you like and "tut tut tut" about Viva's and Barina's getting 2 star crash test ratings. The bottom line is that these are old (and out going) cars built by a Capitalist country (South Korea). The reality is that the next generation of Viva's and Barina's will be built for a global market. Welcome to Globalism folks.

Welcome China, South Korea and Thailand to our market.

[Bravada]

I don't know what was Barinafan's point or was sober while writing this.... Anyway:

Originally Posted by from oz

I don't know all the facts about these models but most of the cons of that review were inconclusive speculation.

"It is a Daewoo, so it has baggage. Durability, reliability and safety may prove problematic, so we cannot recommend it..."
"Resale value is an unknown"
"...when we asked what he thought of Daewoos.
"I don't go there," he muttered. "What's wrong with them?" we enquired. "Everything," he replied."
Way to conclusively answer a question

I don't know where they got it. Daewoos used to be quite carelessly put together and sometimes materials were below any standards (though this seems to be improving), but by using GM parts that sometimes have been happily running for 30 years Daewoo has created some of the more reliable vehicles on the market. So, your door handles might all fall apart and seat upholstery disintegrate, but your good old Daewoo would still be going. See this:

http://www.reliabilityindex.co.uk/to...28339010848601

Lanos is ahead of the likes of Mercedes or Volvo.

[Barinafan]

I assure you that I am quite sober, I know that I often talk criptically and use this to get people thinking about issues.

I see a larger picture emrging than simply Holden buying the cheapest available product. That's my point and whether the current models (Barina and Viva are rubbish) is not an issue as I see it in the grander scheme of things ... that's my point.

Instead of encouraging others to think before they bash in the future perhaps I'll just get straight to the point and save people tha agony of thinking?

Cheerio

[JoeT]

Has there been a article from drive.com.au yet that didn't knock Holden generally, trash a particular Holden model, or blindly assert that Holden is doomed?

I was thinking about naming the thread "Review: Holden Viva Gets Slammed By Daewoo Hater, Again!".

[MatsSS]

Yes the Viva and current Barina are ordinary in comparrison to the cars they've replaced. But... the current Viva and Barina are cars built under the old Daewoo guise. Future models such as the Captiva(Antara) will be built under GMDAT and will be far better quality and better designed than previous Daewoos. Holden have had very little input into the the current Viva and Barina but the next generation of cars under GMDAT, Holden will have a large hand in design, engineering and development. I'm sure Holden would have prefered to hold off bringing the Daewoo products to Aus until the next generation GMDAT cars were available, but sometimes things just don't go exactly the way you want them.

[BBDOS CV8]

Bill McKinnon is usually more balanced: The Viva has the exact same, made in Oz motor as the Astra, down to the l/100km, Kw and Nm.

He's quite happy to label the car as terrible, but state it is squeak and rattle free and handles and rides better than the Asian competition under $20,000. More than can be said for that fridge-magnet with disgusting handling, engine and interior characteristics, the Corolla.

Someone should point Bill at the mediocre reviews he gave the old Barina and Vectra. Not a mention in them of Spain or England. Why is a Korean-made car worse than one from Thailand or the Phillipines?

[AusCalais]

GoAuto also released a review today:
http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...25717A00082D37

It does dwell on the Korean thing again, but is much more kinder...and identifies its 1.8L as Holden built, but also calls it a 'Family One'.

[Barinafan]

Originally Posted by MatsSS

Yes the Viva and current Barina are ordinary in comparrison to the cars they've replaced. But... the current Viva and Barina are cars built under the old Daewoo guise. Future models such as the Captiva(Antara) will be built under GMDAT and will be far better quality and better designed than previous Daewoos. Holden have had very little input into the the current Viva and Barina but the next generation of cars under GMDAT, Holden will have a large hand in design, engineering and development. I'm sure Holden would have prefered to hold off bringing the Daewoo products to Aus until the next generation GMDAT cars were available, but sometimes things just don't go exactly the way you want them.

Danke,

Need I add more?

[MatsSS]

Originally Posted by BBDOS CV8

The Viva has the exact same, made in Oz motor as the Astra, down to the l/100km, Kw and Nm.

The Astra actually uses a variant of the Family 1 engine, not built in Aus. Whereas the Viva uses the Holden built Family 2 engine. The Viva's Family 2 1.8L puts out 89kw, 169nm and a compression ratio of 9.7. Whereas the Astra's Family 1 1.8L puts out 90kw(92kw with premium), 165nm(170nm with premium) and a compression ratio of 10.5.