Six Airbags & Air Conditioning Now Standard Across The Holden Commodore Range

[mikmak]

5 Speed wagon.... what a tease.

[sigma]

How long ago was A/C made standard on every GMNA car? What 15-20 years ago?

[growler]

Originally Posted by MrJamesMc

I can't imagine air conditioning not being something standard in the first place.

I don't know why they have only just made air conditioning standard, but i can tell you that for about the last 10 years Holden have not build a Commodore with out it, that is unless it was a special request by the customer. And i'm betting that the number of Commodores built without A/C would number less than 100 or so for that period.

[chinamonty]

I have only had air con in one car over 35 years of driving. Melbourne does have hot weather but I just opened the windows or if it was particularly hot i would put the car through a car wash to take the heat off. Really in Melbourne, where I have spent most of my driving life there are probably only 10-15 days a year where you would say you had to have air con. In the Benz that had it I think i used it more for demisting in winter than in cooling in summer but then I like heat - I wouldnt turn aircon on until it hit 30C. I guess it would be diffferent if my job had required me to be in the car during the day but that was seldom.
Here in Guangdong provence I would find it essential as not only do you have high temperatures but the humidity is high.
Also if I lived in the country I would definitely NOT want ABS. I have drivven gacrs with it on roads with gravel shoulders and it does not impress me one bit in that circumstance. Sure for city driving and counrty highways it is OK.

[TKR]

Originally Posted by Aych Es Vee

Commodore had a/c standard across the rang up until about 6 years ago, then they dropped it for some reason when the VY came out..... idiots!

Actually A/C has been optional on Executive for as long as I can remember. Holden used strategy this to highlight the Lumina, Equipe packs with std A/C (based on Exec).
I would love to have seen the look on a salesmans face when ordering a VZ Executive without A/C. I bet Holden did not have the ability to build a car without it. Does anyone know if Holden built such a car?

[BBDOS CV8]

I've been in Telstra cars prior to 2000 without it, from Holden and Mitsu. I'm sure if you went there today with a big enough fleet order and wanted cars without, they'd make them. There would be someone, somewhere who's bought VE's without it.

[mmciau]

Originally Posted by BBDOS CV8

I've been in Telstra cars prior to 2000 without it, from Holden and Mitsu. I'm sure if you went there today with a big enough fleet order and wanted cars without, they'd make them. There would be someone, somewhere who's bought VE's without it.

DASFLEET in the 1970s and 1980s actually paid more per unit for Toyota to take the car radios out of the Corollas. Can't have any Public Servant enjoying the privilege of driving a 'Z" plate.

Department of Works - NT Administration had a group of Holden Utes without clevis pins in the clutch pedal fulcrum and Telstra got a batch of Falcons without engine mount bolts!!

Mike

[mikmak]

Result of fiscal conservatives?

[nota]

1979 found me on the spot welding gang at Pagewood fusing up VB Commodore floorpans to the sills etc, and you don't want to hear what the leading hand instructed us to do with those luckless cars that rolled up with job cards bearing the ID # of the NSW Police

[GM-10]

Is this really front page news?...or is 6,000 cobalt SS stories?

[mang01]

Originally Posted by Rick_VT

i think you could prob assume Holden will fit a 5sp auto and dump the old 4sp when the series 2 VE comes out, anyone know when thats scheduled, im suprised Holden didnt call this one a series 2 model its a pretty reasonable upgrade in equipment.

You'd think if Series II was going to dump the 4speed then that would have been part of this press release but that it doesn't seems to imply it will continue. Hard to imagine this much change does not qualify as SII but it would seem it is coming soon.
My housemate recently had a B-double truck run up the back of his 380 (Mitsu Galant in US) and was leant a current VE Berlina for a week's try-out but the salesman was trying to sell him on the supposedly imminent Series II version; apparently one thing they are doing is dumping the horrible green-tinged wood-grain effect trim strip running across the dash (thank god!) but overall the car sounded like a chaffcutter (has the lesser spec 6, and maybe the 4speed?) and to me felt a lot like my dad's old HQ Kingswood in spec level (the 380 was a top of the range with leather and sunroof - 5speed 3.8, V6 - so felt much more luxurious; actually it wasn't a bad car at all, can only think the continual speculation of their (now imminent) discontinuation + perhaps their styling let them down. A wagon might have added a few extra units too, the previous model wagons sold pretty well).
Also, didn't the Omega start at 34 something back when it was released in 2006? Seems to have jumped two gs or so since, though this extra equipment more than makes up for the difference I suppose..

[Black AH CDX]

^^^^^^

I think its already be mentioned elsewhere that Holden will no longer be doing the "Series II" thing for VE. Instead with VE they have changed to a Model Year System. VE was launched with VE6 (MY06), then came VE7, VE8, VE8.5 and now VE9's have just started showing up in dealers showrooms.

As for the Berlina models wood grain, that was deleted way back in VE7 or 8 and replaced with a silver strip.

Omega's starting price when VE came out was $34,490. However this didn't include A/C which was a $2000 option, take you to $36,490. VE9 Omega is $36,790 but hass all the extra equipment, so its good value compared to the original VE.

[asylum]

just found a heap of new photos on the Holden website

new wheels on Calais


new wheels on Calais-V


new colour on SS-V (Voodoo)


new interior colour


new grille and wheels on Omega

[mikmak]

I noticed that the sports wagon Omega omitted wheel covers for 16" alloys. Looks like it has carried over to the sedan.

Love Voodoo too. Finally smurf (turismo) blue has come back and I'll be betting it is a hit.

[asylum]

OH! the omega also has body coloured mirrors and door handles! ABOUT TIME

voodoo looks very different to that 'photoshop'

its more similar to Impulse than Turismo, but still very bright and metallic