This is out of the blue, but if true, a really smart one.

HOLDEN SILVERADO – HIGH
General Motors has said it is looking to make more of its future US-centric vehicles in right-hand drive, with big utes obvious candidates for our market. An official import should help Holden keep pricing far more attainable than the current crop of big trucks that are available in Australia via conversion specialists but continue to be prohibitively expensive ($100,000 plus).

 

They're going to love them

 

With that headline I was expecting a pic of a vacant lot with a bunch of rubble.

 

I'm surprised at prediction to sell Corsa and Barina, and just as surprised at Astra and Cruze together.

The Volt is questionable as there's no plans to sell next generation Volt or derivative in Europe so no RHD version for Vauxhall - and Chevrolet's record on RHD cars isn't good.

 

At this stage next-gen Holden Volt is dead as a Dodo.

 

Agreed, the Volt is basically finished. Has been for nearly 2 years. After the initial launch stock come in, there was only a handfull of cars imported after that in the MY14 spec with Mylink. Holden has paid out most dealers for their capital investment made in order to support the car and has taken badges on dealership pylons. Last year the plan going forward was to have 1 dealer in each state dedicated to Volt, but I'm not really even sure if that's going ahead anymore.

In regards to Cruze/Astra, I believe this is going to happen, because I don't think there will be a New Gen Cruze Hatchback. If you have a look at the spy shots of MY16 Cruze and Astra, you'll notice that the interiors are basically the same....

Barina and Corsa, doesn't really make much sense, only if they drop the Barina RS and bring in the Corsa OPC/VXR. It's a great little car to drive and I'm sure the new model will be even better.

What we really need is a Captiva replacement and pronto, but I believe this is not coming until around MY18! MY16 is the final facelift of the current vehicle, arriving later this year.

 

If the Captiva replacement comes via Opel, it'll be the Antara/Zafira amalgamation crossover using a PSA EMP2 platform, probably a rebadge on the next generation Peugeot 4008 / Citroen C4 Aircross.

 

No rear wheel drive? Heresy.
Dump the Cruze and just sell the Astra

 

From what I have read, Holden's attempt at the previous Suburban was grim. Whether it was the high cost, low fuel economy, or something else, I wouldn't expect the Silverado to be big enough of a sales hit to justify being engineered for RHD. However, I'm sure it's big enough to crowd the streets. Now, if GM planned to sell the Silverado in more RHD countries, then Holden might be on the list.

 

Silverado should be a no-brainer. The notion of prohibitively expensive RHD is farcical, especially with a high margin vehicle like Silverado.

Tesla makes RHD vehicles. Jaguar does. GM should be doing the same.

 

I feel really sorry for you guys, Aussie's will be stuck with a Holden division that will lack the passion it once had with building great cars, to now just a division of boring appliances with no soul. The new GM Geo!

 

Holden wont get half the stuff on this list because GM won't build them in RHD


Ever


And that's a fact

 

Nothing in this lineup would make my next post-Commodore purchase a Holden.

Their only hope is that the next gen Insignia is amazing and specced and priced like a Commodore. I suspect I will see a sky full of pigs first.

 

RHD Silverado means that probably GM plans RHD-version for Escalade and, may be,Tahoe.

 

GM hasn't planned anything of the sort this article is pure speculation from the motoring press


I ex[ect business as usual which means no RHD anything unless it's made by Opel

 

Perfect list would probably go:

Holden Adam
Holden Corsa (although rebadge it as a Barina)
Holden Astra and all its variants
Holden Insignia (DO NOT CALL IT A COMMODORE)
Holden Colorado
Holden Silverado
Holden Van of some sort (combo size and Ford Transit size)
Holden Captiva
Holden Camaro (should we possibly have a Holden unique front and rear, and call it a Monaro or Torana?)
Holden Monza ?

HSV Monza (awd v6 twin turbo) ?
HSV Camaro/Monaro/Torana
HSV ATS-V
HSV CTS-V
HSV Corvette

 

Silverado would be a complete waste of space. Think about it - it's no longer a rugged trades ute for the masses. It's a soft roaded light-duty luxury vehicle for guys with little man syndrome. 99% of Australians never drive off road except in a garden-centre carpark so big 4x4s where a lot of the $$$$ are will rot on lots. It'd be priced well into Lexus/Merc territory.

Some of the specs I've seen for different versions are no more capable for load and towing than a Thai built LCV. No RHD isn't the only deal-breaker - no diesel is a killer. Dodge don't sell even the Ram diesel here and Dodge-Chrysler have a decades-long history of selling US built RHD versions of Cherokee, 300, even the Neon, PT Cruiser, Renegade; if it paid, they'd be doing it.

The standard tradesman's ute today is probably a sub-$40K crewcab and the Silverado, even a V6 is going to come in way over that with appalling fuel economy and no grunt by comparison. Nissan are going diesel only and I understand next gen Hilix will be too. No-one is buying petrol (gas) LCVs here.

People might be impressed by the chrome overkill on US trucks, like you are by a gruesome trainwreck, but opening your wallet or leasing chequebook is another matter. On sheer practicality our roads, carparks and urban areas - just not made for them.

In America, the fact families buy them for passenger use makes them viable. Here - ain't gonna happen.

GM will be looking at VW's backside and fending off Nissan in the company of Ford in 2020. The concept of barely-competitive at home Euro built Opels being market leaders is farcical.

 

Silverado would be a complete waste of space. Think about it - it's no longer a rugged trades ute for the masses. It's a soft roaded light-duty luxury vehicle for guys with little man syndrome. 99% of Australians never drive off road except in a garden-centre carpark so big 4x4s where a lot of the $$$$ are will rot on lots. It'd be priced well into Lexus/Merc territory.

You have totally missed the point of why somebody would buy a Silverado. Firstly would be the huge towing capacity followed by massive load carrying capacity in the bed whilst still having 5 seats in relative comfort. Off road ability would be well down the list - there are plenty of other (better) options when going bush.

Being slap bang in the target segment I have been studying this closely for quite a while now. There are plenty of crew cab's around, mostly with a 3.0 - 3.5ton rated towing capacity but when you actually put anything close to that on the back things are found wanting very quickly. The Landcruiser is the best of the lot but plenty prefer the tray back (internal use of space in the LC is terrible when you consider the overall size of the vehicle!).

Some of the specs I've seen for different versions are no more capable for load and towing than a Thai built LCV. No RHD isn't the only deal-breaker - no diesel is a killer. Dodge don't sell even the Ram diesel here and Dodge-Chrysler have a decades-long history of selling US built RHD versions of Cherokee, 300, even the Neon, PT Cruiser, Renegade; if it paid, they'd be doing it.

Yeah - gotta be diesel or don't even bother.

The standard tradesman's ute today is probably a sub-$40K crewcab

I think you would be surprised. SR5 Hilux seems to be the weapon of choice for reasons I can't quite fathom - I looked at one the other day and tbh they are terrible! It's real easy to get them over $50k quick smart.

and the Silverado, even a V6 is going to come in way over that with appalling fuel economy and no grunt by comparison. Nissan are going diesel only and I understand next gen Hilix will be too. No-one is buying petrol (gas) LCVs here.

Yeah - agreed. Don't bother with anything other than diesel and on a vehicle like that make it a good one.

People might be impressed by the chrome overkill on US trucks, like you are by a gruesome trainwreck, but opening your wallet or leasing chequebook is another matter. On sheer practicality our roads, carparks and urban areas - just not made for them.

Inner suburbs you have a point however once you are out in the 'burbs and beyond they are fine.

 

From what I'm seeing Holden and Vauxhall's showroom will be basically the same.
And I wouldn't waste my breath waiting for a Camaro anything.

Meanwhile, Ford now has well over 1300 firm deposits on new Mustang
quite staggering considering the 11 month wait.

 

Kudos to Ford for bringing it in (cause God knows there isn't much else exciting in Ford or Holden showrooms), but two questions: have they robbed Peter to pay Paul i.e. sales of the XR8 are limited by build numbers, but could they simply have sold more by Mustang not coming here (makes not longterm difference as Mustang coming is irrelevant to Falcon's future) and secondly, once they fill the 1300 orders, how many more will they sell?

Considering it's been known for a long time it's coming, that isn't really a special number. The FT86 waiting list was 18 months, and they've sold about 30,000 or so since it went on sale.

In the Mustang's case, 1300 only represents around 100 a month given the 11 month wait. Given the pre-drive tests etc it's not so flash - time will tell. If you compare that with XR6T and XR8 sales from 2000-on, it's a drop in the bucket.

 

The stupid thing is that there is no reason any of those couldn't be / have been imported regardless of the state of local manufacture or Commodore. Plus Holden have been screwed for years by a lack of models to sell in the commercial and off road areas.

GMC Sierra as NSW Ambulances were a fail in the reliability and usability stakes I've been told as well.

 

5 or so years ago I took a Hummer H3 to Bellis fair mall in Washington state USA and it bairly fit between the lines in the car park and the H3 hummer is WAY narrower then a "full size" truck
so it is NOT only down under with the mini-me stalls
the K400 series was NOT one of the better built trucks in the recent history of truck building
the GMT800 series that replaces the 400 series in 99-01 was a much improved truck on design/reliability ETC
I believe the F250 has bean almost constant production in RHD form for 30+ years mostly for African consumption
http://www.ooyyo.com/south+africa/u...a/used-ford-f250-for-sale/c=CDA31D7114D38553111BE96FBA27355B07A01D6614F3854111/
link for SA used F250's

 

...
the GMT800 series that replaces the 400 series in 99-01 was a much improved truck on design/reliability ETC
I believe the F250 has bean almost constant production in RHD form for 30+ years mostly for African consumption
http://www.ooyyo.com/south+africa/u...a/used-ford-f250-for-sale/c=CDA31D7114D38553111BE96FBA27355B07A01D6614F3854111/
link for SA used F250's

The Ford F250--at least here is Pickup Truck Country, USA--is very popular. It has been popular for decades.

 

Why anyone would want to drive LHD in a RHD world is beyond me

Having experienced it first hand I can tell you it's not very safe for the majority of road users

MInd you that was in a Truck , but isn't that what we are talking about?

 

It's not a big issue - plenty of Brits drive RHD cars in the LHD world when they visit mainland Europe and plenty of foreign truckers drive LHD in our RHD world when delivering goods to the UK. The biggest issue we get is US military personnel using LHD cars near their bases - they tend to drive on the wrong side of the road !

But that's the UK which is only an hour away from mainland Europe by ferry and only 20 minutes by train tunnel - Australia is a looooooot further from any LHD territories.

 

I think there will still be Astra GTC because its very attractive car and it gets a brand better reputation Problem with current GTC is that it is a little bit too expensive. Astra H and Astra H GTC had almost the same price, and now Astra J GTC is 4000euros more expensive than Astra J.
Maybe a little bit more realistic price point and Astra GTC would go back where it started

If the Cascada doesnt go well in Australia and USA it will be a huge failure.

 

That article is stupid. I've driven in Europe and England, America and Asia and had no issues converting. Motorsports is free today to drive LHD cars - BMW and Volvo amongst others have both entered LHD touring cars homologated for Europe here. If team wanted to, I don't see any reason they couldn't build a LHD V8 Supercar. It'd cost more, but they could do it.

England is never going to change, and it is and remains a large car market - plus, countries like Malaysia and India are RHD, left side of road, too. The reasons cars cost so much here has a plethora of causes, but as the $Au has gone up the price of cars has come down notably. Changing in Sweden in the 60's was a lot easier, as they had no motorways/on-off ramps to contend with back then, a simple patern. They had a population of maybe a couple mill in a country where the penetration of cars wasn't so high and the country itself was a lot smaller. Fewer traffic lights (a lot on highways facing the wrong way if we swap sides). Even things like carpark entries and exits and shopping centres.

It isn't so simple as an administrative change.

 

I agree. A total joke. I thought it was a April fools joke when I first read it but it does say December 31st...

 

To be honest, I can't see the supposed 'advantages' of converting to road system to LHD outweighing the huge cost.

Sweden swapped over nearly 50 years ago, when freeways were far fewer & traffic density was much lower than today. They did it because they were the only country in Continental Europe which wasn't already LHD. They had 1,000s of LHD cars coming into their country daily, so it made sense to 'join the bunch'. You'll notice that the UK is still RHD & they would see much more LHD stuff than Australia would ever see.

The cost alone to change the 100s of freeway on & off ramps in Sydney & Melbourne alone would be in the billions of $$.

Also I don't think that there would be too many international tourists, who would put off their visit to Australia simply because we drove on the 'wrong' side of the road. AFAIK tourists from Japan are highest in number on our list of visitors & they are a RHD country, as are most Asian & African countries.

The % of population stat is biased because of the inclusion of China & Russia (with over 20% of the world's population between them), but with extremely low car ownership per capita. Australia's car ownership (per capita) is the highest in the world, @ 16.5 million registered vehicles for a population of 24 million.

The vast majority of our automotive imports come from Japan & Thailand, both RHD countries.

Which particular 'hi-tech' cars are we missing out on. AFAIK many high end Japanese cars that we see here, are not available in the USA in LHD form.

GM (US) is really on it's own ignoring RHD engineering. If the likes of Jeep & most of the Europeans can do it, why can't GM ?

Dr Terry

 

GM (US) is really on it's own ignoring RHD engineering. If the likes of Jeep & most of the Europeans can do it, why can't GM ?

Dr Terry

Globally, every car maker of significance does both LHD and RHD - except GM-USA - an observation made even more ridiculous by the fact that GM's overseas subsidiaries (Opel/Vauxhall/Holden) all readily build LHD and RHD, regardless of their countries use.

If Ford-US, Jeep and Chrysler can do it so naturally, why can't GM-US ?

 

Was hoping for a RHD Camaro hehehe. Chrysler did it with their 300C & Ford in their 2015 Mustang. Why they need to find every small reason just not to make the Camaro in RHD.

 

So apart from the massive costs of changing roads to suit LHD, what do you then do with the 16.5M RHD vehicles currently driving on Australian roads?

Converting Australia to LHD would do nothing for GM's future Australian line up, they still wouldn't bother making anything interesting for the Australian market, the argument would be there's too much work for Australian compliance not to mention they'd need to tool up for KPH speedo's. Maybe while we're converting our road network to suit LHD we should go back to miles to make it easier for GM.

I think it's quite humorous being told by (some) Americans that we're behind the times persisting with RHD but they still persist with imperial measurements when most of the world has gone to metric.

 

3 very salient points !!

Dr Terry

 

with the advent of drive by wire and steer by wire, why is it still so hard for GM to engineer for both LHD and RHD? what s left to do after that, rhd dash and console, change suspension for driver on rh side, RHD headlights, move pedal box to rh side. Im sure ive missed some stuff but surely if its done from the getgo that cost will be cheaper and can be amortized through the whole global production.

 

While we do have 'drive-by-wire', we do not have 'steer-by-wire'. What we have is electric, rather than hydraulically assisted power steering. The actual design of a LHD electric power steer rack is pure mirror image of the RHD version & a very simple change (in production).

Having said that, I agree with you & do not believe that designing for both LHD & RHD from day 1, would add much to a car's overall design cost. The cost is much higher, if you have to go back & retro-design RHD into a car that is already LHD in production.

Dr Terry

 

I've also owned two LHD vehicles here in Australia and never found it a drama, but it wouldn't be for everyone, especially the nervous nelly's.

 

Agreed, I drive a LHD car regularly and have no issues... my wife however hangs on for grim death... something about not being in control.

 

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/bu...tory/business/autos/detroit-auto-show/2015/01/11/buick-avenir-cascada/21610021/

Could this be the next Commodore?
RWD.....Tick.
V6......Tick.
Built at Holden's Design Studio.....Tick.

 

Back to the topic of Holden's 2020 cars.

I'd prefer to see US Colorado or GMC Canyon instead of the Silverado. I think the business case for Silverado is very weak. The companies currently converting them aren't selling them in the hundereds. Even if they were only in the 60k's they'd still sell poorly. Canyon and ColoradoUS are better suited to Aussie Tradies' needs.



"Aussie designed" would help - but it needs an extra rear seat to be a Commodore. Have any pics of the storage in the back been released? A family car will need over 400ltrs of rear storage.

 

Yes. Australian drivers are bad enough as it is. There's no need to make them worse by confusing them and getting them to drive on the right hand side of the road.

 

You've seen the way they drive in America and France !