Road TestCar reviews - HSV - W427 - sedanHSV modelsOverviewBigger is better when it comes to HSV's W427, if you don't mind the fuel bill17 Apr 2009 HOLDEN Special Vehicles has finally bitten the bullet and put a 7.0-litre Chevrolet V8 in one of its Commodore-based cars. Holden's performance arm had built a racer-for-the-road Monaro with a similar 7.0-litre engine as a concept back in 2002 and even started taking cash deposits for the car it called the HRT 427. Unfortunately, the business case didn’t make sense and HSV pulled the pin on the mighty coupe. Its second attempt, the W427, is not a road racer, but a luxury sedan with a race-bred Chevrolet engine. HSV upgraded the W427 with a new manual transmission, improved brakes, unique interior trim and details, special wheels and unique styling. It doesn’t come cheap, with the W427 attracting a sticker price of $155,500. Model release date: 1 July 2008 to 1 September 2009 All car reviewsAlfa Romeo Abarth Alpine Alpina Audi Aston Martin BMW Bentley Chevrolet Chery Citroen Chrysler Dodge Cupra Ferrari DS Ford Fiat FPV Foton GWM Great Wall Holden Haval HSV Honda Hyundai Hummer Isuzu Infiniti Jeep Jaguar Lamborghini Kia LDV Land Rover Lotus Lexus Maserati Mahindra McLaren Mazda Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-AMG Mini MG Nissan Mitsubishi Peugeot Opel Proton Porsche Renault Ram Rover Rolls-Royce Skoda Saab SsangYong Smart Suzuki Subaru Toyota Tesla Volvo Volkswagen Previous modelONLY two road-going examples of the HRT 427 were ever built, one of which is owned by an enthusiast, while the other has long resided in the foyer of GM Holden’s Port Melbourne HQ. Named after the Holden Racing Team and based on the two-door Monaro, the ultra-expensive car had a unique front suspension, a carbon-fibre bonnet and lightweight magnesium wheels. Power came from a 7.0-litre Chevrolet Corvette engine that reportedly developed 420kW/780Nm and pushed it to a top speed of 299km/h. The car was unveiled at the 2002 Sydney motor show and won two Bathurst 24 Hour races, but the production program was canned because the business case was deemed unworkable. |
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