AIMS: Holden to showcase imports at Sydney

HOLDEN will showcase six new imported products at the Sydney motor show this week, headlined by a full range reveal of the beefy new seven-seat Colorado 7 SUV, joined by the first public look at the Camry-fighting Malibu mid-size sedan.

Also on show will be the load-lugging Cruze wagon and revolutionary Volt electric range-extender, while tweaks to familiar products will include an automatic variant of the Barina Spark city car and a high-spec CDX variant of the light-sized Barina CDX.

Waving the flag for Australian-built vehicles at Sydney will be the special edition Z-Series Commodore line-up and the Cruze hatch and sedan but Holden is keeping its powder dry on the highly anticipated VF Commodore until next year.

Holden hot-shop HSV will also put in an appearance with the limited-run 25th Anniversary GTS, which gets lightweight alloy wheels, cosmetic tweaks and upgraded brakes – but no power boost.

Holden external communications director Craig Cheetham told GoAuto the company’s Sydney show stand will focus on what it calls the “global product renaissance” but promised next year’s Melbourne show will be “all about our domestically produced models”.

From top: Holden Colorado 7 Cruze wagon.

Little is known about the pricing and specification of the Colorado 7 other than it will adopt the same Chevrolet-inspired two-port grille as the recently launched Colorado one-tonne ute on which it is based.

Despite the styling, Holden engineers have been busy testing and tweaking the Brazilian-developed, Thai-built Colorado 7 – called Trailblazer in other markets – for Australian tastes and conditions.

The spiritual successor to Holden’s Isuzu-derived Jackaroo is odds-on to feature the same grunty yet efficient 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine as the Colorado.

As with the Colorado 7, Holden engineers are also testing and calibrating the Malibu sedan in Australia for local relevance – in addition to development work for overseas markets – but unlike the SUV, the mid-size sedan will get a more traditional Holden grille design.

A new 136kW/245Nm 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine is widely expected to feature in the Australian Malibu but other drivetrains used internationally include 2.0-litre and 2.4-litre petrol units, the latter offered as a hybrid in North America, while a punchy 2.0-litre turbo-petrol is also on the horizon.

Although the Cruze sedan and hatch are built in Australia, the wagon’s Korean sourcing earns it a place on Holden’s import-oriented stand.

As a result, the 1.4-litre ‘iTi’ engine, Watts link rear suspension and electric power steering set-up built into the Australian-made Cruze sedan and hatch are unlikely to translate, nor are some of the Australia-specific styling updates and colours.

The Cruze wagon is 165mm longer than the Cruze hatch and 74mm longer than the sedan and has 1500 litres of space up to the roof line with the rear seats folded – making it 500 litres less roomy than the Commodore Sportwagon.