Holden announces new 6.0-litre V8

IT’S official: Holden has confirmed it will replace its current 5.7-litre Gen III V8 with a more powerful and more efficient 6.0-litre version within two weeks.

Holden boss Denny Mooney said that from 2006 Holden’s staple V8 will become a 260kW/510Nm version of General Motors’ new 6.0-litre Gen IV.

"We are going to come out with a 6.0-litre V8 this year," he said. "We're happy to take another step with our V8. We think it's just a good move from a refinement standpoint.

"(It has) good, strong, low-end torque that people that buy V8s want and enjoy ... the right balance between economy power and refinement."

Holden’s GM-sourced Gen III V8 joined the Holden range in June 1999 with the release of the VT II Commodore line-up, in which it offered 220kW/446Nm. It replaced Holden’s long-running 5.0-litre V8, which delivered 195kW/430Nm in its final form.

But the Gen III doesn’t meet Australia’s strict new Euro III-based 2006 emissions regulations, and it’s believed adopting GM’s new V8 was more cost-effective than upgrading the Gen III.

As reported by GoAuto two weeks ago, many Holden dealers are already taking orders for Gen IV V8-powered models, stocks of which will be in dealerships by the end of December.

Codenamed L76 but dubbed "LS1.5" by Holden insiders, the 6.0-litre Gen IV continues the all-alloy, two-valves-per-cylinder pushrod design of the Gen III, but differs from the Gen IV LS2 6.0-litre V8 that powers the new Corvette Z06 and HSV’s local line-up, in which it produces 297kW.

"It will not be the LS2," said Mr Mooney. "It's actually a lower power version ... of the Gen IV V8. It's got a milder camshaft. It's not meant to be the HSV kind of performance level."Introduced in its North American SUV line-up this year and originally expected to make its local debut in September’s all-new VE Commodore, GM’s fourth-generation pushrod V8 differs primarily in its employment of variable valve timing and Displacement On Demand (DOD) technology, which is claimed to reduce fuel consumption by up to seven per cent.

Combined with GM’s new 6L80 six-speed automatic transmission, which is claimed to reduce fuel consumption a further four per cent and improve 0-100km/h acceleration times by up to seven per cent, Holden’s new V8/auto combination should be more powerful, smoother and at least as economical as the Gen III.

The Gen III currently powers Holden’s Monaro, SS and SV8 sports flagships and its top-shelf long-wheelbase Caprice (in 250kW guise), and is optional in Calais (with 235kW), Berlina and Statesman (in 245kW form).

It’s not known whether Holden will continue to offer V8 versions of its all-wheel drive Crewman Cross8 and Adventra LX8 models in 2006, when the new V8 will power an otherwise unchanged VZ Commodore range for eight months before the new VE Commodore sedan is released.

Revised V6 for 2006 too

HOLDEN’S Port Melbourne-built Alloytec V6 will from next month gain on-board diagnostics, an upgraded catalytic converter and an extra knock sensor.

Reflecting the cost of meeting Australia’s so-called Step II emissions requirements for 2006, the Alloytec upgrade comes after just 16 months of service in VZ Commodore.

The same upgraded 3.6-litre V6, but with a higher torque output, will next year also appear in Holden’s Thailand-built Rodeo utility. Rodeo’s new V6 will offer more performance and better fuel economy than the Isuzu V6 that’s no longer required for use in Frontera and Jackaroo models.