HSV Clubsport R8 Track Edition: Holden Special Vehicles Goes To Bathurst

There’s a calling that emanates from a relatively innocuous hill in the central west of New South Wales. But this bump in the earth’s surface, just to the south of the former gold mining town of Bathurst, is home to a road that doubles as a race track and, once a year, becomes the home of “The Great Race“. That calling, to a place known as “The Mountain”, to Mount Panorama, entices the faithful and the dedicated with their almost tribal allegiances to a driver or a team, and since the 1990s, has coloured their blood red or blue exclusively. You’re either a Holden bloke or a Ford bloke, such is the barrier.Holden Special Vehicles, HSV, was born out of the breakdown in the relationship between car manufacturer, Holden, and its formerly favourite son, race car driver Peter Brock. Brock had taken over the running of the Holden Dealer Team and had formed an after market division, which eventually lead to Holden breaking off their supply deal. In 1987, Holden signed an agreement with Scottish born driver and businessman, Tom Walkinshaw, forming a joint venture that was named Holden Special Vehicles.One of the first products of that union was based on the Holden VL Commodore; HSV fitted an aerodynamically tested body kit, painted in a silver with hints of blue. Known colloquially as “The Batmobile” due to the add ons, the Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV would set the tone for many of the following products.In 2016, HSV unveiled two limited edition models. Using the Clubsport as the donor, there is the Limited Edition SV Black, available in both sedan and ute bodies. The other is a car that harkens directly to the history of motorsport and was driven in Bathurst, the HSV Clubsport R8 Track Edition. Clad in “Sting” red paint, with yellow AP Racing brake calipers visible through gunmetal grey “Blade” alloys at 20 inches in diameter, the Track Edition makes for an ideal way to nod at Australia’s diverse and rich motorsport history.Mount Panorama is unique amongst the world’s motorsport circuits; its peak is 874 metres above sea level and there’s a height differential of 174 metres between the peak and the lowest point of the track, the starting straight. There’s slopes as tight as one in six and a corner said to have the highest tyre load of any race circuit in Australia plus the fastest corner in touring car racing. There’s a couple of cold facts.What isn’t cold is the warmth the place generates for the fans of motorsport that make the annual pilgrimage “out west”. There’s good natured rivalry, with supporters of the red and the blue sharing campsites, gags, memories and, importantly, a love of a good V8.The Track Edition packs a 340 kW/570 Nm 6.2L LS3 V8, pinched from Chevrolet. There’s a real transmission, a six speed manual, with an almost too light clutch. It’s unlike older cars, where the joke ran along the lines of being able to tell a HSV owner due to the size of the calf muscle in the left leg. It’s easy to push and balance on the throttle when required and it helps that the gear selector is couched in a definitive feeling gate mechanism. There’s a satisfying snick/snick/snick as you change up or down, as satisfying as the sound of a cold one being opened in the camping grounds.It’s a big heart, the LS3 V8. There’s a bore of near as dammit 104 mm, a stroke of 92 mm, with a free revving nature to boot. That peak power comes in at a typically high 6000 rpm, and the peak torque at 4600 rpm. It’s a gentle upwards slope for that torque, though, with just over 400 of them waiting to be told what to do at just 1000 revs. Just like the denizens that pack The Mountain every October, it’s easy going, relaxed, unfussed…until it’s pushed. Leave it in sixth at legal speed and press the loud pedal. It’s called the loud pedal for a good reason. There’s a low, long, subterranean, growl that builds and builds and builds from the front, as the induction system sucks in litres and litres of air, mixing with dinosaur juice and spitting out the remains via the quad exhaust.That quad exhaust is linked to a dial in the humble looking cabin. There’s a choice of Touring, Sport and Performance. Leave the dial on Touring and at idle you’d be pressed to say the engine’s running. Move it to either of the other two and a pair of baffles open in the inner banks of the mufflers, opening the throat of the LS3 and letting the world know it’s an eight in a vee. From a standing start and driven the way a muscle bound car should be sees license goodby speeds reached in a few seconds, a roaring, chest thumping snarl from both ends as you pluck the gears, easily finding each cog as the beautifully weighted selector falls to hand and the clutch and accelerator dance in unison. At Northern Territory legal speeds, the engine is barely ticking over at 2000 rpm.The MacPherson struts up front and multilink rear end are sprung with linear rate coil springs and for a car weighing over 1800 kilos it’s adept, comfortable in the ride, eats unsettled surfaces and totally undermines any perception that a muscle car should be uncoordinated in the way it drives. Even the electrically augmented steering is light, two fingertip light and responds instantly, changing the direction of the red machine instantly, as the Continental 275/35/20 tyres grip at either end of the 2915 mm wheelbase.The suspension is taut, specially engineered to give an intoxicating mix of Supercar inferring ride, a superbly flat stance into corners and that slow in/fast out response a track aimed driver expects. In fact, the whole package is genuinely one your gran could drive, it’s that docile to use when not exploring the outer limits of the ability the Track Edition has. The car industry uses the term “surprise and delight” to describe certain aspects of a car and that applies to the way the HSV flows on the road.Inside, the lack of visual differentation is a surprise and not entirely a delight. HSV eschews the fabric stitched into the centre line that the donor vehicles have but has stayed with the dash mounted fabric found in the Holden SS. There’s the standard dash plastic and layout, with Holden’s MyLink touchscreen systen with Pandora and Stitcher apps. HSV’s EDI, Electronic Driver Interface, didn’t seem to be enabled in this car. There’s a thumping Bose sound system, beautiful in its clarity buck lacking a DAB tuner.It’s hard to suggest any changes however as 2017 beckons and with it the knowledge that Australia’s Own will close the doors as a big car maker down under.It’s an engine of many personalities, the LS3, just like those found around the camp sites at The Mountain, especially those at the top, called Skyline. A Wheel Thing commentated from the tower there in the mid noughties, alongside the great Barry Oliver, with an enduring memory being watching Army helicopters doing aerobatics…below the level of Skyline. It provides a sweeping vista north, across the circuit, over Bathurst itself and east to the western fringe of the Blue Mountains. Regulars will have their campsites setup with heaters, fencing, signs, and the obligatory ambers on ice. There’s jackets adorned with badges, faces adorned with beards, and kids faces wreathed in smiles when the HSV R8 Clubsport Track Edition visits the top of The Mountain.We’ve got the dial set to Touring, so as to not draw the ire of the campers as we seek a suitable site for some pictures. Photo session over, it’s into the campsite and espy a site with both the blue and red colours on the flags. Photographer Scott grins and says he has an idea. Moments later the rear of the red car is up against the fenceline, with a horde of the curious swarming over the car. They note the working bonnet air vents, the lack of visual identification that it’s a Track Edition outside, door sill and centre console the only places Track Edition is mentioned.There’s an eyeballing of the body coloured and black wing, the contrasting black inserts in the front bumper against the red and the slim black skirting along the sills of the near five metre long machine…a Ford bloke nudges his Holden mate and points towards the yellow six piston calipers from AP racing with HSV embossing, visible through those “Blade” alloys. Comments are made about the gloss black highlight of the bonnet badge, with the consensus being that it looks wrong. “Where’s the chrome?” asks one. Another in the crowd asks “Howsitgomateorright?” A nod, a smile and then the inevitable question…”Can we check out the donk?”The aluminuim bonnet is lifted and instantly the population around the car doubles, as does the number of cameraphones. The engine’s being quietly idling in the background, feeding the dual zone aircon a steady flow of cooling air inside, across the non heated or cooled leather seats and suede wrapped steerer.It takes only a moment’s breath before “Goonmategiveitago!” The 6.3L alloy block snarls in response, effortlessly sending the mechanical needle spinning past the over emphasised numbers on the tacho, eliciting a cheer from the red lion faithful, an appreciative nod from some of the blue oval brethren, before one grins, walks away, and starts up his blue oval badged V8 to answer the challenge issued by the HSV. It’s no contest, say many, the red car sounds best.There’s a price to pay for that exuberance. You can’t call 6.2 litres of Chevrolet’s finest economical, unless you own Saudi Arabia. Even those few stabs on the throttle have shifted the fuel needle, as fuel is sucked in from the 71 litre tank, nestled near the 496 litre boot.. The LS3 prefers a liquid diet of 98 RON unleaded and will show nothing less than 12.0L of liquid gold being consumed for every 100 kilometres covered, and that on the return trip from The Mountain on a greasy highway after light rains.The crowd have dispersed, with many words of thanks, plenty of pictures taken, and thoughts turn towards the coming weekend of endurance racing at the Mountain. HSV is inextricably linked with the history of the place, with Tom Walkinshaw himself having raced in a Jaguar XJ-S. The Track Edition, at $68990, is a wonderful nod and counterpoint to The Great Race, with Holden Special Vehicles building just 150 of the car for Australia and six for New Zealand, making it a rarity, unlike the variety of characters found around Mount Panorama.HSV was born, in a way, of The Mountain, so it was fitting to take the Track Edition there. The place is iconic, there’s names etched forever into the history of Mount Panorama and motorsport runs deep in the souls of those that journey there every year for their annual pilgrimage. That’s the allure of The Mountain and the allure of HSV.

Go here for the latest in HSV’s range: www.hsv.com.au

A Wheel Thing thanks Damon Paull at HSV and Scott Richardson for photos.

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Weird, Wild and Wacky Concept Cars – Maybe

It’s a pity that the Tokyo Motor Show only comes around every two years.  This is because this particular motor show is famous – or should that be notorious – for revealing some rather unusual concept cars.  Yes, the world also gets to see some great new developments from the top Japanese manufacturers and designers, but we also love looking at and laughing at some of the downright crazy ideas that some designers come up with.

Mind you, are they that crazy? After all, speculation, imagination, exploring the limits of what’s possible and trying new things is how new technologies are invented.  However, some ideas are crazier than others.  Take the following offerings from the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show.

Just to get us all thinking, each of these concepts showcased here gets a craziness rating out of ten and a final verdict:

Nissan Teatro for Dayz: 

Most of the interior, including the display panels, the interior lighting, the headrests and more can be customised via a smartphone app.  It’s got built-in ability to take selfies.  What happens when several passengers inside the car have the same app isn’t clear.  It could also be vulnerable to hackers.

Craziness rating: 7/10

Verdict: Why not?  It’s not that different from changing the playlist being streamed on the audio, really.

Nissan Concept 2020 Vision Gran Turismo

It looks like something a 13-year-old would doodle on the inside of a maths book, to pinch a brilliant phrase from Jeremy Clarkson.  This is probably because it’s going to be driven at very high speeds by 13-year-old boys.  Don’t panic: it’s only going to be driven virtually.  This concept car is actually designed for the Grand Turismo 6 computer game.

Craziness rating: 4/10

Verdict: Almost a caricature of what a street racer or performance car should look like, so not really pushing the envelope.  Not my cup of tea but if the rumours that it will inspire the styling of future sporting Nissans are true, it will be popular.

Honda Wander Stand

Shown in the picture alongside the more practical Honda Wander Walker scooter, the Wander Stand is a sort of box that fits two people and can move in eight directions (forward and back, left and right, and all four diagonals).

Craziness rating: 7/10

Verdict: There’s an older invention that works just as well most of the time, known as “feet”.

Toyota Kikai

If the front end isn’t bizarre enough, just wait until you see the back of this dune buggy: it’s backside is naked, revealing the engine.

Craziness rating: 8/10

Verdict: The styling alone gets it a high craziness rating.  And is this dune buggy actually supposed to be driven with a naked engine on actual real sand?

Suzuki Mighty Deck

The name’s bigger than the vehicle.  This could be described as the mongrel offspring of a Mini and a single-cab ute.  It’s teeny (and looks like a Mini Cooper at the front) but it has an open deck out the back. If you’re asking why, it’s because vans, trucks, utes and similar commercial vehicles get a tax break in Japan, even if they’re miniature.

Craziness rating: 5/10

Verdict: The idea of a teeny weeny ute that might just be able to fit a lamb or a Labrador is ludicrous to the typical Aussie mind (especially if you’re a rural type) but if it’s done to make the most of a tax loophole, that’s actually quite sensible.  It has a certain cute factor but I won’t be buying one.

Mercedes-Benz Vision Tokyo

It’s self-driving.  It looks like a prop from a sci-fi movie (mind you, so do plenty of other concept cars). The seating is more like a couch where the passengers (there is no driver) face each other and the steering wheel (should you want one) retracts or pops out.  Maps and the like are projected in the middle of the cabin as holograms.

Craziness rating: 9/10

Verdict: Where’s the lightsabre storage compartment and the teleporter?

Daihatsu Noriori

The name seems to be a blend of two dwarves from Tolkien’s The Hobbit, but this actually is quite a good idea. The point of the Noriori is that you can get wheelchairs and prams into it very easily, then lock them in place.

Craziness rating: 4/10

Verdict: Could be some issues with seatbelt compliance regulations but a nice thought.

Toyoda Gosei Flesby

It’s soft and squashy, meaning that if you hit a pedestrian, he/she won’t be hurt (much), at least not if you’re travelling at low speeds.  It’s steered via joysticks, and can customise the lighting, scent and posture depending on the driver’s mood… which it senses.

Craziness rating: 7/10

Verdict: I wanted to give this a higher craziness rating because the idea of a squishy soft car steered by joysticks that picks out a scent to suit what it thinks is your mood is so quirky.  However, developing materials to enhance pedestrian safety isn’t that wacky, so I knocked off a couple of points on those grounds.

Now, here’s hoping that in 30 years’ time, people don’t look at this post and shake their heads at our lack of foresight because we thought some of these ideas were crazy… http://credit-n.ru/calc.html

Private Fleet Car Review: 2016 MY17 Subaru Levorg GT & GT-S

Subaru has gone back to the future for the 2017 MY (model year) Levorg. It’s a name from the past applied to a modern mix of turbo charging, boxer engine, all wheel drive. Available in GT and GT-S spec with manufacturer’s pricing of $42990 and $48890 plus ORC (plus an optional Spec B configuration package from $52890 plus ORC), A Wheel Thing drives the Subaru GT Levorg and Levorg GT-S.First impressions are of from the front. Looks like a WRX, complete with angular headlights, low set indicators, LED backlit DRLs surrounding the headlights and air intake in the bonnet looking like a whale shark skimming plankton. At the rear it’s a blend of Forester and Outback and a slightly heavy looking bumper, dragging the rear visually close to the tarmac whilst the roofline tapers gracefully downwards. Front and rear bumpers on the GT are not fitted with parking sensors however.In profile, there’s tidy looking 18 inch alloys wrapped in 225/45 Dunlop rubber for the Levorg, in full alloy for the GT and black painted machined alloys on the GT-S. There’s an odd choice of exterior styling for the window trim, with a sole strip of chrome on the lower window line whilst the rest is blacked out. The GT-S follows a similar styling theme and it’s not entirely cohesive in look. Personal choice would be to have all blacked or all chromed. There’s a bit of aero design in the rear flanks, with a crease from the rear door handles to smooth air flow.It’s elegantly packaged overall, with a balanced proportion in look, with a total length of 4690 mm giving the Levorg a low and slinky look thanks to the 1490 mm height. An overall width of 1780 mm makes interior space cosy, with enough room on the rear pew for two passengers comfortably but a tad tight for three. Dry weight is 1538 kilograms.Inside it’s standard Subaru in the GT; cloth covered manually adjusted front seats, the GT-S goes leather with blue piping plus heating up front with two memory seats, sunroof and heated wing mirrors. There’s the triple screen display in dash and console, dash dials limned in a brilliant aquamarine, push button Start/Stop and a surprise.A Wheel Thing has long bemoaned the seeming wacky choice of lighting the button that says Dual for the aircon but it’s lit when actually only operating as a single zone. This has finally been rectified. Huzzah! For portable device charging and music playing there’s USB and Aux up front and a USB port for the rear seat passengers.The GT misses out on some of the touchscreen features the GT-S gets; satnav, for example, is not fitted and also dips out on Blind Spot Detection, Lane Change Assist and Rear Cross Traffic Alerts. There is a reverse camera and you’ll still get the side/front/curtain and knee airbags plus the mandatory assortment of electronic driver aids and that marvelous Eyesight forward collision avoidance system. Safety rating, as a result, is five stars.Subaru’s made sure the Eyesight system is easy to use. There’s a tab on the steering wheel to adjust how far ahead the system scans for traffic and will beep stridently when it senses an object plus will apply braking force if the computers deems the human component is not reacting fast enough. It’s a brilliant system but sometimes a tad fussy when sensing stationary objects. At least the alarm keeps the driver on their toes. The GT-S adds a visual element by fitting a series of red LEDs in the dash where one might find a HUD.

The tiller also has the SI Drive buttons; these offer three driving modes, with the more user friendly being the Sports, the in between mode ahead of Intelligent. This sharpens throttle response and engages the Lineratronic CVT noticeably quicker and imbues the transmission with a more traditional auto change feel. Sports Sharp (S#) takes it a step further; the dash shows the gear ratios, not just D, and further improves the gear change feel. It’s also this mode that the paddle shifts become relevant, as there’s now eight preset gear points to play with, and makes this gear perhaps not the one for most.

A Wheel Thing is not a massive fan of CVTs and this doesn’t escape scrutiny. There’s lag sometimes between engaging Drive from Reverse, sometimes a lag between hitting the accelerator and having forward motion engaged. That indecisiveness off the line is frustrating and potentially, in the wrong situation, dangerous. When it’s underway and hooking up, it’s a different story.

From a standstill, the Sports # is the pick for seeing 100 kmh in the quickest way….6.6 seconds, thank you. The brakes were up to the task, with a smooth bite and feedback almost from the moment of touching the pedal. Given the newness of the GT (built in May 2016) there was more than a hint of brake pad smell around town, with the stop/start traffic flow.

Moving to the rear and we’ll see the raison d’être for the car and where the Levorg shines. There’s 60/40 split fold rear seats, operated by both a pull knob on the seat’s corner and in the cavernous 522 litre cargo section, a simple pull switch to the left and right of the cargo wall. This drops the seats flat and opens up the cargo area to a whopping 1446 litres. There’s the lift up floor to access the spare wheel which is a space saver and hides a couple of extra storage pockets.Up front and below the gaping air intake is the square bore and stroked (86.0 mm x 86.0 mm) boxer four with turbo. It’s an engine that sings its best party tunes between 2500 and 4500, especially when at velocity. The lightest of extra pressure on the throttle sees the turbo boost gauge creep upwards however the numbers of kilometres per hour climb faster as a seemingly endless push in the back is applied.

Subaru quotes peak power and torque as 197 kilowatts @ 5600 rpm and 350 torques between a table top flat 2400 – 5200 from the 2.0L engine. Economy? Well, this was an engine with around 1600 kilometres on the clock when tested in the GT, so would still be bedding in. Final economy was 9.5L of 95 RON from the 60L tank for every 100 kilometres covered and this was in a driving environment of 95% urban. Given Subaru quotes 11.9L per 100 km for the urban, 6.9L/100 km on the highway and 8.7L/100 km, that’s come out quite well.When punched hard, there’s the hint of turbo whistle from the front. It’s a sound that’s been virtually eradicated from production petrol turbo cars, sadly, and even some diesels now miss out on that. There’s the thrum of the boxer engine and the almost silent whoosh from the twin exhaust tip. There’s no doubt some aftermarket companies will already be working on replacements.It’s a typical turbo delivery, with that feeling of “here it com………there we go!” and is only slightly hobbled by the characteristics of the CVT. There’s that slipping clutch feeling before the system grabs hold of the engine’s torque and then makes full use of it. Again, the CVT works best when everything is already happening, especially when at freeway speeds.

Road holding was, as expected, superglue in its grip. Point, shoot, apply throttle, brake, and the Levorg did as asked. You wear, rather than drive, the Levorg. Unexpected was the variance in ride quality. Subaru have fitted the Levorg with two suspension setups: for the GT there’s KYB and for the GTS, Bilstein is the supplier. Bluntly, speedhumps are not the friend of the GT and to a lesser degree the GT-S, with front and rear crashing into the bumpstops even at low and appropriate speeds. The chin would bang the tarmac and the rear would bang around, moving the spare wheel assembly and tools audibly.The GT-S was a bit tighter but disappointed in not matching expectations. Compared to Skoda’s Octavia wagon, the suspension was softer, less accommodating of undulations and bumps, less tight and taut. The rear still felt soft, bouncing more than expected coming off speedbumps, and whilst the front in the GT-S was tighter than the GT, the Octavia felt more settled and composed as a package. There’s also some clunks from the driveline in parking and turning, as the all wheel drive system deals with the input the sensors send to the onboard computers.

Underneath the Levorg are coil springs and McPherson struts up front, while the rear sits on double wishbones. The combination keeps the Levorg flat and level on the freeway, adding to the perception it’s a sports car with a big boot. Steering is a rack & pinion system, with electric power assistance. It’s firm, well weighted, and doesn’t feel over assisted regardless of slow, parking, acceleration or highway velocities.

Included is three years worth of road side assistance and three years warranty with unlimited kilometres. Service intervals are six months or 12500 kilometres. For towers, the Levorg is rated at 1200 kilos, enough for a small trailer, for who’d want to tow a caravan with a sports wagon?

At The End Of The Drive.
The Levorg offers a quality alternative and fits well into a niche, Subaru’s forte. A medium sized, non diesel, roomy, non SUV vehicle with good looks, punchy performance and efficient in its simplicity stands it in good stead. With Subaru expecting to shift somewhere in the order of north of 250 units a month, it’ll add to Subaru’s already well stocked arsenal. The GT’s Achille’s heel is the overly soft suspension in the real world or car parking and road based speed humps, leaving the GT-S to look as the winner but not by much, with both dealing with a CVT that seems to need more polishing. For A Wheel thing, it’s a case of Levorg, Lelike, not LeLove.
Subaru can help you book a test drive and provide information here: Subaru test drive link http://credit-n.ru/informacija.html

Tesla Looks Further Towards The Future.

Tesla has announced a new, over the air, software upgrade, for the Model S and Model X. This brings a new, redesigned, User Interface (UI) to the massive touchscreen. With the upgrade due in Australia sometime from October 2016, here’s what Tesla Australia had to say:

Tesla makes the only cars on the road that continue to get safer, smarter, and more capable over time, thanks to free, over-the-air software updates. While traditional cars have static features, a Tesla is more akin to a smartphone, adding new functionality and enhancements throughout the life of the car.

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