Joining the ZB crew - 2019 LT 2.0L long term review thread.

[mirrabucca]

you will get 3.2m if you put the end up on the dash in the liftback lol.
i have used my zb to transport all sorts of crap furniture, bags of concrete, lengths of wood, pvc, patio tube, sheets of tin/fencing.
the zb is a beast for transporting crap from bunnings/stratco.

Ahh, so it IS a Holden after all

 

[hademall]

In saying that I will invest in some roof racks for the bigger stuff

Not sure what kind of roof rack you can get for the ZB. Just be mindful that any roof rack has a load capacity.

 

[aprentice]

Just started getting the annoying shift to P error. Only a couple of presses on the gearstick and it goes away, still annoying, probably only pops up 10% of the time.
Will most likely try get my next service with the Holden dealer that is local to see if it can be a warranty claim as just under warranty, however had absolutely horrendous customer service with them last service and just ended up going to my regular mechanic instead as I got fed up, will see how next service interval turns out.

-little rant- tried ringing up to book service, could never get through the service department, messages left through the reception (who could not book a service for me), no answer, left enquiry on the website, no answer, emailed, no answer. After about 3-4 weeks of nothing I rang up and made a complaint direct to one of the supervisors, ripped them and booked with my regular mechanic, same day - call from service department lolllllllll

I am sure other dealers are different but it was an absolute disgrace and once the car is paid off I will never buy a car under warranty, previously self serviced and worked on the car as a hobby, I do not want to have to rely on dealer service again, have heard shocking dealer stories all over, worst being a mate who purchased a new chrysler 300 srt8 which was off the road for months due to dealer incompetency in ordering parts and also a mates dad whos evo got dropped from a vehicle hoist. -rant over-

All in all though still enjoying the car, just helped a mate move house and the boot absolutely ate it up.

I am a little bit worried about the whole thermostat issue, however looks like its mainly a V6 problem? Will have to look into that a bit more, might be worth purchasing pre-emptively.

Will also be up for some new tyres soon, so will need to do a bit of research.

 

[mirrabucca]

Thanks for that, and keeping us (potential owners) informed.
I gave up on dealer "service" a very long time ago after a few screw-ups. After 21 years and 350,000 k's, I would say I've done a reasonable job myself!
If I bought a new car now it might be a different story, but service quality will be well up on my list of why I buy a particular car.

 

[stooge]

I will never buy a car under warranty

unless you have some form of 3rd party warranty that specifies you must get the vehicle serviced with a particular dealer/entity then you do not have to service with them to retain the warranty.
you just need to get it serviced with a qualified mechanic and have the correct service schedule followed, keep the paperwork proving the services and your warranty will be fine.

 

[Yuth]

Lol Opel.

Anyone tried out the Mace performance bits of kit on the 2.0T?

https://www.maceengineering.com.au/epages/mace.sf/en_AU/?ObjectPath=/Shops/mace/Products/CAI403
https://www.maceengineering.com.au/epages/mace.sf/en_AU/?ObjectPath=/Shops/mace/Products/EP401-B
https://www.maceengineering.com.au/epages/mace.sf/en_AU/?ObjectPath=/Shops/mace/Products/CAM401

Still early days, but if they are worth it may look at them down the track.
Loved the mace gear on the falcon

I use the Cold air filter and if you're into the sneeze it's great, it's quite a loud blow off sound, but the performance (at least IMO) is noticeable.

 

[aprentice]

Tow update:
Went on a camp, towed 6x4 full of gear, 4x fully sized adults, boot full of gear
Drove like an absolute dream, never struggled to maintain speed up hills, absolute beast

 

[Craig ZB]

Hey team,

I thought I would start this as a long term review of a 2019 LT 2.0L commodore wagon. Came from owning a 2006 Falcon XR6 which I had a lot of fun with, however had to move on from that to this, my first commodore.

Why I chose it:
-Wagon trim - trying for kids, so spacious interior mixed with decent cargo space is a win.
-Value - compared to passat/mondeo/octavias for the $$$/features the commodore seems like a really good value purchase and they are being advertised for a lot less $$$ than a VF in this ludicrous used marker.
-Safety - has all the airbags, this year has blind spot monitoring for the LT, collision detection/AEB at low speeds, front/rear sensors, rear cam - all a must after my falcon got written off in a hairy way which made me rethink safety features.
-LT - mainly due to budget reasons and wasn't willing to pay more for the higher trims as didn't really see how the extra features would be worth the $$$ (time will tell). Also my wife is on her Ps so I am restricted in VIC with the 2.0L as the V6 can't be driven by Ps.

Bought used at a dealer for $24k about a week ago, with 77k kms and was an ex police car.
-Service history excellent (as per any police car)
-Was serviced out country way (so hoping that means kms are mainly country which should offset any police thrashing??)
-Usual scuffs from police use, side of centre console, few small body blemishes, however paint seems to be in good condition, no flaking/fading, also the beloved 2nd battery in the boot (still working out whether to keep for camping trips or ditch so weight is reduced)
-Drivetrain/suspension seems to be in perfect nick, no noises, transmission changes smooth, takes bumps well
-In wagon LT trim, with tow bar (will do semi-regular towing of a cage trailer unbraked with it)

Initial impressions:
-Once you put the foot down it really takes off and pulls you back in your seat. Still haven't given it a good highway entry run yet, however I have been more than satisfied with how quick off the mark it is, so smoooooth. (9 speed vs the ol BTR 4 speed are worlds apart) Exhaust note is a bit quiet, would like it with a bit more grunt when giving it some.
-Android auto has been hit and miss, worked the first day I set it up and since it has been intermittent, still yet to try a few setting changes which are recommended to get it working. Overall the infotainment seems very basic at the LT level and I will need to get android auto working to really enjoy the car for GPS, music etc.
-Sound system is adequate, however lacking in bass. May look at putting a slimline one in the boot, or looking at whether a wheel well sub from the upper trims can be retrofitted to work in it.
-Front parking sensors seem rubbish, the range at which it starts to ping seems way too close and jumps in increments very quickly. I have driven other cars with front sensors that are so much more usable than these, will not be relying on them. It is also my first time having blind spot monitoring and I don't seem to notice them at all?? Can't comment on the AEB/collision detection system as haven't had it trigger on me....yet
-Seats are very comfortable, however no vertical adjustment for the passenger seat is an odd choice, why????
-Plenty of cargo space, already used for a few items, however will need some way of tying items down when there are only a few items in the back, there are two tie down points at the front of the cargo area, may need to add two to the rear as well (anyone have suggestions for this)

I have come up with the following main long term review points that I will use to measure how I perceive the car:
-Reliability (including maintenance costs/parts availability/component life/warranty etc.)
-Ability to haul gear (towing performance/cargo space use)
-Vehicle enjoyment (overall use of vehicle features/performance/comfort)

Hi all. I’m enjoying my ZB Calais 2018 except for some kind of issue with the suspension. At anything more than 65kph when I go over a few ripples in the tarmac, or say some tram tracks, the suspension rattles so much it feels like all four wheels are gonna come off. Anyone else experienced this?

 

[aprentice]

Just an update - one (possible) issue has popped up with suspension.

The rear end seems to feel like its driving around with weight in the boot without anything in the boot.
Isn't sagging at all from what I can tell on the outside. All of a sudden it just has this weird dampened feel at the rear, almost feels like it has a loose rear end when I throw it around, where normally it would feel more tight.

Anyone else had this issue?

Will be getting the car serviced mid year - doesn't seem too crazy to need attention before then, just feels different.

 

[87VLCALAIS]

Check your tyre pressures.

My RSV with the 18" rims tramlines when the tyre pressures get low. Also my wife's VE Z with 19" rims gets really horrible to drive when the tyre pressures get low.

I don't mean low that the tyres look like they're low , just low by a few PSI can make all the difference.

I had a slow leak on one rear tyre on the RSV and it sure made the back end feel weird.