8 days without any postings....and weeks without seeing a ZB on the road

[vs-lover]

You really got to wonder how they've ever sold a product in this country with the way they've treated their customers over many years.

It's high time that these multi nationals are taken to task and not allowed to get away with this predatory behaviour , secondly we need a Government that has the balls to make laws to protect consumers and then actually uphold them.

 

[Badgerdog]

As mentioned earlier they loaned me a base model ZB Commodore while waiting for the new engine and I continue to be quite surprised how well it performs. So surprised I think it has more mid range performance and feels more nimble than the higher spec versions with the V6 engine.
I did some digging to try and understand why this goes so well and found quite an interesting weight difference between the vehicles.
Firstly the torque of the little motor comes on earlier at lower revs so the difference between 350 nm's compared to 381 nm's for the V6 is not really very meaningful in that the latter only makes that maximum torque at very high revs.
More important is the weight difference which makes the base model at 1535 kg's and the RS 2.0 at 1534 kg's approximately 200 kg's less than a VXR at 1737 kg's or a Calais V at 1726 kg's. (Source Carsguide)

200 kg's is a pretty sizeable weight difference so it makes itself felt with more lithe and nimble handling especially around the city.
I think it's well worth checking out how the LT or RS 2 litre powered Commodores go before spending the considerable extra money on the higher spec versions. Its fair to say having a LT as a loan car is no hardship and has been an interesting experience.
Although 0-100 km/hr in 7.0 seconds is not "performance" per se the real world on road rolling performance is far better than the acceleration figure suggests which makes this something of a performance bargain...not in a V8 powered performance sense, (but lets be honest they're miles cheaper than the VF2 V8's were) but do try one, you might be very surprised like I am
Then there's the fuel savings compared to a V8 or V6.

 

[Calaber]

I found myself beside a ZB at lights yesterday. Front row, facing a fair climb. Lights changed, away we went. Or rather, away he went. Now, my 4 cylinder auto Captiva has the performance of a constipated camel and old ducks in Echos can embarrass me, but the ZB was up, up and away.
If the performance of those things isn't enough for most people, (V8 fans excepted) I'm not sure what they're looking for.

 

[Badgerdog]

Yeap, I can't really comment on the difference between the 235 kw's in my V6 and the 191 kw's in the turbo four because I never really hammered my new car to find out, (owners manual basically says to drive with moderation in the first 1,000 km's) but honestly taking into account the weight difference I don't think there's much it. Higher spec versions of the ZB obviously get a lot more technology which is nice but is it worth the extra coin...I'm not sure....

 

[figjam]

Although 0-100 km/hr in 7.0 seconds is not "performance" per se the real world on road rolling performance is far better than the acceleration figure suggests which makes this something of a performance bargain...not in a V8 powered performance sense,.

Road tests of the time stated Monaro CV6 as being 8 secs, and the CV8 as high 6s/low 7s. So, not so slow compared to 15 years ago.
Much to do with multi speed auto gearing in the Opeldore ??

 

[Badgerdog]

Road tests of the time stated Monaro CV6 as being 8 secs, and the CV8 as high 6s/low 7s. So, not so slow compared to 15 years ago.
Much to do with multi speed auto gearing in the Opeldore ??

Yeap that 9 speed auto is a real peach, shifts very quickly and you're always in the right gear. Possibly more efficient in the 2.0 application putting all the drive to the front wheels. AWD system of the V6 engine driveline is sure to soak up a few percent more of the power in driveline losses. I thought putting 191 kw's through the front wheels would be a bit of an issue with torque steer, but it's not. Brakes on the 2.0 liter car seem to work a fair bit better than my Calais V, my car's brakes probably not bedded in properly yet but I reckon the 200 kg weight saving probably has a lot to do with it too. Drive the 2.0 liter version first is my advice to anyone looking at a ZB. You might be quite surprised. Demo LT's for the mid - late $20K's in Aussie...a lot of car for the money in my opinion.

 

[Immortality]

I'm confident to say that the greatest gains in car performance in the last decade has not been the engine but rather the driveline to make use of the torque available from said engine. When Holden/GM finally moved on from the 4L60e it really was like the dawn of a new era...

 

[Badgerdog]

Yes I couldn't agree more. In 2000 I had a VX2 Calais with the Gen 3 5.7 V8 engine in it using that 4 speed box. Although it was rated at 225 kw's at the flywheel a lot of guys from memory were only seeing about ~ 170-180 kw's at the rear wheels. Maybe when revved right out to the max the Gen 3 V8 was a bit quicker than the 2.0 LT I have at present but we have 191 kw's going through a vastly more efficient gearbox and the previously mentioned weight savings so I think in the real world the performance between those two cars is very similar, (kind of ironic really a 2.0 turbo four having very similar performance to a 5.7 Gen 3 V8 don't you think ?). All that said my previous Calais with its Remus exhaust sounded absolutely epic and no car I have ever owned since then sounded anywhere near as good.

 

[Immortality]

The original LS was severely detuned when fitted to the Commodore. Shameful really, a simple tune picked up a lot of power/torque and improved economy.

What I do like about the V8's is the effortless cruising even when loaded, personally I still prefer the big cube lazy cruiser over the high strung little motor.

just imagine your VX/LS1 but with a modern gearbox behind it...

 

[Badgerdog]

Yesssss...that would be sweet, especially with a good tune. Wonder what max turbo boost pressure the little 2.0 engine is having applied to it, anyone know ?