Are utes Slower??

[ascottaudio]

I have recently been thinking about trading my 07 6.0 Calais on VE V8 ute.

Now admittedly I have only test driven a couple..but the two I drove have stared to put me off the idea...hence why i would appreciate some feedback.

The first one I drove was an 09 with 60k on it. I was keen on the AFM as I am doing quite a bit of Hyway driving atm.

It had some awful tyre noise (so the dealer said) but I tried to ignore that..a short drive and a small stint in "spots mode" and I wasn't all that impressed..I had read that the AFM robs a bit of power (5-10 KW so they say)..

The second one I drove was a real stunner..a white 08 with only 24k on the clock. Lowered with 20's hard lid and sports bars..she was a beauty indeed..and....I was actually surprised how good the ride was..it also had a aftermarket cat back system..sounded very nice...but..

Neither of these ute's seemed to have the "kick" off the line that my (standard) Calias (with 156k on the speedo) has..

I have heard that a bigger exhaust can actually make a car loose bottom end power..and then when I mentioned this to one of the car yard guys..he said that ute's have a different diff ratio and that's why they dont jump off the line like my calais...

I was really ken on a V8 Ve ute but with them being more expensive than a sedan..being offered **** trade in price..and now being a tad sus on their "get up and go"...Im thinking of sticking with the Calais for now...

I am not intending to "bag" utes..they are great..had them myself before..these two just put me off a bit and so I'd like to get some other peoples thoughts.. particularly if anyone has had both a VE V8 sedan and ute

 

[yZoH]

Welcome to AFM.

Cheers
mat

 

[davey g-force]

I'm pretty sure the utes are slightly lighter too, so you'd think they'd be a bit quicker.

Maybe (as you said) it's a diff ratio thing..

Did you try punching it from a rolling start?

 

[TinSnips]

weight difference is very minimal (15kg from memory), thanks to all the reinforcing under the tray - not light like they used to be - but they're not as ass-end twitchy either. They don't get all the same sound proofing as the sedans, so expect to hear more noises, particularly if you were to get a manual car - you can really hear the gearbox clunking away vs the sedans and wagons - even the fibre wadding around the shifter (under the trim) isn't there in the utes. Otherwise, they're mechanically identical to the sedan - slightly different rear suspension set up to accommodate load carrying - not much in it though. As a punt, I'd say the difference you're feeling could be the difference in cam from the L98 motor to the L77 (76.. whatever...). If your calais is pre-AFM, the set up is slightly different to the post AFM models (manual included) - can't say for certain, but the later model cam is slightly revised as well as all motors including the DOD lifters.

edit.. exhaust won't be the issue unless the cats are rooted.

edit #2. Diff ratios should be the same for utes and sedans as far as I'm aware.

 

[KayTooM]

I didn't think that utes were more expensive than the sedans.. Not new at least.
I'm more than happy with how little road noise I get on the highway also.

 

[Loaded Dice]

I didn't think that utes were more expensive than the sedans.. Not new at least.
I'm more than happy with how little road noise I get on the highway also.

Ah yeah, quite a bit cheaper in fact than a sedan.

 

[matt30186]

Resale on a ute seems to be much higher than a sedan... I noticed this while looking for my ute. Maybe they're more rare

 

[Mike08]

Utes have always had greater resale value than the same model sedan, i don't know why that is. But it's something i have always noticed.

My mate drives a VE SS sedan and i have the SS ute, they are both manual his is 2007 mine is a 2010.

My ute has a 2.5 catback , his sedan retains standard exhaust.

Performance wise, i would say there is very little between them. I have been a passenger in his a fair few times and can honestly say my ute feels a little more punchy than the sedan.

The difference is subtle, but it's there. And that could be a result of many different things, 3 years between the engines could be a small factor as well.

Utes are more raw in their nature verses the sedan, i was in his only the other day and the sound inside the cabin is a lot more refined than the ute, as Tinny said you can really hear the manual utes going about their business in many different ways.

Manuals for the most part feel more alive than auto's, maybe give a manual SS ute a run then see what you think.

Hope this info helps you out a little.

Calais are a nice machine though.

Cheers.

 

[GTS-Replica]

Utes are lighter!

 

[WogBoyz]

dunno man my ute gets off the line quite nicely its prob cus of the AFM stuff as i dont think ur calais has it