Holden Commodore VU SS GenIII

[mouseno4]

I really dont know what the full ''title'' for my car is, so i will just say this:

Holden Commodore VU SS GenIII LS1 V8

Mouthful.

Here goes - I purchased this car 24th April 2015.

Stereo
I came with an imported Philips 750 7'' slide out screen stereo 'head unit'. Most of which does not work. So old that the MP4 firmware is too outdated to play anything. Missing a microphone so connecting my phone is pointless apart from playing music - which i dont have on my phone. No remote either. Not even the AV cables for the AV jack. The USB door is missing and likely broken off. DVD is wrong region which is why i know its been imported. Plan to replace it with a good one as i have 'plans' for what will be on that screen.

Wheels
Came with 22'' 'rims' which i was only too happy for the car dealership to replace with NORMAL size wheels. You guys will hate me for this, but i told the dealership, save me the hassle of getting rid of those rims and replace them with as close to standard rims as you have. They happily replaced them with 16'' (i think) Statesman alloy wheels. And i was happy to be rid of wheels that would scrub the wheel wells if i went over a bump whilst turning. They replaced the wheels, tyres and aligned and balanced them all free of charge. They got to keep the 22'' ones and i got to keep the 16'' ones they gave me and didnt have the hassle of doing it all myself.

Engine
According to the VX (mine is a VU but i am guessing they are mostly the same) fault list, the slight fuel leak at the bottom left of the engine is to be expected. It does not drain oil that fast but i will need to keep an eye on it. The car as likely been in a light front end collision as is noted by the paintwork, replaced parts and broken air conditioning thingy's left side bolt hole. For some reason the engine has plastic covers on it with the letters ''LS1'' which i am told is the engine type. /meh i dont know. When i performed a full service a week after purchasing the vehicle, i instructed the mechanic to fully replace all liquids as a precaution.

Tray
The tray 'tub' has the words ''HERO'' on it, which i dont really know if that means anything. Pretty sure the tub was originally not from this vehicle since the edges look cut and hacked in. Tray has a hard lid with the Holden metal tag on the underside. Did not come with a key to the twin locks on the lid but that is a simple fix sometime down the track.

Body
Car has many scratches in various locations with 5 meter touch ups done to them. Plan to eventually fix them properly.

Interior
Now it gets interesting. Steering wheel is missing an inner section of the rubber but is hardly noticeable underneath a steering wheel cover. Gear stick is worn on the forward section and i plan to replace the whole thing eventually since the mechanic who performed the service, broke the plastic ring holding it in place (and then attempting to shift blame onto me). The stereo was built with an amplifier bolted to the floor underneath the drivers seat but has been removed prior to the sale. Had an auto electrician remove all the excess wiring since they will no longer be needed. Still has a hole in the back wall at the bottom of the space behind the passenger side where the wiring went. Not sure what to do about that. Interior is reasonably good with normal wear and tear, some light scratching etc.

Overall, the car is in good condition - not fantastic, but good nonetheless.

I have plans, great plans for this vehicle. Now, without further mounds of BS, here as some photos.

Before purchasing the vehicle:

Still has those awful 22'' rims i thankfully got rid of.

Left lens is a little more fogged up than the right one.

After looking at quite a few VU SS's, this is the one that was in the best shape. Believe me, every other car had substantial more damage than this one has.

Yeah this photo is sideways. Oops. For some reason the black things on the engine are plastic.

Yeah i didnt know what this piece of board was for until someone told me.

Thankfully, i have had the amplifier cable and fuse removed as it was completely pointless being there. I am not likely to ever install another one so i had it removed.

After purchase:

After light rain in the driveway.

You actually cant see it, but there is a very very small dent in the tail gate. Have you have your nose on the tailgate to see it.

Have no idea why the colour is off in this photo, but it looks bleached.

MUCH better wheels now that i got rid of the 22'' ones.

About a week after purchase. About to go in for its service. My keychain is a lot different now.

Ironically, there is no way i can put my iPod into the stereo. Wasted effort that.

Not the cleanest of tray liners.

The engine as a whole. I dont know what half of this stuff does.

 

[mouseno4]

Went for a drive down a really long and windy road.

Wanted to see how it did with non-stop gear changes, direction changes, braking and accelerating.

EDIT - Since i use a dashboard camera for my car, i also captured a couple unexpected experiences from what i was after above. See video below:

Should be uploaded by the time you watch it.

http://youtu.be/YGbvSyNaddg

 

[Husky]

Looks like a nice pick up. They certainly are fun to drive. I'm not a fan of those 16" wheels but to each his own. personally I love the standard 17" SS alloys. I'm surprised the dealer was selling the car with 22", as that is illegal for this car (The biggest stock option was 17", so 19" is the max you can fit, and anything over that is stupidly impractical anyway.

And yes your engine is a Chevy LS1, hence the lettering on the cover. Good idea getting all the fluids changed as you never know how old they are. depending on the KM's I also suggest plugs and leads (Due every 80 thousand). Cleaning the MAF and throttle body will help with power and economy as well.

Any plans for the car?

 

[mouseno4]

Looks like a nice pick up. They certainly are fun to drive. I'm not a fan of those 16" wheels but to each his own. personally I love the standard 17" SS alloys. I'm surprised the dealer was selling the car with 22", as that is illegal for this car (The biggest stock option was 17", so 19" is the max you can fit, and anything over that is stupidly impractical anyway.

And yes your engine is a Chevy LS1, hence the lettering on the cover. Good idea getting all the fluids changed as you never know how old they are. depending on the KM's I also suggest plugs and leads (Due every 80 thousand). Cleaning the MAF and throttle body will help with power and economy as well.

Any plans for the car?

Yeah I was also under the impression the 22'' wheels were illegal as well. But I am not one to really get into the ''pimping'' out of my 'ride'. Rest assured though, that I most certainly plan to get the stock standard alloy wheels this kind of car comes with. I am sure that what i am after is the 17'' ones with 5 thick wheel spokes you see on advertisements on the internet. It isnt a high priority as there are other things that need work beforehand. But its on my list.

Bought the car with 174k and is now 175k. Would not have bothered if it were higher.

The car dealership refused to provide me with any history, which I am sure you would agree was very odd. Just spending time peaking under every little crack, I have discerned a few things. The car has come from QLD due to a sticker from a car shop north of Brisbane. It was in Victoria in December of 2014 as there was a VicRoads CS ticket under the seat. It was also involved in a minor front end prang since the air conditioning unit has been damaged and a 'water pump' on the front of the engine is brand spankin' new including new pipes. Which means, the entire front end has been replaced from the front of the engine forward as noted by the average paint job on the parts that bolt the nose to the car. You can even see it in the photos if you look hard enough. Looks like a regular paintbrush has been used to paint red on those small bits.

- I plan to get a tub mat as the plastic tub liner allows things to slide forwards and backwards and its quite annoying.
- Want to fix the 5m touch ups the car has had done to it with professional repairs as well as the damage to the interior upholstery. Mostly scratches and such.
- Plan to obtain the correct alloy wheels that come with this car as I have noted above.
- Lifting the car back up to standard height. I know many will laugh at me for this but I have very valid reason for wanting this done.
- Might reseal the tray lid as it has a slight leak from weather into the tray.
- The horn is in the process of being repaired under the roadworthy it came with.
- Rear demister does not work and have booked in an appointment to have it repaired.
- Completely replace the stereo with one that does the same as the one currently fitted, but a new one that can have its firmware updated and everything works.
- Going to add a rear parking camera as I simply cant see jack when I back up.
- Tray lid light perhaps? I want to be able to see in the night when I open up the tray lid.
- Speaking of the lid, the car didnt come with a key for the twin lid locks. Have to replace the locks so I can lock it.
- Wonder if I can quieten up the sound from the muffler? (I know many would call it sacrilege to attempt to mute the V8 sound) The car came with ''extractors'' and a twin exhaust system. I have since found that it would be far too costly to remove so I will likely leave it as is.
- Extreme long term is determine if gas/duel fuel is a possibility.
- DTL. Yes I know many here would call it ugly and stupid, but I prefer function over looks which should be obvious by now!
- Maybe look at upgrading my headlamp lenses. Apparent the ''angel eye'' ones are both popular and powerful. Function>looks again.
- This last one i shall leave as vague as possible so I dont make myself out to be the laughing stock. Power inverter for ''something'' that will go under the seat.

Those are my plans so far.