Golden Holden
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- Joined
- Oct 9, 2016
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- Location
- New Zealand
- Members Ride
- 2007 VE Calais-v V8
For 16 years I have been driving around in a 1990 Mazda 626 GT, dreaming of the day I would own a Holden.
In July, We made it happen, bought a used VE Calais-V V8, not really knowing what the model versions meant. SS vs Calais vs HSV.
that was when Google first introduced me to this site and I thought it was about time I said thanks to all that have posted on various threads and helped me find out more about my car and how to make it "better" for me.
The test drive seemed really good, couldn't fault the car, probably because I just wanted it, no matter what
Funny how things change, once money has been handed over. Back to Google, which kept choosing this site as the top choice.
Don't feel you need to read the list below, I just want to show how this site has helped me.
So thanks to this site, I now have:
1) Bass in the car, not as much as 2 x 12" but I'm past that.... for now.
2) a better understanding of why the car wandered around the road, especially above 70Km/h.
3) finding out recommended rim size for front and back. so I can check the rims that came with the car weren't just thrown on and hope for the best.
4) find more info on after market suspension options, alignments, OEM setups, bolt torque (oh how confused the TTY chatter seems to be) and how long suspension components are likely to last.
5) found out why the front strut top nut plate was sticking up so far, why I had a knocking noise in the front and what to do about it.
6) remove more noises in the front by adjusting the front calliper clips
7) find out if its safe to flush the brake fluid with the ABS system
8) find out why the balancer is wobbling around, is it normal. normal= yes. good = no. tolerance = 3-5mm. replaced sparkplugs and wobble is within tolerance... for now.
9) find out how the front strut top spring retainer is suppose to be aligned. seems the previous owners workshop didn't care, the plate was out by 180 degrees.
10) find out why the car overheated when it was serviced. the water temp gets really high in these engines, a faulty radiator cap can be quite bad. pity the local dealer doest know what a faulty cap looks like. This site saved me from a new water pump, radiator and thermostat. instead I bought a radiator cap and problem fixed.
11) possible coolant issues i.e. air locks in the motor are common after a flush, lucky I read up before the flush
12) how to enter the service menu on the dash. it helped find out if the radiator fans were working, water temp, etc.
13) speaker setup, factory 2ohm vs 3-4ohm. Stuff I already knew, but didn't know to think about. i.e. 2 ohm speaker in front, 4 ohm speakers in rear. rear speakers may be quieter if the both sets of speakers efficiency were the same blah blah blah.
14) how other people have completed there speaker upgrades. 6" to 6.5" isn't a straight swap. good to know the door leaks a lot of water, keep the drain holes clear and speaker terminals clean. my terminals were rusted, new speaker time
15) how to care for the leather seats. do I put covers on the protect the leather. I decided the answer was nope, covers can cause damage to the leather, thanks for stopping me from making that mistake.
16) found out why the Holden is a bitch to drive around the city. Fly by wire is trying to protect me, while I'm driving like a nana. the car is now much easier to drive now I don't care how hard I stamp on the gas (don't baby the gas pedal). Get the car moving, then back off. the car being a bloody automatic doesn't help. Understanding how things work, allows me to stop fighting the system.
17) learned just how much electronic crap is in this car, cant easily swap out the stereo. not a big issue unless the stereo were to become faulty or you wanted to install a VEII unit. And of course it doesn't just stop with the stereo, sensors, ECU, modules, etc. things that are good to know, before you pull it apart or upgrade it
18) various performance mods and the pro's and con's.
19) Found out it has built in Bluetooth and got it working by turning on Bluetooth on phone, wait 60 sec and choose to pair with the car. the previous owner glued and wired a hands free kit onto the dash, idiot.
20) don't touch the yellow wires!!!! how to safely work on the car without accidently tripping the air bags.
21) what chemicals to use on the car, mothers vs Maguires vs ....
22) recommend tyre sizes and weights for aftermarket rims. what the recommended max widths would be.
23) how to find the rattle in the back
24) find out the rattles and knocks are all part of the character of this car, just turn up the stereo and worry about it if it gets worse.
25) found out what lowering the car would mean to the diff and camber setup. Not really interested in having the diff CV's bottom out or needing to buy a camber kit. then there's the issue of the exhaust being too low. money saved, thanks.
26) found more info on the diff CV's, suspension bushes, sway bar and link options, etc.
27) suspensions torque settings and to torque the suspension bolts when the suspension is loaded.
28) what is TTY and TTA. what the meaning of Holdens single use is... remember to apply blue Loctite
29) what brake pads to NOT use (calibre being top of the DO NOT use list)
30) just how good the GM LS engines are and the difference between the L98 and L76
what I didn't learn from this forum:
1) when working on the rear springs, make sure the hand brake is off. the hand brake uses a separate set of brake shoes in the rear wheel hubs. if its applied, it prevents the EASY movement of the rear hub, when your attempting to reattach the lower control arm. 2hrs of using a tape measure to try and figure out why the control arm wouldn't just bolt back onto the hub or why the diff CV's on the same side of the car looked different. released the hand brake and put into park so I could have a closer look at the diff CV's and the hub move back, CV's relax and I'm kicking myself.
In July, We made it happen, bought a used VE Calais-V V8, not really knowing what the model versions meant. SS vs Calais vs HSV.
that was when Google first introduced me to this site and I thought it was about time I said thanks to all that have posted on various threads and helped me find out more about my car and how to make it "better" for me.
The test drive seemed really good, couldn't fault the car, probably because I just wanted it, no matter what
Funny how things change, once money has been handed over. Back to Google, which kept choosing this site as the top choice.
Don't feel you need to read the list below, I just want to show how this site has helped me.
So thanks to this site, I now have:
1) Bass in the car, not as much as 2 x 12" but I'm past that.... for now.
2) a better understanding of why the car wandered around the road, especially above 70Km/h.
3) finding out recommended rim size for front and back. so I can check the rims that came with the car weren't just thrown on and hope for the best.
4) find more info on after market suspension options, alignments, OEM setups, bolt torque (oh how confused the TTY chatter seems to be) and how long suspension components are likely to last.
5) found out why the front strut top nut plate was sticking up so far, why I had a knocking noise in the front and what to do about it.
6) remove more noises in the front by adjusting the front calliper clips
7) find out if its safe to flush the brake fluid with the ABS system
8) find out why the balancer is wobbling around, is it normal. normal= yes. good = no. tolerance = 3-5mm. replaced sparkplugs and wobble is within tolerance... for now.
9) find out how the front strut top spring retainer is suppose to be aligned. seems the previous owners workshop didn't care, the plate was out by 180 degrees.
10) find out why the car overheated when it was serviced. the water temp gets really high in these engines, a faulty radiator cap can be quite bad. pity the local dealer doest know what a faulty cap looks like. This site saved me from a new water pump, radiator and thermostat. instead I bought a radiator cap and problem fixed.
11) possible coolant issues i.e. air locks in the motor are common after a flush, lucky I read up before the flush
12) how to enter the service menu on the dash. it helped find out if the radiator fans were working, water temp, etc.
13) speaker setup, factory 2ohm vs 3-4ohm. Stuff I already knew, but didn't know to think about. i.e. 2 ohm speaker in front, 4 ohm speakers in rear. rear speakers may be quieter if the both sets of speakers efficiency were the same blah blah blah.
14) how other people have completed there speaker upgrades. 6" to 6.5" isn't a straight swap. good to know the door leaks a lot of water, keep the drain holes clear and speaker terminals clean. my terminals were rusted, new speaker time
15) how to care for the leather seats. do I put covers on the protect the leather. I decided the answer was nope, covers can cause damage to the leather, thanks for stopping me from making that mistake.
16) found out why the Holden is a bitch to drive around the city. Fly by wire is trying to protect me, while I'm driving like a nana. the car is now much easier to drive now I don't care how hard I stamp on the gas (don't baby the gas pedal). Get the car moving, then back off. the car being a bloody automatic doesn't help. Understanding how things work, allows me to stop fighting the system.
17) learned just how much electronic crap is in this car, cant easily swap out the stereo. not a big issue unless the stereo were to become faulty or you wanted to install a VEII unit. And of course it doesn't just stop with the stereo, sensors, ECU, modules, etc. things that are good to know, before you pull it apart or upgrade it
18) various performance mods and the pro's and con's.
19) Found out it has built in Bluetooth and got it working by turning on Bluetooth on phone, wait 60 sec and choose to pair with the car. the previous owner glued and wired a hands free kit onto the dash, idiot.
20) don't touch the yellow wires!!!! how to safely work on the car without accidently tripping the air bags.
21) what chemicals to use on the car, mothers vs Maguires vs ....
22) recommend tyre sizes and weights for aftermarket rims. what the recommended max widths would be.
23) how to find the rattle in the back
24) find out the rattles and knocks are all part of the character of this car, just turn up the stereo and worry about it if it gets worse.
25) found out what lowering the car would mean to the diff and camber setup. Not really interested in having the diff CV's bottom out or needing to buy a camber kit. then there's the issue of the exhaust being too low. money saved, thanks.
26) found more info on the diff CV's, suspension bushes, sway bar and link options, etc.
27) suspensions torque settings and to torque the suspension bolts when the suspension is loaded.
28) what is TTY and TTA. what the meaning of Holdens single use is... remember to apply blue Loctite
29) what brake pads to NOT use (calibre being top of the DO NOT use list)
30) just how good the GM LS engines are and the difference between the L98 and L76
what I didn't learn from this forum:
1) when working on the rear springs, make sure the hand brake is off. the hand brake uses a separate set of brake shoes in the rear wheel hubs. if its applied, it prevents the EASY movement of the rear hub, when your attempting to reattach the lower control arm. 2hrs of using a tape measure to try and figure out why the control arm wouldn't just bolt back onto the hub or why the diff CV's on the same side of the car looked different. released the hand brake and put into park so I could have a closer look at the diff CV's and the hub move back, CV's relax and I'm kicking myself.
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