ZB Calais Tourer Is It Worth The upgade

[hademall]

A Ford Focus RS has one too but you need to see a chiropractor after driving it to the shops because the ride is too firm for road use.

My Mitsubishi Triton single cab is like that, but without the road holding capabilities and of course the speed!

 

[Turk Kurtulus]

Wow, I didn't know there were vehicles with this option, it was tongue and cheek when I wrote it. StrayKiwi, I was in NZ North Island with the family friends when we went camping, hence the twisting roads. Thanks

 

[Turk Kurtulus]

Hello Folks, I thought I share my experiences and thoughts on my 2018 built 2019 registered ZB Calais Tourer Wagon. I remember the adverts by Holden regarding the ZB stating it has the DNA of the Aussie built Commodores. I also Remember Microsoft stating the same thing with Windows 8 stating it was an upgraded windows7. Microsoft lost its CEO and we lost Holden. History repeats its self again it appears. For my next car I was initially looking at a European vehicle, a sporty Volvo, a Jag, BMW or a Merc. Sadly, with the budget I had, I would be looking at vehicles over a decade in use and not appropriate for my needs. The imported German made Commodore ticked the boxes. Going back to DNA strands the only unique and common strand I noticed is that the ZB hums along at a low rev of 1500 travelling 100kms like the Aussie built ones. I am not including decals here for the old reason that you can dress a 4 legged pig up as you like. It is still a pig. Likes, loves, hates and dislikes. I love the multi adjustable drivers seat. I hate that I have not found a setting that is comfortable. User error I suspect at this stage. I love the smoothness of the vehicle, I dislike the over protectiveness of the vehicle. I live in the country and I like to drift on dirt roads once in a while. I am not a rally driver, rear wheel power please as I see my self loosing control pushing this 4x4 wagon. I dislike that it has a space saver spare. This seriously is dumb for a tourer for our super long roads like run flat tyres. I love all the safety features, I hate the warning beeps which sound even if you are paying attention. An example of this was I was turning right at a set of lights, we had a green light, the vehicle in front took off turning right and then slowed. I had ample room behind the car and my foot was resting on the accelerator. My Calais decided that it was too close and thew warning sound beeped, the red light flashed on the screen and the car braked to a stop, as the front car accelerated away. At no stage was I close enough to hit the car in front. My guess is that because my foot was not on the brake, the Calais put it upon itself to scare the driver behind me. I kept reading about the high fuel consumption in various reviews, I am actually happy to say that this was a great surprise to me as it drinks less than my previous V6 3ltr Commodore being driven exactly the same way and same roads. I am achieving 7.1ltr per 100ks. The 3ltr would get me 8.4ltrs per 100 clicks. Un beknown to me and I suppose being ignorant about new electronic driver assistance, my ZB was delivered with some faults. I mention this incase you are looking at buying a ZB. My son who has a 2017 Astra with similar features asked if I tried the parking assist yet. No I said, so we tried it. It would not engage. I also then realized that when he is close to an object be a car or a post reversing or forward parking in his Astra. Warning bells would go off. Not in mine. I love that there is a light projected on the ground under the toe bar. I thought this was where you placed your foot for the boot to open hands free. I hate that I either do not have this option or it is not working. Especially when I first tried it with my hands full and nice steady rain showering me and my shopping. Not a good moment to discover this issue. I made the right choice buying my European vehicle since I got a lot of bang for my dollar and the fact that Ex Holden Service Centre seemed happy to rectify my ZB issues under factory warranty. So like me if you first asked the question is the ZB worth the up grade? The answer is yes for the V6, the 2ltr turbos might be an issue with longevity. How many turbo charged cars are still around after a decade or two. I would strongly suggest you learn from my mistake and try all the driver assistant electronics and get the dealer or private seller to rectify them so that you don't have to waste your time doing it. On a side note, my first car was a HQ Kingswood with bucket seats and 3 on the tree. We were a Holden family. Dad decided to buy a Corolla as a retirement vehicle as it was the most reliable vehicle around at the time, yet he still has his orange tool box from his Kingswood days in it. Not sure why. When the VB Commodore replaced the Kingswood, I remember dad saying it looks very modern but small, He asked the question what the hell was the Lion Thinking. Like the Kingswood's life span, the Commodore has grown and evolved over the years from a 3.3ltre mid size vehicle be larger than the Kingswood and have a power train twice that of its humble beginnings with a super charger or twin turbos thrown in earning legendary status. The folks at GMH got it right back in 1978 introducing a new modern vehicle replacing an existing legend with a new name and new car. I know you know this, I just wanted to share my perception on history not repeating it self in this case. A simple name change to ensure a new legend is in the making, no name change ensured the castration and then the beheading of a mighty yet beloved lion.

 

[stooge]

<BR>

 

[Chalks1971]

A good write up Turk. i too cant seem to get the auto rear door to open with a swipe of my foot. I had my local dealer look at it, & they reported nothing wrong with it. Next service Ill have them show me how to operate it

 

[Turk Kurtulus]

I guess once you have bought it you will have upgayed (just kidding by the way).

A good write up Turk. i too cant seem to get the auto rear door to open with a swipe of my foot. I had my local dealer look at it, & they reported nothing wrong with it. Next service Ill have them show me how to operate it

Thanks Chalks1971, My car goes in this Monday and I will ask the tech to show me when I drop it off. If it opens for the tech, I will share the user error syndrome fix we are both facing. If it doesn't open, they can hopefully fix that as well. The one thing I did forget the mention was who ever designed the left foot rest must have been born with a shorter left leg. I'm 6 foot and I can say that I tend to stretch my leg past the foot rest. I also edited my review to make it a little more clear, turns out writing reviews when tired has its flaws. Stay safe

 

[Jack GS]

The one thing I did forget the mention was who ever designed the left foot rest must have been born with a shorter left leg. I'm 6 foot and I can say that I tend to stretch my leg past the foot rest.

This is one of my only complaints from an ergonomic standpoint as well (at 6'3"). Incredible headroom, there's almost endless seat adjustment, and the steering wheel adjustments are adequate. The dead pedal is far too close when I get situated.

I know it isn't the safest thing to do, but on the long hauls I put my feet behind the brake pedal just to stretch out. Conversely, the gf's '16 CTS dead pedal feels like it was built for me. The floor in those dips down at the pedals. I couldn't find a representative pic of the driver side, but this one of the passenger side gets the point across. I kinda wish our floor had the dip.

Spoiler: CTS Floor

 

[Turk Kurtulus]

This is one of my only complaints from an ergonomic standpoint as well (at 6'3"). Incredible headroom, there's almost endless seat adjustment, and the steering wheel adjustments are adequate. The dead pedal is far too close when I get situated.

I know it isn't the safest thing to do, but on the long hauls I put my feet behind the brake pedal just to stretch out. Conversely, the gf's '16 CTS dead pedal feels like it was built for me. The floor in those dips down at the pedals. I couldn't find a representative pic of the driver side, but this one of the passenger side gets the point across. I kinda wish our floor had the dip.

Spoiler: CTS Floor

View attachment 229767

Yep, I end up doing the same thing with my left leg. Perhaps there is a business opportunity here to resize the foot rest. (-:

 

[Anthony121]

Thanks Chalks1971, My car goes in this Monday and I will ask the tech to show me when I drop it off. If it opens for the tech, I will share the user error syndrome fix we are both facing. If it doesn't open, they can hopefully fix that as well. The one thing I did forget the mention was who ever designed the left foot rest must have been born with a shorter left leg. I'm 6 foot and I can say that I tend to stretch my leg past the foot rest. I also edited my review to make it a little more clear, turns out writing reviews when tired has its flaws. Stay safe

The foot rest on these things seem to be in the wrong place. First time I drove one, I took it down to Wilsons Prom and I thought where does my foot go. Surely not on the this high footrest!. Maybe they didn't know where to place it on the RHD vehicles.

 

[87VLCALAIS]

The foot rest on these things seem to be in the wrong place. First time I drove one, I took it down to Wilsons Prom and I thought where does my foot go. Surely not on the this high footrest!. Maybe they didn't know where to place it on the RHD vehicles.

I found the left foot rest to be too close initially. Probably partly due to the fact my other car (VY S) is a manual and I have the seat close enough to be able to apply full clutch travel. No, I'm not a shorty, 1.75m tall.

In the end I adopted a seating position a bit further back in the ZB and telescoped the steering wheel out a bit and got a seating position that worked and became comfortable with it. I think I raised the seat a bit as well.