Friday 8th June 2012

Spotted: the 600hp Holden Commodore HSV

...More to the point, that's 600hp and loads of space for the price of a warm hatch. Tempted?

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Now that Vauxhall officially imports Griffin-badged fast Holdens (I like to call them 'Pommodores', but that's because I have a terrible sense of humour), the delights of the HSV brand are well known here in Blighty.

But it wasn't always so. Before the official arrival of the Monaro coupe, and subsequently the VXR8, the Aussie muscle cars did appear in the UK but were really only known to the cognoscenti. This is one of those cars.

Based on the VX generation Holden Commodore, this HSV GTS-R, with its 5.7-litre LS1 GM V8, started off pretty feisty, with a 400-or-so hp power output. Clearly that wasn't enough for the owner, however, and there followed a pretty mouthwatering engine upgrade, including rods, pistons, a trick cam, an uprated fueling system and... a supercharger.

The result, claims the vendor, is more than 600hp and a torque output of 570lb ft. Which is really as much bang for your buck as you're going to get for £13K. In other words, the price of a new Suzuki Swift Sport.

The chassis hasn't been forgotten either, with new brakes, beefed-up anti-roll bars, uprated dampers and all sorts of other tricks to help the driver keep that 600hp pointing in the correct direction.

Of course, if power isn't the be-all and end-all, and you crave that V8 gurgle in something a bit more up to date, there's always this 2008 VXR8. With 36,000 miles on the clock and the more modern 6.0-litre LS2 under the bonnet it seems a bit of a steal at £18,500. Though we'd probably remove the green undercar light if we ended up buying it...

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HOLDEN COMMODORE HSV GTS-R
Engine: 5,665cc V8
Transmission:5-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 605hp (according to vendor)
Torque (lb ft):570 (according to vendor)
MPG: NA
CO2: NA
First registered: 2001
Recorded mileage:79,000 (40,000 since engine rebuild)
Price new: Many tins of Foster's (or Victoria bitter)
Yours for: £12,995

[thewheelman]

Only ever seen one in real life, if it's anything like the Monaro it'll be great value for money.

[PokiGTA]

Ahh the classic bogan sled. No doubt in Australia would have had a Brock 05 sticker as well as a Holdens piss all over Fords iconography.

Rudimentary but loads of fun. The live rear axle works a treat but point it corners and without a good dose of talent youre going to be overtaken by RS Clios

[Crusoe]

Green under car lighting - spent its life doing donuts in chain fast food car parks... no thanks

[Krikkit]

God damn that's a well-specced machine. Buy, get an engine rebuild for peace of mind, drive for another 50k miles for <£18k. Awesome.

[anything fast]

That must be the fastest Vauxhall Omega on the planet!

[British Beef]

What a brilliant fun thing that would be.

As an owner of an E39 M5 which I absolutely love, this would be a much more inviting replacement than the latest "sound enhanced" M5 or the options from Audi and Merc. Big, RWD, 600hp, manual box, whats not to like (unless youre a badge snob).

Very nice!!!!

[Gorbyrev]

Pommodores! That's going to stick tee hee! There is something wonderfully disturbing about the grooowwll / wheeeeeeee noice a supercharged LS makes. What a steal and it even has back doors for grandma. Much want. I guess you would need to dip your toe in the "yes it is slightly modified" insurance pool before jumping though.

[DanDC5]

anything fast said:

That must be the fastest Vauxhall Omega on the planet!

That's what makes it so cool

[NotNormal]

anything fast said:

That must be the fastest Vauxhall Omega on the planet!

Nope, this is (and this one is actually an Omega)

http://www.evo.co.uk/carreviews/evocarreviews/2102...

[GroundEffect]

article said:

MPG: NA
CO2: NA

[anything fast]

DanDC5 said:

anything fast said:

That must be the fastest Vauxhall Omega on the planet!

That's what makes it so cool

agreed! and I dont doubt the output, with those mods 600bhp is not very hard to get.. in fact the LS1 block can take an incredible amount of go!

[RevOne]

This one is actually based on the older VT Series II Bombodore by the looks of it. LS1 VT's are a dime a dozen when i was still living in Aus, driven by a very particular group of society which was enough to make me steer clear. Luckily here in Blighty they are rare enough not to get a negative following so id definitely hoon this one!

[Benjaminbopper]

Interesting, but would anyone actually buy this for £13,000?! For parts maybe at a stretch?

A nice E39 M5 with some exhaust liberation and minor engine tweaks followed by a thorough servicing and detail for the same money achieves a similar result and you have a quality M5 opposed to an Omega!

[ALfooy]

NotNormal said:

Nope, this is (and this one is actually an Omega)

http://www.evo.co.uk/carreviews/evocarreviews/2102...

Got the issue with the Omega in, the scary cars issue i think.

Great bit of kit, love fast GM stuff

[spinningman]

Benjaminbopper said:

Interesting, but would anyone actually buy this for £13,000?! For parts maybe at a stretch?

A nice E39 M5 with some exhaust liberation and minor engine tweaks followed by a thorough servicing and detail for the same money achieves a similar result and you have a quality M5 opposed to an Omega!

Please elaborate on which exaust and "minor" tweaks will get an extra 200 bhp out of the E39 M5.......

[Riggers]

Gorbyrev said:

Pommodores! That's going to stick tee hee!

I Hope so!

[M@1975]

WANT

[Benjaminbopper]

spinningman said:

Please elaborate on which exaust and "minor" tweaks will get an extra 200 bhp out of the E39 M5.......

I also wrote 'similar', i.e. a very fast rwd saloon car with 450+bhp. Let's be honest, in a car of this size and rear section width of that in the 'Pommodore' anything more than 400bhp would be hillarious!

My point was more driven around quality over quantity for the same price and similar end result, of course with a little opinion thrown in.

[Matt0812]

That is just fantastic. I remember seeing one as a kid on a transporter and being amazed by the sheer enormity of it. Suppose 600bhp should help with shifting that now!

[Guvernator]

An 11 year old Vauxhall for £13k!??

Sorry but despite the claimed 600bhp I just can't accept that as good value. I'd rather pay £2-3k more and buy a newer V10 M5.