The Tourer’s passive safety arsenal centres around HSV’s Control and Handling Electronic Stability Control system which incorporates all the requisite acronyms including, Anti-lock Braking (ABS), Electronic Brake force Distribution (EBD), Electronic Brake Assist (EBA) and Traction Control (TCS).
Active safety features include dual-stage airbags for driver and front passenger in addition to curtain airbags.
The front lap/sash seat belts include load limiters and pyrotechnic pre-tensioners, in addition to active front seat head restraints designed to help reduce risk of whiplash injury in the event the Tourer is hit from behind.
On the outside, the Tourer is fitted with 19″ x 8″ front alloy wheels with 245/40 R19 tyres, and 19″ x 9.5″ rear alloy wheels with 275/35 R19 tyres at the rear. Buyers have the option of turning up the visual temperature substantially by ticking the 20″ wheel option.
An additional $2,500 will see HSV fit your Tourer with 20″ Pentagon alloy wheels, 20″ x 8″ up front with 245/35 R20 tyres and 20″ x 9.5″ in the rear with 275/30 R20 tyres.
Whatever wheel size is chosen, the Tourer includes a full size spare wheel and tyre (as per front wheel and tyre).
The Drive
If it feels, smells and drives like a Clubsport, then it must be a Clubsport - right?
To properly test the Tourer we chose a circuitous route that took us through the Macedon Ranges, across to Trentham and Daylesford and then back into Melbourne on the Western Highway.
It’s a mix of plain vanilla highway miles and plenty of winding, often lumpy, country roads that wind their way across the top of the ranges.
First impressions once on the move were that you don’t feel the extra 100kg that the Tourer carries over the sedan (largely in the rear). It feels just as agile; just as solid and chunky in the way that is peculiar to the E-Series range.
The acceleration is - as we’ve come to expect from the LS3 - thunderous. Stoke the fires of the small-block Chev and a melodious rumble erupts from the very depths of the engine. Those little hairs on the back of your neck rise up and you are soon looking for the next reason to drop back a gear and tickle the throttle again.
It wasn’t so long ago that the definitive V8 exhaust soundtrack belonged to Ford’s Boss V8, but for the moment at least, the LS3 has the Boss licked in that regard.
The Tourer’s steering is as finely-honed as the sedan: offering excellent feedback and feel through the wheel, turn-in is accurate and immediate. For such a large car there is a real sense of lightness and finesse about the way the E-Series steers.
The deftness of the Tourer’s controls, and the ‘wall of grunt’ provided by the LS3, combine to provide a heady mix of precision and power, the Tourer displaying an inherent balance that is as surprising as it is difficult to define.
Maybe it’s the 30 percent stiffer body structure, or the suspension tune that is specific to the Tourer. Or it could be that the extra weight over the rear wheels adds to the overall balance and poise. Whatever it is, the Tourer feels right.
You can place the Tourer precisely into a corner, let the rear settle, clip the apex and then punch it out the other side. The rear-end grip offered by those hefty Bridgestone boots is prodigious and the whole package feels completely predictable.
In fact, stringing corners together is where the Tourer really shines, the impressive rear-end grip allowing you to feed in a bucket load of throttle on second and third gear bends, before triggering the ESP.
Hauling the 2,000kg+ (with driver and fuel) Tourer up, requires a solid push on the brake pedal, but once they bite, the big brakes do their job well enough.
The new Tremec TR6060 six-speed manual is a vast improvement over the Tremec offerings in previous HSV’s. The shift action is lighter and more positive and you no longer have to physically wrestle the stumpy lever across the gate to select the lower gears.
Gear changes still lack any real feel, while the clutch pedal requires a purposeful prod and is too springy on the uptake, but it is a vast improvement over previous HSV and Holden manuals.
In fact, compared to the auto R8 Clubsport that we tested earlier this year, the manual is now a superior and more satisfying drive.
Out on the road, it’s only the regular glances in the rear-view mirror that remind you this is a wagon and not a sedan and they serve to highlight one of the few issues that the Tourer (and Sportwagon) suffer - rearward vision.
Thanks to those massive d-pillars, it’s like looking back through a narrowing cave. It takes a while for your depth-of-field to adjust, forcing you to rely even more on the door mirrors, which suddenly seem too small.
It really was a sensible move by HSV to make the rear view camera and parking sensors standard fitment items on the Tourer, as you strike the same issue when reversing.
2010 BMW 120d Hatch manual (E87) 
2009 Holden Commodore SS Sportwagon 
2009 Aston Martin V8 Vantage 
2009 Ford Mondeo MB (Titanium) 
2009 Honda Civic Type R 
2009 Nissan 370Z Auto 
2009 Volkswagen Passat CC V6 FSI 
2009 HSV Clubsport R8 Tourer
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For a similar price give me a Pasaat R36 anyday.
Better interior, better features, better technology and doesn’t look like a bulldog chewing a bee. Good to see that Performance Wagons are making a comeback though, about time.
Now there;s nothing “wrong” with Blaupunkt.. However; why doesn’t HSV get Holden to Install the BOSE In Car Entertainment system from the Statesman into the cars which are destined to make their way from Elizabeth to Clayton
Particularly in the R8 Tourer; with all that space.. 12 plus a Sub would be awesome.
Not only that but it would help justify the increase in price over an SS-V a bit more
Thank God there are now some manufacturers who have woken up to themselves and realised the humble wagon is a much better tool on-road than a hulking SUV. IMO the Sportwagon kills the sedan for looks. Mind you the VE is not the prettiest thing on the road. FG is much more stylish. Where is the FG Wagon? Is it going to be a sales rep special complete with leaf spings or are they going to do something like the VE Sportwagon. FG XR6T Sportwagon, now that would be something to get excited about..or better still F6 Sportwagon……if only.
Then again you can always rely on Subaru to make a decent performance wagon, have been doing so for years, cant wait to see the Gen 5.
The R36 Passat is nice, but the overall reliability of the R8 would be far greater than that of a VW. Not to mention long term costs for the term of ownership forservicing, repairs, maintenance and customer support - VW seem to charge what they want, regardless of on paper scheduled servicing costs…
As a result, my experiences with VW have been nothing short of unacceptable. My R32 (from new), I had interior rattles in under 5000km that drove me nuts (especially the ones behind the speedo and stereo that would never go away), SRS airbag warning lights flicking on and off during a drive (which 3 different VW dealers couldnt fix - ended up replacing the whole 7 airbags, only to have the same problem reappear after 2 weeks) - and I was forced to pay the labour costs!. I thougth my R32 was a lemon, but found out quickly there were others out there with the same issues…
Even tho I now own an 09 Subi STi Spec R (totally smitten), if I ever had to choose between either the R8 or the R36, my money would be on the R8 any day of the week, and twice on Sundays.
I personally would take the R8 Tourer of the Passat as well.
I reckon it looks better plus if your looking to tow with the added space over the sedan you cant go wrong with a V8 wagon.
I do want one!
the problem with the R36 you cant get a manual and not as much room inside as the HSV . I dont like the fact that you cant get memory seats on the HSV or SSV
GLOBAL WATCH:
HERE IN THE STATES, GM IS ABOUT TO TEST THE WATERS WITH THEIR NEW CADILLAC CTS WAGON. AND THERE’S ENOUGH CORPORATE COMMITMENT THAT THEY’RE EVEN CONFIRMING A “V” (HIGH PERFORMANCE) VERSION OF THE CAR AS WELL. AND IT’S PRETTY CERTAIN THAT AWD WILL ALSO BE AN OPTION. NOW, IF ONLY GM WOULD ALSO SEE THE WISDOM OF RESURRECTING THEIR “UTE” PROGRAM HERE. THE WHOLE PONTIAC ST EFFORT WAS SHELVED ALONG WITH THE PONTIAC G8 SEDAN WHEN THAT MOTOR DIVISION PLOWED HEADLONG INTO A BRICK WALL.
BOB LUTZ, (FUTURE PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT GURU), HAS ALREADY STATED THAT THE G8, (YOUR COMMODORE), WILL ARRIVE IN CHEVROLET DEALERSHIPS NEXT YEAR, REBADGED AS THE CAPRICE. HERE’S HOPING THAT THE FORMER ST ALSO SLIDES OVER. IF NOT, THE BOWTIE BOYS WILL HAVE TO WATCH IN AGONY AS THE NEW DOMESTICALLY PRODUCED FORD SUPER PURSUIT “OWNS” THAT EXPLOSIVELY POPULAR NEW MARKET SEGMENT. IT’S GOING TO BE ESPECIALLY PAINFUL FOR LOCAL GEARHEADS, BECAUSE THEY’LL FULLY UNDERSTAND HOW CLOSE THEY CAME TO HAVING THEIR OWN R8 MALOO HERE IN THE STATES… ONLY TO SEE GENERAL MOTORS DROP THE BALL.
I was just looking at the build number on that picture at the top, I just picked up Build # 0174
I really look forward to it. Great review.
I have owned a r8 Tourer for 3 months now and I always have a smile on my face when I drive it. It is a great car that keeps both my wife and myself happy. I previously have a had a my99 wrx which i spent a considerable ammount of mony on with the 2.5l and PPG gear box which was a graet car if I was in the mood but annoying when i was not. Do youself a favour if you want a family car and enjoy the drive of a quick car get a HSV r8 Tourer you can’t go wrong.
Hi Craig, Good to hear from another tourer owner! I have owned mine for nearly 2 weeks now and loving it. Such an awesome car!
I’m Having it lowered a bit with new shocks this weekend to improve the handling even more
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Matt