HSV Senator
The Holden Special Vehicles brand, in image, if not reality, is almost completely intertwined with V8 Supercar racing.
Its sons of the soil fan-base, proudly adorned in "I'd rather eat worms than drive a Ford" shirts and clutching a VB in each paw, does perhaps hinder HSV's efforts to market its cars to a less evolutionally challenged clientele.
Still, their money is as good as anyone else's and HSV has banked plenty of it.
While the hard-edged Clubsport sedan has been the mainstay of the HSV range, the Senator - a luxury variant for old boy-racers - in the current range is selling well.
A price cut, from the previous model's $75,635 to $71,990, has helped. However, of greater significance - in a market where the big donk always wins - is the fact that the HSV Z Series Commodore and Coupe range has exclusive use of the new 6.0-litre V8 from the new Chevrolet Corvette.
Standard Commodore V8s are still fitted with the 5.7-litre V8, which in the $57,360 Calais (the Senator's Holden counterpart) produces 235kW/460Nm. The Senator's engine, meanwhile, produces 297kW and 530Nm of torque. This is what's known in the business as a beautiful set of numbers.
The Senator also runs a heavy-duty four-speed Turbo Hydramatic transmission, plus a strengthened driveshaft and axles.
The transmission's "power" mode has been deleted. HSV says it's unnecessary, given the 6.0-litre's more flexible power delivery and low final drive gearing.
The Senator's "luxury" suspension calibration is supplemented by a self-levelling feature at the rear, presumably to cater for owners who do a bit of towing.
It is curiously matched with low-profile - 245/35 - Pirelli PZero tyres, on 19-inch alloy wheels. HSV's base braking system with ABS, twin-piston front calipers and grooved discs is also employed.
The 6.0-litre pulls with strength and ease (as a V8 of this capacity should) from idle to 2000rpm. The basic Commodore's 5.7-litre bottom end is lethargic by comparison.
At 100kmh in fourth, the engine is relatively busy (by Commodore standards) at 2000rpm but beautifully smooth. It remains so all the way to the rev limiter at 6600rpm. The Senator stopped Drive's clock at 5.8 seconds on the zero-100kmh sprint. The V8 has so much grunt that, when shifting into second with the pedal flat to the floor, it overpowered the traction-control system, broke the Pirellis' grip and gave the rear end a momentary sideways flick. If the tyres are cold or if the road surface is slippery, it gives even more of a kick. You have been warned
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Despite its grunt, the V8 has a subdued note. It is the first HSV ever to be fitted with standard exhaust headers. Every HSV Commodore before this one has had specially tuned extractors. No doubt HSV is leaving itself somewhere to go with future models. The 6.0-litre runs on regular unleaded but prefers premium unleaded.
When you're gentle on the accelerator - which is most of the time, if you want to keep your licence - the four automatic gear ratios can do the job. However, highway fuel economy would benefit from a taller cruising gear.
The auto is basic by class standards. A quick fourth to second downshift elicits a lurch and a lunge, akin to being drop-kicked into the next suburb. Sequential shifting? Adaptive programming? Nope. It's all very nostalgic. Automatics have come a long way since this.
The Senator's suspension is surprisingly supple, well-controlled in most situations but underdamped for the car's weight and sporting intentions. It feels much less secure and poised on the open road than, say, an SV6 or SS Commodore with firmer FE2 suspension. In tight corners the Senator is a bit of a barge.
The Senator's brakes (the smallest offered by HSV) are adequate in normal use but fade when used enthusiastically.
Stability control - standard on some Commodore V6 variants - is absent.
The steering is as per VZ Commodore - accurate, with good feedback.
Inside, the decor is Commodore familiar with a few tastefully subdued additions. The seats are upholstered in sumptuous nappa leather with suede inserts, the roof lining is Euro-style dark and the fake metal is not too heavily trowelled.
The substantially bolstered driver's seat has a long, supportive cushion and full power adjustment with three memories. It's one of the best long-distance seats we've tested.
Similarly, you could occupy the back stalls all day and be a happy camper. The seat has proper head restraints (unlike Commodores), long leg room and is properly shaped for two.
Standard equipment in the Senator includes DataDot security, a six-CD, 10-speaker audio system, dual-zone automatic air-conditioning and four airbags. Stability control and curtain airbags are glaring safety omissions. Under the boot floor is a spacesaver spare.
The HSV Z Series is the last of a Commodore line that began with the 1997 VT and will end with the new VE model, due in April next year.
HSV has tried gamely to keep the Senator competitive and credible as a rival to the European luxury brands, whose customers it covets.
While asking $70,000 for ageing Commodore DNA may seem a bit rich, the Senator gives you more of everything - especially performance - for a fraction of the price of any comparably sized European sedan.
However, HSV can only work with the hardware Holden gives it. The 6.0-litre V8 is manna from heaven. In other respects, particularly in the context of a technology-driven luxury car market, the Commodore's dated engineering is impossible to conceal.