Holden Cascada Review: Holden’s Sun-Soaker Arrives
What’s Hot: Strong value for money, decent rear seat space, quiet on-road, well-equipped .
What’s Not: Sluggish automatic, fiddly infotainment interface.
X-FACTOR: A capable cruiser with a distinctly European flavour, the Cascada has plenty going for it.
Vehicle Style: Convertible
Price: $41,990 (plus on-roads)
Engine/trans: 125kW/260Nm 1.6 turbo petrol 4cyl | 6sp automatic
Fuel Economy claimed: 7.5 l/100km | tested: 9.5 l/100km
OVERVIEW
Although stillborn mid-2013 with the premature demise of the Opel brand in Australia, the Cascada has been resuscitated.
Now wearing a Holden Lion on its front grille and bootlid, the Cascada is the first Holden four-seat convertible since the 2009 AH Astra TwinTop.
However, unlike the Astra, the Cascada comes with a promise of a premium experience - as well as genuine four-seat capability.
Holden freely admits the Cascada will be a niche model. It has empty-nesters in its sights, and, priced at $41,990, the Cascada is placed in the right spot to steal more than a few sales from the Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet, which starts at $43,990.
So, how does Holden’s new boulevard cruiser rate?
We headed for the hills in the Gold Coast hinterland for a brief first drive.
THE INTERIOR | RATING: 3/5
- Electric folding fabric roof, heated power outside mirrors heated front leather sports seats, alloy pedals, cruise control, dual-zone climate control, reversing camera, front and rear parking sensors, dusk-sensing headlamps, rain-sensing wipers, heated steering wheel
- Infotainment: Satellite navigation, AM/FM/DAB+/CD audio headunit, USB audio input, Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, integrated Pandora, Stitcher and Tune In Radio apps
- Luggage capacity: 280 litres minimum, 380 litres maximum.