Holden Acadia 2018 officially revealed

Holden has revealed the first official images of its production-ready Acadia large SUV, as it tests the vehicle on Australian soil before it makes its way to local showrooms in the fourth quarter of this year.

When the Acadia launches later this year, the new Holden seven-seater will serve as the replacement for the long-lived Captiva, and it will be available in front- and all-wheel drive configurations, driven by a 3.6-litre V6 petrol engine.

Holden has also confirmed the car will be equipped with tech features including a 360-degree camera, stop/start technology, wireless charging, ventilated and heated seats and a 'hands-free' power tailgate.

To be imported from GM in the United States, the Acadia will join the recently-released Equinox medium SUV, the rugged Trailblazer and the small Trax in the Holden SUV line-up.

According to Holden director of sales Peter Keley, the Australian company expects its SUV models to make up most of its total sales.

“SUVs are becoming more and more popular and, where once upon a time most of Holden’s sales would have been passenger cars, we now expect SUVs to take over with Equinox and Acadia leading the way” he said.

Holden has begun a local testing program of production-ready Acadia units, with 16 vehicles currently on the road.

The program, dubbed internally as Captured Test Fleet (CTF), sees the Acadia driven every day on Australian roads by Holden employees and their families.

“With Acadia undergoing more local testing and its launch on the horizon, Holden is better equipped than ever to satisfy Australia’s demand for SUVs with our range of high-tech, world-class products,” said Mr Keley.

“The real-world test program we’re running on Acadia ensures it not only drives well on Australian roads, it also fine tunes technology features such as Traffic Sign Recognition, Auto Emergency Braking and Lane Departure Warning to work with our unique road markings and signs.”

There is also a fleet of 14 Acadias testing in the US, and between the two fleets, they will cover about 1.5 million kilometres of testing ahead of the SUV’s launch.

The Acadia will battle the likes of Toyota’s Kluger, the Nissan Pathfinder, Hyundai’s forthcoming new-generation Santa Fe and Kia’s Sorento in the large SUV sales race.

Full pricing and specifications details are expected to be revealed closer to its launch date in Q4 this year.

Will the Holden Acadia do well to fill the shoes of the outgoing Captiva? Tell us your thoughts in the comment section below.