Holden Commodore price won?t rise

Launching the new car today, Holden's chairman and managing director Mike Devereux says the updated Commodore's pricing would not increase when the Series II is launched in September.

"The VEII price is unchanged … and in fact there are some lower prices on some of the Caprice range,” Devereux says.  "This is not a major thing like we did with VE, what we're really proud of is the iQ system which I think will really change how Australians interface with the car," he says.

Ethanol E85 compatibility in the Holden Commodore VEII range have given the Red Lion an export boost, with Holden announcing a return to the Brazilian market after a two-year absence.

The export deal will see Holden building 600 Emerson Fittipaldi special edition Chevrolet Omega 3.6-litre V6 cars (compatible for E25) slated for Brazil later this year.

The company and its GM counterparts in Brazil believe there is scope for more exports going forward at a projected rate of 150 cars a month.  Devereux says Holden was set up to be profitable domestically, with exports on top.

"We're proud to announce a new export program to Brazil once again, it's great news for Holden and it's a very positive inidicator of our recovery," he said.

The VEII Commodore range, of which the majority is engineered to run on E85 bio-fuel, was evidence Holden was listening to its customers, Devereux says.  "We know Australians want better performance - but better preformance doesn't mean going faster in a straight line.

"Better performance means driving more efficiently, more sustainably and the addition of simple-to-use technology that makes driving safe and fun at the same time," he says.  The VEII Commodore was unveiled at the company's Melbourne head office today ahead of its full release in early September.

Subtle under-skin and underbody aero changes have been made to the Series II VE, as well as engineering the new range to run on E85 bio-fuel - a blend of up to 85 per cent ethanol and 15 per cent unleaded petrol.

The updated VEII range will continue to be powered by the three-litre V6 and the six-litre V8 E85-compatible engines, while the 3.6-litre V6 is expected to be flex-fuel ready by 2012 and Holden says the engines also have improved fuel economy on conventional unleaded petrol.

The V6 engines have reduced fuel use by a claimed 2 to 3 per cent above the improvements made with the addition of direct injection last year, while the V8s have reduced fuel use by up to 6 per cent.

The VEII upgrade also updates the centre stack, dominated by the new infotainment Holden-iQ colour touchscreen system.

The new system, which has the capacity to hold up to 15 standard CDs in its hard drive, controls the MP3/USB comaptible sound system, Bluetooth phone link and satellite navigation, the latter on the high-end models.

The long wheelbase model range has also benefitted from the drivetrain and technology revamp, with the Caprice and Caprice V-Series models, replacing the long-running Statesman badge that has been dropped.

E85 FUEL

* A blend of 85 per cent ethanol and 15 per cent petrol.
* Claimed to effectively reduce emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide by using 85 per cent ethanol, a fuel created through bio-sustainable methods rather than by burning fossil fuels.
* Because ethanol is a renewable fuel produced from plant matter, proponents argue the CO2 emissions are offset when the plant grows.
* Its higher energy rating can generate more power but uses up to 30 per cent more fuel, something offset by anticipated pump prices of around $1 per litre.

AVAILABILITY

* Caltex has committed to sell E85 fuel at 31 service stations in Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane and Adelaide by the end of October, with plans to increase the number of sites to 100 during 2011.
* Becoming increasingly common in the United States.
* Widely used in Sweden but most is imported from Italy and Brazil.