New Holden V6 engine down on size but up on power

The new V6 engine for the updated VZ Commodore is expected to be a 3.6-litre unit, not a continuation of the longtime 3.8-litre capacity.

The VZ model is expected to go on sale in New Zealand in a few months. It will be the final facelift of the current range before the all-new Commodore VE line-up arrives mid-way through 2006.

Reports out of the US and Australia indicate that the new engine, a General Motors family unit codenamed HF and built at Holden's new $440 million plant in Melbourne, will be an all-alloy 3.6-litre unit.

It will produce similar power and torque figures to the 3.6-litre engine in the Cadillac CTS - 190kW at 6200rpm and 346Nm at 3200rpm. Holden trialled a CTS in Melbourne for some time.

Holden began building the new HF V6 for the VZ Commodore last month, but it has been building the same engine for Buick in the US since late last year. The V6 goes under the bonnet of the Rendezvous Ultra model.

Holden's new V6, with its double-overhead camshafts, 24 valves and continuosuly variable cam phasing, will leave the current pushrod 3.8-litre for dead. That engine produces 152kW at 5200rpm and 305Nm at 3600rpm.

It will also revive the engine rivalry between Holden and Ford. The HF V6 and its expected 190kW at 6200rpm will outdo the straight-six 4-litre Barra engine in the Ford Falcon by 8kW. The Barra produces 182kW at 5000rpm.

But the Falcon delivers significantly more torque - 380Nm at 3750rpm compared with the new Holden engine's 346Nm at 3600rpm.

The HF V6 engine in the updated VZ Commodore will be mated to GM's 5L40-E five-speed automatic transmission. The all-new drivetrain will almost certainly mean the VZ will be more expensive than the outgoing VY II Commodore.

The price is expected to go up again when the five-speed will be replaced by a six-speed unit for the VE.

The six-speed box could be the new 6L80-E automatic transmission unveiled with the Buick concept Velite convertible at the New York car show in April.

Velite is based on the Zeta architecture developed by Holden for VE and GM brands around the world. It was powered by a twin-turbo 3.6-litre V6 developing 300kW.