The Wizard of Oz

By ALASTAIR SLOANE

Champion Australian race driver Mark Scaife is a pretty good judge of man and machine, say those in motorsport. Scaife said Greg Murphy's driving in the V8 series at Pukekohe last month was some of the best he had seen. Everyone agreed.

Now Scaife is saying that the latest cars from Holden Special Vehicles are the best-handling models ever. He's right on the button again, they say.

Scaife is a test-driver for HSV and was on hand in Melbourne the other day when the Holden performance division unveiled its swept-up versions of the just-released two-door Monaro - the GTO Coupe and GTS Coupe. Murphy was there, too.

HSV said Scaife's praise was a "big statement indeed, considering some of the superb HSV models of the past and present".

But it was not unexpected. HSV has been excited about the coupe's handling potential since Holden last year confirmed it would build the Monaro.

The reason? A two-door car is by and large stiffer than a four-door. It has more torsional resistance and doesn't twist as much under driving stresses. Its steering and handling are more accurate.

HSV engineers were able to capitalise on the coupe's rigid characteristics and customise carried-over suspension geometry from sedan models to suit. A special steering rack finished off the package.

HSV managing director John Crennan said: "Coupe sets a new benchmark for HSV in terms of both handling and ride."

Car enthusiasts have been waiting for the GTO and GTS, the first two-door cars from HSV. The two-door Monaros of the 1960s and 1970s were built by Holden.

"The new HSV Coupe is the next, major defining moment in HSV's history," said Crennan. "We've applied the best we have to offer - an aggressive exterior, superb ride and handling, spirited engine performance and a dynamic feature-packed interior.

"I believe that if the HSV Coupe was released exactly as is but with BMW badges, the price would be $A150,000 ($190,000) plus. By any measure HSV Coupe models are great value."

In Australia, the GTO will cost $A73,750 and the more powerful and better appointed GTS $A94,750. Production on the GTO will start in January. The GTS will be cranked up in February.

Holden New Zealand spokesman Aalbert van Ham said prices here wouldn't be set until nearer the launch date, expected about May, or a month after that of the Holden Monaro.

Using the current exchange rate of 80c, the GTO would cost a bit over $92,000 and the GTS around $118,400. But New Zealand prices are expected to be considerably sharper than that.

Both coupes have a 40mm lower roofline and are 100mm shorter than the sedans. The rake of the windscreen is two degrees sharper. HSV said the Monaro provided its stylists with an excellent platform.

The man responsible for the look of the coupe is Neil Simpson, chief designer for British-based Tom Walkinshaw Racing, joint owner of HSV.

"I wanted to make a strong statement with the central grille bar, a device I see as the HSV signature," said Simpson

"This is echoed in the front fascia's lower aperture and at the rear of the car, both in the fascia, roof spoiler and as a support to the rear spoiler. I wanted the car to be recognisable as an HSV from all angles.

"The bonnet shutlines down the fascia, the aperture and fog lamps really pull the graphic much wider.

"But it's also quite low, which gives the car a great ground-hugging stance. The rear spoiler had to make a statement, but I kept it flat with the deck lid so it really gives some speed and length to the car without being overly aggressive."

The three-piece rear spoiler is a first for HSV. So too are the headlights and tail-lights. But the side-skirt air vents, dubbed "shark gills", hark back to the original Monaro GTS of 30-odd years ago.

Both coupes are powered by Holden's 5.7-litre V8 - the GTO producing 255kW and the GTS 300kW. The GTO comes with a choice of transmissions - close-ratio, six-speed manual or four-speed automatic. The GTS only gets the six-speed box.

The GTO sits on 18-inch wheels, the GTS on 19-inch. The GTO gets HSV's standard brake package, the GTS gets a cross-drilled, six-piston set-up developed for the Holden Racing Team.

HSV describes it as the "most awesome braking system ever fitted to an Australian-made production car. Combined with ABS [anti-lock brakes] it matches the stopping power of any car in the world."

Both cars carry the latest safety equipment and come with everything that opens and shuts, including climate control air-conditioning, 10-stack CD, eight-way adjustable driver's seat with memory settings and leather trim.

The GTS gets a couple of exclusive touches - including "chain mail" leather trim from the Bridge-of-Weir, Scotland, on the inside and colour accents on bumpers and side-skirts on the outside.

HSV has sold 390 cars in New Zealand this year. Last year it sold 304. Next year it would like to sell between 400 and 500.