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THINK the Holden Commodore’s switch from a locally made rear-drive large car to a Euro-sourced front- and all-wheel-drive mid-sizer means the name has cashed its last performance cheque?
One thing will be different, though – the next hot Commodore could be a hatchback.
As these spy images reveal, Holden’s parent company, General Motors, appears keen to ensure that the Opel Insignia – the Euro-designed and sourced car that will carry the Commodore name into its fully imported future – will have some of the driver-focussed growl to live up to the famous Aussie badge’s hard-earned reputation.
Twin oval exhausts and wide, low-profile rubber front and rear hint that this could be the higher-end VXR performance model.
Wheels understands Holden was the driving force behind a push for a turbocharged V6 engine driving all four wheels.
One option is a tweaked version of the 2.8-litre turbocharged V6 in the current Insignia.
At the very least that 3.0-litre twin-turbo is expected to be used in an HSV, along with an exhaust with a suitable bark.
The next-gen Commodore will feature a longer – although still smaller than the current Commodore – and lighter four-door coupe styling that, in part, draws on the styling previewed by the wild 2013 Opel Monza shooting brake concept.
When it arrives here, the firebrand circa $60,000 Holden Commodore hot hatch is expected to hunt the likes of the next-generation Volkswagen CC – the car that broke the ground to made four-door coupes more affordable – due around the same time as the new Holden, and the Skoda Octavia RS.
Holden first hinted that it was considering an all-paw, hatchback future in 2002, spinning out the SSX concept (pictured above), a VY Commodore-based liftback featuring a wider all-wheel-drive track, pumped guards and a clever rear sliding drawer.
