Holden VFII Commodore SS Ute
Sadly, this car will only be on sale for another few months. After that, there will no longer be an Australian-made pickup (ute). The Holden Commodore VFII is the last of the line for a the Aussie ute, from the original Bandt-designed 1933 Ford Coupe Utility, through various generations of Ford and Holdens (and the occasional interloped from Chrysler or BMC).
The VF Commodore could have had a very bright future, possibly badged in the US as a Pontiac (like the G8 Sedan), or as a modern-day El Camino. Sadly the 2008 Financial Crisis, GM's bankruptcy, and uncompetitive currency positions meant that this was a Australia (and New Zealand) only proposition.
Key info included versions of Chevrolet's LS3 V8 with 408 hp, IRS, RWD and around 1,850 kg to move - making this ute and quick as some relatively recent Ferraris and Porsches.
Australia has been well-served by the ute. In our culture they hold as much macho appeal as sportscars, if not more - most of the time this would have been the only locally built car with two doors and a hot engine. Some of them were damned fast too - not necessarily a sensible idea with so little weight over the back wheels - though this in itself made them ideal for some circle work.
A relatively low period of cool-ute activity was manifest through the mid 1980s - Holden had ceased to produce a local ute in 1984, while Ford axed the V8 engine in 1982. The utes from the 1970s continued the mystique in a similar way that Musclecars in the US did, until new V8 Holden Commodores were produced from 1990.
Reacting to the market penetration of 1-tonne body-on-frame utilities from mostly Japanese brands through the 1990, the 1997 Ford AU Falcon included a ute where the rear section was a similar half-frame chassis cab, and optional sheet metal box - this increased the load carrying capacity, but not the styling purity. Holden retained the Coupe-Utility design, added IRS and high-powered V8s, and focused more on the leisure end of the market.
The VFII SS ute here shows the culmination of this effort (excluding the limited volume HSV Commodore versions) - as a Ford man I am sad to say that the Holden is a much better looking vehicle, and better resolved 'sporty car'.
This Lego miniland-scale Holden VFII Commodore SS Ute has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 116th Build Challenge, - "Pickups and Vans", - a challenge to design pickups and vans.
Holden VFII Commodore SS Ute
Sadly, this car will only be on sale for another few months. After that, there will no longer be an Australian-made pickup (ute). The Holden Commodore VFII is the last of the line for a the Aussie ute, from the original Bandt-designed 1933 Ford Coupe Utility, through various generations of Ford and Holdens (and the occasional interloped from Chrysler or BMC).
The VF Commodore could have had a very bright future, possibly badged in the US as a Pontiac (like the G8 Sedan), or as a modern-day El Camino. Sadly the 2008 Financial Crisis, GM's bankruptcy, and uncompetitive currency positions meant that this was a Australia (and New Zealand) only proposition.
Key info included versions of Chevrolet's LS3 V8 with 408 hp, IRS, RWD and around 1,850 kg to move - making this ute and quick as some relatively recent Ferraris and Porsches.
Australia has been well-served by the ute. In our culture they hold as much macho appeal as sportscars, if not more - most of the time this would have been the only locally built car with two doors and a hot engine. Some of them were damned fast too - not necessarily a sensible idea with so little weight over the back wheels - though this in itself made them ideal for some circle work.
A relatively low period of cool-ute activity was manifest through the mid 1980s - Holden had ceased to produce a local ute in 1984, while Ford axed the V8 engine in 1982. The utes from the 1970s continued the mystique in a similar way that Musclecars in the US did, until new V8 Holden Commodores were produced from 1990.
Reacting to the market penetration of 1-tonne body-on-frame utilities from mostly Japanese brands through the 1990, the 1997 Ford AU Falcon included a ute where the rear section was a similar half-frame chassis cab, and optional sheet metal box - this increased the load carrying capacity, but not the styling purity. Holden retained the Coupe-Utility design, added IRS and high-powered V8s, and focused more on the leisure end of the market.
The VFII SS ute here shows the culmination of this effort (excluding the limited volume HSV Commodore versions) - as a Ford man I am sad to say that the Holden is a much better looking vehicle, and better resolved 'sporty car'.
This Lego miniland-scale Holden VFII Commodore SS Ute has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 116th Build Challenge, - "Pickups and Vans", - a challenge to design pickups and vans.