Recently revealed images of Holden’s new VF Commodore Ute, which will be part of the technologically advanced VF range to be launched mid-year, made us feel more than a little nostalgic at Truck Jungle.
The VF will be the last Commodore Ute to be built on the Aussie designed and engineering ‘Zeta’ rear wheel drive platform before Holden switches to GM global vehicle architecture for the VF’s successor in about four years’ time.
Therefore, as far as we’re concerned, the VF will be the last truly ‘Australian’ Holden Ute, which has a lineage that can be traced back more than 60 years to 1951 when the company launched the original 50-2106 or FX Holden Ute.
This six decade bloodline was severed only once. That was back in the 1980s, between the end of the much loved WB Series commercials in 1984 and the beginning of the Commodore-based Utes in 1990. Even so, the Holden Ute has become an Australian motoring and cultural icon that has played a huge role in the post-war development of our nation.
So, as the last of the truly Aussie Holden Utes, the VF is sure to be something of a collector’s item for true blue Ute lovers – and the queue starts here!
Holden has confirmed that all three VF Commodore body styles – sedan, Sport wagon and Ute – will go on sale at the same time, as it ramps up customer quality and on-road engineering evaluation programs around Australia.
As part of VF’s ongoing development, Holden engineers will conduct more than 1.4 million kilometers of local and overseas validation testing before the first VF Commodore reaches Holden showrooms.
This includes 350,000 kilometers of customer verification testing of early production models by Holden employees across the business over the coming months.
Since the program’s inception in 2009, Holden has introduced a range of new measures to ensure the 2013 VF Commodore exceeds customer expectations.
With a focus on the needs of Australian car buyers, Holden has mined customer feedback dating from 2003 to define program quality targets and develop vehicle functionality, content and features.
Holden Chief Engineer Brett Vivian said customer experiences of Holden and competitor products were front-loaded into VF program planning from the start.
“Our aim with VF was to challenge people’s perceptions about our cars and get them excited about large cars again,” he said.
“The insights we’ve gained from customer feedback have played a critical role in shaping the VF program, resulting in a fantastic-looking car that is the most refined Commodore we’ve ever engineered.
“It’s also packed full of features and technology that take the driving experience to new levels.
“We’ve put VF through its paces around the globe, from Sweden to North America to the Middle East, but the most critical testing is the thousands of evaluation kilometers we cover on local roads in Australia. Whether sedan, Sport wagon or Ute, the new VF is a car we can all be very proud of – it’s a truly great drive.”
We have no doubts about that, but what on earth will the boys at the Deni Ute Muster drive when there’s no more Holden Utes?