SA Road Tests

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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you can get at home.

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2008 Chevrolet Lumina SS manual

A big-hearted performance car

This award-winning car is not just a rebadged version of an Australian saloon, in its turn based on a North American- or perhaps Opel platform, as was the case previously.

It is the outcome of a Au$ 1 billion clean-sheet development programme and sells under various names around the world – Holden Commodore SS in its home country, Chevrolet Lumina SS here and in certain other markets and as Pontiac G8 GT in the US. It will also be the basis (in two-door coupè form) of next year’s Camaro GT.

The awards mentioned include Car Middle East magazine’s 2007 “Best Sports Saloon” trophy and Australian “Motor” magazine’s 2006 “Bang for your Buck” prize for best performance-to-price ratio.

At its heart is a six-litre alloy version of the iconic GM small block V8, pumping out 270 kW (360 BHP) at 5 700 rpm and 530 Nm of torque at 4 400 rpm.

To keep it all glued to the road, BMW-style front suspension features twin-pivot McPherson struts, while the steering geometry is set up with lots of castor for excellent straight-line stability. A hydraulically damped tension rod bush improves ride isolation from longitudinal bumps, while the lateral link has a stiff, spherical, rubber inner pivot to improve lateral precision for good handling — just the combination you'd expect on a decent performance sedan.

The innovation lies in a four-link independent rear suspension with coil-over springs and dampers, a major step forward for Australian cars. Here again, the engineers have tried to balance longitudinal compliance for a smooth ride, with lateral stiffness for good handling. The Lumina SS also gets handling-oriented spring-and-damper calibration and 245/45R18 performance tyres.

Holden engineers did their best to achieve 50/50 weight distribution by positioning the engine low and to the rear of the engine bay and by placing the battery in the boot. It works: an American tester tried out the Commodore SS at Holden's Lang Lang proving ground, after which he commented: “With only a hint of body roll, it pulled off a run through the slalom at 67.6 mph. That's a few ticks faster than the 2007 Infiniti G35 Sport and 2006 BMW 330i, although slower than BMW's killer 335i. It was much the same story on the skid pad, where our Commodore SS's run at 0.87g nearly matched the 335i's effort of 0.88g.”

My own impression was that this car is taut, firmly sprung, well damped and with brilliant steering feel and feedback. The notchy gearchange and fairly hefty clutch take some getting used to, but the rewards are worth the effort. There is also a hint of raw edginess in the way it responds to driver inputs, but this is a big-hearted performance car, after all, not your average little shopping trolley.

Getting philosophical for a moment: European sports sedans might be described as princesses, all finesse and protocol. This Chevy, on the other hand, is like a straight talkin’, straight shootin’ country gal – she stares you in the face, hauls you close and tells you exactly what she wants. Right here, right now. And you’d better deliver, or you and she are done.

Inside, decently sized leather seats, adjustable for height on the driver’s side and with adjustable lumbar support on both front units and height- and reach adjustable steering column allow almost anyone to get comfortable. There is naturally ample leg and headroom for fully-grown passengers in the back.

It’s scarcely worth mentioning the individual climate control, six disc CD player, power windows front and rear, keyless access and all the electronic safety kit, as pretty much every car at this price level enjoys all these toys. What I did notice was that the window controls, central locking buttons, mirror switches and ESP are all on the centre console along with an unusual design of hand brake lever; it’s to facilitate easy conversion to left hand drive for export markets. Quite sharp, actually, Bruce.

Those who have R370 000 to spend on a sports sedan probably won’t quibble about the present cost of petrol either, because there’s nothing quite like the blood pumping rumble of a big V8 and the way the thrust of 360 muscular American horses pushes you playfully back into the leather - just like a bad girl should.

The numbers:
Engine: 5967 cc all alloy push rod V8, with 2 valves per cylinder
Power: 270 kW @ 5 700 rpm
Torque: 530 Nm @ 4 400 rpm
0 to 100 km/h: 6,22 seconds
Top speed: 238 km/h
Fuel index: 14,4 l/100 km
CO2 gm/km: 336
Price: R369 900, including 3 year/60 000 km warranty and service plan
Service intervals: 15 000 km

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.

What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

I am based in Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. This is the hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to in order to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and visit to kick back and relax. 

So occasionally a cow, a goat or a horse may add a little local colour by finding its way into the story or one of the pictures. It's all part of the ambience!

Comments?

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