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 probably applies to the models you can get at home.

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*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.



We experience rolling road thunder in the 2011 Chevrolet Lumina SSV 6.0 a/t.

Every boy should have one.

Published in Weekend Witness Motoring on Saturday June 4, 2011

"Now you are driving a machine," said this guy at the gym. We almost replied that all our test cars are machines; dinky little econo-machines, high winding tuned-until-they-almost-burst machines, small machines genetically modified to run like big ones, big V8s supercharged to claw their ways across the landscape...

And cars like the Chevrolet Lumina SSV - no multiplicity of valves, no quad cams, no forcing of fuel down its gullet, just a big happy pushrod V8 with two valves per cylinder and a bagful of good old cubic inches, quietly doing its job. 'A man's car' might have been another way to put it. It's a butt-kicking Chuck Norris of a thing; a little brash, a little vulgar, the kind of car you want hanging around your backyard when there's real work to be done. Every boy should have one.

We drove a manual version in 2008 so knew more or less what to expect. Power and torque figures haven't changed but the car has had a facelift since then and some interior features have been updated. For example, the front of the Lumina features a revised bumper and air dam as well as new styling treatment for the fog lights and headlamps. A chrome strip was added to the boot lid just above the number plate. The design of the 18" alloy rims was refreshed but tyre specification is still 245/45 R18. A more subtle change is the addition of 'V' to the nomenclature, changing model designation from SS to SSV, bringing South African offerings in line with overseas models.

Significant revisions have been made to the instrument cluster and the centre console.  The audio system has been upgraded to include a USB socket and Bluetooth functionality with mobile phone connectivity. It features satellite controls on the steering wheel and a touchscreen interface on the audio display.There are buttons for satnav, but South African cars do not have this activated because of licensing difficulties.

Standard kit includes dual zone climate control, power windows and side mirrors, alloy pedals and leather-trimmed sports seats. Both front chairs have four-way electronic positioning and manual lumbar adjustment. The driver’s seat adjusts for height and tilt as well. A driver information centre in the instrument cluster provides trip, vehicle and audio information. Safety features include six airbags as well as ABS braking with EBD and ESP. Traction control and ‘cruise’ are included. Handling is enhanced by an advanced linear control suspension system. Central locking with auto-lock is standard as is an alarm and immobiliser system with panic function.

A Euro 3-compliant active fuel management system, known as Displacement on Demand, has been part of the GM L76 engine and 6L80-E automatic transmission combination since 2009. This saves fuel by using only half the engine’s cylinders during most normal driving conditions up to 110 km/h. It automatically and seamlessly reactivates the other cylinders when needed, for brisk acceleration or load carrying.  In official tests, it uses about 0,9 litres less fuel per 100 km in urban cycle, but real world savings on the open road are expected to be greater. Manual versions don't have it.

In case you have been off-planet for a while, the Lumina SSV is not just another wallowing yanktank. It's a rebadged Holden Commodore SSV, designed by Aussies from the axles up as a sports sedan. It actually handles pretty well - up close with some fancy Germans in fact. Another thing - that 6L80-E transmission may be used in certain Cadillacs, but it's no sloppy slush box. It uses a torque converter with five multiple disc clutches. These combine with a mechanical sprag clutch to deliver seven ratios, six forward and one reverse, through the gear sets. They then transfer torque through the output shaft. It's rather like 'twin clutch' but there are more of them. It works - very well indeed. Makes one think of the famous barbershop sign, only this one says: "Six gears. No waiting." The selector offers the usual 'Drive' plane with 'Sport' and 'Manual' off to the left. There are no paddles.

So what's it like to drive? We get smiley-faced over little hooligan cars. This is a huge-grin big hooligan car loaded with torque, V8 rumble, unstoppable power and a love of twisty country roads. As we said, every boy should have one.

The numbers
Price: R441 930
Engine: 5 967 cc pushrod V8 with 16 valves
Power: 270 kW at 5 700 rpm
Torque: 530 Nm at 4 400 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 6.5 seconds
Maximum speed: 238 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: about 13.6 l/100 km
Tank: 71 litres
Boot: 491 litres
Warranty: 5 years/120 000 km
Service plan: 3 years/60 000 km at 15 000 km/1 year intervals



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 central hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and go 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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