Holden VZ Ute

Aussies rightly claim the humble tray-back utility as their own. It emerged in the 1930s from a farmer’s need for “on-the-land” weekday abilities and passenger-car skills on the weekend.

Since then, however, the ute has evolved — some say strayed — from a workhorse into a sports-loving show pony. City slickers, it seems, have seen the advantages of a two-door ute with a tray to carry their mountain bikes, sports gear, waterskis, dirt bikes and so on.

Not content to rest there, Holden looked for “unfulfilled” market niches — hence the four-door Crewman ute for the tradesman with a family, or the active outdoorsman with mates. This vehicle led to the Cross8, which adds a high-ride suspension pack and rugged 4WD capabilities to the portfolio for that go-anywhere flexibility.

But the big news came in September 2004 when Holden dropped a totally new 3.6lt V6 under the bonnet. It’s called the Global V6 and is manufactured from the ground up right here in Australia (unlike the Buick it replaced).

A more refined and responsive unit, it’s also significantly more powerful in the utes, with 175kW of power and 320Nm of torque. The old four-speed auto remains, but it has been overhauled for smoother, quicker shifting, and is offered alongside a six-speed manual gearbox.

Of course there’s also a V8 version, with 235kW of power from a 5.7lt engine; but for the purposes of our tow test, we’ll stick to the V6 models.

Anyone who’s driven a recent-model Commodore will feel right at home in the VZ ute. The doors, dashboard, instrument cluster, steering wheel and front seats are all basically carryover from the sedan and wagon. They’re also mostly carryover from the previous-model VY, since most of the development budget went on the new engine and transmission choices.

Electric window switches, remote door locks, CD stereo and cruise are also carryover and come standard on all models. Air conditioning is standard on all bar the base model in each range.

Holden’s cushy steering wheel is adjustable for height and reach, and the seat slides, tilts and elevates, making for a very comfortable cabin. There’s a couple of cup-holders behind the gear selector, and a deep bin under the centre armrest.

One negative to the same-as-before story is Crewman’s back seat. It’s an occasional seat that should be reserved for short trips. There’s a decent amount of legroom in the back, but the angle of backrest-to-seat squab is too acute.

Holden is not expected to do anything about this known inadequacy before 2006.
So, what’ll she carry? Payload details are examined in detail in the owner’s manual, along with guidelines for safe load-stacking and driving. For the record, the body-side ute can carry 830kg (Ute V6) in the tray; the One-tonner is rated for 1297kg (Ute V6); and the four-door Crewman is capable of carrying 1072kg (V6).

Holden has also beefed up the V6 manual’s clutch, which raises towing stakes to a more robust 1600kg from the previous 1200kg — an increase this new engine is more than capable of dragging.

It’s a much nicer engine to drive, despite the fact that it sounds and feels a little like the old engine at low to middling revs. There’s an incremental boost in power and driveability at pottering speeds, but this engine hides the best till last.

Holden’s new V6 is a much happier beast at high revs, and really delivers on the promise. It maintains smooth acceleration, while noise levels pick up marginally as it nears the 6500rpm cut-out.

One other huge improvement is the gearbox. Holden has improved the clunky four-speed’s processing power tenfold, which essentially means it can think faster and better. This translates into smoother gear changes and less hunting, which definitely makes for a smoother tow.

Then there’s the new six-speed manual offered with the 175kW V6. It’s everything the V8’s gearbox isn’t — it takes less effort, slides intuitively between the gears, and doesn’t require arms the size of tree trunks. It’s still a little heavy for our liking, but that’s a personal choice and not a criticism.