After over a year of speculation and spy shots, Holden Special Vehicles has revealed its one last hurrah for the locally built Holden VF Commodore with a limited edition only gearheads at HSV itself could imagine. Enter the 2017 HSV GTSR W1.
Most importantly, HSV’s skunkworks effort to get its hands on a gaggle of 6.2-liter supercharged LS9 V8 engines is truth. Each and every GTSR W1 will feature the potent powerplant sitting underneath the bonnet with 635 hp at 6,500 RPM and 601 lb-ft of torque at 3,900 RPM.
And when we say this is a limited edition by gearheads, for gearheads, we mean it. The 2017 HSV GTSR W1 is a manual gearbox only love affair. Specifically, a Tremec TR-6060 (MH3) close-ratio gearbox with help from a model-specific input shaft, a solid flywheel and a twin-plate clutch. HSV has yet to confirm, but it does say a perfect launch should net you a 4.2 second 0-62 MPH time.
But you won’t find Magnetic Ride Control as part of the engineering formula here. Instead, HSV has tapped South Australian-based SupaShock an all-new fixed-rate suspension package. HSV says the lower and stiffer system mimics its Walkinshaw Racing V8 Supercars, though, this system has also taken into account daily driving.
Power is nothing without a place to put it, though, and HSV selected wider, stickier 265/35 front, 295/30 rear Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R tires to wrap a set of forged alloy wheels embossed with the “W1” logo.
When it comes to differentiating itself from the rest of the HSV “30 Years Range”, the GTSR W1 marks its territory with a few minor changes from the more standard GTSR range. Carbon-fiber front fender vents, a carbon-fiber upper plane for its ‘Aeroflow’ rear spoiler and a shadow-chrome-finish for its ‘diamond-shaped’ exhaust tips are a few of those details.
And, finally, the price. If you want to play, you’ll have to pay to step into this coveted halo vehicle for HSV. Not only does the GTSR name stir up nostalgia of the past, but it effectively waves farewell to 30 years of HSV’s work creating Holden Commodore-based performance machines.
The 2017 HSV GTSR W1 will set you back $169,990 AUD ($128,750 USD) before other taxes are applied. And if you’re serious, there will be just 300 GTSR W1s produced before HSV is out of Commodore building business.
Enthusiasts asked, and they received. HSV has revealed a crescendo of what it’s done best over 30 years. It’s a celebratory model, yet a sad one. Bittersweet, the GTSR W1 is.
Comments
LS9, Z/28 wheels and tires, amenities galore, but for ~$130,000 US? Yikes! IMHO, the Chevy SS should’ve received a proper send off too. Perhaps an SS with a ~$65,000 price tag containing modest modifications would have been nice for the US enthusiast.
Welcome to non-U.S. car prices.
Being an old Pontiac enthusiast when I first saw this picture from the front end I see a Pontiac influence ( mostly in the grill ) and what an awesome one it would have made .
They’re all sold by the way, before they have even been made. Scheduled for production in April.
So that where the Pontiac division got move to!
Beautiful; totally counter to today’s SUV and electric ethos.
SS-Commodore and Charger are my favorite non luxury picks. I can’t see how Insignia will fill the void.