GM Holden Commodore Awarded Top Safety Rating

GM Holden’s first imported version of the iconic Commodore big car earns a five-star safety rating by the Australasian New Car Assessment Program based on testing by its European counterpart.

It’s the first new version of the sedan since Australian production ended last year and a big test for the car Aussies once considered their own.

The ANCAP safety rating is based on testing conducted by Euro NCAP on the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia in 2017. The Commodore shares its structure with that of the Insignia supplied to Europe.

“The vehicle scored well, achieving solid results across all areas of assessment,” ANCAP CEO James Goodwin says in a statement.

“Australian families and fleet buyers have long regarded the Commodore as a trusted local choice, and the shift to overseas supply has further enhanced the model’s safety credentials.”

Goodwin says the new-generation Commodore includes safety-assist technologies not seen in its locally produced predecessor, with standard features such as autonomous emergency braking and active lane-keep assistance.

The ZB Holden Commodore achieved 93% for adult-occupant protection, 85% for child-occupant protection, 78% for pedestrian protection and 77% for safety assist.

The five-star rating applies to all Commodore liftback, sportwagon and tourer variants available across Australia and New Zealand.

Meantime, GM Holden has won an order from Victoria State Police to supply 290 vans that will be deployed as part of a fleet update over the next two years.

GM Holden is supplying 250 purpose-built 2-door vans based on the Colorado 4x2. The vehicles are custom-designed for Victoria Police to include increased ground clearance to improve visibility and create a better vantage point for police to patrol the streets. The van also features six airbags in the passenger compartment and a custom-designed rear pod.

The rear pod is a fully self-contained, secure two-person transport module, and this new model features an additional camera in the custody compartment providing 360-degree monitoring and recording of persons in custody, as well as air conditioning.

GM Holden also will supply 40 custom all-wheel-drive 4-door vans equipped with bull-bars and winches that will be deployed to regional Victoria police to provide off-road driving capability.

“The Holden Colorado is made in Thailand and tuned for Australian conditions by our local engineers,” a GM Holden spokeswoman tells WardsAuto. “The police pod is built and installed to the vehicle in Melbourne, Australia.”

As with the ZB Holden Commodore, the police vans have a maximum five-star ANCAP rating, with safety features including airbags, stability control and antilock brakes.

The divisional vans will be rolled out gradually starting this month.