For some time now Charl has been nagging me to put something on the car blog. I’ve said yes for sure and the all time question has been which car will I be ranting about? Would it be my all time favourite car the Nissan Skyline (R33 not that crap R34)… or about the EVO IX? I had a grey import for a short term and it was a great car. Well sorry to shock you all, but as your in-house drift god I have an even better choice.

Some of you may be shocked to hear its not even a Japanese Car. Its Australian.

Introducing the Monaro (from Opel (in South Africa), Vauxhall (in the UK) and Holden (in Australia).

Vauxhall ummed and arghhed over its release here in the UK, mainly due to the really crap response UK buyers gave other V8 engine imports (Corvette for example), however it finally made it here and like a geek in nightclub who spots a sexy lady, I have always had my eye on it but never made a move towards it. Until Now.

The Monaro has be branded up and under the Vauxhall badge here in the UK, which was a bit of a downer at first, but having seen this monster I can honestly say that it works quite well. The exterior of the Monaro looks rather understated – maybe a little bit too understated as itself it just seems to drizzle into the crowd. If like me, you have petrol running through your veins, this might not be such a bad thing.

The interior of the Monaro is dark… well its Black, giving it a very Japanese feel (something I like, as you know). And just like Japanese cars it comes fully stocked to the hilt with all the goodies you could ask for, as standard. Leather – wipe clean – trimmed seats (probably a good thing, cos your gonna either crap or cream yourself when you feel this son of a whore accelerate), being an aussie car its got dual zone climate control and cruise control, a trip computer, park assist to keep that paint work in perfect condition, 10-speaker/six disc cd player.

Its also a very well built interior. With none of the crap plasticy feeling bits that make you feel the car was designed in heaven and built in Bangkok. Everything fits really well and has been finished perfectly.

Im getting to be a fat man in my old age, so the eight-way adjustment including height and lumbar support, coupled with the steering columns adjustable height and reach controls means even fat boy goose can get comfortable (very comfortable), behind the wheel. The foot well is big enough for my size 14 (uk size) feet as well.

The back seats were a bit of a disappointment if im to be honest, and lets face it i’m always that. Just the two seats in the back and for a family man like myself I can hear the wife already starting to moan. What more does she need. A place for her, a place for two car seats if needed and a place for me to drive. Goodness, if there is anyone else to come
along they can sit on the roof… mmm.. actually they might dent it – screw em, they can walk!

Oh back to the seats.. There is more than ample legroom for fully grown adults in the back though it must be said, that the shorter the better as headroom is a little less existent. Even so – its very comfortable back there.

The Monaro has other well thought about bits as well, like a decent size lockable glove box. Perfect for putting your handheld police scanner and dessert eagle in. The Monaro also has two small pockets in the doors and two elasticated pockets on the backs of the front seats.

The Boot of the Monaro is big enough to fit a suzuki swift in, so even my wife can get her shopping and pushchair in it.

Lets talk about the engine. I love this engine and you will too. Shipped at a factory set standard, the Chevrolet 5.7 litre LS1 V8 engine sounds just amazing with 343lb/foot torque and a wopping 329bhp (245.34kw). I have been told that with a bit of tuning its easy enough to get this to 420bhp+ (313.19kw+)

Ok, so where as standard now-adays its four valves per cylinder in their multi-camshaft engines, this V8 has two valve per cylinder pushrod and may seem a little backward on the spec-sheet, even if its all alloy, but it really is capable of delivering the goods on the road. In fact its the same engine the powered the Corvettes to class victory over the Ferraris
at Le Mans in 2004.

The V8′s power is sent to the back axle’s standard LSD via a 6-speed close-ratio manual gearbox with a switchable traction control.

Tyres are great for everyday use, but the V8 engine really does over-power the stocked 235/40×18 Bridgestone Potenza RE040s. If you give the engine the freedom it just cries for you’ll end up with a drag race style start, leaving smoke and rubber behind you. Which is fair enough.

Vauxhall state the top speed of the Vauxhall to be ‘over’ 160mph (258kmh), however I am pleased to say the test drive i had over the weekend had the Monaro scaring me at 180mph (290kph), with a 0-60mph speed of under 6 seconds. (0-100kph)

You do need to put the V8 to work to get the most from it as it is quite high revving with highest torque at 4000rpm and a maximum power at 5600rpm. This means low speed pull in upper gears is surprisingly sluggish, but use the lower gears and really let it rev and it goes mental.

The factory fitted suspension is McPherson struts on the front and Vauxhalls acclaimed Control Link Independ Suspension for the rear, with coils, gas dampers and anti-roll bars all round.

The tyres do of course give some bump and jump to your ride, but this is to be expected, but there is no jarring or crashing even over speed bumps and hard-road terrain. The ride is also well established at high speeds along those bumpy roads, where the chassis also displays impressive levels of composure and minimal roll through turns.

The car itself is 188.5″/4.79meter long and has a standing weight of 1647kg, but does not stop it from being surprisingly nimble along winding roads, tackling tight s-bends at pretty high speeds, without any problem and would probably have gone faster.

This had the drifter in me slightly concerned, so switching off the traction control on one of my favourite hairpin corners, I through the Monaro into a very nice drift line producing an impressive collaboration of over steer and power that really does meet my needs in a drift car.

I should probably talk about the speed sensitive power assisted steering too. It makes for easy parking, but feels rather more remote when taking a corner at 100mph (160kph).

The brakes are fantastic, with the 296mm vented front and 286mm solid rear discs having great response bite, that overall gave a great feeling of confidence.

The Monaro does not suffer from wind or tyre noise at high speeds either, with just the roar of the engine to keep you company if you turn off the very good cd-player.

All in all, to sum up I’d have to say that the Monaro is one of the best cars I’ve driven lately. The car averages 30mpg (48kpg) which is very good from a 5.7Ltr V8. Its most definitely the next car for me and from me that is high praise indeed.

Thanks to Vincent for converting the BHP to KW for me as well

Goose
Goosesoup Media/UBERfury Drift Team
www.goosesoup.com