looking to upgrade to a VE ss ute with about 50000 km and manual
I prefer black, but what about the other variants?
series 11 with E85?
thunder?
SS-V?
Redline?

when did the 6.2 appear?

which ones are worth the extra coin?

all opinion appreciated

I was going to go manual for better resale ,(i.e VY ss auto ute $8000 verses VY SS manual ute $10000) but I will look into auto now you mention that..

found 2 more variants, G8 Pontiac edition (500 made) and the SSZ series!

geez, and the Maloo of course

not keen on spending $2 grand on brakes every 18 months with the Brembo brakes on the Redline

so confusing

I thought the 6 speed autos would be good, but they are rubbish to drive when you are into it as they are not a true driving enthuses cup of tea.
I don't believe they could be better on fuel than a manual.
Around town I do not go through all the gears as I take off I 1st the 3rd the 5th and don't rev it out more than what it needs and if I were in 2ed I go to 4th next like so.
I would think one has to use ones brains to get the best out of a manual.

Why is it that one would have to fork out $2000 every 18 months with the Brimbo brakes ?

Apr 2008 the 6.2L V8 in the HSV

Wots DOD?? and DOS??
Personally I think more than 4 gears in an auto is unnecessary.
an advantage of autos is they generally don't need as much servicing and maintenance as manuals, but maintenance is absolutely necessary with autos, as well as an oil cooler.

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Originally posted by HK1837
Displacement On Demand. Opens 4 x exhaust valves at cruise so operates as a 4cyl.

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Holden badge them 'AFM' - Active Fuel Management.

I achieved 8.4 L/100 km economy on a trip from Sydney to Canberra & return last year, in a mates MY09 SS AFM. I can't get that out of my VT V6.

Dr Terry

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Originally posted by HK1837
My mate's VE SS ute gets below 10L/100kM highway regularly towing his car trailer loaded close to the 1600kg towing limit of the ute. I'd have one of these tomorrow if they had leaf springs.

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HA ha leaf springs, look what a XR6 ute load is at and if you go stiffer the handling goes more so out the window as well then.

The VE-F should have an air bag option for more weight.
The main problem with the IRS is that the diff goes lower to the ground and can bottom out on it.

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Originally posted by HK1837
I don't give a rats how they handle, the IRS is useless for towing capacity or load carrying ability. If they had built them properly with a leaf sprung rear end like a VY-VZ cab-chassis or Falcon they'd be worth having. If Ford had been willing to sell me an XR6 turbo auto with 3/4 tonne or 1-tonne rear suspension i'd have bought one, but they wouldn't.

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Worth having for you, I can understand what you are on about. You would of had to get a Turbo XR6 ute and put the tray aside or try to sell it and then put a tray you wanted to have on it then go looking for the 3/4 tonne or 1 tonne springs, then she should of been what you needed or were looking for. if I was the dealer I could of done it all for you as you would be the boss and I would be happy to help you in every way I could.
I am sure if a dealer was on the ball he could just order the Turbo without the back on it, but we know most dealers that would be to much of a inconvenience for them to handle. but some of us like my self that's what I do for a living, help people to achieve what they want.

I am amazed at what my builder mate can carry and tow with his old VZ SS ute and he has had more than 1 tonne in the back and tows the biggest trailer you could have fully loaded and he says it's all bull s*** that he can't tow what he does without a problem in the world as he just has the air bags inside the coil springs and he had a WB 1 tonne before that.
He gets really wound up and fly's off the handle with people who say it's over loaded and he owns and is running 3 trucks with 2 bobcats and excavator, but he also has a 2011 D-max 4X4 and a new colorado 4X4 and the old VY SS feels better to drive when towing better then any of them.

I don't know IF the VE-F rear end can have the air bags fitted like the Utes before them but old mate has two air lines that come out the back on for both sides and just pumps them up when need be other than that I think he runs 4 psi when nothing is in the back and he has had them air bags from 2003 with his VY SS ute and just put them on the VZ when he sold that.

He says there is no need for leaf springs in anything up to 1 tonne utes nowadays at all and all that is needed is a little brain power to adjust the pressure in the air bags with a pushy pump and a pressure gauge.

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Originally posted by castellan

quote:

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Originally posted by HK1837
I don't give a rats how they handle, the IRS is useless for towing capacity or load carrying ability. If they had built them properly with a leaf sprung rear end like a VY-VZ cab-chassis or Falcon they'd be worth having. If Ford had been willing to sell me an XR6 turbo auto with 3/4 tonne or 1-tonne rear suspension i'd have bought one, but they wouldn't.

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Worth having for you, I can understand what you are on about. You would of had to get a Turbo XR6 ute and put the tray aside or try to sell it and then put a tray you wanted to have on it then go looking for the 3/4 tonne or 1 tonne springs, then she should of been what you needed or were looking for. if I was the dealer I could of done it all for you as you would be the boss and I would be happy to help you in every way I could.
I am sure if a dealer was on the ball he could just order the Turbo without the back on it, but we know most dealers that would be to much of a inconvenience for them to handle. but some of us like my self that's what I do for a living, help people to achieve what they want.

I am amazed at what my builder mate can carry and tow with his old VZ SS ute and he has had more than 1 tonne in the back and tows the biggest trailer you could have fully loaded and he says it's all bull s*** that he can't tow what he does without a problem in the world as he just has the air bags inside the coil springs and he had a WB 1 tonne before that.
He gets really wound up and fly's off the handle with people who say it's over loaded and he owns and is running 3 trucks with 2 bobcats and excavator, but he also has a 2011 D-max 4X4 and a new colorado 4X4 and the old VY SS feels better to drive when towing better then any of them.

I don't know IF the VE-F rear end can have the air bags fitted like the Utes before them but old mate has two air lines that come out the back on for both sides and just pumps them up when need be other than that I think he runs 4 psi when nothing is in the back and he has had them air bags from 2003 with his VY SS ute and just put them on the VZ when he sold that.

He says there is no need for leaf springs in anything up to 1 tonne utes nowadays at all and all that is needed is a little brain power to adjust the pressure in the air bags with a pushy pump and a pressure gauge.

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It is no trouble to go and find the 3/4 tonne or 1 tonne springs for the XR6T, but then you also have to change every other component required to achieve the increased GVW and get it Engineered. Then fit a tray, paint the chassis black and fit tail-lights. We are talking spending another $8k or so on a $35000 ute, and probably voiding parts of the warranty too.

There is NO WAY an Engineer will sign of on an increase in towing or carrying capacity of a VU-VF ute, so therefore you cannot carry or tow any more than they are rated for. I had a VY SS ute, I sold it at about 12,000kM as it struggled to tow an empty car trailer, and the clutch wasn't up to even a loaded small box trailer. GMH only ever rated the VY-VZ 1-tonner at 2100kg towing capacity, and the auto Crewman at 2500kg. These had a decent back end and leaf springs.
The standard wheels on a SS ute are only rated for 690kg max, which is 1380kg total load for the rear axle. Goodbye warranty and insurance.

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Originally posted by gm5735
Deary, Deary me. I'm sure he can tow it, but how about slowing it down?
I hope I'm not in front of your mate when he tries to stop that lot.

But I would like to be a fly on the wall when he has that discussion with the constabulary, and his insurance company.

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Old mate mick said the SS has better brakes than any 4X4 and has brakes on the trailer.
I can't phone him now to get the weight of both as he is out the sticks.

I had a new tray back Mazda Bravo back in 1992 but what ever the weight limit was on that, it was just bulls*** as it was a death trap to drive with what I could drive with my XG ute or VS ute carrying just the same amount of sand in the back once a week that I always did.
I would say 60km/h was the limit in the Mazda and that did not feel safe but with the XG or VS 110 KM/H could be ok.
One thing is that if the weight is up high it's dreadful or the nose is sitting up then you have no hope of controlling it at all in an emergency.

Mick was raving on and on about what the weight limit was of the new Colorado but I could not give a toss what the claim is. as different States will have there own laws regarding that, but as far as I am concerned is that if you tow the weight of the car towing must be more than what you are towing regardless of what anyone claims.

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Originally posted by justgm
I have a VE SSV sedan manual , before that VZ Clubsport Manual, it is amazing to drive ,but we have no traffic lights here in Blenheim !I have had 6 speed manual since VT2 Clubsport & it has just got better over the years . Go_________________Manual if you can. I'm on the Gold Coast at present and ..it is hot here in Aussy .Mark

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I don't see what the problem is with driving a manual nowadays as the clutch is light as and shifting is easy as could be, try driving an old rotten truck all day.
I have a HD clutch in my VY SS and the clutch is a tad to heavy but when I jump into the VF SS the clutch is like nothing.