Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) is the officially designated performance vehicle partner of Australian marque, Holden. Established in 1987 and based in Clayton, Victoria, the company modified Holden models such as the standard wheelbase Commodore, long wheelbase Caprice and commercial Ute for domestic and export sale. Holden Special Vehicles also modified other non-Holden cars within the General Motors portfolio in low volumes.
Vehicles produced by Holden Special Vehicles have, in the main, been marketed under the HSV brand name. However, in the early years, some retailed under the Holden brand in Australia whereas most cars for export (other than in New Zealand and Singapore) retailed under different names (namely, Vauxhall and Chevrolet Special Vehicles).
Holden and Tom Walkinshaw Racing – an operation owned by Scottish racing-car driver and entrepreneur Tom Walkinshaw – established HSV as a joint venture in 1987. HSV effectively replaced the Holden Dealer Team (HDT) special-vehicles operation run by Peter Brock, after Holden severed its ties with HDT in February 1987 following the Energy Polarizer and "HDT Director" controversies. With the more recent demise of TWR's global companies, HSV still remains a partnership between Holden and Walkinshaw, the joint ownership company being Premoso Pty Ltd.
Since 1987 HSV has built an array of modified vehicles, most of which have been based on Holden models powered by either Holden or GM sourced V8 engines.
The first car developed by HSV was the Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV of 1988, which was badged and sold by Holden for Group A touring car racing homologation purposes. It went on to win the 1990 Bathurst 1000 race. The first car developed, badged and sold as an HSV was the SV88.
HSV will begin converting Chevrolet Camaro muscle cars and Silverado pick-ups from left-hand-drive to right-hand-drive to GM's factory standards from the middle of 2018. The cars will be sold with a factory warranty via selected Holden dealerships. To cope with the expansion, HSV will move into new premises, also in Clayton, in early 2018. It expects to eventually boost job numbers from 130 to 150 staff once production ramps up.
The following is an alphabetical listing of the most notable and popular nameplates used by HSV.
The HSV Avalanche is an all-wheel drive crossover SUV that was produced from 2003 to 2005. Based on the Holden Adventra LX8 crossover wagon, the Avalanche range also incorporated a dual-cab utility model known as the Avalanche XUV, derived from the Holden Crewman Cross8. The Avalanche has been built over the following series:
The HSV Clubsport or ClubSport is a full size sports sedan that has represented the brand's highest volume seller since its introduction in 1990. It was based on the mainstream Commodore range and has been the entry-level HSV model except between 1995 and 1998, when that role was filled by the Manta range. In 1999, HSV introduced a higher specification known as the "R8". The Clubsport has been built over the following series:
The HSV Coupé is a high performance grand tourer that was produced from 2001 to 2006. It was based on the Holden Monaro, the Coupé adaptation of the third generation Holden Commodore. Its standard model range included the GTO and GTS. In 2004, the GTS was discontinued and the all-wheel drive Coupé4 introduced. Limited edition models included the GTO LE (2003 and 2006) and GTO Signature (2006). The Coupé has been built over the following series:
The HSV Grange is a full size luxury sedan and it was based on the luxury Holden Statesman and Caprice twins. The Grange has represented the HSV brand's most top of the line, luxury offering to date. Since 1997, this nameplate has replaced both the HSV Statesman and Caprice models. The Grange has been built over the following series:
The HSV GTS is a full size high performance sedan that was based on the mainstream Commodore range. Excluding the special V6-engined editions sold in New Zealand in the VN and VP series, the proper and original V8-engined GTS was introduced in Australia in 1992 with the VP series. The GTS has represented the HSV brand's most powerful offering to date. With the exception of the Z Series, when it was not part of the range (it was available by special order only), the GTS has been built over the following series:
The HSV Maloo is a performance utility that has been produced since 1990 and was based on the Holden Ute. Its distinguishing features have been high-performance V8 engines and full body kits. The name "Maloo" means "thunder" in an Aboriginal language. It is said that former HSV managing director, John Crennan, coined the name for the vehicle after reading a book on Aboriginal Australians.
In 2001, HSV introduced a higher "R8" specification. In June 2006, a regular production Z Series Maloo R8 broke the record for the world's fastest production performance pickup, at 271 km/h, (168 mph) beating the previous record holder, a Dodge Ram SRT-10 by 22 km/h.
The Maloo has been built over the following series:
The most powerful and developed version was the Gen-F 430 kW GTS Maloo, which was launched in November 2014. It featured GTS sedan mechanicals except for the Magnetic Ride Control suspension setup that, due to limited development opportunities, HSV left exclusively for the GTS sedan, Senator Signature and Grange. This Maloo was originally limited to 165 units, later increased to 250 plus 10 for export to New Zealand.
The HSV Senator is a full size luxury sports sedan that was first introduced in 1992. It was based on the Holden Berlina and Calais twins. From 1997, HSV offered a wagon variant (based solely on the Berlina, since the Calais was never built in that body shape) and a higher specification model known as the "Senator Signature". The Senator has been built over the following series:
The HSV SV88 was the first car to bear the HSV badge and was designed to compete against HDT's luxury performance Director model car. The SV88 was launched in 1988 and based on the VL Series luxury Calais.
The HSV W427 was a limited edition flagship based on the E Series, which was released to celebrate the company's 20th anniversary in 2008. It was also a car produced to address the public disappointment caused by HSV canning its ambitious HRT 427 project previewed in 2002. It was powered by a 7,011 cc (7.0 L; 427.8 cu in) LS7 V8 engine rated at 375 kW (510 PS; 503 bhp) at 6500 rpm and 640 N⋅m (472 lb⋅ft) at 5000 rpm of torque.
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