If your sole goal as a UK car buyer is to get the most horsepower for under sixty thousand pounds, then you need to look no further than the revised Vauxhall VXR8 GTS, a rebadged Holden HSV with an American engine. Said mill has recently been boosted by an extra 150 horses and now screams to the tune of 576 of them.
It’s the same supercharged LSA V8 engine as the one used under the bonnet of the recently revealed Camaro ZL1.
Starting from £54,999 (US$90,000), it’s as it’s always been, great value for money (compared to the Germans, of course – i.e. the M5 is priced from £73,505 or US$120,300) and if the plethora of online and owner reviews are right, not bad as a car either.
Benchmark sprint time to 62mph (100km/h) is 4.2 seconds, and top speed is limited to 155 mph (250km/h). Keeping everything in check is a Brake-Torque Vectoring system that is said to quell understeer at high speeds, while Magnetic Ride Control with three settings to choose from makes it a better-suited all-rounder.
The car’s exterior benefits from light cosmetic touchups that are concentrated at the front – there’s a new “twin-nostril” grille design plus a new bumper; “twin-kidney” must have been taken… There’s also a new diffuser and spoiler combo at the back too – it brings out the LED tail lamps.
The cabin has been freshened up as well, and as the manufacturer says “has undergone a raft of design changes.” The improvements include a new instrument cluster with new gauges, as well as a revised center stack, door panels and new leather-clad seats that are 8-way electrically-adjustable.
The new VXR8 will make its “surprise debut at the Performance Car Show alongside Autosport International next month,” with deliveries poised for the first quarter of 2014.
By Andrei Nedelea
PHOTO GALLERY
