WHEELS & WATER
NEW CAR NEWS
Chris Nixon unveils the latest models and makes to hit Australian shores.
LOW-PRICE LEVY FOR LATEST CHEVY The Australian enthusiast’s beloved HSV high-performance Commodore sedan is long gone, along with the parent brand, but some V8-spiritual relief has landed in the form of the first Chevrolet Corvette to be officially sold here with factory right-hand drive. That’s big news for fans of America’s-own sports car, who since its introduction in 1953 have had to privately (and expensively) convert imports from left-hand steering in order to drive here. The C8 (eighth generation) Corvette Stingray is now available from a limited number of dealers representing General Motors Specialty Vehicles, a shrunken Holden successor established to distribute this car and the big Chevy Silverado pick-up. Pitched as a Porsche 911 rival, the Corvette has an impressive story. Now with a mid-mounted V8 providing 369 kiloWatts of power, it can hit 310 kmh. Two trim levels plus a standalone special edition called Carbon are available from $144,990. A convertible version adds $15,000. Less than $150,000 for a 300 kmh sports car appears to be unbeatable value and the limited Corvette allocation for Australia is likely to be sold out very soon.
ASTON’S FABULOUS VALHALLA The numbers are staggering for Aston Martin’s latest hyper-sports car, the Valhalla. And ironic. Now owner of a Formula 1 team, Aston Martin used the recent Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne to unveil the fabulous Valhalla. It bills the car as not only showcasing its involvement in the über-tech world of F1, but also as a first step in transitioning its road cars from petrol power, to hybrid and ultimately, full electric. The Valhalla is the first Aston Martin to locate its engine behind the occupants, rather than in front. At last, it falls into line with the layout long used by Ferrari, Lamborghini, Lotus, Porsche, McLaren and other supercar makes. And it has not one motor, but three – a petrol, twin-turbo V8 plus electric motors front and rear. Total power when called up by the driver, 700 kiloWatts (950 horsepower). Torque, 1000 Newtonmetres. Performance is in the F1 realm, with acceleration from rest to 100 kmh taking just 2.5 seconds and a top speed of 350 kmh. And there’s the irony: isn’t electric power supposed to be saving the world from the motor car? Here’s an example of a road car with performance that’s impossible to experience except on a race track and that will be limited to just 999 people able to afford the equivalent of an $A1.8 million price tag.
72 covemagazine.com.au
– Issue 90
