Non_FJ Holden Monaro

[Dads_FJ]

You guy's sure know how to have fun down under.  Just picked up this 2004 Holden Monaro Pontiac GTO last week.  What a hoot!

[Motofun]

A future classic for sure!  Think Buick Grand National....Might have to give it a few years (decades??)

[Pat Conlon]

John, is that a LS3 or LS1?

[Dads_FJ]

John, is that a LS3 or LS1?

This is the 'small' LS1.  The '04 had the 5.7L 350HP mill and the '05 & '06 had the 6.0L whitch is rated at 400hp.  350 seems plenty strong for me.

[giantkiller]

What does a guy have to pay for such fun?

[Dads_FJ]

What does a guy have to pay for such fun?

I paid just over $8k for mine.  Here's your's https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/wsh/cto/d/2006-pontiac-gto/6595053010.html

Although I think all sports cars should have three pedals.

[Urban_Legend]

Here is the same car in Australia....worth just a tad more than the $8k you paid
https://www.carsales.com.au/cars/holden/monaro/cv8-badge/

[Urban_Legend]

This is the one you want, if you want to have fun with the whole family. They were exported to the UK, but not sure about the US. Basically a 4 door family car running Corvette drive train.
https://www.carsales.com.au/cars/holdenspecialvehicles/clubsport/r8-badge/

[Bill_Rockoff]

Nice find. The interior of those (being non-USDM) was the nicest interior of any GM car I've ever driven. We also got the 4-door Holden Commodore here in the US as a Pontiac G8, which was available with the LS2 as well (G8GT.)

I haven't tried a G8, but I have tried a couple of Chevy SS's. You need to try one of those, even though they're a long way from eight grand.

That price is outstanding, by the way; I would have thought that would be the price for one that is currently on fire.

350 hp was a lot when these came out, and the subsequent LS2 with 400hp was icing on the cake. These cars are a lot like FJs, a bit heavy to be "super sporty" but very well behaved, very powerful, and the weight comes with stability that makes it well-suited to going long distances at high speed in great comfort. And like FJs, there is a substantial aftermarket for these.

[rlucas]

Get in touch with this guy - a fellow FJ owner with similar tastes - https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=leon%20marker

[ribbert]

Although I think all sports cars should have three pedals.

Was manual transmission an option over there?

Noel

[Firehawk068]

Although I think all sports cars should have three pedals.

Was manual transmission an option over there?

Noel

Yes it was, at least in the GTO and G8. I am not sure about the Chevy SS version?
I don't believe a manual was offered in the Caprice PPV version. We have two of those in our Sherriff fleet.
I see them come through the shop once in awhile for PMs.

[Bill_Rockoff]

The SS was automatic-only in 2014, the first year we got it in the US. The next year, it was available with the 6MT and they all came with the magnetorheological shocks and with Brembo rear calipers to match the fronts. I think 2016 saw a variable-mode exhaust.

I've only driven automatics; all the manuals in the dealership I visited a year ago were sold every time the salesman went to get the keys. "Sorry, that one sold while I was looking for the keys to the other one. We have a black one coming in July, we can hold it for you with a $1,000 deposit." The steering feel (like the GTO) is far better than anything else I've ever driven that said "Chevy" on it, except for C7 Corvettes which are equally good.

The SS is fantastic, in every way that matters to me(*) except one: it uses fuel like a 475hp Challenger SRT8, that is towing another SRT8, which is sliding on its roof.   It's not that I necessarily object to using more fuel to make more power. It's that the SS is a huge outlier in how fast it is versus how much fuel it uses. Seriously, all the 550 hp European sedans get 23 mpg on the highway, what the hell is up with the SS using 10% more fuel and making 20% less power?

(*)A lot of people don't like the SS's looks, which make a plain brown paper bag look exotic. I don't mind that the SS is a little dumpy-looking. Similarly, I like that the GTO is on that line between "handsome" and "invisible" - nobody else needs to notice the fun I'm having.