Holden Utility (VG)


The Holden Utility is a full-size coupé utility produced by Australian manufacturer Holden from 1990 to 1991. It was based upon the Commodore (VN), it was the first utility in the Commodore range and the first Holden Utility since 1984. It was not badged as part of the Commodore range.
It was replaced by the Holden Ute VP in January 1992.

Overview

Holden had been without a locally designed utility since the demise of the WB series of Holden Utilities in 1984. In the later years of this decade, the Japanese-made Isuzu-sourced Rodeo had been Holden's offering in this market, with the introduction of the new VN Commodore in 1988 that Holden began designing their locally-built replacement.
The VG was built on a lengthened version of the VN chassis, with extra strengthening to cater for the increased payload. Unlike every previous Holden Utility that had used leaf springs for the rear axle, the VG featured a coil spring rear suspension shared with the VN wagon, fitted with helper springs for its payload capacity of.
The VG shared the frontal appearance of the VN Commodore but its 2-door cabin featured a raised roofline.
The base engine was initially the 3.8L LN3 OHV V6, which was replaced in November with the revised L27 version of the engine. The HEC 5000i V8 was available as an option for the Ute S only. Buyers had the choice of either a 4-speed automatic or 5-speed manual available for both the V6 and V8 engines. The VG Utility was also exported to New Zealand.

Models

Buyers had a choice of two models, the base Utility or the sportier Utility S. Unlike the VN sedan, a SS model was not available in the VG range, nor was the VG produced as a Toyota Lexcen.
Total production of all models was 5,690 vehicles.

Utility

The Utility was the base model of the VG range. Its standard features included:
  • 3.8-litre V6 engine
  • 5-speed manual transmission
  • Power steering
  • Larger 68-litre fuel tank
  • Power assisted brakes on all four wheels, 271mm by 21mm vented discs front, 278mm by 10.5mm solid discs rear
  • 14 inch steel wheels fitted with P195/75 R-14 95H steel belted radials
  • AM/FM radio cassette with 2-speakers
  • Height adjustable driver's seat
  • Vinyl seat trim
  • Rubber cabin flooring
Options included:

Utility S

The Utility S was the sports variant of the VG range. Its features included:
  • Tachometer
  • Sports trim interior
  • Sports badges & exterior striping
  • 15 inch alloy wheels fitted with P205/65 R-15 92H steel belted radials
  • Larger 289mm by 22mm vented disc brakes
Options included:

HSV Range

Maloo

The VG marked the first appearance of HSV's Maloo high performance utility in October 1990. The VG Maloo was powered by an uprated version of Holden's 5.0-litre V8 engine producing and of torque.
The Maloo featured the standard VG's MacPherson-strut front suspension but with revised settings based on HSV's VN SV5000. The five-link live rear axle featured stiffer springs similar to those used in the VL wagon. An alloy sports bar was fitted to the rear tray, reducing payload space and capacity to.
Standard features included:
A total of 132 vehicles were produced.