It's no secret that GM will soon cease production in Australia. This means models that we love, like the RWD Holden Commodore, will be much different for the 2018 model year. GM has revealed the first details on the new Commodore, and the news isn't good. First, the car will ditch its traditional RWD layout for a FWD drivetrain with optional AWD that will come with torque vectoring and a nine-speed automatic transmission. The flagship model will be powered by a V6 engine with no available V8.

This new V6 should make around 308 hp and 272 lb-ft of torque. The Commodore will also get adaptive suspension for excellent driving dynamics. The platform is based on GM's E2 global architecture which was developed by Opel in Germany. This platform will also underpin the new Opel Insignia and Buick Regal. Jeremy Tassone, Holden's Engineering Group Manager for Vehicle Development said that, "Although we remain in the early stages of the Holden development process, this is an absolutely world-class car. We've taken a precision-engineered German car and endowed it with Holden DNA. It drives like a Commodore should." We're not so sure about that.

Tassone acknowledged that, "We know the first imported Commodore will come under a lot of scrutiny and we know we have a lot to live up to – this car delivers in spades." We hate to be downers, but it's highly unlikely that this new FWD car could be as good as the old V8 RWD models. The new Commodore will have nice features like Apple Car Play, 2.0-turbo gas and diesel engines, matrix headlights, adaptive suspension, heads-up display and start-stop technology, but we would trade all of that away to keep a supercharged LS9-powered beast with RWD.