Have you ever wondered what a modern-day Chevrolet El Camino might look like? Luckily, you don’t have to stretch your imagination too far. The Holden Ute – a “coupe utility” based on the Commodore – was produced between 2000 and 2017 by General Motors’ Australian subsidiary. It was not sold in North America, but you’re in luck, because one has been transported to this hemisphere of the globe.
The Pick of the Day is a 2001 Holden Commodore SS Ute listed for sale on ClassicCars.com by a private seller in Komoka, Ontario. (Click the link to view the listing)
“Original documentation with 31,000 miles from Perth, Australia,” the listing begins.
My first impression of the Ute is that it has a sporty, athletic stance for being a cargo-hauler. The Tiger Metallic paint is eye-catching, and the theme continues to a color-keyed hard tonneau cover out back. The wheels and tires appear aftermarket, and the suspension may have been lowered to minimize the fender gap. (Please, Holden experts in the audience, chime in with your opinions).
The seller says that the Ute is in fantastic condition and even calls it “collector quality.” The tidy two-seat interior of the cab comes in a right-hand-drive configuration with buckets (that are upholstered, I might add, in a sporty graphic design that closely matches the exterior paint).
The real marvel of this mini-truck is its GM-sourced powertrain: Under the hood lives a robust 5.7-liter LS1 V8 mated to a 4L60E four-speed automatic transmission. The odometer shows just 50,000 miles which, as the seller pointed out, comes out to barely over 31,000 miles. Best of all, because similar engines and transmissions were used in various U.S.-sold vehicles, parts availability is good.
But how does the Ute stack up as a real-world light-duty truck? Holden lists the maximum payload at 830 kilograms (1,829 pounds) and its towing capacity at 2,100 kilograms (4,629 pounds). A new Ford Maverick has a payload of 1,500 pounds, and a Hyundai Santa Cruz has a payload of 1,411 pounds. By those measures, the Ute is just as capable, if not even more so. While I doubt most people would subject a Holden Ute to manual labor (especially one this pristine), it’s nice to know the option is there.
The Ute is the kind of car (or do you call it a truck?) that has collector appeal written all over it. It offers the exclusivity of an exotic because it was never sold stateside, yet it comes with commonly-sourced mechanical engineering for peace of mind.
The asking price is $35,000 or best offer, which includes the books and documentation shown in the listing.
To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, browse the complete archives at Pick of the Day.
Source: www.classiccars.com