By ALISTAIR KENNEDY
16 October 2006

In a period when the Australian 4WD/SUV market has been growing rapidly Holden has largely been left behind. Its previous Isuzu-sourced Jackaroo and Frontera models have both been off the market for over two years while the Commodore-based Adventra wagon never really captured the imagination of the Australian buyer and is being phased out. The small Cruze has never been more than a bit player.

On the other hand most of Holden’s competitors have had at least one modern SUV vehicle on sale during this period. Long-time rival Ford has two, including the highly-successful Territory while market-leader, Toyota, currently has four models, six if you include those of its luxury division, Lexus.

So the audible sigh of relief from Holden Chairman and Managing Director, Denny Mooney, as he announced the release of the company’s new Captiva SUV was hardly surprising. Although confident of the Captiva’s success, Mr Mooney acknowledged that he did not expect it to be challenging Territory for market leadership in the immediate future.

Built in South Korea by Holden’s GM-affiliate, Daewoo, Captiva has an international pedigree being sold in Europe as the Opel Antara and in the US as the Chevrolet Captiva.

There is considerable Australian input with ex-Holden based designers Mike Simcoe and Max Wolff being part of the design team and, importantly, it looks like a thoroughly modern SUV. Also, it is powered by a locally-made 3.2-litre version of Holden’s Alloytec engine and underwent extensive testing both at Holden’s Lang Lang proving ground, as well as other parts of Australia.

Holden Captiva is available in four variants, the SX, CX and LX models being based on the Chevrolet Captiva, and the sportier MaXX model on the Antara.

Captiva SX and MaXX have five seats, while the CX and LX are seven-seaters. The third row seats are larger than those in many of Captiva’s seven-seat competitors and, although best suited to children, can carry adults in reasonable comfort.

Storage space when all seven seats are in place is negligible however all passenger seats can the folded flat to provide up to 1565 litres of carrying space. There’s also plenty of storage compartments including a large wet/dry area beneath the load compartment floor, glovebox cooler, front and rear centre console storage, door bins, drink bottle holders, small item/coin and cup holders, a parking ticket holder, overhead sunglasses compartment, seatback pockets and under-seat storage tray (MaXX).

Peak power from the Captiva MaXX is 167 kW at 6600 rpm and in the SX, CX and LX models it is 169 kW, the difference being due to slightly different exhaust systems. Maximum torque from all Captiva models is 297 Nm at 3200 rpm. Exhaust emissions comply with the Euro 4 standard.

A 2.0-litre diesel engine is available overseas and will be added to the Australian range in 2007.

Like its cousin, the recently-released VE Commodore, all Captiva models come with electronic stability control. Other standard safety equipment includes ABS brakes with hydraulic brake assist, dual front airbags, traction control, active rollover protection and descent control. Side curtain airbags are optional in the entry-level Captiva SX models and standard on the three other models.

Other standard features include air conditioning, power windows and mirrors, cruise control, CD player with MP3 capability (single disc in the SX, six-stack in all other models),

We were able to test drive the Captiva SX, LX and CX models on a variety of road surfaces south of Canberra. Despite its 3.2-litre engine it was somewhat sluggish off the mark but cruised comfortably enough when up and running. It coped with some moderate dirt roads capably enough but, like most in its class, is likely to spend the vast majority of its time in the suburbs. There its seven-seat option is likely to be a big selling point.

All Captiva models use the same part-time 4WD system, drive normally being to the front wheels with the rear wheels being engaged when required for extra traction. Five-speed automatic transmission with tiptronic-style manual override is the only transmission option.

We weren’t able to drive the MaXX, which won’t go on sale until November, the three other Captiva models will be available in October.

According to the Australian ADR standard average fuel consumption from the Captiva SX, CX and LX models is 11.5 litres per 100 kilometres, with the MaXX being fractionally higher at 11.6 L/100km.

Captiva prices start at $35,990 for the SX, the CX is priced at $38,990, LX at $41,990 while the MaXX will sell for $42,990.