WHAT YOU GET
The Sportscat comes with either a six-speed manual or a six-speed automatic in both spec levels. Standard equipment includes leather/ suede trim, heated front sports seats (with electric adjust for the driver), satnav, auto headlights and wipers, Apple Carplay/android Auto and a rear-view camera. Safety kit runs to seven airbags, tyre-pressure monitoring, lane-departure warning and forward-collision alert. The Sportscat V starts at $62,490 for the manual. The 6-speed auto adds $2200, while an additional $4300 will get you into the Sportscat SV, which brings the ‘racing-spec’ front brakes and the rear, autodecoupling swaybar. Optional (+$2900) on both models are Supashock remote-reservoir dampers, while the SV ‘adds’ can also be optioned on the V.
on-road, and the faster you drive it the better it feels. The ride is firm, even a little firmer than the already firm Warrior, but the control and confidence is excellent.
Excellent feel too from the Sportscat’s electric power steering, which is sharper than the Warrior’s and with the extra benefit of very light low-speed manoeuvring.
Last but certainly not least, the SV Sportscat also gets competition-quality AP Racing four-piston front brake callipers and big 362mm x 32mm front brake rotors, which provide braking power and feel far superior to that of the Warrior.
OFF ROAD
THE SPORTSCAT runs on 285/60R18 Cooper Zeon LTZS, which not only provide a more aggressive tread pattern than the standard Colorado 265/60R18 road-pattern tyres but add around 20mm in ride height. In addition the new springs provide another 25mm in lift at the front, which gives the Sportscat a more neutral stance than the nose-down look of a standard Colorado.
Compared to the Warrior, the Sportscat’s significant offroad advantage is that it offers more wheel travel and a more compliant ride off road. The extra wheel travel also means the electronic traction control (ETC) doesn’t need to work as hard on broken and uneven ground, but is effective when it does. Part of the Colorado’s 2017 upgrade, which flows onto the Sportscat, is second-generation ETC with a specific off-road program that activates when low-range is engaged. As mentioned, the SV’S rear anti-roll bar also automatically decouples when low-range is engaged, so therefore doesn’t restrict the wheel travel as it would if it remained ‘attached’.
What the Sportscat doesn’t have compared to the Warrior is a driver-activated rear locker, but with the extra wheel travel and more effective ETC, it does well without it.
Not so good are the two front recovery hooks. They look tough but due to their shape and the surrounding bumper mouldings don’t easily accept shackles. As with the Warrior, there’s also no recovery hook at the rear.
CABIN, ACCOMMODATION AND SAFETY
CLIMB aboard the revamped Sportscat and you’re greeted by a bespoke interior that includes leather and suede trimmed seats, a thicker leather-trimmed steering wheel and new HSV branding on the headrests, instrument panel and floor mats.
The sports-style front seats are heated, comfortable and supportive, but there’s no steering wheel reach adjustment for the driver. The cabin feels notably bigger than the Warrior and while that doesn’t make much difference up front, rear-seat passengers will certainly appreciate the difference. Safety-wise the Sportscat offers a five-star ANCAP rating and a good dose of safety kit (see What You Get) even if it falls short of automatic emergency braking.
PRACTICALITIES
IF YOU’RE looking to do a bit of ute-type work then the Sportscat offers more than the Warrior in terms of tub size, payload, GVM and GCM. Both offer a 3500kg tow rating but if the tow-performance of the standard donor vehicles is anything to go by we would put our money on the Sportscat for heavy towing.
Both Sportscat models come with a hard tonneau complete with a very handy quick-release system for easy removal, although this requires at least two people. A load-restraint system and tub liner are offered as options. On test the Sportscat proved a little thirstier than the Warrior, and has a four-litre smaller tank, so suffers a little in terms of touring range.