Penny Acadia pricing

We would be remiss to not acknowledge the Acadia

Arrive event in an official announcement, especially since it was during this event that Holden officially released the pricing of its hero vehicle.

For those of you who have not picked up recent copies of NZ Companyvehicle or NZSUV, the Acadia is Holden’s first full size, seven seat SUV to come to market out of the United States.

Its pricing – until now – has been something of a closelyguarded secret, with speculation running rife as to what Holden NZ was going to ultimately ask for its halo model. At the October launch, Holden confirmed the affordability of Acadia at dollars well under what was rumoured.

At the same time, there was some clarity on the model range Holden would offer the market, as well as the chance to drive the Acadias in local conditions appropriate to the vehicle’s abilities.

These included New Zealand’s network of winding touring roads interspersed with significant tracts of gravel, which even the 2WD Acadias were able to negotiate with ease given the vehicle’s comparatively low stature and centre of gravity.

Prior to launch of course, Acadia had undergone significant Antipodean proving kms where Acadia’s Mcpherson strut front and five link independent rear suspension were effectively tuned for the southern hemisphere preferences for direct steering and a composed ride.

Acadia is powered by a 3.6 litre V6 petrol engine with direct fuel injection, stop/start and active fuel management across the entire range. Power and torque are listed at 231kw and 367Nm respectively, with both transferred to the ground via Acadia’s standard nine-speed transmission, regardless of the model being an AWD or twowheel drive.

Fuel figures are quoted as 8.9 litres per 100km for the 2WD and 9.3 litres per 100km for the AWD. These are conservative factory figures as we achieved a 9.1 litres per 100km average in a top of the line LTZ-V with All Wheel Drive.

Along with a common engine, Acadia in all grades, boasts common features as a basepoint. These include autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and bicycle detection, following distance indicator, automatic high beam assist, safety seat alert, forward collision alert with head-up warning, lateral impact avoidance, lane keep assist with lane departure warning, side blind zone alert with rear cross traffic alert and rear park assist with a rear-view camera.

In addition to these standardacross-the-range features, Acadia adds Traffic Sign Recognition ( TSR) with tens of thousands of kilometres of real world testing behind it both here and in Australia and, because Kiwis especially insist on putting things on the back of their SUVS, Holden has included Hitch Guidance with Hitch View, to allow ease of hook-up peace of mind when towing – made easier with the nine-speed’s ‘Tow Haul’ mode to utilise the Acadia’s 2,000kg braked towing capacity.

LTZ models gain a little more fruit: leather, power adjustable heated seats up front, wireless charging for compatible devices, front and advanced park assist, handsfree tailgate, fog lamps, chrome detailing, auto dimming mirror and rain sensing wipers. All-wheel-drive is standard.

For the LTZ-V those heated seats are also ventilated, there is a 360-degree camera, adaptive cruise control with Stop &

Go, high intensity discharge headlamps, Flexride adaptive suspension, a dual panel sunroof, eight-speaker BOSE stereo and 20-inch wheels.

Acadia forms the pinnacle of Holden’s extensive SUV models starting with Trax, Equinox, Trailblazer and to a degree, the Commodore Tourer.

So, how much? Not forgetting the three years free scheduled servicing package with three years roadside assistance and three years warranty that is standard on all models, Acadia enters our market at $49,990 for the LT 2WD model, $53,990 for the LT AWD, $59,990 for the LTZ AWD and $71,990 for the LTZ-V AWD. LTZ 2WD at 55,990 and LTZ-V 2WD at $67,990 are available as special order only vehicles.