Holden confirms V8 sedan is dead

It’s the end of an era Australia, and the car industry says we have to suck it up.

Aussie V8 fans will have to get used to four-cylinder and V6 power for their future performance sedans, the Asia-Pacific boss of General Motors Stefan Jacoby has confirmed what has long been feared.

The Holden V8 will die once manufacturing comes to an end at Holden’s factory in Elizabeth in South Australia at the end of 2017.

In an interview with Australian media at the Frankfurt motor show overnight, Mr Jacoby said: “The world obviously is changing and the V8 period is coming to an end.”

The V8 is the single biggest-selling version of the current Holden Commodore and one of the few models not to go down in sales.

I know they are charming and I like the sound of the V8 but times are changing

But Mr Jacoby said buyers would have to get used to the new world order.

“It is just more or less a perception from the customer they need a big engine and big horsepower to have the performance,” said Mr Jacoby.

“I know they are charming and I like the sound of the V8 but times are changing. The technology is changing with more or less the same performance. The acceptance is changing, even in America.”

There is also no chance that Holden might import a budget-priced V8 sedan from the USA.

Holden currently exports the Commodore V8 to North America where it is sold as a Chevrolet.

But there are no plans for Chevrolet to develop a successor in 2018.

“That (US car) phases out when we see manufacturing end in Australia,” said Mr Jacoby.

Ford will be the only brand with an affordable V8 in its showrooms within two years

The GM executive insisted that the next generation Holden Commodore, likely to be imported from Germany, will still have “the same fun to drive same sportiness” as the current car, even though it won’t have a V8.

Holden is also said to be planning on introducing the next generation Corvette, but it will likely cost in excess of $100,000.

That means Holden’s arch rival Ford will be the only brand with an affordable V8 in its showrooms within two years.

The Ford Mustang, available with four-cylinder or V8 power, arrives in Australia in December priced from $45,000 to $65,000.