Given our society’s current feeling that fashion is far more important than function, Holden looks to have timed its new Sportswagon brilliantly. Gone are the days of Commodore station wagons that were designed to be big, spacious and sensible, this new model puts style ahead of everything else. 

Having turned in that direction, Holden's stylists have done a brilliant job. More than one person who commented on the looks of the Sportswagon said it had a European shape, someone even mentioned Audi-like lines. A real compliment in a period when Audi sales are booming because of its new style direction. 

The Holden wagon is not only good-looking, but also reveals many thoughtful insights in design, specification and practicality. 

Commodore Sportwagon is built on the same short-wheelbase platform as the sedan, not on a long-wheelbase platform as in previous Commodore wagons. So the almost van-like interior is gone, replaced by what is still a reasonably spacious vehicle, but one that has lost a fair bit of real volume. If you want to carry passengers in the back seat at the same time as a tall, bulky box then you are out of luck because the sleek rear end with its recessed tailgate simply can cope. 

However, with the seats folded there's a flat floor that’s almost two metres in length; the width between the rear suspension towers is 1.1 metres, and there is a good height in the load compartment at 647 mm. Cleverly located hooks around the load compartment allow the owner to use the standard cargo net in a variety of ways to restrain items and stop them sliding around the compartment. 

The cargo cover has two positions, with a sliding locater slot which allows the user to lift it without releasing it. The light in the compartment is just below the window line, but located under the cover, to allow you to easily check the compartment at night. 

The tailgate is arguably the most interesting feature of the new wagon. The hinges are located well forward in the roof of the wagon, so its lifting arc is only 286 mm beyond the rear of the vehicle. Thus letting you park almost against a wall and still be able to use the tailgate. When open, it’s not too high to reach up and pull shut. 

To ensure the styling is sleek and sporty, Holden invested in new rear doors, with different upper frames to the sedan, to maintain the flowing profile view. That was rather than saving money by simply using the same doors. Headroom is good in the rear seat, and there's space for an optional LCD screen, to entertain back seat occupants. 

The engine in our test car was the 3.6-litre Holden V6. It provides plenty of grunt from just about any revs, but is still not the quietest or smoothest powerplant in its class.  

As is often the way with a big American engine fuel consumption depends a lot on travelling conditions. Drive it around the city and suburbs and you will generally find petrol use in the 12 to 14 litres per hundred kilometres range. Which is a bit on the high side for a passenger car, though better than many petrol SUVs. And Holden makes no secret it’s trying to pull buyers out of gas-guzzling 4WDs and back into something like the Sportswagon. 

On the open road, particularly in steady state motorway driving, the Holden engine is a model of fuel efficiency and it’s possible to get the consumption under eight litres per hundred without trying too hard. 

On-road handling is excellent. Holden's Sportwagon turns in beautifully, and provides handling which is confidence-boosting. It really is almost sedan like in this important way. Standard ESP will help the driver who has made a major mistake, but the car has to be going really hard before it’s required. 

NVH (Noise, Vibration and Harshness) are well suppressed in a very Australian manner and even on coarse-chip surfaces the car is refined and pleasant to travel in. Much more so than many upmarket European wagons costing far more. Indeed, the Sportswagon doesn’t seem any noisier or harsher inside than does the VE Commodore sedan, making it a real credit to its designers.

We continue to find the VE Commodore's handbrake irritating. Another triumph of fashion over function, it is awkward to use and even with familiarity it’s still to easy to get your fingers caught between its leading edge and the car’s centre console. 

Other than that, the interior of the Calais V Sportswagon we tested was handsome and easy to live with. The controls are simple to use and there are handy stowage areas, including a good sized box in the centre console.

 Holden engineers have done an excellent job in the station wagon variant of the VE Commodore. Styling is spot on, the interior is well sized for the ‘boutique wagon’ class, has plenty of smart features. And build quality is generally pretty good.  

It would be good to see buyers move down from big SUVs into something like this – but it just doesn’t seem to be happening…

 AT A GLANCE

MODEL RANGE
Omega Sportwagon 3.6-litre V6: $37,790(automatic)
SV6 Sportwagon 3.6-litre V6: $42,290 (automatic)
SS Sportwagon  6.0-litre V8: $46,290 (manual), $48,290 (automatic)
SS V-Series Sportwagon 6.0-litre V8 $53,790 (manual), $55,790 (automatic)
Berlina Sportwagon 3.6-litre V6: $41,290 (automatic)
Calais Sportwagon 3.6-litre V6: $46,790 (automatic)
Calais V-Series Sportwagon 3.6-litre: $55,290 (automatic)
Calais V-Series 6.0-litre V8: $60,490 (automatic)

SPECIFICATIONS (Holden Omega Sportwagon 3.6-litre five-door wagon)

ENGINE:
Capacity: 3.564 litres
Configuration: Transverse, V6
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 10.2:1
Bore/Stroke: 94.0 mm x 85.6 mm
Maximum Power: 180 kW @ 6000 rpm
Maximum Torque: 330 Nm @ 2600 rpm

DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Rear
Manual Transmission: Not offered
Automatic Transmission: Four-speed
Final Drive Ratio: 3.27:1 

DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4897 mm
Wheelbase: 2915 mm
Width: 1899 mm
Height: 1476 mm
Turning Circle: 11.4 metres
Kerb Mass: NA
Fuel Tank Capacity: 73 litres
Towing Ability: Up to 2100 kg (with braked trailer and approved towing equipment)

SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: Coil springs, direct-acting stabiliser bar
Rear Suspension: Multi-link independent rear suspension, coils springs, direct-acting stabiliser bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Ventilated disc 

PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: NA 

FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type: Petrol 91RON
Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 11.1 L/100km

GREEN VEHICLE GUIDE RATINGS:
Greenhouse Rating: 4.5/10
Air Pollution Rating: 5/10

STANDARD WARRANTY:
Three years/100,000 km