From the sublime to the precocious at Melbourne's Motor Show

By ALASTAIR SLOANE

It's the most exclusive car Holden Special Vehicles has built: only 30 will be made and only three will be available in New Zealand.

The Senator 300 was a project known only to a handful of people inside HSV until 72 hours ago, when the car broke cover on day one of the Melbourne Motor Show.

The limited-edition model combines all the luxury of the top-line Senator sedan with the power of the 300kW engine, a 5.7-litre V8 that American tuning specialist Callaway developed for General Motors' Corvette division.

The 30 cars, all manual, each have a 6-speed close-ratio gearbox, traction control and 10-spoke alloy wheels. Buyers have a choice of three colours - racing green, sting red and phantom black.

HSV expects 29 of the 30 cars to be sold before production begins next month. It will keep the remaining one as a press car, for Australian motoring writers to sample. The Senator 300 will cost $A98,500 in Australia. The three New Zealand cars are expected to each cost upwards of $120,000.

HSV also unveiled a pre-production model of the VU Maloo R8 ute, powered by a 255kW V8 and equipped with all-round independent suspension, a first for an HSV ute.

The VU Maloo R8 will go into production in April. HSV says its sweeping roofline revives the sleek look of the Chevrolet El Camino ute of the 1970s, now a classic in America.

The new HSV models were unveiled as Holden chairman and managing director Peter Hanenberger reported net income for the year 2000 of A$237 million ($292.5 million) after tax, up considerably on the A$135 million ($166 million) in 1999.

Hanenberger says Holden has maintained its leadership in Australia's passenger car market for the third successive year, and increased its passenger market share for the fourth consecutive year, having risen from 17.7 per cent in 1997 to 22.1 per cent last year. The Holden Commodore was also the best-selling car in New Zealand last year.

"Holden is now very clearly a global competitor, and the products we design and build in Australia have to match the best the world has on offer," says Hanenberger.

"It is Holden's challenge to create products that have very strong market appeal, both within the domestic market and in the export markets of the Middle East, South America, South Africa and New Zealand."

Holden's growth strategy includes plans to produce the GEN III V8 engine.

This will turn Australia into a global centre of powertrain expertise unmatched in the region - it will be the only country in the region with 4, 6, and 8-cylinder engine manufacturing capability. It will introduce a new four-cylinder 2.4-litre export engine next year.

Also unveiled at the show was the new Mini Cooper, the first all-new production Mini since Sir Alec Issigonis presented the original ground-breaking design in 1959.

It is larger, more powerful, much safer (twice the body rigidity of other cars its size, says BMW), better built, more practical and more sophisticated than its predecessor, and will go on sale in New Zealand through a special dealer network next year. A faster, better-equipped Cooper S variant will follow.

The Mini Cooper is powered by a 85kW 1.6 litre 16-valve 4-cylinder engine. Standard equipment will include alloy wheels, ABS anti-lock brakes, phased-activation airbags and a high-quality CD sound system. Optional features include leather trim and rain-sensitive wipers.

Final pricing and specifications for New Zealand will not be announced until closer to the vehicle's arrival, but BMW Group New Zealand expects to sell the Mini Cooper for less than $40,000.

Once BMW's Oxford plant in Britain reaches full production , the company expects to be able to sell 100,000 Minis a year.

Mini Cooper buyers will have a choice of 14 exterior colours, with either black or white roof and exterior mirrors.

The 38cm alloy wheels will be finished in either white or silver, and a range of chrome trim will also be available.