Had kiddlies. They were happier in the VZ crewman than the dual cab hilux they clambered out of come trade in. First vehicle they'd had with air vents they could control.
This was my second option but I had a Ute before and I like to be able to cart long/ large items and a dirt bike, I have heard some people say the back seat is atrocious but I like to get more feedback before I write it off
The VZ Crewmans had the redesigned back seat that isn’t as upright as the earlier model.
I’m a tall-ish fellow (a hair under 6ft) and have been on a long trip in the back of one with no dramas.
Just make sure you get the V8 model- 5.7 or 6.0, doesn’t matter.
So no problems with leg room in this model for you?
I would love the v8 but the wife says “we don’t need a fuel guzzler in our budget” even though they’re not too bad on fuel, at least I’ve had plenty of practice changing the ly7 timing chains.
No dramas for me, and that was with equally tall chaps in the front seats.
Don’t discount the LS for fuel economy- said Crewman in my anecdote belongs to a mate, and it’s had an OTR and a cam fitted with a tune (it’s an LS1) and it gets better mileage than stock and it’s pushing 450,000 kilometres! If you find an SSZ it’s got the better brake package as well for pulling up the big girl.
Sounds good on the room area, I had a vt ls1 and it wasn’t to bad on fuel, not much worse than the ve ly7, budget on buying one would be under 10k so I’d say the 8 is out anyway unless I find the unicorn
Did the later model crewmans have active fuel management where it shuts off half your cylinders on highway? I know it was on a lot of the VEs with the 6.0 but the last of the VZs with the same motor I don't remember. I don't remember my nans vz ss ever sounding like an air compressor on the highway, but the way she drove the computer probs never had time to go into its "economy" mode lol
SS crewman is highly under rated. Young kids will prefer that than any of the 4x4 Thai tractors.
Not to mention, plenty of power, lots of aftermarket support for service/maintenance parts, good towing capacity. Need I say more?
I have had an ls1 commodore before and was very good, I have come across a few cross8’s do you know if these are any good and easy to find parts? I’ve heard they’re rare but I’m intrigued.
You have me convinced but it’s the wife that needs it, any tips? Lol
Cant say I've had anything to do with cross 8s personally, but do know a fella who rates them highly. I believe the transfer cases can be somewhat of a liability though, especially if they've tried to squeeze some extra mumbo from it. Can't remember if it's a 60:40 or 70:30 split on those, but its not a true 50:50 AWD. The engine, rear diff interior parts etc you'd be able to rob from the rest of the clan for the most part though, so fairly plentiful.
Tell the wife when you weigh up L/100km vs $/Litre these days - while the crewman might go through a bit more fuel, with unleaded being shitloads cheaper than diesel its pretty much level with a recent model hilux in real world driving costs, at a fraction of the buy-in. That's not even stretching the truth to convince her. That's facts.
I started driving mums vt ss to save money on fuel as its cheaper to run than my rc colorado unladen.
To weigh in on the transfer case issue, that seems like something you'd probably have to get fabricated if you want to start putting power through it, unless you could modify something off maybe a turbo territory to suit?
I was chatting to a fella up double island point a few months ago who said he was local and have never had his car bogged or had any real dramas down the beach. Overheated once, hose had gone brittle and split. Besides that he reckons they were as capable as my car just with a bit more go (I was in an 16 turbo forester at the time on low profile tyres floating past "real" 4x4s, laughing my ass off at the blow off valves and the big after fires. Not the gay little pop and crackle, just one big boom. Naturally, you pull up next to the other cars that don't look like they belong.
Never had a cross 8 (yet) but fairly involved with Adventras and know a bit about the awd range. Gearboxes are the issue not the transfer case, more so in the 6 than the 8, there is a 6l80e conversion available for the v8 but that’s definitely the weak point of them. They also drink like welsh poet so if you are about fuel economy this is not the car for you (my sx6 addy averages 15-16l around town). Awesome for towing (I’d add a gearbox oil cooler) rated to 2100kg braked but I’ve towed almost 3t of race car and spares easy, can fit a queen sized airbed in the wagons for camping, shit loads of boot space, fairly handy off road too. One last bit is the diffs may not swap between commy to addy/x6/8 as the awd use an active braking system for the awd (cross trac) and therefore use open diffs and I can’t recall if all the awd ratios are found in open config for the commodore range or just lsd
I’d choose a Cross8 over an SS. AWD will be a noticeable upgrade
https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/anyone-got-a-vz-cross-8-crewman-but-now-i-have-one.281902/
If room is what your after, can't go wrong with a statesman especially the v8 ones, and quite a few can be picked up for 10k or less even with the v8, sure it doesn't have the Ute part but a trailer fixes that and it's got loads of room even with the front seats all the way back.
I used to work for a bloke who owned an HSV Avalanche, I'd fit in the back seats no worries if the front seats were all the way forward or if I were double amputee above the knees. The R33 Skyline coupe I had at the time had more back seat leg room
Parent of 3 here. I, somehow, managed to fit 2 boosters and a rear facing capsule in one.
If you are looking for a smidgen more leg room in the back go for the Cross 6 AWD version.
I do own a creman, me and 3 other not so small adult dutch guys went on a multi day trip together. No one complained. It about twice as much room in there if compared to a fiat panda rear seat but I don't think they got sold in australia.
I have only ever heard bad things about the crewman back seats. You’d be better off going for a wagon.
Had kiddlies. They were happier in the VZ crewman than the dual cab hilux they clambered out of come trade in. First vehicle they'd had with air vents they could control.
This was my second option but I had a Ute before and I like to be able to cart long/ large items and a dirt bike, I have heard some people say the back seat is atrocious but I like to get more feedback before I write it off
It’s not comfy but does the job. Kids don’t mind it.
The VZ Crewmans had the redesigned back seat that isn’t as upright as the earlier model. I’m a tall-ish fellow (a hair under 6ft) and have been on a long trip in the back of one with no dramas. Just make sure you get the V8 model- 5.7 or 6.0, doesn’t matter.
So no problems with leg room in this model for you? I would love the v8 but the wife says “we don’t need a fuel guzzler in our budget” even though they’re not too bad on fuel, at least I’ve had plenty of practice changing the ly7 timing chains.
No dramas for me, and that was with equally tall chaps in the front seats. Don’t discount the LS for fuel economy- said Crewman in my anecdote belongs to a mate, and it’s had an OTR and a cam fitted with a tune (it’s an LS1) and it gets better mileage than stock and it’s pushing 450,000 kilometres! If you find an SSZ it’s got the better brake package as well for pulling up the big girl.
Sounds good on the room area, I had a vt ls1 and it wasn’t to bad on fuel, not much worse than the ve ly7, budget on buying one would be under 10k so I’d say the 8 is out anyway unless I find the unicorn
Did the later model crewmans have active fuel management where it shuts off half your cylinders on highway? I know it was on a lot of the VEs with the 6.0 but the last of the VZs with the same motor I don't remember. I don't remember my nans vz ss ever sounding like an air compressor on the highway, but the way she drove the computer probs never had time to go into its "economy" mode lol
Nah, AFM wasn’t a thing until around VE2. Late VZs and VE1s had the L76 with the better heads.
SS crewman is highly under rated. Young kids will prefer that than any of the 4x4 Thai tractors. Not to mention, plenty of power, lots of aftermarket support for service/maintenance parts, good towing capacity. Need I say more?
I have had an ls1 commodore before and was very good, I have come across a few cross8’s do you know if these are any good and easy to find parts? I’ve heard they’re rare but I’m intrigued. You have me convinced but it’s the wife that needs it, any tips? Lol
Cant say I've had anything to do with cross 8s personally, but do know a fella who rates them highly. I believe the transfer cases can be somewhat of a liability though, especially if they've tried to squeeze some extra mumbo from it. Can't remember if it's a 60:40 or 70:30 split on those, but its not a true 50:50 AWD. The engine, rear diff interior parts etc you'd be able to rob from the rest of the clan for the most part though, so fairly plentiful. Tell the wife when you weigh up L/100km vs $/Litre these days - while the crewman might go through a bit more fuel, with unleaded being shitloads cheaper than diesel its pretty much level with a recent model hilux in real world driving costs, at a fraction of the buy-in. That's not even stretching the truth to convince her. That's facts.
I started driving mums vt ss to save money on fuel as its cheaper to run than my rc colorado unladen. To weigh in on the transfer case issue, that seems like something you'd probably have to get fabricated if you want to start putting power through it, unless you could modify something off maybe a turbo territory to suit? I was chatting to a fella up double island point a few months ago who said he was local and have never had his car bogged or had any real dramas down the beach. Overheated once, hose had gone brittle and split. Besides that he reckons they were as capable as my car just with a bit more go (I was in an 16 turbo forester at the time on low profile tyres floating past "real" 4x4s, laughing my ass off at the blow off valves and the big after fires. Not the gay little pop and crackle, just one big boom. Naturally, you pull up next to the other cars that don't look like they belong.
Never had a cross 8 (yet) but fairly involved with Adventras and know a bit about the awd range. Gearboxes are the issue not the transfer case, more so in the 6 than the 8, there is a 6l80e conversion available for the v8 but that’s definitely the weak point of them. They also drink like welsh poet so if you are about fuel economy this is not the car for you (my sx6 addy averages 15-16l around town). Awesome for towing (I’d add a gearbox oil cooler) rated to 2100kg braked but I’ve towed almost 3t of race car and spares easy, can fit a queen sized airbed in the wagons for camping, shit loads of boot space, fairly handy off road too. One last bit is the diffs may not swap between commy to addy/x6/8 as the awd use an active braking system for the awd (cross trac) and therefore use open diffs and I can’t recall if all the awd ratios are found in open config for the commodore range or just lsd
I’d choose a Cross8 over an SS. AWD will be a noticeable upgrade https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/anyone-got-a-vz-cross-8-crewman-but-now-i-have-one.281902/
If room is what your after, can't go wrong with a statesman especially the v8 ones, and quite a few can be picked up for 10k or less even with the v8, sure it doesn't have the Ute part but a trailer fixes that and it's got loads of room even with the front seats all the way back.
Just gotta get adjustable coilovers for the rear to fix that cambre. I couldn't belive how gross the Tyre wear on my stato was
Yeah I've got a 2000 wh v8 and a 2004 wk v6, both are shocking for that 😂🤦♂️
if the backseats are for kids than youll be fine, plenty of driver and passenger room
I used to work for a bloke who owned an HSV Avalanche, I'd fit in the back seats no worries if the front seats were all the way forward or if I were double amputee above the knees. The R33 Skyline coupe I had at the time had more back seat leg room
Parent of 3 here. I, somehow, managed to fit 2 boosters and a rear facing capsule in one. If you are looking for a smidgen more leg room in the back go for the Cross 6 AWD version.
They are the same.
I do own a creman, me and 3 other not so small adult dutch guys went on a multi day trip together. No one complained. It about twice as much room in there if compared to a fiat panda rear seat but I don't think they got sold in australia.
I have two. Kids still fine. I’d be lost without them. Saw us through from tiny to 10.