The Holden Epica gives me the creeps
On my main blog, I have talked about the Holden Epica (née Daewoo Tosca). This is probably, uniformly, the worst mid-sized car on the market in New Zealand. I also happen to think it’s the ugliest.
Last year, Holden began selling the new Barina. What it neglected to tell you was that the new model scored two stars in various safety tests. The model it replaced scored four.
The new model is actually the Daewoo Kalos, which was withdrawn from the New Zealand market about three years ago for being, well, crap.
Now, we have the Tosca. The Tosca is actually derived from the old Daewoo Leganza of the mid-1990s. In fact, the platform is older than the Vectra C’s, the car the Tosca replaces in New Zealand.
The Leganza, too, was not the safest car in its day. The Australian testers, who gave it two and a half stars, noted, ‘The Leganza did not perform well in the offset crash test (0.9pts out of 16). The passenger compartment was substantially deformed. The driver's contact with the airbag was unstable. The passenger hit the dash, with a moderate risk of life threatening head injury. Protection from serious leg injury was poor for the driver.’
To be fair, the Tosca, or Epica, is a lot safer than the old Leganza. But it doesn’t mean it isn’t junk.
Many of the driving impressions that Australian journalists have done indicate that this car is the bottom of the heap. If you must buy a Korean-built car, go over to Hyundai or Kia. Both the Hyundai Sonata and the Kia Magentis fared better in at least one test.
If you are buying a Holden Vectra—a superior car to the Epica—ask the dealer when the car left the factory. I have nothing to base this on other than an educated opinion, but I believe the New Zealand-market 2007 Vectras left the factory some time in 2005. There should be a way for a buyer to check the chassis and production numbers. My belief is no Vectras have left the German factory with the 2003-model grille for some time.
I have been on Holden’s back about these cars for over a year, because I think Kiwis are getting a raw deal. Meanwhile, Ford, Toyota and Hyundai will be bracing themselves for extra buyers.
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I have found out that the Daewoo Magnus, the car on which the Tosca was developed, was the least safe passenger car in the US in 2005, based on NHTSA testing. So that’s two mid-sized cars in a row from Daewoo that have ranked near or at the bottom of the safety scale. The Tosca or Epica has not been tested by NCAP yet, but I have the awful feeling it is less safe than the Vectra it replaces.
I believe Denny Mooney, who used to be at Oldsmobile, is running Holden the same way. There, Oldsmobile had a lovely big car—the Aurora—but there were no positive brand associations. Holden is heading down the same way, with a nice, big Commodore and nothing else to show.