Nah low cost Asian imports didn't come it till much latter
Holden were so far behind on technology it was not funny and where previous Holdens where designed in australia the commode was copied from the OpelIntroduced in October 1978,[4] the VB Commodore development covered a period with the effects of the 1973 oil crisis still being felt.[5] Hence, when Holden decided to replace the successful full-sizeHZ Kingswood with a new model line, they wanted the new car to be smaller and more fuel efficient.[6] Originally, Holden looked at developing a new WA Kingswood, but that project was abandoned.[7] With no replacement in development,
Holden looked to Opel to provide the foundations of the VB, basing it loosely on the four-cylinder Rekord E bodyshell, with the front grafted on from the Opel Senator A, both constructed using GM's V-body platform.[8] This change was necessitated to accommodate the larger Holden six- and eight-cylinder engines.[9] Holden also adopted the name "Commodore" from Opel, which had been using the name since 1967.[10] Opel went on to use Holden's Rekord-Senator hybrid as a foundation for its new generation Commodore C, slotting in between the two donor models.[11The VB series retained 96 percent of the preceding HZ Kingswood's interior space, despite being 14 percent smaller in overall dimensions, although five percent larger than the Torana.[12] With the Commodore dropping a full class below the Kingswood and its Ford Falcon competitor,[13] the smaller Commodore was predictably more fuel-efficient.[14] This downsizing was first seen as a major disadvantage for Holden, as they had effectively relinquished the potential of selling Commodores to the fleet and taxi industries.[15] These sales losses were thought to be unrecoverable; however, the 1979 energy crisis saw Australian oil prices rise by 140 percent, putting substantial strain on the automotive industry to collectively downsize, a change that Holden had already done.[5]
During the VB's development, Holden realised that when driven at speed over harsh Australian roads, the Rekord would effectively break in half at the firewall.[16] This forced Holden to rework the entire car for local conditions, resulting in only 35 percent commonality with the Opel. The Rekord's MacPherson strut front suspension was accordingly modified,[17] and the recirculating ball steering was replaced with a rack and pinion type.[18]
These modifications blew development costs beyond expectations to a reported A$110 million[19]—a figure close to the cost of developing a new model independently.[20] With such a large sum consumed by the VB development programme, Holden was left with insufficient finances to resource the development of a wagon variant.[21] Added that the Commodore architecture was considered an unsuitable base for utility and long-wheelbase models,[22] Holden was left with only a sedan, albeit one in three levels of luxury: a base, SL, and SL/E.[23] Desperate measures forced Holden to shape the Commodore front-end to the rear of the Rekord wagon. As the wagon-specific sheet metal had to be imported from Germany, the wagon, introduced in July 1979, suffered from inevitable component differences from the sedan.[21][24] Although infrequently criticised in the early years, quality problems were evident, with poor trim and panel fit problematic for all first generation Commodores. This coupled with mechanical dilemmas such as water pump failure and steering rack rattle ensured warranty claims were high in the first year.[25]
