Supercharged HSV? - Part 3

[Vulture]

A 12.6 is ok. Must admit that I was hoping for a little faster, say closer to a 12.2. Still, a 12s factory standard street car is nothing to be sniffed at - especially at this price point. Very impressed that it went around a race track quicker than the AMG though. Sort of the wrong way around! A muscle car is supposed to be quick in a straight line as the sine qua non! But then fall over a bit on the corners. No doubt the engineers could have concentrated more on getting a quick quarter time but perhaps this would have compromised track handling. The AMG is obviously at another level of engineering (as it should be) with much less fuel usage from its stout engine and a more resolved ride/handling balance.

Will be interesting to see the times when private guys get them out onto the race track. Tempted to have a go in mine at Willowbank but potentially not as quick as it is a manual.. Although from what some others have said it may actually be quicker with the ratios? The manual has a 3.7:1 differential as opposed to the auto's 3.23 (from memory, can anyone can check the .pdf sales brochure?).
I'm sure guys willing to tweak the GTS a bit will be posting sub 12s by next year without much effort.
One thing that Morley mentioned in his review was the bi-modal exhaust seemed to take a while to open even when on the sport setting. That sounds shite and would push me towards an aftermarket exhaust if mine does that.
Who wants a big delay for the sound when stomping on the pedal? He also didn't like the electric steering and found it a bit contrived. Agree with his comments about the interior - there is something just not right to my eyes every time I look at it. I think it is the mix of knobs and button and different finishes. I think the aircon vents should have been done in black and some of the buttons 'hidden' a bit better. But I am really knit-picking here, when I sat in an R8 at the dealership, the interior felt a lot more cohesive than it looks in pictures but it is not a patch on the AMG layout.