Holden Isuzu Piazza

Holden Isuzu Piazza


Holden Piazza YB
1986 - 1987
Country:
Engine:	4 cyl. SOHC Turbo
Capacity:	1989 cc
Power:	110 kw
Transmission:	5 spd. man.; 4 spd. auto
Top Speed:	n/a
Number Built:	59,031
Collectability:

Holden Piazza YB
Reviewed by Unique Cars and Parts
Our Rating: 1

Introduction

Since 1975 Holden had been importing and selling the Isuzu built Gemini with great success, and so it seemed logical that they would continue to enjoy such sales success with the importation of the sporty "Piazza".

Designed in Italy by Giorgetto Giugiaro, the Piazza was, for the time, a thoroughly modern and sporty 2 door coupe which featured a turbocharged 2.0 litre OHC engine - the first time a turbocharged vehicle was available at the Holden showrooms!

The most distinctive features of the Piazza were undoubtedly the wedge shaped hatchback with its enormous glass area at the rear, and its semi-concealed headlights up front. It came fitted with a 5 speed manual gearbox; however a 4 speed auto was available as an option.

Despite the bravado of the Italian design, under the skin lurked a thoroughly conventional small Japanese sedan with double-wishbone front suspension, five link live-axle rear suspension and four-wheel disc brakes.

While the rack-and-pinion steering was power-assisted, handling and braking were only average and Isuzu had failed to upgrade their effectiveness in line with the upgraded performance offered by fitting the turbo!

The motoring press soon realised the Piazza was 'mutton dressed up as lamb', and the expected sales were never to materialise.

GM were forced to reduce prices in an effort to stimulate sales, and disgruntled purchasers who had already forked out top dollar were refunded up to $5000 to help ease the pain of plummeting re-sale values.

The price reductions were, however, too little too late, and the Piazza suffered an early demise - released in April 1986, it would be phased out in late 1987 and relegated to the history books.

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greg

Posted Recently

What a piece of junk!

Kev M

Posted Recently

The Gemini was Australian built in Holdens Acacia Ridge plant on the South Western outskirts of Brisbane.
The Piazza is as collectable as a Toyota Celica of the era.. i.e.not very

Dennis

Posted Recently

Modern equivalent, the Astra? You kidding me right? I can tell automotive design is not your forte. As for woeful handling you can thank GMH for that bungle. They could have brought in the Lotus tuned versions straight out of the box from Japan) with upgraded springs, shocks and sway bars. Instead GMH chose in their infinite wisdom an unusual combination that exists no where else in the world (ie USA, England, Europe, and of course Japan). As a result we still have a situation where people in Australia still get bogged down with the unfavourable headlines of the 80's, which has now become the only thing people remember about these cars. The rest of the world's motoring press weren't up in arms with their car's setups. What is left is essentially just a superficial and ignorant argument to justify trashing these otherwise beautiful pieces of automotive history from one of the world's greatest automotive designers. The handling is an easy fix with aftermarket parts still available today. Simple, and people should just get over it. Instead what should be done is classifying these cars as Classic cars here in Australia, just as England and Japan have done.

karen

Posted Recently

fantastic body let down by woofule handling. thank goodnes the modern equvient the astra is 200% better