Holden Epica: the Daewoo Tosca with Holden badges

The Holden Epica was the Australian and New Zealand version of the Daewoo Tosca, a mid-size car designed in South Korea. Holden sold it from April 2007 until 2011, when it was dropped because of weak sales.

Holden Epica at a glance

No free photographs of the Holden Epica were found for this page. Based on one source.

History of the Holden Epica

A Daewoo by another name

The Daewoo Tosca was designed by Daewoo in South Korea and marketed as the Chevrolet Epica and Chevrolet Tosca, while Holden sold it as the Holden Epica. Codenamed V250, it replaced the Daewoo Magnus and its derivatives. Unlike the earlier V100 Leganza and V200 Magnus, which were styled by Giugiaro, the V250 was designed entirely in house. The name Tosca is an acronym for “Tomorrow Should Come Always”, and it is also the title of a Puccini opera.

What made it unusual

The Tosca is noteworthy for being available with transversely mounted straight-six engines. Daewoo’s XK straight-sixes were designed by Porsche, and they distinguish the car from similar vehicles. Mounting a straight-six across a front-wheel drive engine bay required a very compact and tightly packed design.

The car was launched with two versions of the straight-six: the 2.5-litre carried over from the Magnus and a 2.0-litre that replaced the Holden-sourced 2.0-litre D-TEC of the previous model. Since 2006 a 1.8-litre D-TEC has also been available in South Korea, coupled to a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic. In early 2007 a 2.0-litre RA 420 SOHC common rail turbodiesel joined the range, producing 112 kW (150 hp) and 320 N·m; co-developed by GM Powertrain, GM Daewoo and VM Motori, it was the first diesel used in a Daewoo car.

Australia and the end

Since April 2007 the Tosca was marketed as the Holden Epica for Australia and New Zealand, replacing the Holden Vectra that had been sourced from Opel in Germany. Holden dropped the Epica in 2011 because of weak sales. In early 2008 Daewoo launched an updated version in South Korea with a new six-speed automatic, the GM 6T40 for the 2.0 and 2.5-litre petrol engines and the GM 6T45 for the diesel, along with a revised rear end with new combination lamps and bumper. Production in South Korea ended in early 2011 when the Daewoo brand was renamed Chevrolet there, and the car was replaced by the Chevrolet Malibu. It was also built and sold in Kazakhstan as the Chevrolet Epica from June 2007, badged Chevrolet Tosca in Iceland, and produced in China from March 2007 to 2014.

Design and features

• Transverse straight-six: an unusual layout for a front-wheel drive family car.
• Porsche-designed engines: the XK six-cylinders came from Daewoo but were engineered by Porsche.
• In-house styling: the V250 broke with the Giugiaro-penned cars before it.
• First Daewoo diesel: the 2.0 RA 420 common rail unit of 2007.
• Six-speed automatic: added in 2008 with a revised rear end.

Holden Epica versions

• 2.0 and 2.5-litre petrol: the straight-six engines offered from launch.
• 1.8 D-TEC: four-cylinder option for the South Korean market.
• 2.0 diesel (2007): 112 kW RA 420 turbodiesel.
• 2008 update: six-speed automatic and new rear lamps and bumper.
• Holden Epica (2007–2011): the Australian and New Zealand version.

The Epica replaced the Holden Vectra and sat below the Holden Commodore in the range. More cars are in the Holden collection.

Video: Cars Guide Road Test: Holden Epica

Video by CumberlandCourier on YouTube.

Sources

• Daewoo Tosca, English Wikipedia: engines, markets, Holden sales