JSII Vectra

A minor facelift saw jewelled finish headlights, smoked tail-lights, revised bumpers, a chrome-surround grille, new colours, seatbelt pretensioners, an adjustable steering wheel and some small suspension modifications for improved handling and ride properties.

A new Getrag five-speed manual gearbox replaced the slightly notchy old one in the 2.2 litre models.

However, falling sales and the need for more Commodore capacity at the SA plant prompted Holden to cease local Vectra production for Belgium-built cars from November ’00.

At this time the GL hatchback and wagon variants vanished, the CD hatchback’s 2.0 and 2.5 V6 engines grew to a 104kW/200Nm 2.2 and 125kW/250Nm 2.6 V6 respectively, and anti-lock brakes and traction control were reinstated as standard GL sedan faire.

Several limited edition models were introduced during the JSII era, including the GL Olympic Edition from October ’99 (sedan and wagon: alloy wheels, air-con and improved audio) and June ’00 (sedan only: alloy wheels, air-con, improved audio and power windows), as well as the ubiquitous Equipe pack from March ’01 and March ’02 (sedan only: same as above).

The Vectra International of October ’01 compromised of 300 cars painted either black or silver and included larger alloy wheels, heated front seats, leather trim and a sunroof on top of the usual CD V6 hatchback features.

The blocky ZC Vectra sedan and hatchback that replaced the JSII was also Belgium-built, and significantly better than the old car, but suffered severely in the marketplace due to a big jump in retail pricing.