November 2011 VFACTS: Mazda3 overtakes Commodore

By Tim Beissmann | December 05th, 2011

FIND DEALS

The Mazda3 is on the cusp of dethroning the Holden Commodore to become Australia’s most popular new car. Mazda’s small smiling assassin leads the large local family car by 301 units with just one month remaining in 2011.

If the Mazda3 can hang onto the top spot this month, it will end the Commodore’s 15-year reign over the Australian automotive market.

Official VFACTS data released today by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) shows that 88,654 passenger cars, SUVs and commercial vehicles were sold in November 2011, up 1.5 percent (1312 vehicles) compared with November 2010.

The month was a peculiar one for our locally made cars. The Commodore missed the top three for the second consecutive month, the Ford Territory replaced the Falcon in the top 10, and the Toyota Camry – now deep in run-out mode – missed 1000 sales for the first time in recent history.

Ford and Hyundai swapped places from the previous month, thanks partly to a solid month from the Focus. Volkswagen slipped back below Mitsubishi after the Golf failed to repeat its record-breaking October, while Kia jumped ahead of Honda to round out the top 10.

Top 10 sales by marque:

Toyota – 17,463
Holden – 9761
Ford – 8103
Mazda – 8031
Hyundai – 7514
Nissan – 5834
Mitsubishi – 5121
Volkswagen – 3823
Subaru – 2404
Kia – 2344

The Corolla has again cemented its position at the top the sales charts, recording its third consecutive monthly win in November and its fourth for 2011, in a year that has been hampered by supply issues following the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in March.

After a driveaway pricing promotion rocketed the Golf to 3337 sales in October and third position for the month, it returned to its normal levels last month, recording 764 sales and slipping beyond the top 25.

The Falcon fell to 13^th overall (1483 sales), but Ford Australia would be encouraged by the strong performance of the Territory, which had its best sales month in more than a year and clearly held onto its position as Australia’s favourite SUV.

Top 10 sales by model:

Toyota Corolla – 3731
Mazda3 – 3480
Toyota HiLux – 3332
Holden Commodore – 2808
Holden Cruze – 2393
Hyundai i30 – 2167
Ford Territory – 1776
Toyota Yaris – 1764
Nissan Navara – 1653
Toyota RAV4 – 1577

Toyota Australia’s Mike Breen blamed the Camry’s horror month on the impending launch of the new seventh-generation model, but said the Altona production strikes and restricted parts supply because of the Thailand floods also had an impact. Although the new Camry will be officially launched tomorrow, Breen said December would also be a lean sales month, as the new models won’t appear in showrooms in serious numbers until January.

It was a different story for the Toyota Yaris, however, with the new light car dominating its segment. The Mazda2 came second (1449 sales) and will finish 2011 as Australia’s top-selling light car. In its first full month of sales, the all-new Holden Barina jumped to third with 1283 sales – its best result since February 2008.

Four small cars made the top 10 in October, although the i30 was down 631 units compared with October and the Cruze also fell 412. The Mitsubishi Lancer (1545, 12^th overall) and the Focus (1222, 17^th overall) were the next best sellers.

Despite a dire month, the Camry still held onto top spot in November, although its share of the segment slipped from 51.1 per cent in October to 20.6 per cent. The Mercedes-Benz C-Class (681), Ford Mondeo (632) and Mazda6 (625) recorded comparatively solid results.

The Commodore and Falcon continued as the only volume products in the large-car segment, followed by the Toyota Aurion (620) and the Nissan Maxima (313).

The RAV4 dominated the compact SUV segment with a 13.8 per cent share of the market. The Nissan X-Trail (1147), Hyundai ix35 (1094) and Mazda CX-7 (1070) also ensured they will end 2011 on a high note. Following the Territory in the medium SUV segment was the Toyota Kluger (1571) and the Holden Captiva 7 (958).

The Jeep Grand Cherokee continues its domination of the luxury SUV segment, almost doubling the sales of the second ranked Lexus RX (519 vs 269).

The HiLux controlled the 4×2 (1127 sales) and 4×4 (2205) pick-up/cab chassis segments, leading the Falcon Ute (680) in the former and the Navara (1571) in the latter.

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JEKYL & HYDE

big month for toyota(fleet,low interest lend rates working well)…
Goodfa

The Commodore will struggle even more so in 2012 unless they discount even heavier than they are now.

It will be a long 2 years for Commodore until VF is release at the end of 2013.
- Alexander
  
  Holden’s (amazing) marketing teams will make sure they flog enough of them before the VF – they were so good that they could sell Vivas and Barinas, i’m sure they’ll do fine with the Commodore.
gazza

2012 the top 3 will read like this:

1. Hilux
2. Corolla
3. Mazda 3

COMMODORE will struggle to get into the top 5,TOYOTA will have a HUGE year and will domanate the overall market.
- Toyotasalesman
  
  I personally agree that you’ve picked the top three , it’s just the order, Mazda 3 is just too fresh against the ageing Corolla and also a few competitors exist for the Hilux . So for mine, it’s 1) Mz 3, 2) Hilux, 3) Corolla.
  - gazza
    
    YES but with a all new corolla hatch arriving late 2012 corolla will be in runout from june onwards and the numbers will be massive! With a full year of hilux and no flood problems nothing will catch the numbers that hilux can produce!
    - @jackkl
      
      I’ll throw in my own prediction…
      
      1. Corolla
      2. Mazda 3 or Commodore
      4. Hilux
      
      I also think Hyundai will overtake Mazda as Australia’s best selling full line importer, if they haven’t done so by year’s end.
Hmmm

The commodore is a great product but holden will need to offer some seriously sharp pricing or extremely low interest finance like toyota and mitsubishi are atm. Another thought is that on the horizon the Cruze looms large and could easily outsell the commodore next year…
- Eric
  
  Those sharp $$ will be graet for all the current VE owners.
- Phil
  
  Commodore SV6 RRP is $43,790 + on road costs of about $3000.
  
  Open any weekend newspaper and you’ll find dealers advertising them for $34,990 driveaway which is a $12,000 discount before you even walk into the dealer to haggle – plus most of the adverts include free extras too.
  
  How big does the discount need to go before you think they’re offering the right sharp prices?
440 R/T Charger

Go Holden!
gazza

GO HOLDEN! GO BACKWARDS!
- topdog
  
  It should read go dawoe cause they will sell more dawoes than anything else
  - Yogi
    
    Mate, btw it is “daewoo” not that it matters really.
Dave S

Only 3 Australian made cars in the top ten! Terrible news.
Lets hope they can finish well for the year.
anthony

What a sad month for Aussie manufacturers. I worry about the future of all manufacturing in this country. We are heading for a deep depression in Australia if this sort of decline continues over the next 20 years across all sectors. It may seem far away. But its going to happen. But for now I will enjoy my Aussie cars while they still exist.
- PatrolMan
  
  We’re doing our bit – getting a new AUSTRALIAN MADE oven this month. Upgrading while Electrolux is still manufacturing in Oz. The trouble with cars is that so few models are made here – and no proper 4WDs.
- incentive75
  
  I hope we are all doing our bit – buying Australian Owned and Australian Made products – but only as long as they suit our finances and needs and quality expectations.
  Unfortunately Falcodores and similar do not suit the need of many Australians – who needs huge sedans 5m long, and smaller cars, Cruze for example, may be suitable but are of an inferior quality when compared with Mazda 3 or VW Golf.
  - Tony
    
    inferior quality? i’m not convinced.
Ima Hogg

Go mazda 3. Its time to kill off the bombadore!
Simon

So they know the Falcon finished the month 12th but couldn’t be bothered posting the number. How many Falcons were sold in Nov 2011???
- Phil
  
  This is CA journalism you know…
  
  Anyway they said Falcon came 12th.
  10th spot Rav4 sold 1577 and it said klugar sold 1571 so that must’ve have been 11th and they said Lancer came 12th with 1525.
  So I guess Falcon tied for 12th spot with 1525 sales.
  One wonders why any journalist would mention a 12th ranking and the result for that 12th ranking but failed to mention at that point that it was a tied result.
  - http://www.caradvice.com.au Tim Beissmann
    
    Hi guys
    
    Falcon was 13th with 1483 sales. Story has been updated.
    
    Thanks
    Tim Beissmann
Adam

“After a driveaway pricing promotion rocketed the Golf to 3337 sales in October and third position for the month, it returned to its normal levels last month, recording 764 sales and slipping beyond the top 25.”

Hopefully someone at VW is reading this… price the cars better and more people will buy.
- Phil
  
  Driveaway pricing would cost VW about $2000-3000 per car.
  
  Making that extra money 764 times ($764 x $2500 = almost $2Million in just one month) might be more profitable than selling 3337 cars and absorbing the $2500 per car.
  - Blue Soup
    
    A little birdie told me that the Driveaway promo on GOLF was only costing VW anywhere from $500-$1,500 depending on models the rest funded by dealer margin. VW domination at the mercy of the dealer profit. VW’s Arragance at its best.
Dangel

AFTER A SALE figures go back to usual or less per month , you can get excited again in june if you want a deal on very good car .
Neil

Greta month for the Focus, 1200+ sales is a pretty strong effort considering Ford’s previous results. Hopefully those awful advertisements are actually getting through.
Neil

Great month for the Focus, 1200+ sales is a pretty strong effort considering Ford’s previous results. Hopefully those awful advertisements are actually getting through.
- DE
  
  Actually having stock to supply customers helps too. Pretty hard to sell what you don’t have.
  - Phil
    
    They cant be too low on stock, they’ve been advertising Focus for $20,990 driveaway almost as soon as it was released.
    RRP is $21,990 + on road costs (about $2200). If they discount it right from launch, imagine how big the discounts will be when this generation Focus gets old!
Mr Gaspo

Holdens strategy of incremental fuel economy improvements is not working. If I could buy an auto diesel Sport wagon with factory 7 seats, I would do do in a heartbeat over an SUV. Problem is Holden only offer relatively thirsty engines (in urban conditions) and no 7 seat option. I don’t think selling large cars is a problem as long as they are fuel efficient.
- Phil
  
  Do you really think a extra 2 seats in the boot of the sportwagon would work well?
  Though I guess it could work well if the passengers didn’t have a head. Or legs.
http://Porsche MB

No doubt figures will turn around for Holden with the Cruze Hatch now available.

Ford have got to lift their game and get behind the Falcon one way or the other…committ long term or just state you will not so people can make an informed decision the resale on a Falcon compared to a Commodore would be significant and is getting worse if Ford dont commmitt.

Release the Ecoboost now
Troy

Holden needs to release the VF commodore as soon as possible.I have a ve ss and would like to upgrade to a new commodore now,but the series 2 ve on sale currently is no different from my 2006 model so why bother?Holden needs vf now,with plenty of visual changes,ie sheet metal.I will buy one strait away
- nickdl
  
  I’m surprised that the touchscreen and the slightly cheaper interior plastics didn’t win you over.
- Phil
  
  What exactly do you want in a VF? The classic teardrops in the front headlights? New dashboard buttons in different places but the same overall interior quality?
  
  Of course, even if they give it plenty of visual changes, the chassis, engine, tranmission, etc will all still carry over, so why the desire to upgrade to a VF straight away? You like throwing money away with depreciation?
  - Dangel
    
    Yes i would say by mid next year crummer sales will drop to falcon sub 2000 levels , the small cars will completely dominate , need to tow just by a hilux ,tinny on the tow bar, 5 fatties will fit , keg in the tray , diesel economy/grunt and it will hold its resale value unlike the falcodore .
  - Tony
    
    very ignorant. i would say a diesel and or hybrid commodore would be launched in VF at some point.
    V8 is the only motor in the commodore range that really needs to be upgraded. although it is still good to drive.
    3.0 sidi = better than 4 cyl camery and just as efficient in a bigger better car. also better then i45 motor and maxima 2.5ltr v6.
    3.6 sidi. great power. great torque. good towing capacity. better than v6 accord and aurion. on par with falcon l6 wich towes better but less efficient.
    simple fact is if you don’t want an SUV and you want a large sedan that can carry 3 kids and a boat. the falcadore is a great car.
    resale is poor if you pay too much for the cars.
    but at the current prices being offered you will find that resale is not too bad at all.
    some people need to get their head out of the european and japanese clouds.
    - Dangel
      
      Wonderfull thesis but does not stop the current slide in large car sales , all warm and fuzzy , but people dont want them .
      
      Yes the diesel has been coming since 2003 , bit late now , even reps are difting into euro/jap/korean cars .
      
      Neighbour just ditched his crummer for kia optima , pretty impressive vehicle .
    - nickdl
      
      I agree with you on some points but the 3.0 SIDI engine is rubbish, even when compared to some 4cyl competitors. I find it highly unlikely that people will achieve the 9L/100km figure and it’s coarse and gutless. The 3.6 is better but still a lot worse than the Falcon in terms of refinement.
      
      IMO the V8 in the Commodore range, for what it is, is the most appealing engine overall. It isn’t too bad on fuel when driven sensibly, and despite old tech, it’s relatively light and still very powerful. A V8 Calais V Sportwagon would be the ultimate family car for me.
      
      I agree that diesel is important for the VF, as is a hybrid. They’re still great cars though.
- Dave S
  
  How about the SSV Redline, or the SV6 Sportswagon? Neither were around 5 years ago. Both look modern and up to date.
Richard

Note that Hyundai/Kia are now number 2 manufacturer in Australia!!
Hyundai and Kia cars are basically the same except for looks and and a bit of ‘tuning’ and are both owned by Hyundai.
November 2012
1. Toyota
2. Mazda
3. Hyundai
4. Holden
5. Ford
- Nasal Explorer
  
  You mean No. 2 seller, not manufacturer. They don’t manufacture cars in Australia and so don’t count as manufacturers here.
  - alejandro
    
    they are not No 2 seller. to me it looks like No 3.
    Toyota and M
Richard

Holden’s problem’s
1. Commodore a very old car in a contracting sector
2. SUV sales the fastest growing sector and Holden doesn’t have a good one
3. Holden doesn’t have a good new tray top/twin cab
4. Mazda has SX-5 about to hit SUV market
5. Hyundai will have solved their diesel supply problem’s
- Bent 8 Brigade
  
  Richard’s problem’s (sic)
  1. Possibly, but Commodore is still an excellent big car, regardless of what the CA anti Holden trolls would have others believe
  2. wrong
  3. incoming
  4. it’s called CX5
  5. Kia has the preferable SUVs these days
  - Cal
    
    Agreed Bent 8, the Commodore is the best large car in the country and for highway cruising nothing beats it, you can have your 4 cylinder cramped buzz-boxes over the holiday road trips, I will laughing as I cruise past in my new SV6
    - Dangel
      
      HAHAH SV6 ,trifle course and slow , GTI will blow that into the weeds , loverly resale and no economy .
      - Hung Low
        
        Would that be the Gti towing the family boat with 5 ppl on board or the Gti with the caravan and 5 ppl on board driving into a headwind for the next 200kms?
        
        Leave the posers cars for posers duties please!
      - Devil’s Advocate
        
        Just as well I don’t have a boat/caravan/5 people to cart around then. I don’t own a GTi and don’t have the need for one, but that is the typical excuse of someone trying to justify a type of car that is starting to fall out of favour. Especally when most of the cars you see towing the things you mentioned or carrying that many people are pretty much all SUVs. I know the majority of relatively new Commodore/Falcons etc I see on the road only have 2-3 people inside them at best and don’t even have a tow bar. How many HSVs do you see even have a tow bar? If they do at most they are only towing a jet-ski, which most cars can tow without any real issues.
      - Captain Nemo
        
        Ahhh Bungel
        
        New user name i see but same poor spelling “coarse” not course. Only thing a VeeDud will blow would be its motor.
      - Dangel
        
        Back with the same old axe grinding tales of VW woe ,fung , ask barry about the crummer ECU breakdowns or the air cons.
        
        Maybe zero has can up date you on the shocking resale of used VE’S , will only get worse as they sell less and less .
        
        Must be strange having three personalities .
- Dangel
  
  SPOT on richard , certainly getting old is the crummer looks tired , too big too heavy , sedan not wanted poor economy .
  - barry the towtruck driver
    
    Hey Dangel,VEEDUD having a bit of a problem with there DSG transmissions aha.
    - Dangel
      
      Same problem as fung its “their DSG ” not there , makes me think you are one in the same , no .
      
      And VW selling 1000,s of DSG trans in OZ and world wide with millions of satisfied punters .
      - JEKYL & HYDE
        
        watch the resale of your vw tumble when the warrenty’s up…FACT
gazza

If VW think they are going to over take TOYOTA they better have a bigger gameplan in australia!

TOYOTA: 17,463
VW: 3,823

NO CONTEST HERE the thing is australians have a good memory about VW in the 70s & 80s they were and still are cheap german made cars with no reliability or resale value.
- bert
  
  I agree 110% you dont buy a vw product if you want reliability cheap servicing or resale value.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1715760895 Charles Dean

Mercedes must be having strong discounts for the C-class
nickdl

Great result for the Territory. I still can’t believe that so many people bought a RAV4. I guess it just shows how dull and mediocre most small SUVs are when a 6 year old model still tops the charts. I can’t say I’d ever buy a small SUV, maybe only a Skoda Yeti or the new Ford Kuga.
- bert
  
  You would buy a skoda or a ford kuga over a RAV, what planet do you live on?
  - Tony
    
    rav 4 is not that special.
    if you want the most practical and versatile small suv at the moment you gotta see the x trail.
    but most suv customers are after looks. x-trail does not deliver is that area.
    Good luck to territory. it deserves to do well.
    long live aussie manufacturing!!!
    - gazza
      
      Where the RAV shines is TOYOTA SERVICE ADVANTAGE and RESALE VALUE nothing can compete with RAV in the resale department!
      - JEKYL & HYDE
        
        back to the detailing bay gazza…
      - Phil
        
        “TOYOTA SERVICE ADVANTAGE”?
        
        You mean having to return your car to the dealer every 3-6 months for servicing?
http://www.ozmazda.com/ ozmazda

Well done Mazda…..
gti

Veedud have rubbish resale. Buy a commondore instead!
- barry the towtruck driver
  
  With all the reliability problems gti.Little wonder.
MK

I don’t know how the Cherokee landed up in the ‘luxury’ class.
Noel

Holden dealers around the country will be receiving communications to register as many Commodores as possible…………I bet Commodore has one of the biggest months ever during December 2011….Holden won’t give up the best selling car title without a fight.
- Tony
  
  why should they. who really wants a foreign car to outsell our own product.
  government needs to support the industry.
  subsidise the industry and you create more jobs and better cars. more jobs = more taxes paid. more jobs + better cars + more cars = more export oppertunity.
  ford need to manufacture a small car here.
  holden need to manufacture an suv locally.
  maybe i’m dreaming.
  just shut all the manufacturers down and mine their land.
  i’m sure there is coal under it if you look.
  - Noel
    
    Sorry Tony, you are dreaming.
    
    Low production + irrelevant products = extinction
    
    One of our manufacturers is already dead, it just won’t lay down and the other two are cowering in the corner.
    
    People will buy foreign built cars because it is more sexy, a very simple fact. Do you want some proof? Drive past the Ford staff car park at Broadmeadows and count the number of foreign cars compared to the Australian made ones, I think you would be shocked.
- Matty B
  
  You’re 100% right Noel, you wait for all the un-driven demos on sale in January.
  - BP
    
    If I was Holden, I for sure would. I don’t really care if everyone was negative about this move but it’s necessary to secure a 16th year at the top. If they can top this year, then they can let next year go to the Cruze. 16 years at the top is plenty & a milestone in my book.
    - Noel
      
      And Holden is not beyond doing this sort of thing, they did it in the early 80′s when Ford was about to take top spot.
http://CarAdvice Onepoppa

Take away fleet sales from Commodore and Facon, and also taxi sales from Falcon and the truth becomes blindingly obvious – Australians are ovver buying large 6 cylinder cars. The boat and caravan towing fraternity long ago went over to SUVs.

Ecoboost Falcons won’t stop the trend – but diesel Falcons might have stemmed the tide for a while – if they had appeared at least a year ago. How can Ford take so long to re-engine their cars – diesel Territories and Ecoboost Falcons have taken at least at least two years longer than they should have.
- Phil
  
  There was never any boat or caravan towing fraternity in Falcadore.
  
  Look around, 9 out of 10 Falcadores (even old examples) aren’t even fitted with a towbar.
  Those that do have a tow bar would either never tow anyway or are only used for a bike rack or a lightweight box trailer than any car could tow.
  - Dangel
    
    I cannot remember the last time i saw a crummer pulling a caravan , the odd old dude who will never drive any thing but an OZ car .
    
    All i see are SUV’S diesel , why would use any thing else.
    
    Remember the VB crummers that were so pathetically week they stretched when a van was applied .
davie

wow – What happened to the Forester? – it usually makes a place in the SUV charts.

Looks like its no where to be seen!
BP

Interesting to note that because C’dore has had 2 horror months of sale, they assume it’s the end. Well it’s not!!!

Holden is clearly lacking stock of C’dore & Cruze. The large car market is not dead just yet.

Such a big effort for Golf last month, show’s how many will flock when it’s driveaway prices haha.
- Phil
  
  If Holden had a lack of stock for Crummer and Crude they would not be running sales.
Dangel

Maybe GM’S redplate sale is not working and the punters see through the so called $9k saving , realising if its always on sale thats the real price , there goes the resale value.

VW does not do it every month , helps to maintain their fantastic resale value .
- gazza
  
  What fantastic resale value??????????? WHAT ARE YOU SMOKING?
- Barry the tow truck driver
  
  Fantastic resale Dangel?A bit tung in cheek Bangel.
  At the end of the NCW vw”s will be worthless.
Martin

I’d still never buy a Toyota. I’d rather buy a car from manufacturers who plug so much innovation into their products rather than buy from a company that relies so heavily on its reputation.
- gazza
  
  In case you dont know you earn a reputation on innovation! Innovation produces cars that are more reliable and are cheaper to maintain and dont fall apart after 3 years, i quess you drive a daewoo/holden?
  - Martin
    
    Innovation requires more than a 4-speed automatic. I actually have a new one series which incidentally has an 8-speed automatic. Innovation.
    - gazza
      
      A 8 speed auto in a underpowered 100kw 1 series WOW! Hope you took out a 2nd mortgage to service it?
      - Martin
        
        The 116i has 100kW, I purchased the 118i. It has 125kW, and no I haven’t taken a mortgage out to service it.
      - bert
        
        When the mighty lexus isf came out all the lexus haters said why would a 320kw car need a 8 speed auto, how stupid was that they said!
        Well now bmw have put a 8 speed auto behind a 1 series with a whopping 100kw or 125kw, would they even have enough power to get into 8th gear?
      - Devil’s Advocate
        
        Gazza, one thing you must remember though is that with a BMW, even though a single service is not that cheap when compared to many other brands, you only have to service it half as often. That reduces the costs in the long run. For example, over a period of 3 years/60,000km, a 1/3 series BMW is actually cheaper to service than a Commodore Berlina.
    - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1715760895 Charles Dean
      
      Hahaaa Funny you say that, because Toyota (Lexus) was the first company to have 8-gears on a production vehicle since 2006 which was the LS460 and then IS-F..
H

Phil, it’s Focus autos that are in short supply. I read an advert that said auto stock due mid November a few weeks back.
Mark

Mazda is doing really well , both 2 and 3! cx 7 will be replaced by Cx5 I believe. Holden is dying for sure , cruze doesnot look like a hit and no good SUV , commodore has poor fuel consumption , can’t say any positive reborn sign for Holden!!
Toyota is the best resale car company with years approved service reputation and reliability in Australia . They offer great drive away deal and good finance at the momenr No wonder aging RAV and corolla are selling these great!

Can’t believe Hyundai/Kia is in top 3 now , I am a Hyundai hater, but ironic love the Kia design!!

Where is Honda ?????

VW is actually has good reputation in euro and china. Strange that Amercian and us don’t like it.
sequential

Holden needs a decent diesel SUV not the Captiva.
Who is buying all these RAV’s, its so old its applying for a pension. Honda has left the building watching Hyundai and Kia bring out powerful 7 seat fuel efficient diesels wishing they had done the same for 2012 CRV instead of an ancient 2.4 petrol.
theillestlife

DIE HOLDEN, DIE.
- HandBrake
  
  I don’t understand people that wont support aussie car makers
anthony

Tim Bleissmann,PLEASE can we have the usual list of ALL manufacturers sales,as well as the mid sized under 60 000 $ category,as this is now overtaking the large segment,so will be interesting to see who is selling what.
Antz

Go Mazda!!!!!! Clearly always making the right moves. Bulletproof marketing that listen to it’s customers. Congratulations on a wonderful 2011 with hopefully many more good years to come in the zoom zoom camp.