Ford Australia considering more job cuts

By Tim Beissmann
June 14th, 2012

FIND DEALS

Ford Australia is considering further job cuts as it prepares to close its Victorian factories for a week next month.

Ford will close its Broadmeadows assembly plant and Geelong engine and casting facility for seven days in July as the Falcon large car languishes at its lowest sales levels in history.

“We remain committed to our strategy of matching production to market demand,” Ford Australia’s Sinead Phipps told AAP.

“We have also confirmed that we are looking at a number of alternatives to allow us to manage our production schedule through the rest of this year, including additional down days or the possibility of a down balance [job cuts].”

Less than a year ago in July 2011, Ford cut 240 factory workers from Broadmeadows and Geelong because of dwindling demand for its vehicles, reducing daily production from 260 vehicles to 209 in the process.

Today’s news comes just one month after Ford Australia posted its largest annual loss on record, bleeding $290 million in 2011 in a result that was worse than its loss at the height of the global financial crisis in 2008.

Sales of the Falcon sedan have fallen 25.2 per cent this year to 5415 units. At the current rate, Ford is on track to sell fewer than 15,000 Falcons this year, half what it achieved in 2010.

The Falcon Ute is fairing only slightly better, although with just 2338 units sold this year, it too is 11.4 per cent off last year’s pace.

The Territory is the one shining light for Ford Australia. Sales of the locally made large SUV are up 72.8 per cent this year on the back of strong demand for the diesel model, which belatedly launched in Australia in April 2011.

Ford has sold 5895 Territorys this year, putting it on track to achieve its best full-year sales result since 2007 and remarkably beat the Falcon over a calendar year for the first time ever.

Earlier this year, Ford Australia announced a $103 million investment into the Falcon and Territory, guaranteeing the future of both vehicles until 2016. The future of Ford’s local manufacturing operations beyond that point remains under a cloud.

Sponsored Ads

Dave S

More Job cuts @ Ford. – Noooooo!
- vid_ghost_borg
  
  My Broother just picked up his June built 2012, XR6 Turbo Ute in black
  It really is an amazing car with too much power, if there is such a thing.
- vid_ghost_borg
  
  My Broother just picked up his June built 2012, XR6 Turbo Ute in black
  It really is an amazing car with too much power, if there is such a thing.
  - Sumpguard
    
    I had the pleasure of riding shotgun in a black XR6 last Friday and with a few tweaks here and there it had 800 nm of torque at the back wheels. Incredibly quick with a ride suited to our roads. It’s a shame this type of vehicle is on the way to the history books.
    
    However as the pump price for fuel heads towards $2.00 the death of these types of vehicles is inevitable. Some day in the future people will sell mods for electric engines *sigh*
    - Holden Bogan
      
      Fuel is only a small component, lack of resale kills these vehicles
Dave S

More Job cuts @ Ford. – Noooooo!
jekyl & hyde

shoulda coulda wishta built the focus here…
jekyl & hyde

shoulda coulda wishta built the focus here…
Smart US

territory is selling well however only few petrol powered that are manufactured in oz… the plant should really focus on diesel and small engines… or they need to close
Smart US

territory is selling well however only few petrol powered that are manufactured in oz… the plant should really focus on diesel and small engines… or they need to close
D4D

unhappy workers—bad quality cars—bad sales figures—more downtime—more unhappy workers…the cycle begins…
Stevefreestyle

The FIRST to go should be their “Marketing Depatment” that could’nt sell free beer and sausage at a football mach!
- Golfschwein
  
  Steve, I’ve gone from a Golf Comfortline to a 33,000 km old Falcon Classic, and I’m finally starting to understand the decline. It goes far, far deeper than the marketing department.
  
  There’s a cheapness to the finish and an almost celebratory punishment that Ford inflicts on you for not buying the model or models above. No footrest, no illumination to window and steering wheel switches, nobody in the interior desigh and engineering department above 180 cm tall, awful stereo…hey, you know, you do get a driver’s window switch that says Auto Down. There was no such frippery on the Golf’s illuminated switches, but completely without fanfare, every single window switch was two position auto down and up. People might say that’s a little thing, but it’s typical of the attention to detail that Ford deliberately shirks on, and it doesn’t just stop and start at the window switches.
  
  At service time, I go to the desk where a surly buffoon deliberately avoids eye contact until he’s finished his data entry, at which time he says yemmate and decides to get up.
  
  It’s a whole different experience and more and more people are abandoning it for something that’s just nicer everywhere.
  - twincharger
    
    In all fairness the FG is a huge improvement all round on your BA.Also bet you all the oil in Saudia Arabia that your Falcon Classic outlasts your rolf comfortline.
    Have to agree unfortunatly about your service time exprience with Ford.
    - Golfschwein
      
      The signs aren’t good, Barry. I detailed its numerous faults in a comment that’s been quarantined. They might reveal themselves in time. In short, I wish I had my Golf back.
      - twincharger
        
        Golfy we still need a bit of time to see if Eco Boost and Lpi get strong fleet sales. On holidays in Melbourne at Easter time and was amazed at the amount of new Rolfs on the road there.Heard them advertised on radio for $21,990,you can buy another one.
      - twincharger
        
        Golfy we still need a bit of time to see if Eco Boost and Lpi get strong fleet sales. On holidays in Melbourne at Easter time and was amazed at the amount of new Rolfs on the road there.Heard them advertised on radio for $21,990,you can buy another one.
      - Golfschwein
        
        Nothing would make me happier than to see the Falcon tonk along at 3500 sales per month, all for the sake of Australian industry. And if it deserved the sales, all the better. For the moment, I’ll let other people who aren’t quite as tall as me want one.
      - Pirate Post Office
        
        I have owned both a Falcon and 2 Golfs and agree with you… Reflects my experiences. The appeal of the Falc was a solid drive train that can do high Ks, but the body was cheap and you had high fuel bills given the massive engine.
        
        My service experience was fine, but the dealership looked low rent.
      - Edward
        
        I felt the same way after driving one for only a day. Im not sure why, but for the size of the vehicle i also expected a bit more cabin space.
      - Andrew M
        
        I had a quarantined comment too Golfie, the moderator is getting over sensitive and slack at reviewing them
  - Zandit75
    
    What year is this Falcon? The last Classic I remember was an AU. Pretty sure the Classic was never used on the BA-FG models
    - Andrew M
      
      Classic was done in BA.
      It was done along side the SR edition.
      
      SR was the sports option special edition with typical rear spolier etc, and classic was aimed at a family cause it had DVD entertainment as its main differentiating feature
      - Zandit75
        
        Thanks Andrew I forgot about that
  - Chah
    
    If your interior benchmark is even remotely a VW GOLF then you must have very low standards..
    
    Even a Camry nowadays has a better interior quality then a golf
    - Lbrinsmead
      
      What the? That’s not what 99.99% of reviews around the world would think.
    - Legnab
      
      HAHAHA funniest comment yet , camry , sounds like a golf , looks like a golf , drives like a golf , should have gone spec savers .
  - Info
    
    …just checking regarding the 180cm tall line. Is that a problem with the Falcon?
    - Walter
      
      I’m 187 and never had a problem. Driven BA/FG and Territory.
      
      I also have had few issues with interior quality, but I’m probably a bit more respectful to the interior of vehicles than some others. I understand that if I try to break it, it probably will break!
    - Golfschwein
      
      Hi Info, yes, seat doesn’t go low enough, wheel doesn’t adjust high enough. I get this constant impression that I’m ducking to see underneath the car’s infrastructure, be it interior mirror, the curved sides of the windscreen header and the arch-shaped front side windows. And I do imagine that if I was just 4 cm shorter (180 cm), things would be a darned sight easier. No such problems in Golf or anything else I’ve driven, for that matter.
      - Legnab
        
        YES the high seating position has been a gripe for many over the years , not much changed there since 1988 .
      - Andrew M
        
        I actually prefer the higher seating, better understanding of the vehicles proportions.
        I find the Commodore as an example to be too far to the other extreme.
        
        A persons height is a funny thing, ones torso doesnt usually vary too much, rather leg height usually determines a persons height.
        
        Im sure your height sitting down as a 184cm person wouldnt place your head 4cm closer to the roof line than a 180cm person.
      - Andrew M
        
        Also, one thing that bothers me with smaller cars is because they are not as wide, they cant accomodate a sunvisor as long as say a Falcon can.
        
        Once you flip the sunvisor to the window, it does nothing because taller people sit back further, and the Visor isnt long enough to sheild the sun from the side of their face.
        
        Also, in smaller cars, when you do sit back further, you cant reach the instruments as well because the pedals are closer to the front of the dash than say in a Falcon
      - Legnab
        
        AndrewM what the ! this ones from left field , i have owned big cars and small cars i have never experienced this event .
        
        Sunvisor overload is that a new disease .
      - Legnab
        
        SO you like sitting up in a truckie position , actually ford did it deliberately so any height person could drive a falcoon taxi .
      - Golfschwein
        
        Andrew M, I’m so, so sorry to bring up Golf again….you know how it is Its sunvisors swivelled out to the side AND slid backwards to fully cover the gap that would otherwise exist up to the B-pillar. Never had a car that did that before. Again, just an attention to detail thing that zee chermans had covered, a bit like the perfectly positioned left AND right footrests, blaring twin tone horns, twin flip keys, remotely openable and closeable windows etc. None of this stuff got a mention in the brochure, it’s just what they do.
        
        Now, to balance things out a bit, the world’s worst sunvisors were to be found on the New Beetle – tiny little things that barely covered the side glass at all. It’s a little known fact that I owned one of these too. From the one showroom, I observed, it was possible to buy an extremely useless car and one that was exactly the opposite!
  - Golf Bogan
    
    Golf LOL, I see more broken down on the side of the road or on the back of flatbeds than driving around
- Phil
  
  Ah, the old blame the marketing department…..
  
  Honestly, do you really think anyone in the market for a large cheap sedan won’t know Falcoone exists? People know it exists, they just don’t want one.
  Furthermore, untill now, Falcoone has been around as a top seller constantly for the last forty years. Lots have people have obviously owned one at some stage in their lives and nearly all of those peopler have decided against buying another one.
  None of this is because of marketing.
  - Legnab
    
    ABSOLUTELY spot on phil , when will they wake up , nice to see the big IQ’S making logical comments .
    - Ford Fairlane
      
      Ever heard of the saying “You don’t know what you got till its gone”
      
      Any Australian who rejoices in the demise of the Australian automotive manufacturing industry must have the IQ of a watermelon.
      - Legnab
        
        WE know what we dont want and thats a falcoon , the worlds moved on , all the FLAT EARTH believers can whine and groan , but times up , get over it , life will go on post falcon like it has post fairline , what a pile of junk that thing was .
      - twincharger
        
        Ummm Foghorn Leghorn( what a pile of junk that thing was)….Your vechle company of choice in more recent times bolted a dsg transmission on to a twin charged engine..we talk of piles of junk..
      - Legnab
        
        BARRY NEMO riding shot gun again in the flat bed , loaded with old crummers and falcoons .
        
        Time to get an organ , then you can grind out more tall tales .
      - Ford Fairlane
        
        Your the flat earther who shows ZERO forsight who only lives in the now.
        One day the demise of all austalian industry will affect you, then you might get it but of course by then it will be too late and the blame will be on ignorant people like you.
        Maybe you could grow and sell watermelons(you seem to have a bond with them) when your income is affected.
      - Legnab
        
        FAILANE , demise is their own doing , americans sat back did nothing when the rest of the world downsized bodies and power units , most falcoons run around with one on board , thats a waste .
        
        Manufacturing here is difficult because of population , probably only room for one maker , toyota maybe .
        
        Cost of labour is too high compared to asia , thats life ,
        has happened to the footware/clothing/ etc etc .
        
        Dont see the govt propping up those industries .
      - JooberJCW
        
        Maybe those rejoicing are the American heads looking to pull out from the costly Australian manufacturing base and to cut costs. They share no allegiance to us and from a stereotypical sense they still thinks we are still a bunch of backwater hicks.
        
        Personally I want Ford to succeed in producing a ‘good’ and ‘innovative’ car for the Australian market.
        
        Unfortunately as it stands, the Falcon is just average car among a sea of plenty alternatives, add that people also start to question why do I need a big car over a medium, add volatile petrol prices then you can clearly see why its suffering. Add a more borderless world people are more comfortable to venture out of whats local.
      - Phil
        
        So “you don’t know what you got till its gone”……
        
        Tell me,
        
        Who misses Aus production of the Chysler Sheetma? No one.
        Who misses Aus production of the Ford Crapi? No one.
        Who misses Aus production of the Nissan Bintara? No one.
        Who misses Aus production of the Sheetsubishi 380? No one.
        Who misses Aus production of the Ford Coarseair? No one.
        Who will miss Falcoone when it’s gone? No one.
    - Walter
      
      Falcon suffered from being the car of choice for Taxi drivers for too long. When they stopped producing the LPG variant with the launch of the FG (up until the recent launch of the LPI) they lost a massive amount of business. Sales have suffered since for two reasons:
      
      1) Taxi drivers (we can include fleet buyers in this too) aren’t propping up their sales
      
      2) the private buyer isn’t buying (or considering) them because they believe they are taxis
      
      There is a stigma that exists with being a Falcon owner, or for that matter a Ford owner in Australia. So it comes back to the marketing department to change peoples perception of the vehicle.
      
      My mate traded in his VE SS for a FG XR6 about 6 months ago. He is happy as Larry!
      - Legnab
        
        Thats right TAXI is the stigmarta attached to the falcoon , cant shake that one , so just bring in the fusion , whole new ball game .
      - Walter
        
        Fusion is coming – it’s called the Mondeo.
      - Mac
        
        Legbag!!….You were waiting for the Taurus in previous comments ……now Fusion…….possibly you realised that the current Taurus is actually larger than the Falcon, too large in fact for my liking also , hence putting falcon in a more medium sized bracket .
      - Phil
        
        NSW taxi operators [except some silver service ones] buy their Falcoones used from the Ex fleet auctions and get them converted to LPG [if they werent already].
        
        Walter’s mate must enjoy losing money on depreciation….trading in a VE for a FG…..double whammy.
  - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
    
    Phil, we’ve been through this. The need to market the Falcon and in particular the new tech (LPi, EcoBoost) is because perception is reality in the mind of the customer.
    If the customer believes that they don’t want a Falcon because it’s a ‘thirsty’ 6 cylinder (because they believe that’s what a Falcon is) or they don’t want a car on lpg because they are gutless they will never walk into a dealer just to confirm their misconceptions.
    If you’re going to develop new technology then customers need to know about it.
    The vast majority of Australians have no idea that you can buy a 4 cylinder Falcon or heard the term ‘ecoboost’.
    - Phil
      
      If people want a cheap large sedan, they’d go look at Falcoone regardless of whether they knew it had ecoboost or LPi and what will they find out? Well in the case of the ecoboost, you pay the price of the 4.0 6 and get a less powerful 2.0 4 cylinder…..hmmmm that sounds attractive doesn’t it? In the case of the LPi, the big sedan ends up with a either a tiny boot or despite being “designed for Australian conditions” [whatever that is?] no spare wheel combined with no run flat tyres and no pressure monitoring device.
      This is only IF people want a cheap large sedan, which few people want these days.
      - Walter
        
        Muppet. The ecoboost technology is some of the best available. Yes performance figures are below the 6 but so are the performance figures of almost every other large vehicle in the market. The trade off for performance is better fuel efficiency. Reality is, if the 6 didn’t exist then this engine would be one of the best value propositions in the market.
      - Phil
        
        BMW’s 2.0 Turbo in the 528i offers a fraction more power than Ecoboost and uses %20 less fuel so Ecoboost technology is well behind BMWs.
        Also BMW offer their 2.0 turbo at a much lower price than their 6 cylinder models (though obviously more than Ford).
        
        Plus in the review for the Ecoboost they mentioned that Fords Ecoboost figures were achieved using premium fuel – so that will suck up most of the fuel cost saving against the 4.0 6 which runs on E10.
        
        Anyway, the Ecoboost doesn’t fix the lack of practicality in the Falcoone and the fact that they charge a 6 cylinder price for a 4 cylinder still remains. People buying 4 cylinders don’t expect to pay 6 cylinder prices.
falcongt4me

what is it with SUV type vehicles becoming the family wagon instead of the usual cars, ie Falcon/Commodore? I get the downsizing to medium sized cars, ie Mondeo, Camry, Cruze,etc for fuel saving, but SUV’s/Cross overs don’t always have economy on their side compared to what Falcon is offering? Was the biggest mistake for Falcon the demise of the wagon?
At this rate, Falcon will certainly be an historical model after 2016… so sad.
- Dave S
  
  Agree.
  
  Just because people want a wagon, does not mean they want an SUV. You can only imagine the trouble Holden would be in if they did not offer the sportswagon. There is overlap between the the wagon and the SUV,m but they are not mutually exclusive.
  
  The days it seems Toyota and BMW just want to get everyone into their SUV’s.
  
  Oh Ford. Where is your V8 option and your Luxury model – get us another LTD.
F1MotoGP

Ford loss is another car companies gain. This could end up like Mitsubishi, Nissan…etc
- Walter
  
  Unfortunately for the Australian market, Fords loss would mean Australia’s loss. It is unlikely that there would be enough production in Australia to maintain the supply chain for the other two brands leading to the collapse of the whole lot. This is why local and federal governments are willing to pump silly amounts of money into the industry. As hard as it is to hear (and say) the best result is to kill the industry and find smarter alternatives such as research, design and development.
Asdf

If Ford don’t sell enough cars, how are they going to pay the salaries.
Asdf

Ford should have build the Focus in Aus.
- James Cortez
  
  Build focus in Australia with the highest labor cost!! Try Mexico or Thailand. That’s why a lot of autoparts come from Mexico. years ago my 2001 Jeep Cherokkee was assembled in mexico and that’s how you compete. Australian Labor Force (because of the union) in general is spoilt and does not work hard.
  - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
    
    Building locally has some benefits; there’s no import costs, you advertise as ‘Australian made’ and you can customise the styling and equipment levels as well as the suspension tuning for the local market.
    Also to say that Australian labour force doesn’t work had is a bit of a generalisation.
    - No fears
      
      It is a gross generalisation& a simplistic view.The exchange rate also has an impact but I think some can’t appreciate this & push that tired old political barrow of workers are bludgers.
      Major companies have taken the attitude,nothing really needs to be made or done in Australia,refer to the offshore outsourcing of so many things many took for granted to be done here.Those jobs are gone forever.Have those utility bills,bank fees,insurance premiums really come down much?
      It comes at a local cost such as what Ford & Geelong could experience.
    - Marvellous `Marvin Hagler
      
      Listen, it’s a fact that Aust labor is expensive and add to it gov’t tax, you have a recipe for high sale price. why do you think VW has a plant in South Africa and some mopar parts are manufactured in Mexico. Labor, yes cheaper labor
      - No fears
        
        Then scrap the phoney side shows at Campbellfield,Elizabeth & Altona.Let the miserable toe cutters have their way.Is that what you really want?Scorched earth all the way from cradel to grave.
      - Legnab
        
        Nuke em
AAFordMan

For goodness sake Ford, you want to sell Falcons, make their price cheaper. Cheap to run but expensive to buy just dont add up in many peoples minds. You have the choice, sell next to nothing as you currently do and have NO cashflow and thus an early demise, or at least cut your margin back to bugger all, sell the car to the punters who would like a more roomier car, but are outright dollar value (not necessarily the same as value for money) conscious. Get the turnover going again, dont let all that money you have invested in this very good car go down the gurgler. At least you will keep people working, and have people want to buy your car again, even if it is for the reason of being biggest and cheapest. We all still like cars this size but are often forced into smaller ones for lots of different reasons, but mostly initial cost. Try making them the same value as what a week old one would get you at a dealers if you tried to trade it back……….
- Zandit75
  
  Considering you just have to sneeze in the dealership and they knock $10k off the price, I don’t think the price is really the issue. Pay no attention at all to the recommended prices listed on any website.
  - Phil
    
    You don’t even have to enter the dealership to get $10K off. The motoring sections in the weekend papers are filled with Ford dealer offering Falcoone with $10K off and a bunch of free extras before you even walk in the door!
    - F1
      
      If that’s the case then why doesn’t Ford knock off 10k from the Falcons RRP?
      - Zandit75
        
        Cause then it won’t look like you are getting a bargin!
      - Andrew M
        
        They are actually reducing their RRP. I think Series 2 FG came down a few K brnging the RRP closer to what they have always sold at.
        What that also does is make their resale look better or should I say more truthfull.
        
        People say the Falcon has bad resale based on RRP versus trade in price, but noone has paid 45K on road for an XR6 in history.
        
        The true resale should be based on 35-36K on road versus what the trade is worth
      - Andrew M
        
        They are actually reducing their RRP. I think Series 2 FG came down a few K brnging the RRP closer to what they have always sold at.
        What that also does is make their resale look better or should I say more truthfull.
        
        People say the Falcon has bad resale based on RRP versus trade in price, but noone has paid 45K on road for an XR6 in history.
        
        The true resale should be based on 35-36K on road versus what the trade is worth
BK

I worked for Geelong (Ford) from 1991 to 1996.I heard all the rumours in that time it was goin to close up . 20 yrs later the rumours are still right. I knew I had to change my career for the right reasons. To all my mates who are still out there working start looking for a career change.
No$$CarFan

Geelong’s going to be a ghost town?
MustangGT-for-me

15 years ago Ford falcon was the top seller, now they’re crying that they can’t sell 1000 per month. There are many reasons: no station wagon, no LTD, no Fairlane, no XR8, no RTV ute. why can’t they put the diesel into the flacon or the NA Coyote V8 matched to ZF trannie? don’t over-price it and see how it does. But the Ford Aust solution is: lay off workers. The way it’s going, we’re going to end up with no locally produced cars. That will be sad day indeed.
Andrew

It’s a real shame, I absolutely love my FPV GT 335, especially going from a BMW 325.

Unfortunately Ford / FPV fail to provide effective marketing to get the most BASIC and the most IMPORTANT features across like Ecoboost on one hand the the Supercharged 5.0L V8 on the other, do you know how many people still think that my car has the old 5.4L???

I think with Ecoboost a diesel engine and interior upgrades, the Falcon would be a brilliant vehicle…
Missile Attack

but … but … but … Holden and Ford fans said Toyota will be the next to go !!
Noddy

If Ford tries to take my job I’ll come at them with a hunting knife!
- No$$CarFan
  
  If they don’t have the sales where are they going to get the $$ to pay you but.
  - Noddy
    
    I don’t work for Ford. Never said I did. I just meant if they want to cut my job I’ll stick em!
    - Noddy’s Nemesis
      
      Anybody else think this guy’s a twit?
      - Noddy
        
        I’ll take you down Nemesis, you’ll jump in your car to go to see Nicki Minaj Live and your tires will be slashed! Then what will you do? Never make enemies with a kid from Toyland.
HandBrake

its annoying how nobody considers how much of a good car their missing out on, whats with the news channels when ever they post about this they have ancient footage of ford workers working on au’s and ba’s
- Pirate Post Office
  
  Huh? El-cheapo body and finish, too small boot, high fuel consumption and unnecessarily big. On the plus side the drive train lasts forever and the driving dynamics are great.
  - Walter
    
    Small boot? What are your carrying, a 3 rings circus?
- Edward
  
  I did consider that for a while until i finally got to drive one for a day. It wasnt bad or great.
  
  Sadly, im not convinced its worth it and the size of the car doesnt seem justified.
Philip

Media speculation on future of Falcon has had some negative impact – as it did with Mitsubishi 380. Talk something down long enough and very few people will want one. The fact that Falcon looks dated doesn’t help. The recent ‘upgrade’ was barely noticeable at the front end, and did nothing to help its overly large and overhanging rear. Might be a good car – but Ford and the motoring press have done nothing to inspire anyone to want one…..
- Phil
  
  Another failed misconception.
  
  Sales and profits dropped off FIRST and then did the media casts doubt over Falcoone/380/magna future. If sales and profits were booming the whole time, the media wouldn’t be able to speculate on the future [or lack thereof] of the cars would they?
  - Dynamomoe
    
    Falcoone???
Leighh

Funny how the Falcon never seems to lose any comparison test.
- Walter
  
  That has to be the hardest pill to swallow for them. It wouldn’t be so bad if they were always last in the reviews, then they could just blame the design team.
  - Andrew M
    
    so true,
    In fact look at their whole range.
    If its not class leading it certainly isnt far off yet they dip between 4th and 5th for sales
twincharger

Recently heard that allmost half of Australias manufacturing is someway involved in the AU car industry.This is not funny or a joke,we all have to worry about the next generation of Australians.
We have about 30 years in reserve of high grade IronOre and LPG,who know whats going to happen to our Coal reserves post Carbon tax.
Holden,Ford +Toyota have been thrown to the wolves by a series of Federal Governments.Lowest tarrifs in the developed world,a dumping ground for all new car models.The best selling car per month struggles to reach 3500 units when 1 million are sold each year.300 models for sale at the moment.
This results lower volumes for our local cars,hense the VE now 6 years old and FG 4 years old.Historically these models should of been replaced by new models by now.Lower sales,less profit,less development on new models,unstable global oil pricing.Vw,Hyundai+Mazda seem to be building the cars people want to buy now,of coarse Toyota also.
Well done FALCON on 52 great years in Australia.Cmon HOLDEN get moving on the new Commodore.
- Legnab
  
  Dreamer , the dumb yanks ruined this model by not moving to smaller bodies/motors 10 years ago , well done ford , well done GM .
  
  Toyota have a great opportunity now to hand out the killer blow .
  - twincharger
    
    Legnad,Ford and Holden though they where building cars that Australians wanted to buy.Just amazed at how fast the decline has come.
Sumpguard

It’s kind of sad that the local ford division brought the Ranger (best in class) to the world but the yanks won’t allow exports of an Aussie built sedan!!
Gibwater

Maybe the factory should kill Falcon and switch to full Territory production to see them thru to 2016.To make Falcon last thru to 2016……its beginning to look like it just can’t happen. 1008 sales in May…..by September it will be down to three figure monthly totals. About an 80% drop since the days of XF! And where are the ads for the new Ecoboost model? No wonder sales have failed to kick off.
Rocket

The dual cab ute has been the blokes vehicle of choice for some time now when it use to be the Falcon and Commodore while girls prefer hatchbacks and SUVs. It has nothing to do with economy but practicality and image. Ford have an opportunity to build a smaller ( BMW 3 series size) RWD sedan alongside the next Mustang in 2015 for the enthusiast drivers who are still out there and lets hope it happens in Australia.