Holden Commodore, Cruze sales dip forces plant closures

By Tim Beissmann
September 28th, 2012

FIND DEALS

Holden will stop production at its Elizabeth assembly plant in South Australia for a number of days between now and the end of the year as it reacts to low demand for its Holden Commodore and Holden Cruze vehicles.

Between July and August, sales of the Commodore are down 33.2 per cent compared with the same period in 2011, while the Cruze has also dipped 29.2 per cent over the same period.

Holden corporate affairs manager Sean Poppitt explained the company would hold a “small number” of “market response days” in the coming months to avoid creating an oversupply of cars.

“They’re individual days that are spread out between now and the end of the year,” Poppitt said. “We’ve got a small number of those, which is designed to basically align production with demand.

“It’s really crucial for a niche, low-volume plant like our one that we’re able to respond to market fluctuations.”

Although the Australian new-vehicle market is up 9.4 per cent so far this year and is on track to break the all-time record high, Poppitt said there were still a number of challenges for individual brands, particularly local manufacturers.

“You can look at any number of VFACTS [industry sales] reports and see that it’s a hugely competitive marketplace out there and it’s just crucial that we’re able to respond,” he said.

Poppitt said the down days would only trim Holden’s projected annual production by four per cent, or roughly 2500 to 3000 vehicles.

He said the company was not in a position to talk about the precise number of days or hours of production that would be lost, but admitted the bulk of the plant’s 2300-strong workforce would not be in the plant on those days.

Workers will be on 60 per cent pay for the down days but will be able to top that up to 100 per cent by taking long-service leave or using other outstanding entitlements.

Poppitt said the market response days were part of the employee’s enterprise bargaining agreement and Holden worked closely with senior union representatives to identify the best days to stop production.

He said the vast majority of the workforce was very understanding of the situation.

Holden will also stop vehicle production next week as it completes major engineering and facility upgrades to its Elizabeth plant in preparation for building the next-generation VF Commodore, which goes on sale in the first half of 2013.

Next week’s closedown period has been part of Holden’s schedule since 2011.

Sales of Holden’s large sedan and wagon are down 26.8 per cent so far this year, putting Australia’s favourite car for 15 consecutive years between 1996 and 2010 on track for its lowest yearly sales result in decades.

The compact Cruze is also down 7.7 per cent despite its small-car segment growing by 2.6 per cent so far in 2012.

Holden’s other locally manufactured models are also feeling the pinch, with the luxury Caprice down 11.5 per cent and the Commodore-based Ute down 19.4 per cent.

Holden announced a $275 million co-investment package with the government in March securing its local manufacturing operations until at least 2022. The deal came just weeks after the manufacturer stood down around 140 employees and cut its daily production from 450 to 400 vehicles per day.

Fellow Australian manufacturer Ford, closed its Victorian facilities for around a week in July as it too sought to match production with diminishing demand for its vehicles, particularly the large Falcon sedan.

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gt86.com.au

Sorry to see it happen, but it shows that their cars are not matching the buyers requirements as well as their competitors. These new models need to come out ASAP if holden will remain profitable..
Holden ex worker

There making cars that nobody wants, the quality need to drasticly improve , fuel economy isn”t that good ” No diesel in Commodore yet ? and why not ? ” E85 a waste of time as fuel consumption is crap and by the time they bring out what ever model they recon we need the opposition is 3 steps ahead all the time. There imports don”t look good either copared to the others coming . Holden run by Americans who recon they know better what Australians need. Work in engineering for 25 yrs and have seen the change since they took control ” PLUS ” more than 93%
of the Commodore & Cruze are made from imported parts so much for helping Aust companys make stuff here ther”ve sent many Aussie companys broke screwing them to the wall on price then pulling the rug on them as GM U.S tells Holden they must source from low cost countrys then they have the cheek to tell Aus gov we want $ or we”ll pull out.
- Zaccy16
  
  Very very good point! the quality in the cruze and commodore is not up to scratch and in my opinion the commodore is behind the falcon in most ways specially in engines eg the base commodore v6 2.0 has a whole 100 torques less than the falcon and is more strained so in some cases the falcons old l6 is better in the real world! the cruze is no where near the golf. 3, focus or even the hyundai i30 in many ways speacially quality and handling
  - Tom
    
    I blame Julia Gillard, the Labor government, and the carbon tax for the lack of torque in the Commodore and the poor quality and handling of the Cruze.
    - JamesB
      
      I’m not a Gillard fan, but there are others to blame for the shortcomings of these Holdens. The Commodore’s lack of torque is because of an engine that’s not as good as the others and its excessive size and weight. The Cruze is simply a Daewoo.
- Latin Fish Names
  
  You are so right! Product planning and market understanding is poor by US management. I for one would buy an i30 over a Cruise any day, as for the Commodore, it is huge and drinks too much fuel. The Commodore should go back to its original package size and use fuel efficient engines. Also GM products look and feel cheap… In the showroom a VW Passat not only is cheaper if looks and feels like a million bucks compared to a Commodore.
Wile E Coyote

A 33 % drop on last year is huge.
Lift quality and reduce size and reduce the Aus dollar and GMH stands a chance
Otherwise it is death by a thousand cuts
Maximillian

Aussies cant make decent cars, nor submarines or planes. So they should stop trying. The sooner Holden is finished, the better. A complete waste of taxpayers money. Invest it in retraining these workers in some other field where they can be relevant to the economy.
- Huwtm
  
  I think thats a bit harsh, The trouble is that Falcon and Commodore have not kept pace with what people want. they are just to big. That i think you can blame on the americans that run these companies. they believe that every time a new model comes out it has to grow. In the last cycle they should have shrunk. Of course this relates to that other discussion about racing and the big cars relevance overall.
  - twincharger
    
    Have you ever been in FG or VE,or drove either car.Nor is either model larger than the previous model.Both cars have a combined fuel figures of around 10L/100km.If size is the problem how do you explain the massive increase in sales of SUV:s.
    Theres over 300 car models on sale in Australia at the moment,the market is oversupplied with cars.
    - Huwtm
      
      OK I see you want to defend the two large Australian cars, fair enough, but, the market has grown almost 10 percent this year ( they say a record ) yet Commodore and Falcon are down on average about 30% each, not to mention the CKD Cruise, which is a looks problem (and a main stream reluctance to get involved with turboed engines and possible reliabillity problems) when compared to Mazda 3 and Hyundai i30. Both big cars are good in there on way, though the Falcon is a bit plain and a bit lacking in imagination. So what are we left with, size and in the case of Commodore primitive tech. Plus the fact that so called small cars are about medium size in dimensions these days, so why pay extra for a big lump of expensive to run tin, which I guess is what people are thinking.
      - Slinkywinky68
        
        Yet sales of the new Territory are actually up 70%
      - Huwtm
        
        SUVs are a different segment of the market to large sedans and perceived to be more useful, verstile and safer(?), than a big sedan. In the US people went the “truck” route because of tax breakes (0 tax on trucks/SUVs” here I think the above reasons are the go. So what does that have to do with sedans like Falcon and commodore other than highlighting their short comings?
      - Robert Ryan
        
        Exactly, we seem to be changing from sedans to SUV’s and Pickups. Still the car based Utes sell well.
      - Trevor
        
        how many people have purchased camrys etc that didnt even know a ford falcon ecoboost existed??
        
        thousands id say
      - Asdfasdf
        
        Since Ford charges the same price for Ecoboost as the 4.0 6, Crapry buyers couldn’t care less about Ecoboost. Why would Crapry buyers want to spent almost $10,000 more?
    - Sydlocal
      
      Where did you get that info re size twincharger? The VE for example is 5cm wider than the previous VZ and just under 3cm longer and higher with around a 12cm longer wheelbase and is over 100kg heavier. The FG is around 5cm longer than the BF and marginally wider and higher with a longer wheelbase as well. It may not be much in some of the numbers, but the numbers still don’t lie, they are larger than their previous models. Don’t forget that the Commodore was originally around the size of what the Cruze is now.
      - twincharger
        
        To my knowlege all cars have got larger over time to allow for all the safety features that have been added.Look at the size of the modern 4 door ute,there massive.
      - Sydlocal
        
        Well why then did you say, and I quote “Nor is either model larger than the previous model” with reference to the Falcon and Commodore if you now say “To my knowlege(sic) all cars have got larger over time”? What is to be then?
        Just so you know the current Mazda2 for example is actually smaller in most dimensions than the previous version. However cars like this are more the exception rather than the rule.
  - Dave S
    
    You cant blame the US for the large Commodore and Falcon. Every new car model get bigger. Look how big the BMW 3 series is, look how big the mazda 3 or mazda 6 is, if anything the Commodore and Falcon have stayed the same size while others have grown.
    - Sydlocal
      
      Are you sure Dave S? Maybe the Falcon hasn’t changed a lot compared some other cars, but the Commodore has grown quite a bit over the years. The original VB Commodore was smaller than the Cruze in height, width and wheelbase and is only around 10cm longer. Or another way to put it, the VE is around 19cm longer, 18cm wider, 10 cm taller and has a wheelbase 25cm longer than a VB. The VE is also around 6cm wider than a VT.
      You are correct though, the US can’t be to blame for their size and most cars are getting bigger and bigger with each new model, however that still includes the Commodore and to a lesser extent the Falcon.
      - Huwtm
        
        Falcon has also grown they staed it in release literature. what usually happens is the models just hets dropped when it reach behemoth proportions – its part of the cycle, start small or reasonable, grow grow grow then chopping block and start again. The Falcon started small, by the way back in 1960, maybe a bit smaller than a Cruze for reference sake. It now has the wheel base of the previous Fairlane. that’s growth. What Ford and Holden could have done, as most of us have written is hold the growth or reverse it to keep the car relevant. Or rebadge a Mondeo?
- Zaccy16
  
  I agree except i think the falcon is a good car but the commodore definitely isn’t!
- DanielD
  
  The only areas we have work now is state and federal public service, baristas to make coffee for the state and federal public servants, soldiers (warning could cause death) or hole diggers in WA.
  
  Nah we don’t need no stinking engineering or manufacturing. By the time the grand kids realise there is nothing left and we sold it for cents in the dollar, we will all be dead and have enjoyed all the good years Australia had left, before its unskilled masses realised we screwed them.
- Trevor
  
  so what you are saying is that we all deserve better cars.
  
  But will have to pay more for them?? Aussie cars might not be the best, but they are great value and do the job well for us.
- http://twitter.com/SamMoss8191 Sam Moss
  
  Agreed. We have expertise in other areas. Take solar power for instance, apparently our technology is up there with the Germans, perhaps even better. Australian bio fuel technology will also be helping power German airline Lufthansa in the near future, too. I say leave making cars to the people who are best at it and let Australia flourish in more innovative fields.
Guest

First, Toyota laid off 350 workers from their Altona plant on January 2012. Next up, Ford sent 440 workers home from their Geelong & Broadmeadows plants on July 2012. Now on September 2012, Holden is shutting down production at their Elizabeth plant at SA for periods of time between now till the end of 2012, short of a mass layoff. No one’s longing for Aussie-made cars these days – Camry, Aurion, Falcon, Territory, Commodore & Cruze. Why bother?
Writing on the obituary, mate! – “Australian Auto Manufacturing’s Dead!”
- Robert Ryan
  
  Why bother about the service and related jobs related to manufacturing. Let us be the like the US and accept in real terms 12-14% unemployment(Official rate 8%) better for everyone.
Legnab

Besides the crummer being way behind for an update, the saviour , the daewoo crude is just that ,crude against some pretty good comp like focus , kia , hundi , golf , mazda , needs to be replaced quick smart .
http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass

Someone told me once that if you want to convince someone of something, the last thing you should do is use facts. I guess the comments above prove him right.
More broad, simplistic comments about a complex issue with no grasp of the long term implications. How sad.
- Legnab
  
  Yep so simple the idiots in detroit cannot see it , oh lets ask julia for more subsidies , and then fools say lower the dollar .
  - Zaccy16
    
    yeah, ju-liar has payed all this money to try and save the auto industry when she is helping destroy it with the carbon tax!
    - Phil
      
      Ummm, Australian made cars have been in a constant sales decline for a decade now. How could that the Carbon tax have caused that when the tax only started a few weeks ago?
      Also, how are you spending your personal income tax cuts that were brought in as part of the carbon tax. Are you donating your savings to the Australian car industry?
      - Andrew M
        
        What tax cuts?
        They have increased the tax free threashold yet neglect to put up in lights that they are getting it back off of you.
        They increased the tax free threashold, yet also increased the tax rates and also cut the very beneficial low income rebate.
        
        They snuck so many things in its not funny
        
        Have you read the reform or just the headlines?
      - Phil
        
        A bigger tax free threshold is a income tax cut. You answered your own question in the line following that question.
        Yes I’ve read the details. What is funny is how people think the carbon tax is killing everything. Life has not changed since July 1. Our car industry started dying long before the carbon tax.
      - Zaccy16
        
        Exactly Andrew! shifty Ju-liar!
      - Huwtm
        
        It’s not a Government issue, it’s a relevance issue. once upon a time Ford Aus. built just about everything, from Escorts up, Now they are down to Falcon and its derivatives, the ute and Territory. Holden was the same, Torana 4 cylinder up, they are now down to Commodore it’s derivatives and Cruze. But NO SUV like Territory. This isn’t the governments fault. Product planning is a company issue.
        As for things like Carbon or as it should be called Mining Tax, the government had to do something to draw revenue from mining after it virtually gave away the shop. Liberals and labour that is, Just about all revenue streams for government have been sold. Power, Water, Roads, Communications, Banks, Land in some cases. All these things brought in money to the government purse, which enabled, said government to do things, like built hospitals and other infrastructure and employ people. The previous governments have sold it off to build a surplus. Problem was that the surplus was in essence imaginary. It was artificial only achieved by liquidating assets. With those assets gone and the money spent, the only way to get money back, is to TAX people and business. Which brings us up to today,
        
        Two separate issues
      - Zaccy16
        
        the carbon tax is not the main reason but it contributed to making it harder for the aussie manufactures to survive
      - Phil
        
        But the carbon tax wasn’t in existance untill July this year. The downward trend of the aussie manufactuers has been going on for years and years, long before the carbon tax was even proposed.
        There has been no sudden drop in sales since July, just a continuation of a trend started long ago (though Falcoone and Territory sales have been up in recent months).
      - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
        
        Phil, the industry falling on hard times is no excuse to make things worse. If you were walking and started to trip over, that’s no excuse for me to push you over just because you were falling anyway.
      - Zaccy16
        
        Good point karl!
      - Phil
        
        So exactly what difference is the Carbon Tax making to the aussie car industry?
        Bet you and Zaccy don’t have a clue – and zaccy, I asked you how much extra your actually paying due to the Carbon tax – and you havent provided a answer…..
      - Sumpguard
        
           That’s because Zaccy is an expert on baseless posts Phil. The sky didn’t fall in on July 1st like Tony Bigot said it would! Zaccy like so many others was brainwashed by Unfairfax.
        
           Holden would do well to scrap the next commodore (it will still be too big) and follow market trends with a mid sized locally designed and built SUV.
        
            Unless they are secretly downsizing to a torana the next commodore should be badged commodire! A mazda 6 sized vehicle with the option of diesel, 4 cyclinder turbo , 6 cyclinder and V* would rebound their sales and an SUV built off the same platform provided it was don’t properly would be a hit and rebound their fortunes.
        
            The trend is not just away from poor economy but from large cars in general and the reason is simple. They have made them roomier, more efficient and most importantly they ride well and are easy to manoeuvre and park at less cost whilst chock full of features.
      - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
        
        Phil, Holden’s carbon tax bill was estimated to be around $50 million, adding hundreds of dollars to the cost of each Australian made car.
    - Golfschwein
      
      I personally believe we should give some ground on the carbon tax, Zaccy. You know, I could tell a friend not to visit me tonight because I’m going to XYZ for a drink with so and so. So and so cancels because of tummy bug, then I say to myself, damn, too cold out there, I’ll just stay in. Friend 1 drives past and sees car out front and tells me I lied. So did I lie, or did I simply make alternative plans for the circumstances?
      
      However you view it, you can always throw her out at the next election. In her place, Abbot will repeal the carbon tax. But wait! No Australian tax has ever vanished without being replaced by another. In addition to his own carbon-lite scheme (Direct Action), he’s promised Mums a fair go with maternity leave funded by the top 3200 firms in Australia, taking $3.3 bill a year for another 1.5% tax hike. Sounds like a very familiar concept, if you ask me. We buy those firms’ products. Might they charge more? Where’s the compensation?
      - Zaccy16
        
        Unfortunately all polys are the same but the current government really gets on my nerves by the none stop lies and scandels eg. peter slipper! also they carbon tax gets on my nerves because we have a significantky smaller population than aus and we have the the biggest tax! wheres the logic there?
      - Phil
        
        Where’s the logic is saying that population size determines tax rates? Is China is supposed to have gigantic taxes and Liechtenstein is supposed to charge tiny taxes?
        Australia’s population has been growing and is expected to double by around 2050 or so……using your logic are taxes supposed to continuously decline and be about half the rate by 2050?
        Sounds like you’ve been watching too much of Ch10s ‘Bolt Report’.
      - Zaccy16
        
        I mean Phil that China pollutes alot more than us and we have to pay a bigger carbon tax! why are you on the greens side!
      - matt
        
        the non stop “lies and scandals” that the media choose to glorafy and consistantly shove’s in our faces annoys me. If you dig deep enough in any of abbott’s crew im sure you would find some amusing stuff too. Carbon tax? GST? Fines? Income tax? A fair degree of money comes back to us in some form or another. Schools roads, the near 50 billion a year bill on us queenslanders for the luxury of queensland health. The media crapfest that they show you detract’s from alot more important issues. How about $180 a year of my tax money (yours, everyones) going to the mining companys for cheap diesel? erm no. Tourism and manufacturing need it a hell of alot more at the moment… but the media will have you believe slipper and abbotts scaremongering about the carbon tax is more important…
        
        oh shudder the bolt report, good call phil, lock him, negas and oakes up for treason. i thought you were cool zaccy… tisk tisk
      - Phil
        
        Zaccy, do you want to live in the Chinese style environment? Go find some pictures of Chinese cities and marvel at the horrible haze of pollution (its not uncommon to find people walking around wearing a breathing mask there either).
        Not to mention the far lower standard of living.
        Yes, if you move to a dirty country, chances are you will pay lower taxes.
        
        Plus your whinging that “we have to pay the carbon tax”…….so how much are you actually paying? Betcha you don’t know because its made no real difference to your life or financial situation at all.
        
        In any case, blaming low Aussie car sales on the carbon tax is absolutely ridiculous. The sales were already low and haven’t really changed since the carbon tax started just a few months ago.
      - PoisonEagle
        
        Someone listens to 2GB. I wish people would educate themselves about these things instead of towing the party line everywhere they go in a bid to sound smart…
      - Ezz
        
        Inconvenient truths that the slogan swearing, dummy spitting conservatives conveniently forget. Glad to see we are not all hypnotised by the Bolts, Jones and Hadleys of the country.
      - Wile E Coyote
        
        The reason our taxes are so high has little to do with population.Purely and simply it has to do with government spending.We spend too much on the public “service”- local through to federal.Has been the case for years.
        Abbott is going to take the knife to it (which will explain the so called unexplained blackhole).
        And why not?
        Since the GFC the Corporates have been slicing and dicing mercilessly and it is ongoing.
        It’s now starting with govt in Qld and will sweep across all struggling states.
        There has been little outcry from people employed by the private sector but just watch the untouchable left wing public servants protest in the streets.
        No one likes to see people suffer but one in all in I say.
Goodfa

The VF is two years overdue so it would want to be something special when it finally arrives or it will sadly be the end of the Commodore.
Holden had a potential Corolla / Mazda 3 beater with the Cruze but to bing it out with that terrible 1.8 has damaged the image of the Cruze. I cannot believe any engineer could have driven it and thought that engine was acceptable in a car with that weight.
- Zaccy16
  
  Very good point! they should keep the i.4 turbo and also introduce the 1.6 turbo from the astra as well!
- Foxfire
  
  Went to pick up my new Cruze and the inside of the door frame wasn’t even painted!…got the shoulder from the Dealer, drove around the corner and traded it in on a new Focus, which is what I should have bought in the first place…quality brilliant!…drive fantastic…smile factor is from ear to ear.
  - Zaccy16
    
    Yeah quality is rubbish in the cruze, it was better when it was built in korea! the focus is a great car!
    - Huwtm
      
      Typical holden, and politics aside, I agree with zaccy
  - Gibwater
    
    You sold the Cruze because the doorframe wasn’t painted??
  - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
    
    How is that possible when the entire vehicle body is dipped in electrostatically charged paint on the manufacturing line?
    - Interested_Observer
      
      I think you have it wrong Karl. Vehicle dipping is for paint preparation and rustproofing – definitely not the paint itself. Can you imagine the runs in the paint if this was how they were painted.
      
      A robotic arm with a paint gun still has to spray the chassis and associated parts in set patterns. Mistakes happen – the paint flow is interrupted during the predetermined spray pattern or the pattern is not completed due to a robot malfunction. The paint gun head on the robot can lose charge and the paint won’t stick to the metal as well. I have seen both Cruise and Commodores through our dealership exhibit poor paint coverage lately.
      - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
        
        Yes you’re right I was thinking of the under coat. My mistake.
      - Zaccy16
        
        The only problem is that a overseas car company would never let the car get sold until the quality was up to scratch, holden don’t seem to have very good quality control at all
diesel

its not really an issue about even quality or price - its an issue about relevance. Do Australians really want to own a large 4 door car? Answer is clearly no, as most familys (where the commodore is targetted mainly), have either a SUV (Captiva or similar) and/or a small 4 cylinder for the city trips. The days of a large 6 cylinder 4 door sedan has long since deminished in the eyes of most buyers, with the exception of fleet/goverment & taxi buyers.
- Andrew M
  
  People want something different these days, and thats the bottom line.
  
  Once upon a time the commodore sold 8000/mth units in a market selling half a million per year
  
  Now the market sells 1 million plus and the sales leader only sells 4000/month.
  
  This simply says our market is too diverse and every manufacturer and his dog is cashing in on our high dollar and low tariffs.
  The customers dont care, all they want is something different from the next bloke.
  
  Not one single vehicle is dominating the market anymore.
  
  Just try this out, next time you sit at the lights or in the shopping centre car park scan around and see how many double ups of vehicles you see.
  - Legnab
    
    Your right andrew , i observed a BBQ couple of doors up last sunday , 30 somethings with kids , so many SUV’s ,al different makes , hardly a sedan in sight .
    - Robin_Graves
      
      Sitting in your f@g chariot wearing your lace panties being a voyeur again?
      - Legnab
        
        IS that the grave robber or gary floppy , both seem anxious about the nether regions , must be a habit of falcoon drivers in down time on the side of the road.
      - Golfschwein
        
        You mean fag chariot? I’m confused. I thought that’s what Falcons were!
    - Robert Ryan
      
      That is what is killing the car industry and in Australia they pay top dollar for a SUV, that in the US would be a whole lot cheaper.
      - Huwtm
        
        Because they don’t pay tax on trucks / SUVs a deal done with the Gov over there to keep things alive.
  - Rocket
    
    Another good reason to buy a Falcon as you will have the only one in the street.
    - Legnab
      
      Yes and no one will buy it at trade time , not even taxi companies .
      - twincharger
        
        Here we go again.Mr Important with his German car.
Amlohac

First nail in the coffin…
Luke Brinsmead

Economist think we shouldn’t worry about a slow decline in manufacturing. In business school they are taught that it’s more financially sustainable to focus on investments with minimum input costs, ie mining. But with less and less manufacturing in Australia, I often wonder what our country will be like in 25 year’s time.
- Goody
  
  Not all economists believe that, which is why the government will not let manufacturing go. Depends which theory that business school supports, if you look at the Cambridge critique, fact is TFP is a driver of economic growth. Having elaborately transformed manufacturers using primary products is a source of economic growth as demonstrated by our south east asian competitors ramping up manufacturing. And here is Australia focusing on mining which requires as you say, very little capital, technology, labour and ‘smarts’ so to speak to develop new technologies. Look at the amount of inputs required for manufacturing versus primary products. Im afraid to say it, but Australia just has old manufacturing techniques and its too expensive for firms to invest or ‘upgrade’ to match newer overseas competitors mixed with political issues (overseas ownership) preventing fast reactions of local manufacturers.
F1orce

Blame the Australian government’s low tariffs on imported vehicles.

In fact Australia is a nation that bends over, I read somewhere that there’s certain material used in China to make clothes, this material is very toxic and hazardous and as a result is banned everywhere, even in its home market China! Yet them clothes which contain that material are imported into Australia without any problems!
- Zaccy16
  
  Ju-liar again!
  - Labrys
    
    Ummmm no. The low tariffs on imported vehicles have been around before Julia Gillard became PM.
    I know it’s difficult for you to grasp but Julia Gillard is not the cause of the decline in Australian car manufacturing. Despite what you might be hearing from Andrew Bolt. And quite frankly even if Julia Gillard is voted out at the next election Tony Abbot is not going to do one thing to change the current situation. So who do you blame then? The Liebrals?
    - Wile E Coyote
      
      Labor has turned its back on manufacturing .
      Just ask Paul Howes who is not happy that the unions have been hung out to dry on many fronts (imported mining workers,factory closedowns)
      Strategically you have gotta say this is incompetence by Labor like biting the hand that feeds you.
      - Zaccy16
        
        Exactly very good point
    - Zaccy16
      
      You don’t like me using Ju-liar and now your using liebrals! you just contradicted your self!
    - Zaccy16
      
      Also Tony will have a lot of fixing of this country when he is voted in!
    - twincharger
      
      Agree with your comments Labrys.However Julia Gillard could do something about the LPG price.Up over 50% on Julias shift.A massive blow to Holden and Ford future prospects.
    - Robert Ryan
      
      Low Tariffs were introduced before Juli came onto the scene and were doing damage then. The US Imposes the Chicken Tax to protect Pickups production in the US. Any undermining of the US Pickup production would have severe repercussions for the US Economy. You might say the US Economy rides on the Pickup bed.
  - Norm
    
    Ok. You’ve had a fair run here.
    
    Having trouble coming up with an original phrase?Are you going to declare your self a Liberal party troll who drunk the kool – aid or just an annoying idiot with nothing to add.Do your homework.”No GST – never ever” John Howard.
    - Henry F
      
      Thank you.
    - Wile E Coyote
      
      You need to read the full text and not just the front cover.
      In contrast to Julia with the carbon tax Howard put the GST to the people to vote on.
    - Zaccy16
      
      At least howard was voted by the aussie public to be prime minister 3 times when ju-liar had to kick out useless rudd then only is hear today because of the hung parliament and the shifty greens!
      - Norm
        
        Ok - so annoying idiot it is then.
      - Phil
        
        Zaccy you know nothing, as to be expected from someone who clearly believes anything that comes out of the Murdoch media.
        
        Liberals have basically never won any overall election. The only chance they have of winning is by getting in bed with the rednecks from the National party – and even then, they didn’t get enough votes.
        
        The “shifty” Greens only have ONE seat in the House of Reps and how did they win that seat?
        ……..ON LIBERAL PREFERENCES! So you have the Liberals to thank for having a Greens party member in parliament.
        Had the Liberals not preferences the greens, Labor would’ve won that seat anyway and still gained government power anyway. So it was the Liberals that were being “shifty”.
      - Zaccy16
        
        Its alright phil soon ju-liar and her low life labor party will be voted out and tony and the liberal party will come back in and do the job the liberal party has to always do when they get back in power, they will have to clean up the huge debt from the labor party and try and get the country back into surplus again!
      - Phil
        
        Are you capable of understanding that in order to get back in, the Liberals will have to hop in bed with the redneck Nationals? Otherwise the Liberals don’t have a hope of getting in. How many seats are the Liberals going to preference the Greens this time? You clearly known nothing about Australian politics.
        
        Lets say they do get back in. Tell use what they’re going to do that will suddenly boost Australian car sales again? Perhaps the same things they did during the Howard era where Australia car sales had the LARGEST declines?
      - Zaccy16
        
        The when the liberals get voted in (very soon) ju-liar has already destroyed the manufacturing sector and the liberals can;t save it unfortunately
    - Captain Nemo®™
      
      Norm
      I think Zuppy is trying for Golfschwein’s number 1 ranking in disqus.
      Plenty of useless comments from Zuppy like “good point” contributing zero to the story but adding to his comment count. He probably thumbs up his own comments too.
      - Zaccy16
        
        How can you thumbs up my own comments?
      - Henry F
        
        I get that impression too. Lots of “yeahs”, and not much in the way of substance.
  - Henry F
    
    Oh please Zaccy. We know you don’t like ALP – do you have to keep ranting and raving about it?
    - Zaccy16
      
      sorry when i start i can’t stop!
      - Henry F
        
        What - that you can’t exercise any self-restraint?!
Robin_Graves

Two problems – cars people don’t want any more and import tariffs that are too low. Personally I dont see why people love SUV’s, a wagon is much better. Lighter, easier on fuel, cheaper tyres and much better handling.
- Henry F
  
  Agree Robin. It’s a shame the range of wagons has diminished over the years.
  - Huwtm
    
    just a small point, Tarrifs have nothing to do with this situation. Holden exports as part of that arrangement. Ford which if it built a more globally relavant car could do also. But here in this country, can you imagine what it would be like with out cars being as accessable as they are now? Choice would be out the window and we would be dreaming about what they have overseas and what we don’t get here. (as in the 70s and 80s) The industry would probably still be in the toilet because it wouldn’t have been forced to advance their cars. We’d be like Cuba.
    - Robin_Graves
      
      it doesnt have to be so black and white, just a bit of financial incentive to buy local. I would agree with it much more if the locally made cars were targeting what people seem to buy these days, hatches and diesel SUV’s. An XR6T wagon with IRS and a bit smaller than the current falcon would suit me.
      - Legnab
        
        More dreams .
      - PoisonEagle
        
        At least he is thinking outside the box/ Takes a bit more nous to do that than it does to conjure repetitive criticism and shill for a car maker ad nauseum.
      - Legnab
        
        Poison budgie he’s a dreamer of past victories . no hatch , no wagon , looser , too fat , too thirsty , looser , old style old tech , looser .
        
        The worlds moved on, FORD america is moving on , so dump it , fusion/mondeo thats the future .
      - Robin_Graves
        
        ‘looser’ is how your sphincter gets after every VAG fanboy get together. ’loser’ is a saucepan salesman who drives a 6 year old Golf with a stage 5 habibi tune and thinks it’s quick.
      - Legnab
        
        Dobin , great to see VW backed a winner with the sydney swans , no habibis here all with you .
        
        WRONG its a supercharged mk 1 , blasting through the hills this morning , so nimble and very quick .
        
        Again compulsive nether region syndrome .
      - Huwtm
        
        I agree completely, the locals need to be building more appropriately sized, and relevant cars. The fact that Camrys took market leadership when they were medium sized should have told manufacturers something. Now the smalls have grown to medium and they have market leadership. But NO Ford and Holden grew the falcon and the commodore to the length of the previous Fairlane and Statesman. And they wonder why people don’t want them.
      - PoisonEagle
        
        It would be great to see more packaging efficiency and shorter, lighter, maybe ever so slightly narrower versions of Falcon and Commodore. If they do get the green light for next models then there will need to be a major paradigm swing.
    - Legnab
      
      So true , tarrifs make makers lazy , the yanks did it here for years serving up average drives , they could be making competitive sized cars if they had read the market and where it was moving to 10 years ago .
      - Robert Ryan
        
        They are still very much tariff protected through NAFTA. No Tariffs between NAFTA Countries but plenty for suppliers outside of NAFTA.
- AutoMoto
  
  SUV diesel Captiva fuel economy is much better than Commodore nearly as long and 400Nm at 2000 rpm. On every other point you are right.
  - Robin_Graves
    
    Diesel captiva has better fuel economy ON PAPER, in real life it’s about the same as a Commodore and feels much more lethargic, heaps of lag. Diesel Santa Fe is much better for power, economy and lag but handling is soggy.
  - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
    
    An lpg Sportwagon beats it an almost every area; handling, looks, towing ability, safety, power, refinement, running costs (both fuel and servicing), cargo room, interior room and cleaner emissions.
Berlin05

Just bought a new Sv6 6speed manual commodore and the wife and I reckon it is the best car we have ever own. Only done 1000 klms and is already doing 9.4l around town. Will be no problem getting into the 8′s on the highway which is most of our driving. Very little extra fuel for massive comfort. Can’t wait for VF. May even trade the VE in.
- Gibwater
  
  Its only done 1000km.Report back to us when its done 20,000. And when you head in to buy that shiny new VF,you’ll get virtually nothing for the VE.Its your money to lose…..
- Trevor
  
  a mate has a VE, and honestly its not a BAD car. Although the paint is cracking on the back pillar ( holden dealer said bird droppings caused it, well they must be UNDER the paint, as the clearcoat isnt marked lol ) and his drivers seat keeps falling apart.
  
  the best he seems to get fuel wise around town is 13.5L per 100 ( sidi sv6 )
Stagger Lee

Maybe if the Cruze would stop catching fire…
Norm

Supply and demand.

The highest selling car in the country is neither an SUV or a big 6. The Mazda 3 is number one followed by a workhorse in the Hi Lux and another small car in the Corolla at #3.The Commodore is at #5 behind the Cruze and the first SUV is the Prado at #11. What proportion of Commodore sales are Sportswagons I don’t know but there’s a good few around.It would follow then that rather than people moving to SUVs en masse they are down sizing to well made – relatively cheap – economical and modern small cars…and…also embracing SUVs as alternatives to all kinds of things. Family wagon – Prestige motoring etc etc.Huwtm referred to it at the top of this discussion. Racing heritage. The VE wears it’s Bathurst heritage on it’s sleeve and there in lies the problem. Australian car buyers are way past aspiring to racing glory. They aspire to other things in 2012. Efficiency – and – the idea of the great outdoors – of ruggedness - anywhere anytime. It’s not actually real of course just like being a V8 racing ace isn’t real but it’s the identification that sells.The so called performance saloon – wanting to give Australia our own 5 series was where it went pear shaped. In their glory days – Holdens and Fords we’re simple honest everyman and women cars. They no longer hold that place in Australian psyche. Unless Ford and Holden can let go of their [glorious] past and embrace the future with fuel and space efficient vehicles designed for Australian conditions then Australians will find vehicles in the market that best fulfill that need.

Supply and demand.
Gibwater

Back in the 70′s and 80′s when small cars wern’t much chop,and 4wd’s were largely commercial,big sedans like Falcon,Kingswood/Commodore and Valiant were the logical choice for those who wanted room,power and style.But small cars and 4wd’s of the Noughties and teens now offer all those attributes and a whole lot more.Its a wonder Commodores still sell at all,let alone in the top five.Tte Falcon four runs rings around its V6,and the styling is now rather tired.VF will do little to address this.And to think it will remain in production until 2018! Good luck fellas……
BP

VF can’t arrive soon enough!!!
- Trevor
  
  dont expect it to be a massive improvement on ve, im sure like ford, holden is planning the demise of its large sedan.
Trevor

lol at all the comments about gillard!!!

just vote for abbott next time round…. i hope you will enjoy your horse and cart then!
Gibwater

There will be no manufacturing in Australia in 15-20 years,due to a combination of government policy ,unionism and indecision at Ford and Holden. Three separate bodies that will cause its downfall.Unions pretend to speak for most workers,when in reality,they’re killing our companies.Not every Australian wants to work in hospitality or I.T. They want to build things and get their hands dirty. I often worry about our childrens futures when vultures from Thailand or China can offer companies cheaper labour and production costs at the expense of our jobs and future.In these conditions,what hpoe do we have? The closure of Mitsubishi,Nissan and Bonds clothing hasn’t taught us a thing.
John

This is really sad, after a great history of car manufacturing in Australia, it’s nearly finished. Watching the old ‘football, meat pies, kangaroos and Holden cars’ is rather depressing now
Wile E Coyote

It is sad .
I expect China will end up taking over from the Americans/Japanese et al as leaders in vehicle production.
Should be interesting and the change will hurt many employed in the industry.
Brett

For what it is worth, I kept reading about the decline of manufacturing in Australia, therefore, rather than blame everyone and everything, I did something about it. I recently purchased a ford G6 limited edition ecolpi. I have been extremely happy with it. Prior to this I had a subaru forester (work car), and while the subbie offered more versatility (some sand, national parks etc) it was incredibly uncomfortable on long highway drives (anything over an hour). After a few weeks with the G6, I could not be happier. In my opinion people have flirted with those vehicles, but can see them coming back to the large sedan. I believe that if they are allowed some time, both falcon and commodore will become popular once more.
- John
  
  good on you mate, it’s people like you that we need more of in Australia. I really hope that you’re right about them becoming popular once again.
- Zaccy16
  
  good job brett! like i have always said, the falcon is a GOOD car and it is really sad thsat they are not selling, i would buy the falcon if it had a wagon version, i need the wagon for the family plus dog
- JooberJCW
  
  True, but how long can you allow time, these GM/Ford execs are living on such short term,
  IMO The VF is gonna be the make or break of local manufacuring, Ford will be keeping observations on this.
  - Huwtm
    
    Trouble with the VF, is it’s essentially the same car that preceeded it. I don’t think it’s how good, and in some ways these cars are very good. It’s the class. People have been resisting large cars for at leasta decade, why would they suddenly change?
    - JooberJCW
      
      Agree, it also poses the question is why are they resisting large cars, is it the stigma of bad fuel economy? big cars cost too much to run?, traffic jams got worse, cheap flights over road trips. all this pushes people to smaller cars with its perception of easy, cheap and zippy.
      - Golfschwein
        
        Could part of it be that we want our big cars to also be NICE cars? Base Falcons and Commodores can be pretty grim things to be inside of, with the respective makers serving up a level of base-buyer punishment that’s more obvious than in other cars. When buyers assess that they can buy a mid to high level Golf, Focus or 3 for the same price that is so obviously and palpably nicer, a pretty easy and obvious decision is made then and there.
      - Hung Low
        
        If what you say is true, why are the sales so poor for other large sedans at the same or lower lower price point with nicer interiors such as the Maxima, I45, Accord, Optima? It is simply as large sedans are not in fashion anymore.
- Rocket
  
  Dual Cabs are very versatile also but are also a pain in the back for longer hauls. Falcon and Commodore are up their with large Mercs for longer distances.
Robert Ryan

The Low sales of Australian built vehicles can be attributed to (1) changing tastes: SUV’s and Pickups replacing the family sedan(2) the vast selection of imported vehicles, twice as many models than you would get in the US. How can you build anything here with that sort of market?
- Huwtm
  
  Point one I agree with, for what ever reason people are moving that way, (part is following an American trend, but the US went that way because of tax breaks) Your point two, is plainly wrong. The US, and also Europe have a vast selection of cars way larger than ours. I assume you like cars, that being the case why would you want to be restricted to large unsuitable sedans? It is up to the companies to meet the market and they wouldn’t be in the doldrums. An interesting side light to this is that it seems US companies no matter in what country, are on the skids, with that countries particular product base. Could it possibly be the way they do business and their desire to push a certain line despite what that market where ever it may be, wants? In answer to your final question, You can build anything you want here and it will be profitable if the product is right for the market in both price and purpose.
  - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
    
    Our ‘little’ market has 64 car brands, America had 40 (in 2008). Our market is far more open than most.
    - Huwtm
      
      ok thats four years ago and you are comparing to now? plus where did the number come from? I think if you check your facts the brand numbers have been and are higher OS than here.
      - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
        
        I’ve already replied you to with my sources but it’s been moderated because it had a website in it. In that case I can try telling you one of sources was the FCAI fact sheet and I tried to find more recent data but that was the most accurate.
        If you’re going to make a claim please provide proof.
    - Robert Ryan
      
      Agreed. Crazy situation , how can you produce anything here?
      - http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass
        
        You can’t, it seems.
Kaas

1. The Government Policy to allow ALL other outside manufacturers (who dont make cars in Australia) be able to sell here without some premium tax is downright short sighted. Look at Germany, USA, Japan etc they have tariffs that protects their manufacturing from the outside.

2. The Australia Dollar…. other countries somehow intervene to protect their export markets but Australia wont do a thing because its benefiting some industries that are “hot” at the moment.

In the long run… talking 20-30 years and beyond, Australia needs manufacturing. We just do…. all successful developed nations have self sustaining market that makes and sells for its people.

The uneducated shallow minded people saying the government shouldnt waste money on manufacturing are proof that economics 101 should be mandatory for anyone to be employed at any jobs out there.

You lose manufacturing you lose hundreds of thousands of jobs…. now the government will have to tax all the “fortunate” non-manufacturing workers a significant more amount to make up for the tax loss…. or else, medicare, infrastructure, defence, etc which rely on tax money will suffer…

you are sick?… use to be medicare covered, now it’ll cost you a hundred bucks to get a check up… unless you have private health which cost close to hundred a month anyways.

and thats just the most basic and vague description of what can happen when more people rely on government assistance to get by.
- JooberJCW
  
  “Look at Germany USA, Japan” – Hows their economy?
  
  If you introduce heavy tariffs, it will affect all forms of imports, you can’t just single out auto-makers. This is what is keeping good and services prices as they are now, if you jack up the tariffs we’ll be paying much more for things, and thus more people going to debt and more poor people. on a political scale this will affect trade agreements as well.
  Furthermore it will hammer the retail sector and people will be forced to buy the goods they want via the internet more, which a terrible thing for our economy.
  
  Though I agree we must have a manufacturing base here in Aus, we cant be just a consumer nation whilst flogging off our finite natural resources, although the answer may not be automotive, especially when you have American ownership.
  - Kaas
    
    Government will eventually roll out new policies for online purchases from overseas.
    They did this for automotive industry a couple of decades back, they will do it for all other forms of retail goods, its the logical choice. And you and I wont like it because now we will pay more for items, but in the long run it will help the retail market and industry which is currently just making ends meet.
    
    Automotive is not just making cars, but making small parts like bolts, clips, plastic retainers, plastic parts etc. Many plastic manufacturers who make bottles, plastic components for other furniture also have stake on tooling that makes car parts.
    
    Automotive has a place in Australia.
    
    They just need to adapt to what the trend is.
    - JooberJCW
      
      You can make policies but people will find a way, whether it is establishing a store front and importing it as part of the supply chain, or agents set up overseas to send it as a ‘gift’, it will make it harder to buy online but as we mentioned we end up paying more, people living on ends meat will severely struggle with this, and the poverty line will increase, which is what the Government does not want. Its almost a catch22.
      
      But with small parts, but you’d think China or some other country with micro wages can do it more cheaply, and in a globalised world, companies will look to them as the cost effective alternative.
      To Australia, I believe that a successful manufacturing industry will need to be something that can’t be done greatly cheaper or offers quality/aspect that no other, I can see this with agriculture, but regarding mass produced goods, its hard to say. The Automotive industry here was built around the premise that Aussies want Aussie cars, that mentality has long gone. And your right about adapting it will come down to whether they can do that cost effectively to prove to US HQ.
Julia

Tony Abbott’s fault
- PoisonEagle
  
  I laughed until I stopped.
JamesB

The Commodore’s steering wheel, shift knob and parking brake are the worst I’ve ever held. They’re just not shaped for the human hand and made of poor quality materials.

While I pity the workers, it’s about time car buyers have come to their senses. Sorry but I prioritise better workmanship over supporting the local industry. Want a quality car that’s built here? Buy Camry or Aurion. Falcon isn’t too bad either.
- Zaccy16
  
  yeah the commodore is a joke! the v6 sidi 3.0 is rubbish compared to fords much older l6, ford has more power and a massive 100 nm of torque more! and real life fuel consumption of the commodore is worse than the falcon because it is much more strained, also the zf box in the ford it much more intuitive than the commodores 6 speed
Gtr-xu1

Everyone wants to take aim at the Australian made cars.
Korean cars drive like tanks.
European cars well you know what they say,if you can’t afford to buy new dont buy at all.
Japanese cars zzzzzzzzzzzzz
American cars hahahahaha.
- Legnab
  
  You stick with your 1972 torana mate , obviously the aussie cars are the best judging by their declining sales .

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