Holden sales strong in April, Cruze records best month yet

By Matt Brogan | May 05th, 2010

Holden sales are up 27 per cent on the same time last year with Cruze recording its best month since entering the Australian market in June last year.

According to figures released today by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), Holden sold a total of 2514 Cruze models in April. In total, Holden sold 9964 vehicles for the month.

“We couldn’t be happier with the progress of the Cruze in the Australian market,” said Holden Executive Director of Sales and Marketing, John Elsworth.

“It is clearly hitting the sweet spot with consumers due to its styling, safety features and excellent value for money.

“We are going to continue being aggressive in the market when it comes to the Cruze, by offering compelling deals that make it the smart choice for small car buyers.”

Also performing well in April was the Holden VE Commodore sedan and sportwagon range, which retained its title as Australia’s top-selling car on 3165 units.

“Commodore continues to be our flagship,” Mr Elsworth said.

“Its sales performance is well up on last year as customers are attracted to the diverse range of quality vehicles under the VE banner.”

Holden Captiva also proved strong selling a total of 1095 units in April. The figures see Captiva sales up 85 per cent on the same month last year.

filippo

Misguided patriotism is alive and well in Australia.

Bent 8 Brigade

The usual stock reply from tall poppy syndromers when the spectre of Holden’s market success is raised. Why not throw in some (attempted) witty remarks about pushrods, fleet buyers and taxis while you’re at it so all the boxes are ticked?

toxic_horse

you forgot to add Daewoo.

Mad Max

Oh and also add in you desire to see Holden closedown, go bankrupt or move production to Korea or China. Then add in a few “Holdenwoo” coments just to finish off with.

Bob

Game Over

Camry lover

May I politely point out that the Toyota Corolla is the class-leading product. With stability control, a myriad of airbags and five-star safety, the Corolla is several notches above the Holden Cruze in all areas except for size as the Holden is a larger car.

The Cruze uses the old Astra engine and those old Astras (and other Opel-derived Holdens) have a record for poor reliability, so this model does not have a proven reliability record as of 2010.

While I admire the Cruze in the sense that it has automatic headlamps as standard, the Corolla is overall a thoroughly more refined product, as shown by its higher sales figures.

Buy Toyotas for piece of mind.

Shak

Except for when peace of mind is broken by the Family screaming that the car wont stop…

Camry lover

Toyota Australia have announced that vehicles manufactured in and delivered to Australia are not affected.

Additionally, there have only been a couple of isolated cases and most of these incidences have been reported very recently in a bid to seek media attention.

The two recent Prius-related unintended acceleration issues were attempts by the owners to get on television. That is such a cruel and callous thing to do. It is called deception and it is not tolerated in our society.

Shak

Except for thos Prius’s that had to be recalled, you dont count those do you?
Camry lover

The recall was more of a recalibration. Toyota performed the software upgrade as a recall to prove how cautious they are when it comes to fixing any of the rare design mishaps that occur.

It just shows their commitment to customer service.
http://Pagini Luv Local

I find it hard to believe Toyota after what has happened.
Frosty

My Cousins husband who is one of the senior engineers at Toyota’s Altona plant doesn’t even like the Prius. Toyota are just like many other companies who try to cut corners in a attempt to boost their profits. In their case at the expense of safety. For this reason people should not buy Toyota over the other Australian Car Makers and DO NOT listen to someone like Camry lover who is probably a Toyota Salesman. Well done Holden. Bow lets see how much more Cruz numbers increas when other versions made in Australia come in during 2011.
Dave

Toyota’s recall problems are just that. How can they get away with blaming the customer when their car fails?

Andrew

And where it doesn\’t offer a diesel and i believe that isn\’t (or it maybe now that toyota got thier act together and put ESP on it finally) 5 star Safety rated.

Camry lover

I spoke to my Toyota dealership about their opinion on diesel, and the saleswoman stated that diesel is not a good alternative because it pollutes out far more hazardous chemicals than regular petrol/gasoline.

She also stated that diesels have limited life left as manufacturers will be unable to meet future emission regulations. Apparently, diesel is on the way out.

Of course I already knew all of this, but it was good to get some reassurance via a second opinion from my Toyota dealer on the matter.

Goodfa

The Corolla is only class leading when it comes to sales.Last year Wheels magazine did a comparison of ten small cars and the Corolla finished eighth or ninth from memory and Cruze came in fourth.(VW came first).
I still cannot understand how they can sell so many Corolla’s as the have to be one of the most bland cars on the road.

Bob

I just spoke to my most nobly honoured Right Royal Toyota Dealership and they told me that Toyotas are the best cars in the world.

I’m going down there to buy one with my life savings now. How could they be wrong?

Yonny

Camry Lover – you cannot be serious. Corolla only has 4 airbags to Cruze’s 6, and Toyota only added the last 2 so as not to fall too far behind the competition. Corolla will always be among the last in its segment to offer anything as standard (driver’s airbag/ABS/dual airbags/ESP/side airbags) because they have righly assessed that their target market probably doesn’t care too much about these things. But a car manufacturer can only live on a fading reputation for reliability for so long.

And your comment below, where you asked a Toyota dealer/salesperson their opinion on diesel – well, you never ask a barber if you need a haircut. Of course Toyota will say that diesels are no good in a Corolla, because they don’t offer a diesel Corolla. What a joke. Presumably their comment didn’t apply to the many other Toyota models they sell that DO come with diesel.

Tom22

Camry Lover is either a sales rep or a bad troll.

Robin Graves

My money is on ‘Camry Loser’ being a rep, too much salesy type spin to be a real consumer.

KD

You got to wind up the windows yourself in the rear in the base model. Not good value imho.

Bob

filippo, what a ridiculous thing to say! I am far from patriotic, but I know a good car when I see one. My wife and I shopped for a smallish new car late last year and considered at least a dozen. She initially didn’t want a Holden or a Ford, but after all the other cars we looked at fell short for one reason or another, we took a look at the Cruze and felt that the Cruze diesel auto had the best mix of features for her. She’s been driving it for 3 months and she loves it.

Jabba the Hut

The Cruze is a good car for the money. The base petrol could do with a bit more grunt but overall it is a good car and a very safe one at that.

The Commodore however is long in the tooth and the replacement can’t come soon enough. If there is one brand that the “patriotism” banner suits most it’s Toyota. None of their cars are exceptional.
http://zuboora@hotmail.com Mohamad is right when he

Ive heard that Holden use FAKE sales, and FAKE petrol figures. To help sales… I read that they count the sales that they send out to their dealers before they are even sold.. IS THIS TRUE?

Able

I heard that you’re FAKE
Stoney!

No this is not true as Vfacts sales go of registrations, not sales figures from a company!

Stoney!

That’s correct

…. except there are a lot of pre-registered Holdens onloaded off the trucks at Holden dealers……. only to be later cancelled, then re-registered when actually sold. Sure it costs a few bucks but it’s all about sales volumes/market share and not profit that counts, right?
Personally I prefer thr Ford business model of actually selling cars at a profit, so that the business can be profitable over all.

Jack

Does that mean they get two sales for one car, as when they cancel the first registration, the VFACTS would have already been published and is public knowledge??

I would not think so, but worth mentioning.

Karl

If I was in the market for a Cruze, I’d hold off until it’s made in Australia.

Radbloke

Why? So it’s more expensive with a shoddy build quality?

Leon

Its all about the badge. If this Cruze was badged as Daewoo Lacetti (like Holden Viva before), none would buy one! Sometime I wonder if Holden is Aussie or Korean. Look at their vehicles line up. 5 models are Daewoo’s (Barina Spark, Barina, Cruze, Epica, Captiva). Only Commodore is pure Aussie.

Paul

Agreed 100%
Bent 8 Brigade

And would you care to apply your standard to other manufacturers are well…or does this only apply to Holden?

Stoney!

Agreed entirely, ford Australia’s range of vehicle’s is the same… The falcon, and the falcon derived territory are the only Australian cars in its lineup, the majority others are sourced from Asia or south africa that are asian or euro designed.

Stoney!

Mythfrances

Holden is neither Aussie or Korean, its American!

Shak

Holden is Australian, owned by a n American, and hodlen owns a controlling stake in A Korean company. happy?

noj

So they are an American company then. I guess if your owned by an American company and your profits go to America, oops thats right Holden don`t make a profit.

Shak

What about our biggest miners, majority of their shareholders are off shore, so i guess you could say they are just as Korean/American/japanese/Chinese as Holden?
Golfschwein

Wasn’t it adequately explained to you? They’re an Australian company owned by an American one. Do you seriously care?
broncoman76

Holden have made a profit only twice in the last 25 years……

That’s scary!!!

If Holden close the government should do away with import duties on all cars.
LessQQ

oh it matters.

when sh!t hits the fan in America, all their offspring companies feel it across the globe.

Holden buyers are directly investing in the greedy coffers of corporate CEO’s in America, while they don’t give a rats ass about the fate of their offspring companies. Congress will just bail them out, and they’ll just sell off their sh!tsticks.

how reassuring is that?

Joe0523

Anyone trying to say Holden is an “Australian” company is completely dreaming!! Holden is not Australian at all, they are 100% an American company..

Golfschwein

Well, your argument really starts to unravel when you consider that Holdens are designed and built here. Are you saying that the Commodore is American? You can’t, can you, because not even you can afford to make yourself look that stupid.

What’s the problem in accepting that Holden is an Australian company owned by an American corporation? It’s been that way for two of our lifetimes, so stop pretending it’s a new discovery.

Jabba the Hut

Leon you are so spot on up to a point. It’s not that there is anything wrong with the car. It is our perception that is flawed. Certainly Epica and Captiva are well below par but the Cruze isn’t. Sadly many will still tar it with the same brush. I’ll hedge a bet that the new Captiva (after this one) will be a quantum leap over the current abomination.

Where your arguement falls over is that Daewoo is not a stand alone company anymore. It is a branch of GM. Many people seem to have trouble accepting this fact. It is entirely owned by GM. The Cruze is the first non-Daewoo owned vehicle out of this process of change. The Captiva and Epica are residue from a Korean owned company. They are spruced up to attempt to “get them sold” until the new vehicle arrives.

I expect that the Daewoo part of GM’s plans will play a big part in their return to profitability in years to come.
Robin Graves

Step 1 – Take a freshly steaming turd and polish it until it shines.
Step 2 – Take a polished Holden badge and attach it
Step 3 – Run some ambiguous ads that make it sound as if the turd was laid in Australia
Step 4 – Watch the rednecks mob the showroom and the turds walk themselves out the door.

Bent 8 Brigade

Step 5 – Sit back, pop a beer and wait for Robyn to make herself another anti-Holden post. You won’t have to wait long!
LessQQ

lol that is so true.

oh the irony

Jabba the Hut

Yep, Robyn you are predictable and boring. We get it. You don’t like Holdens but by rubbishing this particular vehicle you are showing your stupidity to all.

Step 1- Take a turd and polish it.

Step 2- Name it Robyn Graves like its mum did.

Step 3- Watch it whinge and crap on about anything that has a holden badge.

Step 4- Flush it.

P.S you stink!
Robin Graves

Rednecks dont like the truth obviously. Holden means a great deal to hillbillies.

Heater

Yes that is correct Mohamod…….Holden count cars shipped to dealers as sales even if they are NOT sold yet.

Holden fetish

USed to, they dont do dat any more.

Marc

Would be nice to see the % break down between VE fleet and private sales. Would the cruze outsell the commodore privately?

ABMPSV

I would not be surprised if Yes!!

Frenchie

You are comparing a $24000 car to a $35000 car. Of course more private buyers are going to buy the cheaper car.

Tom22

The Cruze should gain the turbocharged 1.4 when built in Australia as the base model. It will be far better for it.
Shak

Its astounding that a car with only one model line that is forieng to our market and with slightly less than appealing petrol engines has managed to do this well. Congratualations to Holden and to GM for making such a you beaut little car. I guess we can only wait and see what a hatch and Wagon variant will do for sales.

GO HOLDEN.

Baddass

Not really astounding. It seems that if you stick a Holden badge on any car, people buy it under the illusion that it is Australian made. As Leon correctly pointed out, if this car was sold as a Daewoo, regardless of Holden design input, would struggle with half of the Cruze’s current figure.

Shak

I will partly agree with you, that Holden does hold a certain sway over some of less educated automotive purchasers, but i have many mates that bought one knowing well that it was Korean. As soon as they drove it and sat in one and heard the price, they were sold.

LessQQ

Your mates must be brain dead to buy it AFTER knowing it was Korean, LOL

no excuses.

Shak

The fact was they couldnt care less about where the cars came from . Many german cars are made in China and South Africa but that doesnt stop people buying them. Many Japanese cars are made in Thailand and the US but people dont seem to mind them. Korea has some of the most advanced industry in the world, so i think they would know by now how to make a quality car and the Cruze is evidence of this.
Bent 8 Brigade

LessIQ,
I think the Korean product has moved on since 1988, about time you caught up too

no excuses
Stoney!

You must be brain dead thinking everything that comes out of Korea shouldn’t be bought. If I didn’t prefer my cars a little more up market I prob would have got one to, they are Reliable well priced well built cars with good equipment levels…. What a stupid comment.

Stoney!
Frosty

You are a fair bit behind the times as the Koreans have now got a 30 year history of making cars now and are much, much better than the ones built in the 80′s and 90′s. Its the same as when the Japanese companies like Toyota, Mazda etc when they first came to Australia back in the 60′s and it is now the same with the Chinese built cars like GWM and co.
Get with the times, the Cruz is a quality car now just like the i30, new Cerato etc from Hyundai and Kia. They are fast approaching japanese standards.
Joker

If you really want to get pedantic about Daewoo Quality, I’d say that their quality has grown at the same trend as Hyundai and I would mark that with the arrival of the Tiburon. As it’s known, both being South Korean are heavily backed by the Government (as are most heavy industries in SK) meant they shared tech, improved quality dramatically, but were still lagging behind Hyundai.

Forget ’88, even ’98… I would put the real change in quality at the mid 00′s…enter when GM bought Daewoo.
They’ve been a substandard product for a while and the Current Gen Captiva’s are still in that category as is the Barina (ok, they added some more airbags which were desperately needed). The Fiesta (not to mention everything else) equivalent simply outclasses it on all fronts. Cruze on the other hand is the first real attempt to put quality qualms from GMDAT to bed. I don’t like the styling but the rest appears to be light years ahead of previous GMDAT creations.
Jabba the Hut

Less IQ you are about as thick as they come. The Koreans are at the forefront of many industrial practices. Hyundai for eg; are recognised as the world’s most efficent ship builder and have won countless awards. Their auto makers do much more than make cars.

One day you will snap out of your stupidity mode and wake up. They may not be to the same standard as some Japanese cars yet but they are getting damned close and for less money. It isn’t just this website that is praising them. Even some of the most anti-Korean motoring writers have long swallowed their slice of humble pie and acknowledged the rapid progress of these manufacturers. So I guess that leaves you. Is your coma self-induced or were you run over by a Cruze?

The Cruze for the dollars asked is a bloody good car.

Dave

what you are saying does not explain the poor sales of Vectra, Astra, Viva, Epica. Cruze sells well because it is a great car.

ABMPSV

If I am correct Cruze will be made here and than will outsell even Corolla.
Stoney!

You’re all fools if any of you think the patriotism comes even close to counting towards someones criteria in buying a new car anymore… People are simply looking for a well prices, well equipped good looking car, and the Cruze ticks all the boxes… DEALL WITH IT!

Stoney!

JooberGTi

Your joking right. Patriotism plays a significant role to many people out there. There are plenty of people out there who would only opt for a Ford or Holden believing they are True blue Australian products.
PP

Stoney coming to troll on Ford Forums any time soon ? (again).

Showing your true colors here stay at LS1 !

Stoney!

I’ve never trolled at ford forums, I just hate one eyed idiotic comments… I am rather neutral in my likes and dislikes… I own a VW golf and Whilst I am a member of LS1 from a long time ago… I don’t even remember the last time I visited the forum let alone posted on it.

How childish.

Stoney!

LessQQ

Australia is mostly the descendants of convicts, the rest being non-white immigrants escaping hardship, what patriotism is there?

Frosty

Not all white families are ex convict descendants. Mine were free settlers from the early 1800′s and were not escaping hardship either.
Oh I don’t call it patriotism, I call it supporting the Australian workforce who build these cars. Without us unemployment in Australia would be a lot higher with not only the carmakers but also parts.

Jabba the Hut

I think I am decendant from convicts and proud of it too.

Chilliman

The success of the Cruze poses a dilemma for Holden – its putting alot of pressure on Commodore – 3100 sales in April! When the Cruze is made here and the Govt depts start snapping them up the business case for Commodore will come under close scrutiny I dare say.
Icejagans

Look, it’s obvious that Holden is extremely good at marketing. Hence they can sell inferior products to the public. I mean if you were to spend 25 k on a car you should at least reseach it right?

LessQQ

are you an expert of every product you buy?

do you “research” your house before you buy it? of course you don’t, everyone only considers whether they can afford it or not and whether they like it or not.

because at the end of the day, those 2 factors have the most influence on any purchase.
JooberGTi

There are people who do their research but the percentage of those are small like those who do research into buying clothes. Ass LessQQ mentioned many buy because its to their liking, but… alot also dont give a hoot about cars and they just want to get it over and done with and usually purchase whatever appealing product comes into their mind 1st off hence the adverts doing their work.
Kitty

Hmmmm. Gee, I guess I must have bought my Cruze because the ad was just so appealing. Hmmm. Never mind that I researched and test drove almost every other car in a similar price bracket, never mind that it’s the safest small car out there – no, must have been the ad.

BK

cant wait for the VD commodore.PMSL

Golfschwein

Och! Nyek, nyek, nyek! Fnar fnar fnar! U r Sew Funnneeeeeeeeeeee! No one in the world has ever thought of the VD Commodore!!!

BK

das ist eiene VD commodore

Jabba the Hut

Just as Ford skipped the EC Falcon, EC meaning earth closet meaning toilet.

Publicity machine

The cruze, when made in australia, is going to be the coffin in the nail for Holden. You cant take a mass produced car like the cruze, ship all the componenets to australia, to be assembled by someone on higher wages, and think it is going to be profitable. Does it not strike anyone as odd, that the only company in the world, who thinks this is possible, is an affiliate of General Motors. The same Holden that hasnt been able to make a profit for the last 6 years. The company isnt run on the premise of being a profitable company, its run on its ability to suck out Government money.
MB

I put it down to the recent hail storms in Melbourne. Alot of people had older cars that were written off and have been paid out say $8-$10K they then stump up the rest for the Cruze.
Tom22

I know this is far too deep in the comments for anyone to notice, but does anyone else feel the strong reaction here to what can still be considered a somewhat flawed car (with its engine lineup anyway) is a hint that consumers want a move back to the smaller large car. Ive sat in a Cruze, it is VERY roomy, and more than adequite for a family, the Commodore is far too unnecessarily large unless you have 6ft something kids to cart around in the back.

It would only take a 3.0L DI engine and (i know this is retarded dont get me wrong, its not an easy task to engineer) a RWD transmission for this to be a great new Torana.
HOO

Sedans in a small car class feels inadequate.

Holden should offer a hatch version, as hatches are most suited to small cars, you don’t see any hatches above the small car class.

Toxic_Horse

I understand a hatch and coupe are on the drawingboard.

Robin Graves

A drawingboard somewhere in Incheon

Golfschwein

It’s really not such a small car. Weight comes in around a hefty tonne and a half because it’s sized half way between the old Camira and original Commodore.
Bob2

I’ve got a small car sedan and it’s got a much more usable boot for my needs than the hatch version of my car. Sedans usually have more body overhanging the rear axle and that gives good boot depth. Check out the Volkswagen Jetta boot compared to a Golf boot; they’re very similar cars but the Jetta has an enormous boot compared to the Golf.

Heater

Yeah…Go Holden……ROFLMAO!!! Propping sales figures up by selling mainly fleet Commodores at little or no profit wont make a profit. Ford Australia just announced a $13 million profit today……this was done by being very smart with the type of vehicles sold. Mainly higher end Falcons and Territory and less fleet sales, less cars but more profit. As Ford has proven…….larger sales figures dont always add up to making a profit…..well done Ford. When was the last time Holden or GM made a profit? Oh, thats right….they are bankrupt……lol

Jabba the Hut

After reading that lot (not sure why I bothered after ROFLMAO) I doubt you are old enough to drive.

http://maybach safe again

Buy a Great Wall of china X 240. Same money. [Ive owened a Daewoo] No contest.
Byron

Anyone got April 2010 sales for the following: Barina, Epica, Colorado & Combo???

cfc

Barina: 914
Epica: 206
Colorado 4×2: 178
Colorado 4×4: 874
Combo: 44

Byron

You got those figures for January, february & March 2010?

cfc

Yeah you can get them off a site called automotivepersonnel dot com dot au.
You have to sign up but it doesn’t matter that you’re not representing a company.

Byron

Thankyou heaps cfc. I signed up to the site & spent all last night getting the Holden sales i desperately needed. Thats the site i’ll use from now on for Vfacts. Thanks once again

Cartman

its categorized under the small car class, against Mazda3, Corolla, Civic, Impreza, Lancer and Focus.
Leon

What GM lack is the hatchback version of Cruze.