Holden theft: $2.5m in parts stolen from Elizabeth plant

Reports from the Sunday Mail and The Advertiser reveal that the theft of parts, made up of V8 engines and manual and automatic gearboxes, has been under police investigation since January following the discovery of a stolen Holden V8 engine by Elizabeth Crime Investigation Branch (CIB) detectives in Adelaide's northern suburbs.

The Sunday Mail says police believe the stolen parts, worth up to around $10,000 each, have been sold on through local car clubs and via internet auction sites such as eBay.

The Advertiser reports that some of the stolen parts are suspected to have found their way into the amateur desert and dirt-circuit racing community with detectives making enquiries with members of the Associated Dirt Circuit Clubs of South Australia.

While the Sunday Mail reports that Holden was unaware of the scale of the thefts before being alerted by police and that sources say the car maker had "no effective tracking system", Holden corporate affairs manager for South Australia Sean Poppitt told CarAdvice that Holden's tracking is "robust". Poppitt also said the thefts would have "no impact on production".

More information from Holden and police is expected by the end of next week.