The Truth About Cars » Australia

Cruze Hype Falls Down Under

Edward Niedermeyer — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:03:59 +0000

The Freep has dubbed Chevy’s Next Big Small Thing a “hit” on the grounds that it’s big in Australia. The only problem? It’s not really selling all that well. Towards the bottom of its write-up, the Freep reveals that GM’s Holden division sold 4,826 of the US-bound Cruze in the last three months. Center for [...]

Alpha-Bits

Edward Niedermeyer — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 15:06:44 +0000

General Motors’ so-called Alpha platform has been something of an enigma since it was first conceptualized by Holden as the TT36 Torana for the 2004 Sydney Auto Show. The TT36 concept was Holden’s pitch for a sub-CTS RWD global premium sedan, although, in proper GM fashion, that job went to the late, unlamented BLS. Though [...]

Remember, the G8 Was a Bad Business Decision

Edward Niedermeyer — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 19:45:03 +0000

Which means importing this 415 hp, 415 lb-ft, AWD Ford FPV F6 E from Australia is a bad idea, too. Right?

Australia: Deaths Go Up After Speed Limits Imposed

The Newspaper — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 10:45:10 +0000

Up until 2007, rural freeways in the Northern Territory, Australia had no speed limit. Claiming that speed limits were essential to saving lives, the state government imposed a 130km/h (80 MPH) limit on the Stuart, Arnhem, Victoria and Barkly highways and a 110km/h (68 MPH) speed limit on all other roads, unless otherwise marked lower. Despite [...]

Wannabe Baruth Arrested in Australia

Bertel Schmitt — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 13:42:46 +0000

Up until yesterday, there were only two Ferrari Californias on Australia’s streets. The number is now down to one. Police have impounded the rare Ferrari California being driven by Financial Review motoring writer Rod Easdown. Baruthian car and driver were clocked by Australia’s finest at 231kmh, more than twice the legal limit. According to the report, [...]

Editorial: Between The Lines: Maximum Ambivalence

Edward Niedermeyer — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 16:00:17 +0000

Bob Lutz needs to clear something up. Fun lovers, report to GM Fastlane stat! It seems that the Man of Maximum is steamed about a WaPo piece which he complains casts him as "ambivalent" towards his beloved Volt. In fact, the piece is a sweeping look at the Volt's place in GM, and it contains more than a few anecdotes that reflect poorly on GM management (shocking, I know). And the facts of the matter clearly illustrate that the Volt's importance arises from political considerations far more than the inherent passion of GM's product planners to create reliable, fuel-efficient transportation. Hence the accusation of ambivalence. But political motivation has to be disguised with pure intention (no matter how implausible) in order to work. And so Lutz is off to man the crumbling Maximum rampart.

Aussie Toll Road Showdown (Yes, There Will Be a Test Afterwards)

The Newspaper — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 15:15:34 +0000

Following a ruling by the Supreme Court of Victoria, Australia, a 27-year-old will have a chance to shut down the A$4.8 billion Airport Link toll road next Tuesday. The BrisConnections toll project, built upon highly leveraged shareholder debt, fell apart as the credit crisis hit and the share price plunged to just A$.001. This allowed [...]

Lutz: RWD Zeta Platform RIP

Edward Niedermeyer — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 16:15:38 +0000

GoAuto hears from GM Car Czar Maximum Bob Lutz himself that the Camaro and G8 will be the last US market GM products based on Holden’s RWD Zeta platform. “The strategy we had a few years ago of basically deriving a whole sweeping global portfolio off the Australian Zeta architecture … frankly, we have had [...]

Only The Pointless Die Young

Edward Niedermeyer — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 23:57:31 +0000

Pickuptrucks.com has learned that the Pontiac G8 ST has been canceled. Incidentally, Automobile Magazine is reporting that the Suzuki Kizashi has not been canceled, but will debut in production form at this year’s New York Auto Show.

Australians See Through Bailout Window Dressing

Edward Niedermeyer — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:19:02 +0000

By taking a quid-pro-quo (cash for a new model) approach to its automaker bailout, the Australian government and Holden have opened themselves for significant criticism. And it’s starting to pile on. From The Australian we have reports of backlash from, among others, Australia’s Green party. And their scathing remarks are centered on the GM Cruze [...]

Australian Cruze Expensive, Unnecessary

Edward Niedermeyer — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 17:02:19 +0000

The Australian federal government has hopped on the auto bailout bandwagon, “investing” $149m in production of a Holden-badged GM compact car. The South Australia state government will kick in $30m as well, as the Delta-platformed Cruze-alike will be produced near Adelaide. Styling and engineering will be carried out in Melbourne. And what do the Australian [...]

Requiem For The Large RWD Sedan

Edward Niedermeyer — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 19:36:29 +0000

Think Australian cars and you're likely come up with three words: large, RWD, sedan. Well, Ford CEO Allan Mullaly has turned the land down under upside down by suggesting that the next Falcon might be a front-drive model. The Motor Report gasps at the announcement, but with the new Falcon FG [...]

Pontiac names Pontiac G8 ST concept Pontiac G8 ST

Justin Berkowitz — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:25:40 +0000

Memo to car manufacturers: naming contests don't work, except to grind my gears. It didn't work for Alfa Romeo, who had to ignore contest results for the car we now know as the MiTo (fan chosen name was Furiosa). And now General Motors has revealed that the production name of the Pontiac G8 ST concept [...]

Ford Falcon Falters Down Under

Edward Niedermeyer — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 20:35:25 +0000

By some accounts, the new Australian Ford FG Falcon is a good car. It's said to have earned Ford Australia the right to develop Ford's new global rear wheel-drive (RWD) architecture. Former Lexus driver FoMoCo CEO Alan Mulally claims he covets the G6E Turbo model. So it's selling well, right? In a [...]

Holden’s Commodore Gets the 500 hp Corvette Z06 Engine

Justin Berkowitz — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:20:42 +0000

The car we know as the Pontiac G8, you probably already know is a twin of one of GM's Australian bread and butter cars, the Holden Commodore. They've got all sort of variations of it over there - El-Camino style sport trucks (yes Jalopnik, we know), station wagons, AWD models, long wheelbase luxury versions, and yes, in-house specially-tuned high-performance professional ass kickers. We'll be getting one of the latter category of INSTHPPAK models as the Pontiac G8 GXP with a 400 horsepower 6.2 liter V8 out of the Corvette. But that's not enough if you're properly power hungry. Holden's HSV tuning folks presented the 7.0 liter (they call it a 427, because they are that badass) LS7 powered murderer version of the Commodore. Not only that, but in the ultimate act of hilariosity, the HSV W427 model as it's called will be available in the stretched luxury car called the Statesman. Like the Corvette Z06, the Holden W427 will have a hair over 500 horses and 472 lb ft of torque. Holden is building only 427 examples of the car, and they cost $150,000 AUD. That makes it 3.5 times the cost of a V6 Commodore (which is the $27,000 G8 V6 in America), but about the same price as BMW M3 in Australia. Still a hell of a bundle of cash. [Source: Holden ]

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ToMoCo’s “$35m photo opportunity for the [Australian] prime minister”

Edward Niedermeyer — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 19:50:44 +0000

Toyota recently declared that it would begin building Camry Hybrids in Melbourne, potentially reversing the industry's decades-long decline. The announcement vindicated the Australian government's half-billion dollar initiative to encourage local production of full-sized eco-friendly cars. PM Kevin Rudd and the Victoria provincial government each cut a $35m check to Toyota in return for its promise to build 10k Camry Hybrids per year. Win-win for all concerned, right? And then Toyota Australia spokesman Mike Breen opened his big mouth. Breen told The Australian an inconvenient truth: Toyota would have built Camry hybrids in Melbourne with or without the taxpayer-funded incentives. This prompted howls of outrage from the opposition, claiming the handout "amounts to nothing more than a $35m photo opportunity for the prime minister." Of course, Toyota has since backpedaled, disingenuously demurring that "Toyota's decision to build a hybrid Camry in Australia was based on various business considerations... however, the Governments' support was a critical factor in securing local production." Ford and GM reps are sure to learn the lesson when they meet with Australian Industry Minister Kim Carr this week; there's still $465m in taxpayer dross to be hustled Down Under.

Hybrid Camry May Be Produced in Australia

Edward Niedermeyer — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 17:31:26 +0000

In our latest editorial on Australia's tanking car industry, I noted that a government report emphasizes future production of large vehicles with green powertrains. The Australian reports that the Aussie government's half-billion dollar green car manufacturing fund could be used to lure production of the next-generation Toyota Camry hybrid down under. Toyota Australia VP Dave Buttner says ToMoCo had been pushing to build a hybrid car here for five years but "policies conducive to investment" (a.k.a. public money) were vital to the plan. The plan seems to convenient to avoid: Aussie politicians get to check of the box next to "build large, green cars" on their bureaucratic checklists, and Toyota gets enough money to offset Australia's high labor costs and strong currency. Oh, and Toyotas actually sell well in the land of Oz as well, especially the Prius, who's sales rose 63 percent last year. So who loses out in all of this? Just Toyota's competitors and Australia's taxpayers.