Opel Withdraws From Australia After Less Than A Year
Opel’s foray into the Australian market, which began in late October, 2012, has come to an end. Having sold just under 1600 vehicles in that time period, Opel has decided that the Australian market is not viable for its wares.
Australian outlet Drive interviewed Opel officials in Australia who claimed that Opel was unable to price itself competitively in the marketplace. Their Astra compact was simply too expensive to compete with offerings from other makers like Toyota, Mazda and Hyundai, whose compact cars are among Australia’s top sellers.
Opel’s launch also raised questions regarding internal competition with Holden, GM’s Australian arm. While Opel maintained that it would offer a “ European brand experience“, the fact that Holden once offered the Astra did little to help clarify matters for Australian consumers.
Comments
Join the conversation
pathetic. can't have enough words to describe how pathetic this is.
This doesn't surprise me. I've read Australia has the most competitive vehicle market in the world. Just because Opel doesn't make it here, doesn't mean it's doomed. GMH has worked closely with Opel in the past and could do so in the future.
I don't think there is room in the Australian market for Holden and Opel. Australians are used to buying their Opel's with Holden badges so I fail to understand why any one would mess with that. GM should know better.
It would be difficult to justify an Opel Astra in Australia, even if you were familiar with the previous models badged as Holdens. You can get a Holden Cruze with a hatchback and a diesel for far cheaper, and it's made in Australia.