wombat666
Administrator
In one of their usual Corporate fits of stupidity, GM have axed the Australian Holden operation completely.
Aside from the Australian operation they have closed down the Thai 'SUV and Truck' manufacturing plant, adding to the loss of jobs in both countries.
No firm numbers as yet but the knock on effect through the supply chain will be severe.
The usual cost saving bleating has been their excuse, while the across the board rise of SUV and Crew Cab trucks has been cited as another fall in sales.
GM acquired 'Holden' in 1937 IIRC and produced the first Australian specific car in 1948 (or 1949?), followed by a series of (mostly) capable cars designed to suit local conditions.
Despite the odd stumble that occurred when attempting to add a mediocre small car to the range, Holden 'Holdens' managed to retain the lead as the best selling family size sedan for most of their production runs.
Even the nasty little UK based Victa grew into the Torana IL6 and later V8 mid size sporty sedans, while the 'Opel' Commodore, branded the 'Chevrolet' Commodore in South Africa, 'Vauxhall' Commodore in the UK and 'Holden' Commodore for Australia developed in a best selling and high performance car, eventually being completely redesigned and engineered 'All Australian' vehicle.
Despite the recent introduction of the new generation Opel 'Commodore' (IMHO in twin turbo V6 form very capable!), the curse of the 'Simply Useless Vehicle' and 'Tradie Trucks' eroded sales of 'proper' cars, resulting in Chrysler/Mitsubishi, Ford and Toyota ceasing production in Australia.
IF GM (as in GMH) had been allowed to innovate further to suit the domestic market perhaps the US Suits might have kept their distance........but the locals were kept on a short leash!
End of story.
Of course, this probably will scuttle the V8 Supercar Series, as there will be no 'Holdens' running after this season, unless the privateers can get dispensation. Both GMH supported teams are gearing up to run Camaros in 2021, which will further the 'NASCAR' flavor to our once premier touring car series.
On a positive note, the small car International Series might just gather further popularity and become the premier ATCC!
Aside from the Australian operation they have closed down the Thai 'SUV and Truck' manufacturing plant, adding to the loss of jobs in both countries.
No firm numbers as yet but the knock on effect through the supply chain will be severe.
The usual cost saving bleating has been their excuse, while the across the board rise of SUV and Crew Cab trucks has been cited as another fall in sales.
GM acquired 'Holden' in 1937 IIRC and produced the first Australian specific car in 1948 (or 1949?), followed by a series of (mostly) capable cars designed to suit local conditions.
Despite the odd stumble that occurred when attempting to add a mediocre small car to the range, Holden 'Holdens' managed to retain the lead as the best selling family size sedan for most of their production runs.
Even the nasty little UK based Victa grew into the Torana IL6 and later V8 mid size sporty sedans, while the 'Opel' Commodore, branded the 'Chevrolet' Commodore in South Africa, 'Vauxhall' Commodore in the UK and 'Holden' Commodore for Australia developed in a best selling and high performance car, eventually being completely redesigned and engineered 'All Australian' vehicle.
Despite the recent introduction of the new generation Opel 'Commodore' (IMHO in twin turbo V6 form very capable!), the curse of the 'Simply Useless Vehicle' and 'Tradie Trucks' eroded sales of 'proper' cars, resulting in Chrysler/Mitsubishi, Ford and Toyota ceasing production in Australia.
IF GM (as in GMH) had been allowed to innovate further to suit the domestic market perhaps the US Suits might have kept their distance........but the locals were kept on a short leash!
End of story.
Of course, this probably will scuttle the V8 Supercar Series, as there will be no 'Holdens' running after this season, unless the privateers can get dispensation. Both GMH supported teams are gearing up to run Camaros in 2021, which will further the 'NASCAR' flavor to our once premier touring car series.
On a positive note, the small car International Series might just gather further popularity and become the premier ATCC!