Is anyone considering the NG commodore after their VF?

[Forg]

The rot started in 1985 when the Labor Govt, via Senator Button, stuck their nose into the car industry, uninvited, and created badge engineering.

A lot of people have said this move added an extra 10-20 years of car manufacturing in Australia ...

But who would have bought them? Australians are up themselves with badge snobbery.

Australians don't like being fed rubbish. Frankly, stuff designed here has been rubbish for most of history. It takes a long time to build trust when your products cost such a large proportion of the average yearly wage, and longevity/reliability has been historically pretty lame c/f products made in Japan ... VE was realistically the first decent platform, but it was hidden under a plastic interior Hyundai would've been embarrassed about; and the less said about the volume-selling HFV6 engine, the better.


On the topic we've been discussing; yeah, gumbyment basically munted it at the time. Any first-world country with a manufacturing base only does it due to gumbyment subsidy or concession. Sure manufacturing has to be for more than the local market, but Folden have known that for ages and have been trying to design for a global market; Ford Oz just weren't allowed, Holden were allowed but then the decision over Zeta being a global platform was reverted in favour of a US-designed platform.
And that, there, is the crux of it. Our industry was bought by overseas interests in ... what, the 1930's? Since then it's been totally overseas owned. So when global cost-cutting occurred, as will eventually happen according to the rules of Capitalism, the Home Country will always win out.

 

[Dynamic Dazz]

I'm considering one after my VE wagon does that count.....keen to see what the new wagon will be like especially if the rumours are true with an all wheel drive Turbo Diesel

Dazz

 

[Zeke Topanaga]

There was an out and out witch hunt for GM, I've been over it too many times to count and cbf'd with it again. TLDR version, GM's investment and the money it fed back into the local economy and the amount of economic activity it created far outstripped any and all investment the govt put into it but the local media only measured one side of the equation like the idiots they are. Once we dropped out pants and removed all protections from cheap overseas labour it was game over.

GM have many products that suit the aussie market however they are a volume manufacturer and had little interest in investing more money here when the govt was so hostile. The constant removal of tariffs hasn't helped anything as all it's done is allowed overseas manufacturers to dump here with higher margins. Remember all the fairy stories about how lowering tariffs would make cars cheaper? Where are those cheaper cars? Never going to happen because we get gouged with higher margins.

If first world countries like Japan, USA, England, Germany can all maintain auto industries there's no reason we can't either - we've got too many one term wonder pollies scraping the pork barrel and crapping on the local factory workers.

Aussies have all gotten a bit up themselves too and all I seem to see driving round these days is some VW variant.

We had what it takes, we're all just too short sighted.

Yes and from before the first FX Holden Australia needed tariffs to survive, both GM and the Government knew this only to well, GM and others were not going to build a car industry in Australia in fact GM was dead set against it, stating that Australia was to socialist to bother with, so the Government got off there arse and made it all happen with tariffs, so there you all have it, it could never be sustained right from the beginning, but the benefits out weighed all that as it promoted growth in many fields.

Just nowadays we have been helping the 3rd world to try relive poverty and make 2ed world out of all the nations and in all this we can benefit from cheap products from them with a lower currency value. it's called the New World Order and that's the real reason the gov is against making cars here, it's not that we can't do it. the banks can make big money out of it all as well with new markets, not to mention with business exploitation is how you make big money and with the 3rd world it's all go for it, not like here where it's like pulling teeth with everything business try's to do.

The Australian people do not understand much at all, because the Gov do not want you informed, because they are not looking after our nations interest 1st and foremost as people think there vote is all about looking after your interest, and that's why you have a vote, is it not !

The next time someone wants to disagree with me don't just blurt out some childish ego driven blurt, but debate it with me. any dick head can just dismiss what another says with a blurt that goes no where but only serving ones simplistic driven ego. try to deny what was said and give it a go.

 

[Forg]

The next time someone wants to disagree with me don't just blurt out some childish ego driven blurt, but debate it with me.

OK then, on this:

It's called the New World Order and that's the real reason the gov is against making cars here, it's not that we can't do it.

I don't believe you're correct here. Not that we can't do it, I agree we can, but more on the motivation for not providing a business-environment in which it'll happen.
I don't truly think the various gumbyments are necessarily sleeping-around with the banks etc, I think the issue is that the modern most-commonly-accepted economic theory says the level-playing-field is the best way to go for a country's economy. Basically, everyone's economic advisors are saying that it's all about the money, that the best outcome for everyone is that the cheapest place to make something makes it, and that everyone who used to be employed in & indirectly-by the automotive industry will find another job that they do more efficiently.

Note that I'm not adhering to this theory. I think it totally ignores friends, families, homes, communities; and prioritises money over everything else (Deity Of Choice knows I can't do with the 3 cheap 80" TV's I've got, I need to buy another!!). However, I do think that this is the real gumbymental motivation for not supporting ... well, any industry, really.

 

[VT13]

C'mon, how can the local manufactures not be responsible for pouring our tax dollars into design and marketing of non-viable vehicles. It's not the Governments fault, they are all big businesses who have been getting it drastically wrong for a decade. What really killed the industry:

 

[Forg]

I've met John Cardigan ... he doesn't come across as such a tool in person.

They guy is video-clickbait, talk about spinning the truth into a lie, Rupert Murdoch would be impressed!

 

[zero_tolerance]

I've met John Cardigan ... he doesn't come across as such a tool in person.

They guy is video-clickbait, talk about spinning the truth into a lie, Rupert Murdoch would be impressed!

He is a first class flog. The less oxygen he is given the better.

 

[VT13]

Don't know the man so unwilling to pass personal judgement, however casting aside ones emotion, it's impossible to ignore reality and believe that the manufacturers were somehow hard done by. They did a **** job with over 4 billion of taxpayers money. Hard to argue against poor product planning on an epic scale. And he is bang on in stating that those who have not bought a NEW local car in the last ten years have no right to be outraged over the demise of the local industry.

 

[zero_tolerance]

Don't know the man so unwilling to pass personal judgement

You only have to watch some of the videos on his channel to see how much of a wanker he is. He describes VF Commodores as low tech dinosaurs and according to him HSV owners are all knuckle dragging bogans amongst other things.
He is little more than a trumped up sales rep for Hyundai and Kia as these are the only brands he has praise for.
I wouldn't give the guy the steam off my **** let alone the time of day to listen to his ridiculous rants. He is widely regarded as a joke in the automotive industry and its easy to see why.

 

[426Cuda]

You only have to watch some of the videos on his channel to see how much of a wanker he is. He describes VF Commodores as low tech dinosaurs and according to him HSV owners are all knuckle dragging bogans amongst other things.
He is little more than a trumped up sales rep for Hyundai and Kia as these are the only brands he has praise for.
I wouldn't give the guy the steam off my **** let alone the time of day to listen to his ridiculous rants. He is widely regarded as a joke in the automotive industry and its easy to see why.

You should learn to be more open and frank Zero. This fence sitting is just not on!
Haha - Good to see you earning your tag lol.