Wow, that is the shocker for me! I had no idea the 300 did so well (relatively speaking), and never would have guessed that it outsold the local hero! Might the 300 see a big increase when the Caprice ducks out? Could Chrysler take advantage of their position and offer a cheaper version of the 300 that better targets Commodore buyers? For example, could a decently equipped Dodge Charger come in at a lower price point than the 300 / Caprice class, and still offer the features buyers have come to expect on the Commodore?...where Caprice (1218) plays second fiddle to Chrysler’s 300 (1580)...
That's what happens when the car you sold in 2006 looks exactly the same as the car you sell in 2015Wow, that is the shocker for me! I had no idea the 300 did so well (relatively speaking), and never would have guessed that it outsold the local hero! Might the 300 see a big increase when the Caprice ducks out? Could Chrysler take advantage of their position and offer a cheaper version of the 300 that better targets Commodore buyers? For example, could a decently equipped Dodge Charger come in at a lower price point than the 300 / Caprice class, and still offer the features buyers have come to expect on the Commodore?
I'd think that Chrysler has to have already asked themselves these questions, as the large car market my be shrinking, but last year there were still 30,000+ Commodore sales that some manufacturer has to be eyeing. I'd mentioned Hyundai before, but hasn't thought of Chrysler...
If Australians are as picky about their RWD cars as they say they are, there's no way a ChryCo car could replace the Commodore.Wow, that is the shocker for me! I had no idea the 300 did so well (relatively speaking), and never would have guessed that it outsold the local hero! Might the 300 see a big increase when the Caprice ducks out? Could Chrysler take advantage of their position and offer a cheaper version of the 300 that better targets Commodore buyers? For example, could a decently equipped Dodge Charger come in at a lower price point than the 300 / Caprice class, and still offer the features buyers have come to expect on the Commodore?
I'd think that Chrysler has to have already asked themselves these questions, as the large car market my be shrinking, but last year there were still 30,000+ Commodore sales that some manufacturer has to be eyeing. I'd mentioned Hyundai before, but hadn't thought of Chrysler...
That's1500 cars for the whole year......... as noted, it outsold the Caprice for the first time, which has looked pretty much the same since 2006. Fiatsler is doing better with Cherokees and things like the Patriot - mostly, because they're cheap.Wow, that is the shocker for me! I had no idea the 300 did so well (relatively speaking), and never would have guessed that it outsold the local hero! Might the 300 see a big increase when the Caprice ducks out? Could Chrysler take advantage of their position and offer a cheaper version of the 300 that better targets Commodore buyers? For example, could a decently equipped Dodge Charger come in at a lower price point than the 300 / Caprice class, and still offer the features buyers have come to expect on the Commodore?
I'd think that Chrysler has to have already asked themselves these questions, as the large car market my be shrinking, but last year there were still 30,000+ Commodore sales that some manufacturer has to be eyeing. I'd mentioned Hyundai before, but hadn't thought of Chrysler...
+1 (from a Pontiac fan in Texas)That's what happens when the car you sold in 2006 looks exactly the same as the car you sell in 2015
Which is a direct result of GMNA clueless idiots killing Holdens main export market for the car and thus killing the volumes needed to update it
Hardly clueless and hardly idiots.That's what happens when the car you sold in 2006 looks exactly the same as the car you sell in 2015
Which is a direct result of GMNA clueless idiots killing Holdens main export market for the car and thus killing the volumes needed to update it
If they're looking for exclusivity, following the Cadillac plan might work!...I would expect sales to drop even further.
Didn't you get the memo?...
Cruze - in its 7th year of sales, nearly virtually unchanged, other than the 1.6 turbo which came in 2 years ago. It's now been hit with the ugly stick. ...
It's going to be a tough year for Holden, unless they discount their cars, I would expect sales to drop even further.
You could use some of that abundant thrill to pay your bills and feed your family.“I would just say that when I was in Australia less than a year ago and I showed that portfolio to the dealers, the dealers were thrilled, thrilled.
It was like the future of the Holden brand and the portfolio that they will get is as strong if not stronger than at any other time in the brand’s history. I just feel very good, and that group of dealers that I met with felt very good.”
I'm not sure how much time you spent in Australia. I was there every year from 1990 till 2007, including living there a year, and so I can strongly disagree with you based on my experiences there. RWD BMWs, Mercedes, Nissans, and RHD converted Mustang's are very popular. Most of the new cars sold in Australia are FWD economy cars. Chrysler 300 was outselling the Fairmount and was less than a dozen or 2 in sales to the luxury Holden's when I was there last. You have the same gearhead Ford vs Chevy zealots there like you do here, only substitute Holden in place of Chevy.If Australians are as picky about their RWD cars as they say they are, there's no way a ChryCo car could replace the Commodore.
Interesting. Ford seems to have sunk very far in Australia, but maybe as you say their full and fresh lineup of SUVs and CUVs will save them. The Ranger seems hot right now, so as a Ford fan I hope that success will spill over to their other models.I guess what Ford also has in its favour is that their range of small cars up to the mondeo (fusion) is far superior to holders and their suv range with the new Everest and territory and edge replacement is superior as well. Couple that with their pickup ranger being second in sales only behind the market leader Hilux and they are going to be fine as opposed to GM
I doubt it. Ford is further in the cycle of being despised, but their problem is people who would put up with Ford dealers because they wanted a Falcon is less than people willing to cop them for a small car. The Fiesta and Focus are both poor relations, coming from Thailand when the Toyo and Mazda come from Japan (except Corolla sedan). Why would you buy a Focus, when the build quality is variable, and it's expensive for a lot of Euro-sourced bits; compared to it's twin-under-the-skin Mazda 3? And it's no cheaper.Interesting. Ford seems to have sunk very far in Australia, but maybe as you say their full and fresh lineup of SUVs and CUVs will save them. The Ranger seems hot right now, so as a Ford fan I hope that success will spill over to their other models.
It would seem that their current passenger car lineup isn't what Australia wants, though... might take a new generation to regain market share with their cars?
GM shut down ME Exports way before that happened so yes they are the real idiotsHardly clueless and hardly idiots.
1. Your government went into free trade agreements with other nations in the Pacific region.... nations that have a strong manufacturing base and far cheaper labor. First idiotic mistake.
2. The Australian dollar skyrocketed going from the equivalent of 70 US cents to the dollar to over $1.20US to your dollar, in effect making Australian products 50% more expensive to make, effectively making importing Aussie cars to the US a money losing venture. The government did nothing to bring the value of the Aussie dollar down. Second idiotic mistake.
3. Japan's government invested money to promote exports. The American government invested something in excess of $60 billion to save the US car industry. The Australian government wasn't prepared to invest anything into the local car industry to keep it afloat. Third idiotic mistake.
To recap and summarize:
The government there handed the car manufacturing industry to Korea, Thailand, Japan, and other low cost manufacturing countries through Free Trade, did nothing to curb your currency so you could continue to manufacture cars for export (which would have still made car manufacturing feasible in Australia), and finally, refused to cough up the money to save the local car industry even though it would have likely been cheaper than paying unemployment and pensions.
On top of all this, Ford was the first to announce they were gonna close their manufacturing, and Toyota announced they were closing manufacturing right behind GM...... and all 3 car makers pointed to the exact same reasons for closing shop there as far as manufacturing goes.......
.....yet, it's GM that's idiotic and clueless???
Buddy, the sympathy train already left the Sour Apples train station, and is already at Realityville.
People are moving on from flaming GM for a conclusion Ford was smart enough to reach first, and Toyota who seemed to be there just because Ford and GM were, started packing up before the ink on Holden's press release was dry.
If you really need to negatively label anyone, ya might wasn't to first start with the open trade borders and strong money policy of the past decade down under....... because for the record, those policies are what completely screwed (a more accurate word rhymes with trucked) up GM's product plans and contributed to killing an entire General Motors division.
If you need to pin the tail of blame on something, might want to start in your own back yard.
Fairmont hasn't been sold in Australia for around 7 years and was basically a Falcon with extras like say a Calais. The 300 would have been a competitor for the Fairlane or LTD but Ford had discontinued those in 2007I'm not sure how much time you spent in Australia. I was there every year from 1990 till 2007, including living there a year, and so I can strongly disagree with you based on my experiences there. RWD BMWs, Mercedes, Nissans, and RHD converted Mustang's are very popular. Most of the new cars sold in Australia are FWD economy cars. Chrysler 300 was outselling the Fairmount and was less than a dozen or 2 in sales to the luxury Holden's when I was there last. You have the same gearhead Ford vs Chevy zealots there like you do here, only substitute Holden in place of Chevy.
Australians, like Americans, want the best, durable, economical car for their money. One quick look at the best selling lists there tells you that like Americans, they font care if its locally made. Sure, there's their version of the "Made in America" brigade, but there's a 9 chance in 10 that even in their instance, there's at least 1 Asian car sitting in their driveway.
There's gonna be a lot of hard feelings in the case of Holden fans. Whereas Ford simply came right out and said it was too expensive to make cars there do they were going to start importing, GM/Holden went through this long process that brought up a lot of hope then a letdown that some (even on this very site) will take far too personally, even with facts laid out proving it wouldn't have happened anyway.
Ford Mustang's will hit the streets in Australia, and whatever RWD Camaro derivative Holden sells as a competitor, is going to rekindle that competition between the brands.
As for the 300 replacing the Commodore, that's ludicrous. The 300 is sold as a luxury car or an upscale family car. Commodore there is on par with the Impala (both old and the new one) here.
I think the Everest will shake the tree a bit. What I should have said is that myself and a few previous GM mates of mine have switched to Ford but we have gone for the European ST focus versions for now. These have all been bought as the wife's runabout with the kids.Interesting. Ford seems to have sunk very far in Australia, but maybe as you say their full and fresh lineup of SUVs and CUVs will save them. The Ranger seems hot right now, so as a Ford fan I hope that success will spill over to their other models.
It would seem that their current passenger car lineup isn't what Australia wants, though... might take a new generation to regain market share with their cars?
