Holden Builds Seven Millionth Vehicle

The seven millionth vehicle has rolled off the production line of General Motors’ Australian unit Holden which is also celebrating its 60th birthday this year. The milestone vehicle was a 60th Anniversary Commodore sedan (Pontiac G8 in the States), identified for dual fuel LPG fitment. Holden built Australia’s first mass produced car – the 48-215, in November 1948 at Fishermans Bend in Port Melbourne, Victoria while its one millionth car rolled off the production line almost 14 years later in October 1962. The Commodore was launched in 1978 and has been Australia’s best selling car for the past 12 years. -Continued

GM Holden Vehicle Production Milestones

• First Holden (48-215) launched November 1948 (Fishermans Bend, Vic)
• One millionth (EJ) October 1962 (Dandenong, Vic)
• Two millionth (HK) March 1969 (Dandenong, Vic)
• Three millionth (HQ) June 1974 (Pagewood, NSW)
• Four millionth (VC Commodore) June 1981 (Dandenong, Vic)
• Five millionth (VN Calais) August 1990 (Elizabeth, SA)
• Six millionth (VX Commodore SS) June 2001 (Elizabeth, SA)
• Seven millionth (VE Commodore) August 2008 (Elizabeth, SA)

Toyota Breaking Every Sales Record in Australia

Toyota has set two new sale records in Australia. First of all, it became the first carmaker in the land down-under to surpass the 25,000 sales mark in a month as it sold 25,600 vehicles in June. The previous record of 24,539 sales was set again by Toyota last June. Additionally, for the financial year that ended yesterday, June 30, 2008, Toyota said it sold more than 247,500 vehicles. That’s another all-time industry record as no other automaker has sold more than 200,000 vehicles in Australia in any 12-month period.

Australia Testing GPS System That Slows Cars Down

Oh (big) brother; Australian officials in the state of New South Wales (NSW) will trial a GPS system with a mind of its own that will not only notify drivers of the speed limit and warn them when they are going too fast, but if they choose not to listen, then the system will limit the supply of fuel to the engine, forcing a reduction in the vehicle's speed.

And how about if there’s an emergency situation and the driver needs for one reason or another to accelerate over the speed limit? NSW officials vaguely stated that in the event of an emergency, or in the need to accelerate, they can override the system. For the driver’s and passengers’ sake, hopefully that won’t mean fiddling around with a ton of buttons… -Continued

Commenting on the States decision to test the GPS system, New South Wales Roads Minister Eric Roozendaal said: "Speeding is a factor in around 40% of all fatal crashes in NSW, with 139 people losing their lives on our roads last year because of speed. This kind of technology has the potential to help cut the road toll." The trial will begin next July and it will run for18 months in 100 cars costing approximately $1 million AUD. Western Australia and Victoria are also keen in trialing the system in the near future. (Picture: Carscoop)

Toyota to Produce Camry Hybrid in Australia

Toyota confirmed today that it will build the Camry Hybrid sedan at its Altona plant in the State of Victoria in south-eastern Australia from the beginning of 2010. Currently, the hybrid Camry is produced only in Japan and the United States. The Japanese carmaker plans to produce 10,000 hybrid Camry vehicles each year for the Australian market. This will add to the existing four-cylinder Camry and six-cylinder Aurion vehicles produced at the Altona plant.

“We decided to build the Camry Hybrid in Australia because Australians are keenly aware of environmental issues including global warming, and we are confident that the Camry Hybrid will be well received. Toyota intends to make further efforts toward popularizing hybrid vehicles”, said TMC President Katsuaki Watanabe at the press conference attended by Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

Australia: SUV and Truck Sales Boom in May, Cars Drop

Talk about everything being down under… Whereas in the States the market turned upside down in May with cars sales booming in the expense of SUV/Pick-Up trucks, in Australia, where gas prices are significantly higher, sales of SUVs were up by 2.3% in May while passenger cars were down by 2.5%.

In particular, the medium SUV segment saw its sales rise by 16.8% compared to May 2007 and the large SUV segment, by 12%! From the beginning of the year, SUV sales in Australia are up by a staggering 13.2% compared to a 1.1% decrease the passenger car segment. Like the SUV market, the pick-up/cab-chassis 4x4 segment rose 5.7% over May last year, while the van segment rose a whopping 22.5%. -Continued

Overall, and despite higher interest rates and spiking fuel prices, sales of new vehicles in Australia remained strong with official figures released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) showing that 88,640 cars, trucks and buses were sold in May, an increase of 43 vehicles on the same month last year.

Toyota remained the top-selling marque in Australia May holding a 23.4% of the market, followed by Holden with 12.5% and Ford with 10.9%. So far this year, Toyota leads the Australian sales race with 101,816 vehicles sold, followed by Holden with 55,155 and Ford with 44,183.

Australia: Proton Satria Buyers Get $1,200 Of Gas For Free

Chrysler and its “Let’s Refuel America” campaign which locks gas prices at $2.99 for three years isn’t alone in its gas incentive battle. In Australia, Malaysian carmaker Proton is offering $1200 AUD worth of fuel in the form of twelve Caltex $100 fuel cards for those who buy a Satria 1.6 during May.

According to Proton’s calculations based on the Satria’s avg. fuel consumption (7.2 lt / 100km) on an annual usage of 20,000 km with fuel cost of $1.50 AUD per liter ($5.4 USD per gallon), the $1,200 will cover the equivalent of 55% of their annual fuel costs during the first year. The way prices are hiking up, in a few years, petrol stations will probably offer us a free car for every tank of fuel we buy…

Australian Government to Impose More Taxes on Luxury Cars

The Australian federal government is planning to increase tax on luxury cars priced over $57,000 AUD from25% that it is today, to 33%. The announcement was made by Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan who said that an increase in tax on luxury cars is fair because people who buy them can afford it.

"We don't think it is unreasonable for people who have done well in recent years from government decisions in terms of top-end tax cuts, just pay a little more for a luxury car," Mr Swan told the Nine Network.

The tax increase, to be introduced in Swan's first budget, will affect about 10% of the cars sold annually in Australia or approximately 105,000 vehicles. Among the cars that cost over $57k are a few locally produced vehicles like the Holden Statesman and Caprice. -Continued

Opposition treasury spokesman Malcolm Turnbull told reporters that Swan’s new tax will create a domino effect pushing all car prices up and feed into inflation. "It adds to the cost of one part of the motor vehicle universe and inevitably the price of other vehicles will move up, because that will give them a bit of headroom,'' Mr Turnbull told ABC TV.

"So all cars in Australia will be more expensive as a result of this - bear that in mind. And that feeds into inflation because if you put the price of anything up it feeds into the price of CPI (consumer price index)”

Something tells us that Mr Turnbull could very well be right…

Via: SMH

Ouch… $200,000 AUD Ford Falcon GT Confiscated For Doing Burnouts

Australian authorities are stepping up their anti-hooning practices as this past Sunday, thirty New South Wales cops raided a car enthusiast gathering at Anzac Parade and Penrhyn Road resulitng in a in a search of 72 vehicles, 39 tickets and 18 vehicle impoundments.

The most prized… loot was a classic Ford Falcon GT muscle car which the owner claims is worth at least $200,000 AUD or about $189,000 USD. And on what grounds may you ask will this poor fella have his car impounded and sold at a government auction? This was his second burnout offense… Come on, this is beyond ridiculous now. -Continued

During the same raid, Aussie cops also impounded another Ford GT, 3 Holden Commodores, a Holden Utility, Holden Torana and a Nissan 200SX for a minimum of three months for violating anti-hoon statutes.

But that doesn’t bother Australian authorities as car impounding is a thriving business Down-Under with the State of Victoria having seized a whopping 3,437 cars between July 2006 and December 2007 generating a nice $1 million net revenue.

And nothing seems to be stopping them. Superintdendent Ron Mason told Australian newspapers that police are determined to stamp out the hoons, who were endangering other motorists with risky driving and unroadworthy cars. "This is not a one off operation. This is ongoing. Whatever day they're going to be there, we'll be there. You do the wrong thing and you can expect to pay the consequences”, he said.

Sure some people act dangerously and yes there have to be consequences. But there’s something horribly wrong with a law that allows the impounding and auctioning of a car because its owner was caught a couple of times performing burnouts...

Via: Jalopnik , Source: Thenewspaper

Australia: Queensland to Impound and Sell Unlicensed Drivers' Cars

Australian authorities seem to take car-related violations pretty seriously lately. Following yesterday’s news of the 4,400 confiscated “Hoon-Cars” in Victoria, today, it was announced that Queenslanders that are caught driving with suspended licences could have their cars impounded and sold from July.

Sounds a bit harsh but listen to this; earlier in April, a police operation at Oxley, south-west of Brisbane, led to 90 drivers appearing in court on the same day on charges that would most probably get their licence revoked. Nine of those people who lost their license jumped into their car and drive off but to their dismay, cops were waiting for them around the corner and they were arrested immediately! -Continued

"These are people who generally have thousands of dollars owing to the state and are not paying off those fines," Police Minister Judy Spence told reporters in Brisbane. "We decided that instead we would teach them a painful lesson and take their car off them from July 1."

Statistics show that while in 2003, disqualified drivers were involved in 4.5 per cent of Queensland road fatalities, that figure increased to a worryingly 9.2 per cent in 2007.

Via: The West

Last Aussie Built Mitsubishi Auctioned for $100,000 AUD

In February this year, Mitsubishi Australia announced that it will close its Adelaide facility that manufactured the large-size 380 Sedan, thus eliminating its last Australian built product to move into a fully imported product line-up. The last Australian built Mitsubishi to roll-off the production line was a silver Platinum model 380 sedan.

The car was auctioned by Mitsubishi Australia last week. The winner was John Hughes, owner of a Mitsubishi dealership in Perth, WA who brought the last 380 Sedan for $100,000 AUD which is about $93,000 USD or €60,000. Mitsubishi said in a statement that the proceeds from the auction would be donated to charities to be named following consultation with the winning bidder.

Australia: 4,400 Hoon Cars Confiscated in Victoria!

In July 2006, the State government of Victoria introduced the so-called Anti-Hoon legislation, which to put it simple, is a series of laws that intend to cut down on excessive speed, street racing and illegal burnouts – “hoon” is an Australian (slang) term describing a person who drives any vehicle "dangerously" and / or fast.

Well, according to Police figures, since the laws were introduced in July 2006, a total of 4,393 vehicles were confiscated in the State of Victoria. According to the legislation, first time offenders get their vehicles impounded for 48 hours (unless the car is stolen or hired). Victorian Police Minister Bob Cameron said that about 4% of those drivers (168 people), got caught “honing” a second time, indicating that the laws were having some effect. -Continued

Now, the Victorian State government is readying a new advertising campaign that will encourage people to snitch or as Aussies call it, to "dob in a hoon" through a Crime Stoppers “hoon” hotline. We don't dare to think of what they'll come up with next...

Via: Dailytelegraph

Lexus Commits $230 Million to Expand Australian Dealer Network

Lexus Australia has announced plans to grow its Australian dealer network by more than 50 per cent by 2012. Today, the number of Lexus dealerships “down-under” stands at 22. To do so, the luxury carmaker’s Australian dealers will commit $230 million AUD towards new and existing dealer facilities and sites over the next four years.

"Lexus locally is in growth mode," said Lexus Australia chief executive John Roca. "Demand for our vehicles regularly outstrips supply and our dealerships in their current format are reaching their capacity limits. Lexus' success comes from satisfied customers. Over the next four years, Lexus dealer facilities will be given a new face - one that welcomes customers even more and makes them feel as though they are guests in our home". The first of these so called, new-look sites, Lexus of Perth, opened in March and it showcases the new retail face for Lexus dealerships.

Mitsubishi Reveals Colt, Lancer, Grandis, Triton & Pajero Panther Sporty Concepts

Finished in black duco and trademark "claw" detail, Mitsubishi unveiled a series of concepts bearing the Panther moniker at the 2008 Melbourne International Motor Show. The Panther concept range consisted of the Colt hatch, Lancer sedan, Grandis minivan, Triton ute and Pajero 4x4 three-door. Apart from the black paint job, lowered ride height gives all of the Panthers a more aggressive stance while each car received specific additional equipment.

The all-new Lancer Sedan for example is equipped with 20-inch chrome wheels, side skirts, fog lamps, scuff plates and chrome exhaust tip in addition to the custom Panther paintwork and decals. The Triton ute is fitted with 22-inch chrome wheels and a large hard tonneau cover, front bumper extender, rear bumper extender with fog lamp, chrome upper grille surround, upper and lower mesh, chrome head and tail lamp bezels, and scuff plates. -Continued

The three-door Pajero also receives 22-inch chrome wheels and lowered ride height, as well as a powerful body kit, illuminated scuff plates, exhaust tip and spare wheel tyre cover. Finally, the Colt, receives 16-inch alloy wheels, a unique body kit and scuff plates, while the Grandis VRX adds 16-inch alloy wheels and lowered ride height to its standard body kit.

Babes from the 2008 Melbourne Motor Show

Leaving the Commodores and Falcons on the side for a moment, the Melbourne Motor Show that opened its gates to the public today (February 29), had its share of car babes that made things at the automakers booths, lets say, a bit more interesting... Follow the jump to check out the image gallery. -Continued