Car News Articles

The John Button Industry Elimination Plan is working very well.

Look for a correlation between the level of tarrifs and the number of automotive manufacturers in this country over the last 40 years- you will find a neat causual relationship.

Normally, I believe in free trade and open markets with a passion. This can occur without Globalisation. However, what is Australia supposed to do in the face of greater protection of foreign competitors? This comes in the form of tarrif walls protecting their markets, subsidisation of their products or ‘one way’ Free Trade Agreements (eg. Thailand) that allow their manufactured product here, but not ours there in return. (Konichiwa, Japan.) Reflect on that when driving your Thai Hilux or Accord. How does a Free Market deal with such socialist competitors?

I find it absolutely rich when bloggers above post that our industry ’should be zero tarrif and sink or swim’. Their competitors are in lifeboats!!!

A deliberate, engineered weakening of our nation’s manufacturers is taking place. Australia was labelled the wealthiest place on Earth in the early ’70’s, and it featured many profitable, independent smaller farms and manufacturing that had been painstakingly encouraged by the Depression/WWII generation. They had done things tough and knew that independence and self reliance were keys to real wealth for nations just as individuals. Make it here, spend money here, strengthen the economy here. Export any extra for wealth and then invest this, so you own more and more of your competitors’ countries. Simple, really.

This is exactly what Japan, and others, have done to us. Anyone wish to bring up a decent foreign ownership stat for Australia now? They stopped reporting it in the 1990’s when it topped 90%! Wake up, people!

Try selling our agricultural products to Europe or the US if you have any energy left after the dilemma above. Anything stopping you?

Why is Australia the first and only country to drop its pants? Free trade, yeah right.

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As for Ford, they offer the most economical to run cars in Australia - the LPG Falcons. If you seriously want to reduce your fuel bill, buy one. Don’t worry about Diesel or hybrid. Additionally, we have Energy Security with gas - about 300 years worth of it. So it is perplexing that these ‘large cars’ are being abandoned when they are so economical, in dollar terms. Their servicing is far cheaper than many other competitors, too, as is their insurance.

Osborne exits after just seven months in the chair.

The top man at Ford Australia is off. One day after announcing 350 axed jobs, Bill Osborne added himself to the body count by resigning as company president. 

Osborne made no apologies for the awful timing, but said it was a personal decision and not related to the troubles at the Blue Oval in Australia. Osborne is the second long-term Ford exec to exit the chair. He said he was leaving to take up a role as chief executive officer of an independent company, but declined to name the business – citing Unites States business regulations as preventing him, and saying only that it was “in a sector outside the motor industry’’.

“This is an opportunity I’ve been preparing for my whole career,’’ Osborne said.

“It was always my objective to retire from Ford and seek an opportunity as CEO of an independent company.

“It is a wonderful opportunity with a company based in the US and I felt I had to take that opportunity now.’’

The announcement raises doubt about the plans for Ford in Australia, but Osborne was predictably upbeat about the future, and said his decision was unrelated to the downturn in the American company’s figures.

“It’s just unfortunate it comes at a time of great challenges in the industry, but it’s not related to those challenges,’’ he said.

“This is strictly a personal decision.’’

Osborne said that candidates had already been identified for the role as his successor, but that he had not been told who they were.

“I don’t know that information,’’ he said. “My boss hopes to have somebody identified over the course of the next two weeks.’’

Osborne has been in the motor industry for 31 years, serving at all of the Big Three carmakers in the US – General Motors, Chrysler and Ford.

He was adamant his departure did not indicate a lack of faith in Ford’s prospects here.

“I retain confidence in Ford Australia,’’ he said.

“The difficulties faced by Ford are faced by every other manufacturer in the industry.

“They’re not endemic to Ford.’’

Osborne has seen the launch of the under-performing Falcon since his arrival, and but said changes he has made during his short tenure will help bring better days for the company in Australia.

“I think I put the company on the road to a better relationship with its dealers, and I think we’ve put together an excellent business plan to put the company on sound footing for the next few years,’’ he said.

“I’ve launched and gotten approval for a different business plan for Ford Australia over the next four to five years.

“(With) the large car segment decline, changes around consumer preferences … in that kind of volatile environment it’s crucial to make changes, and the plan will make a strong market response.’’

He said his successor would have to work towards making Ford Australia a global player in the industry.

“My successor will have to keep an eye on our costs … have to be one of the lowest cost producers in the region … (and match) the highest quality producers in the industry.’’

“We’re on a journey to achieve that.’’

Osborne also signalled that the handover to his successor would not be a drawn-out process.

“I don’t intend on hanging around for months and months,’’ he said.

“This team needs to get on with new leadership.’’

- Carsguide

We truly do appreciate the custom-car scene, in all of its various guises. There is, however, a problem with the custom Prius you see above and in the video embedded after the break. Generally speaking, the goal of modifying a car is to either A) make it go faster or B) make it look better.

When Classe Gustafson, Elvis Häggbom and Kenny Kyrk from Sweden had finished spending $184,000 customizing a Toyota Prius, they had accomplished neither. This Prius-trocity, which was modified for a television show, is anything but subtle. It lost two doors during its transformation from mild-mannered hybrid eco-mobile to whacked out sport compact that just happens to get good fuel economy, though it did get scissor-style portals that are nearly impossible to open in the process. And it also gained a huge honkin’ stereo and the body-kit from a Volvo SUV. The over-the-top paint-job is the final touch. The Hybrid Synergy Drive powertrain, however, went untouched save for the obligatory fart-can exhaust. Nice.

[Source: Wired]

Extreme Toyota Prius