Is Holden finished in Australia – The short answer is YES but they haven’t announced it yet, or dont know it yet. It seems that everything you look at and the continual assertions that they are committed to Australia all seem to indicate that the once iconic Australian brand is on the way out.
I have been approached by about 8-10 readers over the last two weeks asking if its ok to buy a Holden as they are worried that Holden might be closing down. Probably a more pertinent question from their minds after the INFINITI announcement.
The continual sliding sales, a hotchpotch product line up without any real plan or direction, disgruntled dealers and a younger demographic that has little affiliation with the Brand all add up to problems for the manufacturer.
Their fate was sealed in reality when Keating removed tariffs all those years ago. Toyota has an almost unassailable position without local manufacturing, Ford is riding the Ranger and Mustang wave and not much else.
Australian automotive history is littered with brands that come and go as does the world, but we are a small market, a right hand drive market and that simply wont suit some brands.
The issue is what happens after a Brand pulls out of Australia. In the INFINITI case, the parent Nissan will honor all service, warranty and spare parts obligations as did Holden when Opel pulled out.
I asked the Holden PR person the following “I am writing a story about what happens after a manufacturer exits Australia for the owners. And should buyers buy vehicles from companies with shrinking market share.”
Could you provide a comment please about what would happen if Holden exits Australia.
All I got was an off the record response thus cannot be printed here.
It will be a huge blow should the Holden Brand cease to exist in Australia, perhaps more than any other Brand, including Ford, but it is possible and to my mind seems likely.
So to all those readers that have asked me if they should buy a Holden, (insert Ford as well) my response is to buy the car that suits your needs and has good fit for purpose. If it happens to be a Holden, drive a hard bargain because if the Brand does leave, then the resale values will drop dramatically. Just look at what happened to SAAB and Opel models.
You will have some outlet for servicing and warranty and spare parts, That is our legislation, but you will have hassles.
Remember this is purely my opinion and nothing from Holden or Ford has directly led me to form this opinion.
