Aussie Motoring

‘Check back next month’ seems to be the main response when Tom Gorman, Ford Australia’s president was asked what Ford was planning on doing to meet the new competition.

Ford will be releasing an updated Falcon next month but one thing Ford claims it won’t be doing is cutting prices to keep Falcon sales happening.

The industrial dispute involving pars supplier Huon Corporation may be over for Ford and Toyota but Holden is still not receiving the parts they need to continue production.

Ford and Toyota both signed on to a rescue package for the troubled parts supplier but Holden has not yet agreed to it.

Workers at Huon’s Bendigo plant are refusing to make Holden parts and workers at Huon’s Frankston plant - which specialises in Holden parts - have not yet returned to work.

A Holden spokesman admits that this could cause delays to the production of the new VE Commodore.

My brother-in-law drives a Volvo and has done for many years. He is your very typical Volvo driver … well at least he doesn’t wear a hat … but I’m sure you get the picture.

However, I’m not sure you will ever see him in a Volvo like this one.

It’s the new Volvo C30 and it will be released at the Paris Motor Show in September.

The edgy design of the C30 features a unique frameless glass tailgate, a confident stance and the broad shoulders that have become a Volvo design hallmark. The C30 will represent a new segment entry for Volvo. “The new C30 is an ambitious new car for Volvo,” commented Fredrik Arp, President and CEO of Volvo Car Corporation. “It is a car that aims for a group of young singles, or couples, with intense urban lifestyles. These people prioritize excitement in design and driving characteristics, and this car should suit their varied tastes perfectly.”

Global sales of the new C30 are targeted at 65,000 cars annually. Fully 75 percent of those sales are expected to come from Europe, with the largest markets being Italy, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom. Volvo Cars of North America, LLC (VCNA), is currently evaluating the possibility of introducing the new C30 to the U.S. market.

he new Volvo C30 has room for four adults thanks to the two sport bucket rear seats with generous head and leg room. The rear seats are positioned slightly inboard to provide a feeling of space and exceptional outward visibility through the windshield. The space between the seats also makes the thin, visually floating center stack clearly visible through the glass tailgate. The folding rear seats really help meet the needs of the targeted customer’s active lifestyle.

The interior program has been designed to meet the C30 buyers taste for personal choices. Even the base program offers the sporty T-Tech upholstery. “The Volvo C30 is a very exciting car with emotional appeal. We anticipate that the C30’s youthfulness and dynamic design will catch the hearts and minds of people beyond Volvo’s traditional customers,” commented Anne Belec, President and CEO of VCNA.

Putting 218 horsepower to the front wheels, the new C30 is powered by a turbocharged inline five-cylinder engine that produces 236 pound-feet of torque.

When it comes to safety, the new C30 is a true Volvo. Among other things, it will be available with BLIS (Blind Spot Information System), which helps the driver to identify another vehicle in the blind spot at the rear sides of the car.

The front end incorporates the same patented multi-steel structure as the S40 and V50. Combined with airbags and safety belt pretensioners, the C30 offers first class safety. But the C30 wouldn’t be a Volvo if it didn’t also include such standard safety equipment as the Whiplash Protection System, WHIPS, and a Side Impact Protection System with side airbags and the Inflatable Curtain, IC.

Holden have finally announced the fuel consumption figures for the new Holden VE Commodore.

I think most people might have expected better figures than these but most of them are slightly down on the figures for the last Commodore.

The VE Commodore’s fuel consumption varies from 10.9 litres per 100km for the base model Omega with air conditioning through to a wopping 14.4 litres per 100km for manual 6 speed SS and SS V.

Interestingly the other V8 models can only achieve 14.3 litres per 100km when coupled to the 6 speed automatic transmission.

The Holden VE Commodore Pricing list can be found by following the link.

The industrial action at the major car parts supplier Huon Corporation looks set to continue. Talks aimed at ending the industrial action and keeping the company afloat until a buyer could be found came to a halt last night when Toyota and Ford asked for more time to consider the proposals.

Part of the proposal was that Australian car manufacturers would pay 12% more for parts for the next few months.

The current dispute has seen thousands of Ford workers stood down at the Broadmeadow plant and it’s expected that over a thousand more workers at Ford’s Geelong plant will be stood down today.

Edit

Workers at Huon Corporation have now returned to work this morning and if they do Ford is unlikely to stand down the workers at its Geelong plant.

The industrial action by staff at a major parts supplier that has brought production to a halt at Ford and severely affected Holden and Toyota could be over tomorrow.

Sthe staff of Huon Corporation have voted to return to work tomorrow if seven major customers join a rescue package being put together to save their employer.

The Holden VE Commodore is definitely the car on everyone is thinking about at the moment. Even the release of the new Toyota Camry isn’t arousing as much interest - even though it’s more likely to be the vehicle that people would tend to buy in these days of high petrol prices.

If you would like to catch a glimpse of the new VE Commodore in action then follow this link . You’ll some interesting video as well as some news stories about the new Holden Commodore that you might have missed.

Industrial action at a major parts supplier is causing serious problems in the Australian car industry. Due to a lack of parts Ford has stood down staff at Broadmeadows and told them not to report for work on Monday. Staff at Ford’s Geelong plant are likely to be stood down some time next week.

Holden is likely to start standing down production staff from Monday and Toyota is also facing the prospect of standing down staff.

The problems all stem from a walkout of staff at three plants owned by parts supplier Huon which is currently in receivership. Staff walked off the job last Friday in support of other employees who had been retrenched and could lose their entitlements.

Honda have released slightly altered Accord sedans and Odyssey vans into the wild.

Accord
Rear styling changes have been made and include LED tail lamps. Other changes to the sedan include a drive-by-wire throttle, new allowy wheels and alterations to the interior trip

The V6 Accords now include Vehicle Stability assist and satellite navigation has been added to the V6 Luxury.

The interior of the Honda Accord V6 Luxury

Odyssey
Changes to the Odyssey include revised grille, bumpers and rear lights. Side indicators have also been added to the side mirrors. Black leather trim has been added to some of the range on the Honda Odyssey Luxury model and an intergraded in-dash 6 stack CD has also been added to the Odyssey Luxury.

Holden’s new VE Commodore has been launched - although you won’t find one in a showroom just yet. This model is said to be the first all new Commodore since 1997 and despite years of work and a lot of testing Holden have not yet been able to produce fuel consumption figures.

Despite some criticism from the press there is no doubt that the lines of the new VE Commodore look interesting. The angle at which it sits on the road is also interesting for a family sedan.

Holden’s marketing strategy is also interesting. In what is supposed to be car for all Australia you can only get a full-size spare tyre if you pay extra for it. Otherwise your stuck with space-saving spare that has a speed limit of 80km/h.

I wouldn’t want to be stuck out on the Nullabor with a flat tyre and have to then drive to the nearest repair place at 80km/h, would you?

If you want to see more of the new VE Commodore you will find a site dedicated to it here but don’t expect it to load quickly before the release date.