Holden pushes pause on Commodore and Equinox production

Friday, 19 October 2018

Holdens are no longer built in Australia, but they are built in many different countries around the world. So where exactly is your Holden from?

Following months of record low sales, Holden has taken the extraordinary move of halting production on a number of models, including the European-sourced Commodore liftback and wagon, as well as the Mexican-built Equinox SUV.

A string of worst-ever monthly sales results - the company sold just 3,927 cars in July, its lowest number since its inception in 1948 - has seen recently-appointed Holden boss, and former Toyota Australia president Dave Buttner, negotiate a temporary halt in production with the blessing of General Motors top brass in Detroit.

'The sales were going like that,' Buttner said - pointing to the floor - in an interview with Australian website whichcar.com.au. 'We're trying to get back to a reasonable stock carry level by the end of the year, so we can get into the new year in a healthy position.'

The Commodore has struggled in the Australian market since it's transition to a FWD imported model, so Holden has hit the pause button on production.

Sales of the Commodore have slumped in the Australian market since its change from a locally-produced RWD model to an imported FWD/AWD model and Holden has requested the Opel factory in Germany not build any more until 2019.

**READ MORE

Holden boss Dave Buttner, a hugely experienced industry veteran, says the production halt is a 'one off.'

* Holden NZ holds the key to solving Australia's sales crisis

* Can diesel save the Commodore?

* New Zealand now leads the world in Holden Spark sales**

But it is the Equinox SUV that has struggled the most, with just 3,621 selling in the first nine months of this year, a number that the top sellers in its segment sell in six weeks, according to Which Car.

Buttner, a hugely experienced industry veteran who was tempted out of retirement by Holden in an effort to reverse its sales slide, told Which Car that stopping production is about being realistic and accepting Holden has an uphill battle to build sales.

'If you don't recognise the state of your sales and own up to it quickly you've got a pretty huge pipeline coming towards you,' he said. 'You have to be able to turn production down, but the idea is that you don't have to do that often.'

According to some sources, Holden has recently still been clearing cars produced in 2017, a situation far from ideal in the last quarter of the year, which is something Buttner acknowledges, saying 'this is a fairly unique situation where we allowed the stock to keep coming towards us', but is adamant the pause in production is a one-off and is 'about positioning the brand for challenges ahead.'