'Major announcement' from Toyota this afternoon

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by mik

does volvo make any cars here ? i have learned something if that is the case, as for trucks, they are in a different league i think, how many parts are made here, not a lot i expect.

Volvo Cars and Volvo Trucks are two separate entities.

Volvo cars are owned by a Chinese company

[fte50]

I guess its fair to say that it took Australia 100 yrs of industrialisation to achieve its current levels of manufacturing excellence, yet totally destroyed it within 1 or 2 short decades.

Either way, there cant be no denying Australia /ns will be worse off as a result and the negative effects will flow for decades to come.
As an Australian, I actually feel disgusted & embarrassed of late, we must be looked upon as the dh of the western world, however the real problem is our children will judge us harsher.

Forget about the bullcrap fluff talk and new never gonna happen opportunities, our only salvation now is go into the bay, sail in on a homemade raft looking knackered, pretend u cant speak English, and claim welfare for life ..... after all it seems to be our biggest growth industry.

[jpblue1000]

Originally Posted by GasOLane

Volvo Cars and Volvo Trucks are two separate entities.

Volvo cars are owned by a Chinese company

yep Zhejiang Geely Holding Group proof the Chinese can make good products!
and they make over 415,000 cars a year.

JP

[b0son]

Originally Posted by fte50

I guess its fair to say that it took Australia 100 yrs of industrialisation to achieve its current levels of manufacturing excellence, yet totally destroyed it within 1 or 2 short decades.

we deluded ourselves into thinking that we could add value by adding bureaucracy. all we did was add cost.

[SPArKy_Dave]

All the Govco has to do, in order to fix this, is look after AUSTRALIA's interests..... and impose an import tariff on imported vehicles.
Just like Thailand and other countries do to protect their industries.

Force a government fleet policy to buy ONLY Australian vehicles (where possible), and don't place restrictions on the number of cylinders a vehicle can have.
Same goes for local government - shire councils, etc.

Put fuel efficiency aside for a bit, in the name of preserving the industry.


Import tariffs in particular, would level the playing field a bit - push people to buy local, which would make it worthwhile to manufacture/assemble here,
hence make it easier to purchase local.
And so it would go.

Also, a government initiated 'BUY AUSSIE, SUPPORT OUR INDUSTRY' campaign wouldn't hurt either.

[DanielXR8]

Originally Posted by cheap

Didn't take long to blame Abbott - He's been in power for 6 months, inherited an economic mess with +$300 Billion debt, yet people expect him to be able to change a trajectory that the previous mob of genius had taken 6 years to set.

I suppose steadfast refusing to rescind the CO2 tax is part of their spectacular visionary economic plan for Australia. Lets face it, the CO2 tax has worked a treat so far...

They might have been in power for six months, but for years before that they apparently had all the answers. Now Abbott is in office, the silence is deafening.

[DanielXR8]

Originally Posted by GT2

I quite certain that Thai workers earn more that "a bowl of rice a month".

Perhaps a better questions is how low do you think your fellow Australians standard of living needs to be before you are happy?

[DanielXR8]

Originally Posted by PlukaDuck

NEVER WILL I BUY A NEW FOREIGN MADE CAR.
Until today of course.
Wait I have 1 option left to up hold my credibility and dignity as an Australian.

I will buy a AUSTRALIAN MADE PUSHBIKE.
And with the new laws will own the road. I will get great enjoyment banking up 5 kilometres of traffic full of foreign cars with there drivers who don't care about there fellow Australians.
This countries LAW MAKERS have gone mad so I might as well join them


QUEENSLAND drivers will soon have to stay at least one metre from any cyclist on the road - but State Transport Minister Scott Emerson says he is against changing current helmet laws.
Cyclists will also face harsher penalties for breaking road rules.
While the State Government will continue to consider the recommendations of a new report into cycling, from early next year motorists will have to keep a distance of one metre from cyclists in 60km/h or slower zones and more than 1.5 metres in faster areas.

You can buy an Aussie made Bushmaster. Fuel economy is terrible, but you can part anywhere you like.

[PlukaDuck]

Originally Posted by GasOLane

And what do these two posts have to do with the topic??

Your a Moderator driving displaying a foreign car. You should be able to figure it out

[2011G6E]

Originally Posted by SPArKy_Dave

Import tariffs in particular, would level the playing field a bit - push people to buy local, which would make it worthwhile to manufacture/assemble here,
hence make it easier to purchase local.

...and if the locally made cars aren't what people want? You have no problem with people being "pushed" to buy large sedans when that's plainly not what people need or desire anymore? We wanted a twin cab four wheel drive...we got rid of our large Australian made sedan to get one, because it didn't suit our needs anymore.
Forcing people to buy cars they don't want just breeds lazy manufacturers. If they know they're selling to a captive audience who doesn't have a choice, they're laughing, and don't even have to try harder to make cars better, especially if they're not being exported to a more demanding purchaser overseas who expects quality merchandise.

Falcon and Commodore failed for one reason: they're not selling. They're not the cars people want anymore, and times have moved on from a three box large six cylinder sedan. Tariffs won't fix that.

[SumoDog68]

Originally Posted by PlukaDuck

Your a Moderator driving displaying a foreign car. You should be able to figure it out

Foreign car ? Cars are truly a multinational product - any of the locally produced cars are produced by companies that are owned by countries other than Australia which would make them foreign in your language.
GM and Ford australian divisions were producing unique local designs until now when parent companies decided one Ford (GM) is the way to go. Just because Maccas makes a burger in Australia it does not mean it is an Aussie burger...

[Elks]

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

...and if the locally made cars aren't what people want? ".........................

That's right, Ford got caned for not making the cars that people want. People don't want hulking V8's or old tech Faclons. They want hi tech fuel efficient hybrid cars, wait what. Oh no they don't. Hybrid Camrys are gone too....

I don't know what the real answer is.

[buggerlugs]

http://www.news.com.au/finance/busin...-1226822990578
Estimates of 50,000 jobs to go..............

[Trump]

Originally Posted by buggerlugs

http://www.news.com.au/finance/busin...-1226822990578
Estimates of 50,000 jobs to go..............

A very conservative estimate...

[b0son]

Originally Posted by Loud_Noises

A very conservative estimate...

Isnt that assuming the entire component industry goes? Surely at least some of them were planning for this? I've read of some that have been shifting their product mix to be able to continue post-car industry.

[TheSneakiness]

Originally Posted by Bossxr8

No, the death knell was when Abbott made it clear they would not be giving the manufacturers another cent.

Bzzzzt. Wrong.

The country was effed the moment that red headed clown before Tony got the carbon tax through parliament. No advanced country in this world pays what we do for electricity, so how was it EVER going to be sustainable for the bigger companies who ALSO had to pay MORE as a high usage entity here?

Answer, it wasn't. And it never will be. Seeds may have been planted decades ago, but it wasn't decided until the Greens got in the back pocket of the Gillard government.

Don't need anymore proof than that.

[jpblue1000]

Originally Posted by SumoDog68

Foreign car ? Cars are truly a multinational product - any of the locally produced cars are produced by companies that are owned by countries other than Australia which would make them foreign in your language.
GM and Ford australian divisions were producing unique local designs until now when parent companies decided one Ford (GM) is the way to go. Just because Maccas makes a burger in Australia it does not mean it is an Aussie burger...

Unless its got beetroot and pinaple!

[cheap]

A couple of thoughts from Larry Pickering - worth reading his blog as it speaks volumes of truth

http://pickeringpost.com/story/toyot...ing-tale-/2759

TOYOTA, A TELLING TALE...

A panellist on a current affairs program related an instance many would have missed. Toyota CEO, Akio Toyoda, was giving a luncheon address to a business group, (paraphrased):

“Two years ago we were working so hard to create conditions whereby we could stay in this wonderful country and produce cars.

"We had restructured the business and, despite acceding to recent union demands for even better wages and conditions, we were seeing a dim light flickering at the end of the tunnel.

“We were honest with our employees and had explained the seriousness of the company’s economic plight.

"They had assured us of their cooperation, so we determined to all pull together in a desperate attempt keep the company viable.

“There was an air of camaraderie, a feeling of hope.

“It was Australia Day that week and it fell on a Thursday. On the Friday thirty percent of our workforce didn’t turn up, thirty percent called in sick.

“That’s when I finally realised we were stuffed.”

http://pickeringpost.com/story/oh-wh...-feeling-/2756

OH WHAT A NASTY FEELING...

Australian car makers have been living on subsidies and borrowed time since 1974 when manufactured vehicle units peaked at 498,000. That figure has slowly fallen to less than 200,000 last year despite a rapidly increasing population.

“But all of the world’s major car makers are subsidised”, complains Labor. True! And that should work fine on the international subsidy merry-go-round, but the missing element in that argument for Australia is one of scale.

The world’s major car makers include China, the European Union, US, Japan, Germany (separately), Japan, India, Brazil, South Korea and an emerging Thailand.

Now in case you hadn’t noticed, all these countries’ populations somewhat exceed that of little Aussie’s piddling 23 million. The concept of Australia continuing to subsidise multiple car makers with billions of taxpayer funds that can never be repaid is absurd. Let’s get fair dinkum here; it costs Australia twice what it costs other countries to make a damned car.

That impost is made up of the high dollar, relentless tariff reductions on imports, free trade agreements, an unnecessary carbon tax and the highest labour costs in the world, courtesy of the loudest complainants, the unions.
Development and machining costs remain the same no matter how many or how few cars are sold. Therefore those static costs have had to be amortised over fewer and fewer units.

Labor insists the Government should keep throwing good money after bad to keep unions, their members and entire uneconomic industries afloat. Blame can fairly be laid at the feet of unions but in the end it was the economy of scale, or the lack of it, that killed the Aussie car maker.

[TheSneakiness]

Originally Posted by cheap

TOYOTA, A TELLING TALE...

A panellist on a current affairs program related an instance many would have missed. Toyota CEO, Akio Toyoda, was giving a luncheon address to a business group, (paraphrased):

“Two years ago we were working so hard to create conditions whereby we could stay in this wonderful country and produce cars.

"We had restructured the business and, despite acceding to recent union demands for even better wages and conditions, we were seeing a dim light flickering at the end of the tunnel.

“We were honest with our employees and had explained the seriousness of the company’s economic plight.

"They had assured us of their cooperation, so we determined to all pull together in a desperate attempt keep the company viable.

“There was an air of camaraderie, a feeling of hope.

“It was Australia Day that week and it fell on a Thursday. On the Friday thirty percent of our workforce didn’t turn up, thirty percent called in sick.

“That’s when I finally realised we were stuffed.”

See bolded. If that doesn't sink in for all of you who want the BEST conditions ever then nothing will. Imagine you are the head of a company, and your company hires 1000 people and 300 do not turn up as per the example above.

And you still have to pay them. Despite being down around 2250 man hours of work and production.

[EDManual]

rediculous that people call in sick like that. Embarassing, and they lose their jobs and deserve it sadly.
Why couldnt they sack EVERYONE and start again without unions?

[mr smith]

When I worked for one of the big three, I remember being on arvo shift and turning up to see the department look like a ghost town. 14 out of 31 had pulled a sickie, that department is long gone and that plant soon will be as well. I believe our labour laws rather than wages are a MAJOR reason the car manufacturers are leaving. You pretty much cannot be sacked from a large unionised company in Australia.

[Vormund]

“It was Australia Day that week and it fell on a Thursday. On the Friday thirty percent of our workforce didn’t turn up, thirty percent called in sick.

“That’s when I finally realised we were stuffed.”

Not surprised. FWIW, the last time Australia Day fell on a Thursday it was in 2012.

[csv8]

Maybe, we will get Camry's with better specifications. I hired a base Camry in America and it was better specced than ours !!!

[johnydep]

Originally Posted by fte50

I guess its fair to say that it took Australia 100 yrs of industrialisation to achieve its current levels of manufacturing excellence, yet totally destroyed it within 1 or 2 short decades.

Either way, there cant be no denying Australia /ns will be worse off as a result and the negative effects will flow for decades to come.
As an Australian, I actually feel disgusted & embarrassed of late, we must be looked upon as the dh of the western world, however the real problem is our children will judge us harsher.

Forget about the bullcrap fluff talk and new never gonna happen opportunities, our only salvation now is go into the bay, sail in on a homemade raft looking knackered, pretend u cant speak English, and claim welfare for life ..... after all it seems to be our biggest growth industry.

England / UK lost all their automotive industry - car, truck & motorcycles. They are now a powerhouse of other industry.

Australia can do the same.

[MercurySilver]

Originally Posted by EDManual

rediculous that people call in sick like that. Embarassing, and they lose their jobs and deserve it sadly.
Why couldnt they sack EVERYONE and start again without unions?

sweet
you and me can get a job there and work for $12 an hr with no overtime rates and two weeks annual leave a year, then pay for the highest electricity in the world (top 3), pay 5% on your home loan while other countries are paying around one to two and then feed and clothe your kids at the same time
yup
unions members deserve to lose their jobs because they were too greedy

those pesky unions and union members
theyve killed this country

[dddd]

Originally Posted by Rapid_Axe

Bzzzzt. Wrong.

The country was effed the moment that red headed clown before Tony got the carbon tax through parliament. No advanced country in this world pays what we do for electricity, so how was it EVER going to be sustainable for the bigger companies who ALSO had to pay MORE as a high usage entity here?

Answer, it wasn't. And it never will be. Seeds may have been planted decades ago, but it wasn't decided until the Greens got in the back pocket of the Gillard government.

Don't need anymore proof than that.

Actually I believe it was stuffed even before that. I feel it started the moment Rudd handed power over to the unions with the new industrial regulations. Its simply no different to putting a bunch of children in charge of a lolly shop and, just like children when the whole thing fails, they blame everyone else but themselves.

We should also not forget Rudd's renewable energy policy that, combined with the Carbon Tax, has sent our energy costs from the second cheapest in the world, to the second dearest in a matter of seven years.

I've said this was going to happen for the last five years now. I wish I'd been wrong. What I can't understand is how people couldn't see it coming.

In the end I have very little sympathy for the whole situation, it was plain greed and ignorance that has largely contributed to the downfall of the industry. Hell even when it was obvious the end was near, the unions blocked Toyota from negotiating a possible salvage plan with its own workers.

One day the people will realise the unions true interest is in power not people, the people are being used simply as their tools. The Union (or Labor, same thing) is certainly not like it used to be 30-40 years ago.

[MercurySilver]

people do realize that unions put what workers want and ask for yeah??
union reps dont come in ranting and raving saving you should ask for this thats what we think so jsut shut up and do it
PEOPLE tell the unions what they want
and why do people, every day joe blows want so much an hr in pay??
becasue they need to pay the friggin bills that are ludicrously high in this county, and still would liek to live the classic aussie lifestyle
sadly
that dream was long gone when they decided to privatize everything and now we pay thru the roof for utilities

if i paid 30 to 40 percent less for electricity and my mortgage was at half the interest rate id accept 5 bucks less an hr
most people would

too late now
i blame the government for the closure of our car industry

[RJx307]

So who is going to be the genius in the next 10-15 years to bring back an "aussie car" likely better than what will be offered on the market and probably become a billionare based on that? lol Anyone here?

I can see it happening eventually...

[Trump]

Originally Posted by johnydep

England / UK lost all their automotive industry - car, truck & motorcycles. They are now a powerhouse of other industry.

Australia can do the same.

Despite that Top Gear mini film that showcased British manufacturing, the real story is a far cry from that.

[SPArKy_Dave]

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

...
Falcon and Commodore failed for one reason: they're not selling. They're not the cars people want anymore, and times have moved on from a three box large six cylinder sedan. Tariffs won't fix that.

If fuel is made cheaper, and import tariffs are imposed, I beg to differ.
We are not Europe - we do not have suburb after suburb of narrow terrace estates, with cobblestone laneways.
Large wheelbases crap all over the little buzz boxes, in terms of how they handle our vast road network.

Given the financial option, I reckon people would go back to large sedans.
Humans aren't getting any smaller.
(thou the carparks are)