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15/01/2012
By EWAN KENNEDY in Detroit
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By now you will have heard from the daily media the good news that Australian governments have agreed to assist the local car industry during these hard times.
I thought you might like to hear about my thoughts from the inside after participating in the two press conferences – firstly with Holden, then with Ford – about co-investment between the government and car makers. Ford has already gained approval for government financial aid, and Holden is “very optimistic” it will obtain similar assistance.
Firstly, let me answer the criticism that Australian taxpayers’ money is being used to prop up giant multinational corporations. While this is true on the surface, keep in mind that governments in many other countries are doing the same thing. If Australia is silly enough to go for the mythical ‘level playing field’ argument our car industry will be wiped out, never to return.
Wise governments realise that viable industries employ tens of thousands of Australians, either directly or indirectly in the auto industry. It’s not just the car industry that’s receiving assistance from governments, the mining and agriculture industries also get their share.
Governments use their financial resources to protect jobs when times are tough, and reap the benefits by way of taxation when times are good.
During the discussions about the assistance deals with the car makers, the local manufactures had to hand over all the necessary internal financial documents to government specialists for scrutiny.
It’s a requirement of the governments’ assistance that the money is specifically for improvements to local cars’ green credentials and safety features, not simply for general engineering.
The two press conferences confirmed my feeling that Senator Kim Carr, the Australian government industry minister who was at both the Holden and Ford meetings, is one of the most outgoing and enthusiastic people I’ve ever met. He truly has the needs of Australian manufacturing industry at heart and is continually pushing hard to get what he wants. Carr reminds me of Henry VIII in build, facial hair and outgoing attitude to life – an interesting guy.
While being enthusiastic, Carr (great name for an advocate for the motor vehicle industry!) is realistic about the vehicle business and was adamant in reminding everyone that the days of cars being fully designed and built in Australia have gone forever. These days our local engineers and stylists compete on the international market.
Somewhat bizarrely, the biggest competitors of Australian car makers are often against the equivalent divisions of their own companies worldwide. Car makers’ head offices get divisions within their global organisations to put forward business proposals – and the best one wins.
Thus we have a situation where Holden engineers have done major work on cars such as the Cadillacs, Buicks and other GM models. Some of these will never be sold in Australia, but the engineering expertise gained by our local guys and gals is invaluable
Holden chief, Mark Devereux, an American who has only been in Australia for a year, already has a strong understanding of Australian car culture. While appreciating the passion amongst local revheads for the local industry, he also makes it clear that times have changed. He says local car enthusiasts now need to take pride in the global work being done by Australians, not just in the Aussie cars they produce.
If Kim Carr reminds me of Henry VIII, Mike Devereux, with his gym-honed appearance, shaved head and slightly aggressive stance, looks as though he should be working with the tough guys in the factory stamping plant, not sitting in the chief’s seat. It’s a toss up was to whether Carr or Devereux has the more outgoing personality!
In complete contrast, Ford’s Australian president, American Bob Graziano, is just the opposite, quiet and mild-mannered, at least on the surface, no doubt he can be aggressive when required, he is pleasant to talk with and shows compassion for those doing it tough at present.
Obviously, negations between Holden, Ford and the Australia governments have been going on for months and the heads of both companies met their global chiefs immediately before the Detroit Motor Show. They then called in Australian journalists attending the show to let them know of the good news.
The overall head of the Ford Motor Company, Alan Mulally called into the Australian Ford press conference for a few minutes, so obviously takes our market very seriously.
Check out Mulally’s Facebook fan page and you will find more than one message from American Ford enthusiasts pleading with him to import Aussie Falcons to the USA. The first Australian Falcons came from the US in the early 1960s, but the nameplate is long gone on the other side of the Pacific and American car nuts would love to be able to buy a rear-drive Falcon.
Realistically it’s going to be the other way around and Australian buyers may well be driving a front-drive Ford Taurus with Falcon badges sometime after 2018. At least it now looks as though that car will be built in Australia with extensive local input to the design. |
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