HSV Gen-F GTS: Imported From Adelaide, But For How Much Longer?

Click here to view the embedded video. Holden and HSV try their hand at the "Imported From Detroit" style car commercial. As someone who has always been partial to Aussie muscle sedans, it's easy for me to say I'm a fan. No doubt the line about cars becoming "smaller, quieter and more vanilla" will resonate with many of us. In a country where the Mazda3 and Toyota Corolla have knocked the Commodore and Ford Falcon off the top perches of the sales leader boards, it carries extra significance. The latest news out of Australia shows that Holden's Australian manufacturing base is barely hanging on, searching for new product in the post-RWD Commodore era and hitting up the Australian government for yet another round of subsidies. The sad fact is that the Commodore, like the soon-to-be-departed Falcon, is an anachronism. As our own Marcelo De Vasconcellos put it Welcome to the brave new world. A world where what's available in your local markets is more influenced by what people predominantly prefer the world over, than whatever the locals may wish for. In this case, that is a more efficiently packaged sedan, and that would suggest a transverse layout, smaller engines and a footprint appropriate for markets beyond Australia. There may be a chance that the next Commodore rides on some kind of Alpha platform, but long-standing rumors suggest that it will in fact resemble every other front-drive GM sedan out there already.Interestingly, an SUV such as the Captiva, has been ruled out for Australian production, despite being cited by some as a potential savoir for Australian car factories. The reality is that a Thai-built Captiva is far more profitable, and that's not going to change any time soon. from The Truth About Cars http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com

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