Holden confirms no Bathurst clash with factory closure

HOLDEN will not cease local manufacturing on the same weekend as next year’s Bathurst 1000, avoiding a repeat of Ford’s awkward timing with signing off on the Falcon.

The last ever locally produced Ford Falcon rolled off the Broadmeadows production line on Friday October 7, the same day qualifying was taking place in Bathurst for The Great Race.

This drew the ire of the Ford faithful, motorsport fans, and automotive enthusiasts alike, with many likening it to a serious lack of foresight, or disrespectful planning.

Holden director of communications Sean Poppitt told Wheels the day on which the last Commodore would go down the Elizabeth production line next year “definitely would not be the Bathurst weekend”.

However, Holden is yet to confirm exactly when the last Commodore will be bolted together.

“We haven’t settled on a month [to end Commodore production], let alone an actual date,” Poppitt said. “We’re just working through all the plans. There’s no rush for us to set a date; there’s no internal or external pressures to do so at this point.

“We’re just working through all the different factors, locking in forward volumes, distribution plans for the new Holden Commodore; all of those things that would go into it are still being worked through.

“But we haven’t set a date yet.”

Holden is believed to be considering the timing of the closure to fall around late October or early November as it plans to close off on almost 40 years of Commodore production, and almost 70 years of Australian manufacturing.

The carmaker officially ended Cruze production on October 7, the same day as traditional rival Ford built its last Falcon.

Holden will continue to build around 175 Commodores a day, as well as filling an order for an extra 1000 Chevrolet-badged versions of the car to fill an expected rush from US buyers as they realise the tap will soon turn off on the vehicle they regard as a four-door Camaro.