Vfacts July 2010

[whynot]

Originally Posted by Road_Warrior

Ford need to give people a reason to walk into their showrooms and buy their cars.

Amen.

And, when the customer finally gets into the showroom, not to treat them with distain. And, when it comes time to service the vehicle, or fix a warranty problem, treat the customer with respect.

Part of the problem is also with the large dealerships that cover multiple brands. Having multiple brands means that they don’t have to work hard to defend their base. Brand Y is up this month at the expense of Brand X; dealership shrugs their shoulders because it is a zero sum game.

[russellw]

The first set of graphical data has been uploaded to the Tech Portal now.

Apologies for the image quality this month but I'm using the laptop and it lacks PS to fix them with. I'll upload them again over the top of the existing ones when I get a chance.

Cheers
Russ

[Joe5619]

Originally Posted by vztrt

You mean the same country where 2 of their car manufactures went into Ch 11, then had to be bailed by the government?

Yes, yes that would be the one!!!!


Just think, they have a 25% import tax & they still went broke.. What hope do our local ones have??

[bobthebilda]

Originally Posted by Joe5619

Interesting a country the size of US can help protect local jobs with a 25% import tax.. YES a 25% import tax, yet our governemnt just dropped them from 10 to 5%!!

I'm not sure if they apply a Different rate for "pickups" to try and protect that part of the industry, but I am sure you will find that the US market is very under protected. I believe the current "average" import Tariff on a car into the US is only 2.5%.

And as the US and Mexico are part of NAFTA, then I assume any car imports from mexico into the US would be tariff free.

I can assure you, a G8 that was exported to the US, and sold there for approx. $35000 australia dollars, was not carrying a 25% tariff.


Heres an article from a website

The big exception is the "light truck." The 25 percent tariff on pickups went on in 1930, fell to 8.5 percent, went back up and is still at 25 percent today. Virtually all other cars -- from SUVs to sedans, golf carts, and sports cars -- have a 2.5 percent tariff. (Buses and tractors are minor exceptions, with tariffs of 2 percent and zero.) Why the anomalous treatment of pickup trucks? This stems from a trade dispute of the 1960s. The European Community, the six-nation ancestor of today's 25-country European Union, had blocked American chicken sales. The Johnson administration responded by raising the pickup truck tariff from 8.5 percent back to 25 percent. Ducking each of the big trade agreements since the 1960s, the pickup tariff has stayed there ever since.

[vztrt]

Originally Posted by Joe5619

Yes, yes that would be the one!!!!


Just think, they have a 25% import tax & they still went broke.. What hope do our local ones have??

Yes but one company screwed their head on and made a profit during the GFC. So I doubt it was any sorta tariff that saved them.

[vztrt]

NZ car market takes a breather

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...257777000EDF9F

Sales growth eases in New Zealand as stock shortages and nerves make for hard work

6 August 2010

By JACQUI MADELIN in NEW ZEALAND

NEW ZEALAND’S motor industry has notched its seventh consecutive month of increased vehicle sales, despite an easing of market growth in July.

The 5997 passenger and LCV sales for the month represent a rise of 4.5 per cent on July 2009.

The 4446 passenger sales are just 27 units ahead of July last year, with 1551 commercial registrations, up 11 per cent.

Motor Industry Association CEO Perry Kerr said that after six months of continued growth, the MIA was not surprised the new-car market had taken breath.

“Year to date, the numbers of 34,728 are still ahead of our forecasts,” he said. “In the commercial vehicle market, the positive impact of Fieldays is still being felt, which is encouraging for the economy as a whole.”

However, finance company feedback is that dealers had to work hard for sales last month, compounded by stock shortages as lifting markets overseas compete for available supply.

The used import market’s 8105 tally marks a 26.7 per cent increase on July 2009.

Toyota tops the new passenger car and commercial vehicle market with 1031 sales, down 4.5 per cent for 17.9 per cent share, while Ford returns to second spot, its 766 July sales a 6.8 per cent rise for 12.77 per cent share.

Ford NZ managing director Trevor Auger said Falcon 50th anniversary models stimulated showroom traffic, making for a solid month across the board.

“We’ve had trouble getting Ranger stock, but that’s worked itself out so we’ve turned light commercial numbers around,” he said.

But Mr Auger adds: “We didn’t expect July to fall away quite as much as it did; was it an aberration or a warning signal? I guess we’ll find out in a few weeks time.”

Mazda’s 568 sales marked its largest July market share at 9.47 per cent for third, and its second-highest market share on record.

Mazda New Zealand managing director Andrew Clearwater says every model contributed strongly with slow growth driven mainly by fleet replacement as the private buyer remains cautious.

“We’re still calling the year at close to 80,000, with a pre-GST increase spike before October offset by a drop after,” he said.

Holden sits close behind with 561 sales, down 11.1 per cent, with Nissan rounding out the top five on 464 sales, up 14.3 per cent.

Nissan NZ managing director John Manley remains cautious. “July was a much slower turnaround than we’ve seen year to date.

“A lot of factors are affecting the market,” he said. “It’s a cold winter; there was a big month in June. New Zealand has three consecutive months with business confidence down but we see growth as sustainable.”

Mr Manley said his company was having supply or production restraints “so our arrivals aren’t always here when we need them.”

“A lot of franchises are finding it difficult to secure supply of some models, which is positive but might mean some month-on-month fluctuations,” Mr Manley said.

“We’d rather see that; it’s a consolidated impact and if the market is growing globally it’s a good sign. After all, we all know if things go south the first thing to go is motor cars.” Hyundai takes sixth spot, down 10.3 per cent to 408 sales; then Mitsubishi up 63.4 per cent on 384 sales, and Suzuki down 3.5 per cent to 333.

Hyundai chief operating officer Tom Ruddenklau said Hyundai’s drop is caused by stock shortages created by global demand.

“We’ve got an enormous amount of back orders so it’s a timing issue for us,” he said.

Mitsubishi general sales manager sales and marketing Warren Brown says he sells out of Triton each month.

But ASX hit showrooms in late July and immediately sold 83 examples; “We picked ASX confidently, have good volumes landing and our August wholesale numbers are already strong.”

Honda’s back in the top 10 in ninth, up 9.1 per cent to 191 sales, while VW rounds out the top 10, up 22.2 per cent to 176.

Honda NZ managing director Graeme Seymour said the private market was still down 30 per cent, so difficult times could be expected, particularly as low milk prices did not did improve confidence.

“July’s figure indicates Honda is turning a corner, with new models due which will be a catalyst for growth. That said, we remain cautious given the economy is still fragile.”

Top three models for July were Ford Falcon, Toyota Corolla and Mazda3.
NZ top 10 makes July 2010:
Rank Make Sales % Share
1 Toyota 1031 17.2%
2 Ford 766 12.7%
3 Mazda 734 9.4%
4 Holden 561 9.3%
5 Nissan 464 7.7%
6 Hyundai 408 6.8%
7 Mitsubishi 384 6.4%
8 Suzuki 333 5.5%
9 Honda 191 3.2%
10 Volkswagen 176 2.9%
Source: MIA NZ

[Joe5619]

From the above article
"Top three models for July were Ford Falcon, Toyota Corolla and Mazda3"

Does the order of this mean Falcon was the best selling car in NZ for July?? What is wrong wih Ford Aust, if NZ can do why can't Australia??

[Road_Warrior]

Originally Posted by Joe5619

From the above article
"Top three models for July were Ford Falcon, Toyota Corolla and Mazda3"

Does the order of this mean Falcon was the best selling car in NZ for July?? What is wrong wih Ford Aust, if NZ can do why can't Australia??

Different market forces perhaps. But really I don't know, the sheep shaggers have always had the Falcon at number 1 for a long time.

[DanielXR8]

Originally Posted by Joe5619

From the above article
"Top three models for July were Ford Falcon, Toyota Corolla and Mazda3"

Does the order of this mean Falcon was the best selling car in NZ for July?? What is wrong wih Ford Aust, if NZ can do why can't Australia??

What is the distributor and dealers in New Zealand like? Maybe they have their act together and have a better reputation with the buying public?

[russellw]

The second set of graphical data is also now uploaded into the Tech Portal

Cheers
Russ

[XR Martin]

Just remember Australia has the lowest auto tariffs of any Country with its own Auto industry.

[Brazen]

Originally Posted by Road_Warrior

Different market forces perhaps. But really I don't know, the sheep shaggers have always had the Falcon at number 1 for a long time.

its also worth noting that the rental car companies have a much much bigger influence in the new car market in enzed than here, and falcon is a big rental seller over there.

Also i dont think they have that pretentious and ****y 'Ford, of course' slogan over there either haha.

[Brazen]

Originally Posted by Road_Warrior

Different market forces perhaps. But really I don't know, the sheep shaggers have always had the Falcon at number 1 for a long time.

its also worth noting that the rental car companies have a much much bigger influence in the new car market in enzed than here, and falcon is a big rental seller over there.

Also i dont think they have that pretentious and ****y 'Ford, of course' slogan over there either haha.

[Struggo]

Originally Posted by bmorris

We shouldn't have tariffs, people shouldn't be punished for wanting a product not made locally.

However... the government should do more to support local manufacturing. In the end we can't make cars locally at the same price as in China or Korea. Therefore, the government needs to step in and help cover some of the extra cost or help pay for the cost of making the locals more efficient and dynamic.

They do. There are two ways to support an industry,

1/ Tariffs
2/ Tax increases to support your proposal above.

I don't know about you, but tariffs should not be as low as they are, that is unless it is a level playing field, which it is not.

[bobthebilda]

I was quite suprised when i read the cars guide pullout in the News Corp newspaper this morning.
Mitsubishi had their full page add on page 10
Mazda had their full page add on page 12
Hyundai had their full page add on page 14
Nissan had their full page add on page 15
Mitsubishi had double page add on pages 18 and 19
Honda had half a page on page 20
Subaru had half a page on page 21
Suzuki had half a page on 22
Renault had half a page on 22
Jeep had half a page on 23
Toyota had a full page on the backcover

I guess Holden and Ford are doing so well, they dont have to advertise.

[prydey]

maybe ford and holden are a bit strapped for cash?

[MAGPIE]

Originally Posted by Joe5619

From the above article
"Top three models for July were Ford Falcon, Toyota Corolla and Mazda3"

Does the order of this mean Falcon was the best selling car in NZ for July?? What is wrong wih Ford Aust, if NZ can do why can't Australia??

Yes, Falcon top (a rare achievement)

[vztrt]

http://theage.drive.com.au/motor-new...817-127be.html

SUVs grab record share of sales
By Garry Shilson-Josling, AAP Economist
August 17, 2010 - 8:30AM



Sports-utility vehicles (SUVs) made up a record percentage of total vehicle sales in July, ABS figures show.

Some time in the not-too-distant future we may all be riding battery-powered bicycles or driving mini-cars powered by fermented corn, but for the time being, SUVs rule.

Since before the industrial revolution, when the vast stores of energy stored in coal and gas lay virtually untouched under the ground and beneath the sea bed, humans have increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by approximately 870 quadrillion kilograms.

A quadrillion is a one followed by 15 zeros.

Of course, the Earth is rather large.

It has a surface area of about 510 quadrillion square metres.

Even so, that additional carbon dioxide works out to about 1.7 kilograms for every square metre of the Earth's surface.

If concentrated at ground level, it would form an invisible blanket about 86 centimetres deep covering the entire globe.

And that blanket is getting a little bit deeper every day, thanks in small measure to the appeal of high-riding four-wheel drives, with their capacity to handle whatever nature can throw at them on the way to the mall.

SUVs are defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) as "vehicles designed as off road vehicles with four wheel drive capability, high ground clearance and a wagon body type, seating up to nine people".

It includes two-wheel drive versions of those 4WDs, but excludes pick-ups.

In July, SUV sales totalled 20,405 after seasonal adjustment, making up 24 per cent of total sales, an all-time record.

Excluding non-passenger vehicles - trucks, pick-ups and the like - the market share accounted for by SUVs was 30 per cent, also a record high, the ABS figures showed.

Fifteen years ago, SUVs made up only eight per cent of the total and nine per cent of passenger vehicles.

To some extent, the popularity of SUVs is a side-effect of the demise of station wagons, which also had a strong appetite for fuel.

And not all SUVs are the bull-bar-armed battering rams weighing in at more than two and half tonnes, whose drivers feel a sense of security in direct proportion to the anxiety induced in anyone on the other side of the windscreen.

But there is still no doubting the growing popularity of the SUV.

Like many species now existing only as fossils, SUVs may one day become extinct.

And, like past extinctions, climate change may have a significant part to play in their demise.

But for now they are clearly in the ascendancy.

SUV sales in July were 33 per cent higher than a year before, while sales of other passenger vehicles were up by only four per cent and non-passenger vehicle sales rose by 12 per cent.

[jpd80]

SUV sales in July were 33 per cent higher than a year before, while sales of other passenger vehicles were up by only four per cent and non-passenger vehicle sales rose by 12 per cent.

Which only goes to prove we need the updated Territory ASAP
and either Kuga or a USA Escape with 6-speed auto transmission yesterday..

I mean an average of 300/month for Escape is down right pathetic, something needs to change quick.

[vztrt]

Originally Posted by jpd80

Which only goes to prove we need the updated Territory ASAP

That and the diesel variant should have have been out when it was ready.

[Road_Warrior]

Originally Posted by jpd80

Which only goes to prove we need the updated Territory ASAP
and either Kuga or a USA Escape with 6-speed auto transmission yesterday..

I mean an average of 300/month for Escape is down right pathetic, something needs to change quick.

This. Ford need to get their act together. The time for making excuses has passed and the time for getting runs on the board arrived months ago.

[vztrt]

Hyundai profits from push upmarket

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...25779000148834

Hyundai ‘hare’ lines up against Mazda ‘tortoise’ in sales – and profitability

31 August 2010

By RON HAMMERTON

MAZDA and Hyundai are two of the most watched car importers on the Australian market.

Separated by just 0.2 percentage points of market share – Mazda 8.2 per cent share to Hyundai’s 8.0 per cent – after seven months of showroom showdowns this year, both companies are in with a chance of snatching third place in the market if Ford Australia fails to get a wriggle on.

Last month, Mazda came within one unit of tipping former owner Ford out of its long-held third spot, and few would bet against Hyundai reaching the podium in the medium term.

Although the two importers have never been considered natural rivals, with ‘tortoise’ Mazda building its Japanese premium position compared with ‘the hare’ Hyundai’s cheap and cheerful proposition, the gap is narrowing.

Hyundai unashamedly wants to emulate the Japanese makers and – like almost every product coming from Korea these days – is making major headway in both quality and ‘bang for buck’. Think Samsung versus Sony.

The common perception in Australia, particularly in the motor trade, is that Hyundai has been buying share of the Australia motor market, using its relatively cheap manufacturing base in Korea – and now India – to make motorists an offer too good to refuse while also eschewing profit for volume.

Like most of the Japanese car-makers, Mazda has been fighting back on this front, drawing more models from its joint manufacturing base with Ford in Thailand where lower costs and a free trade agreement with Australia help to cut its offshore overheads.

While we will never know the full story on supply costs – they are not only carefully guarded secrets but hugely complex – we can look at the financials on the Australian side to get some clue as to the mindset of the two protagonists.

For two decades, Mazda Australia has been a model of profit consistency, finishing in the net-profit red only four times in that period.

A more interesting way of looking at the profits is the return as a percentage of sales revenue. More often that not, Mazda has returned between two and four per cent on sales revenue, peaking at 4.5 per cent in 2004, when it made a record $54 million net profit (although a change to the company’s financial year confused matters).

Through the ‘noughties’, its return has averaged about 3.0 per cent, dipping to 1.6 per cent in the financial year ending in 2009 after taking a hit from the global financial crisis.

Hyundai, on the other hand, has fluctuated more readily, dipping into the red six times in the past couple of decades. Its best result was a $28.5 million net profit in 1996, when it was being distributed by an independent importer.

Back then, in the mid-1990s, Hyundai’s percentage return on sales revenue in Australia topped out at 5.8 per cent in 1995, closely followed by 5.7 per cent in 1996.

In the late-1990s, however, the Hyundai profit took a hammering, and for five out of the six subsequent years Hyundai’s profit return on sales revenue was negative.

It was not until head office took control of the local operation in 2004 that the company got its nose back in front. Since then, Hyundai has drawn a profitable percentage – if only a small one – in all but one year (2008).

Its best return under factory control was 3.3 per cent in the financial year ending 2005, but last year it came back from a rocky 2008 to lock in a 2.9 per cent profit on revenue – just when many other importers were booking major dips, even major losses, as they tried to stabilise sales while riding out the GFC.

It is no coincidence that Hyundai’s sales were also soaring in 2008-09, swimming against the GFC tide as buyers looked to the budget brands, which allowed the company and its dealers to pocket a healthier margin.

It has been a long haul for many of those dealers, who have been largely reliant on F&I (finance and insurance) sales and spare parts business to make ends meet.

For them, the move into more sophisticated territory is a welcome advance – one that takes the brand one step closer to Mazda and its premium position.

The question is whether Hyundai will settle for slow progress as it nears a podium sales finish, or continue to shovel on the coal.

[big_landau]

looks like the falcon maybe headed out to pasture like the valiant,will be a sad day.

[g220ba]

Originally Posted by big_landau

looks like the falcon maybe headed out to pasture like the valiant,will be a sad day.

We really don't need to go through this again do we?

[Road_Warrior]

We'll see how August's sales panned out.

[Franco Cozzo]

Its sad to see how Ford dealerships are compared to others, with warranty issues etc. Ford Australia needs to get out there and create/enforce the rules.

I used to work at a Honda dealership, our servicing was expensive but we took care of our customers warranty wise, our warranty room was stacked to the roof a few times. If something was just out of warranty, we'd do it at half cost to them too.

We'd also have Honda Japan and Honda Australia out to our dealership all the time making sure everything was done by the book and to the letter.

[mik]

i could be wrong but i reckon a lot of potential customers for fords may be holding off , there`s been plenty of magazine talk about new engines rangeing from eco boost to Coyote in the near future.
BigDamo as for Ford dealerships i don`t know that you can single out ford dealerships, no doubt some need to lift their game , i`d put money on it not all Honda dealerships are exemplery, or holden or suzuki,etc etc .

[Windsor220]

Originally Posted by Big Damo

Its sad to see how Ford dealerships are compared to others, with warranty issues etc. Ford Australia needs to get out there and create/enforce the rules.

I used to work at a Honda dealership, our servicing was expensive but we took care of our customers warranty wise, our warranty room was stacked to the roof a few times. If something was just out of warranty, we'd do it at half cost to them too.

We'd also have Honda Japan and Honda Australia out to our dealership all the time making sure everything was done by the book and to the letter.

Ford and Holden would have a lot more warranty claims than Honda though.