Motorsport: Murphy Joins Ingall as new Castrol Edge team

Murphy Joins Ingall - Castrol Edge Team

FOUR-TIME Bathurst 1000 race winner Greg Murphy has refreshed his career by being named driver of the new Castrol Edge car in next year's V8 Supercar Championship.
The car will be run by Queensland-based Paul Morris Motorsports as the partner to the Holden Commodore raced by Russell Ingall under the Supercheap livery.

Murphy announced along with Russell Ingall – nicknamed The Enforcer – as one of the new Castrol Edge V8 drivers for the 2010 Supercar Championship entered by Paul Morris Motorsports.

Both Commodores are being built by PMM on a design by championship-winning Triple Eight Race Engineering which completes the works on the cars before handing them back to PMM.
Although Castrol, and its Edge brand, has had some exposure on the Steven Richards' Falcon in the Ford Performance Racing team in recent years, this new deal will give it a bolder presence on the Greg Murphy No 51car.
Murphy, 37, is a veteran of the sport, having raced in V8s for more than 12 years, and that after racing in the two-litre SuperTouring category.
In his time in V8s he has won the Bathurst 1000 race four times, has been runner-up in the V8 Supercar Championship twice and holds the fastest-lap record at the Bathurst mountain circuit.
He almost won the Bathurst race again this year with Mark Skaife, but was robbed by a safety car intervention; the pair finished fourth.
At the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide Murphy has taken two second places and a third place.
He has just come out of an ordinary year with the Tasman-Sprint Gas team which has disbanded and he fits perfectly Castrol's need for a proven driver.
"I am very lucky to be in this position," Murphy said today at the unveiling in Queensland.
"To be driving a Castrol-backed, Triple Eight-built Holden Commodore for one of V8 Supercars' leading teams, Paul Morris Motorsports, in 2010 in extremely exciting for me."
PMM owner Paul Morris said Castrol had had a long and successful history in Australian motorsport.
"The key to achieving success is having a top-line driver, someone who can get the most out of a car and drag it up to the front - without doubt that's Greg Murphy."

V8 Supercars: SGR ANNOUNCES CLOSURE

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V8Supercars: TASMAN QUITS V8 RACING

Sprint Gas Racing may have announced its closure but it certainly hasn’t taken its foot of the accelerator taking two top 10 results from the weekend’s racing in Western Australia.
Jason Bargwanna drove a superb race to finish seventh, adding to Greg Murphy’s eighth place in yesterday’s shorter race.
It was one of its best performances this year, showing that the team might be closing its doors but it certainly hasn’t given up on good results.
“We had a good race and the team gave me a good strategy,” Bargwanna said.
“Soft tyres were definitely an advantage, but you needed to use them at the right time.
“We knew that we would get forty-odd laps out of them thanks to Murph’s good run yesterday.
“I was looking good for a top five but the tyres went off in the last few laps of the race.
“There was nothing we could do about this - they’d well and truly done their job.
“I’m just really happy for the team. When a team closes it takes everything you have to keep motivated and the boys have not missed a beat. We have a committed bunch, so thanks to everyone in the team. You’ve done a great job.”
Murphy finished 19th today. He was up with the front runners early but was unable to hold his position.

“I was happy with my qualifying position, eleventh was a good effort, but we always new the race would be tough having used our soft tyres yesterday,” said Murphy.
“We probably did as well as we could have.
“Having only one set of option tyres means you’re going to have one good result over the weekend – and ours was yesterday.

“It was good for the team to come away with a couple of top 10 places though.”

NZ: New track opens - Hampton Downs

Hampton Downs Motorsport Park

Drivers took to the track at the new Hampton Downs Motorsport Park on the first day of the Dunlop Targa rally yesterday.
The seven-day event started in Auckland and will travel down the North Island to Wellington.
Labour Day saw racing at three tracks, Pukekohe Park Raceway, Hampton Downs and Taupo.
The rally was the first motorsport event at the newly completed track near Mercer.
Hampton Downs will host races as part of Rally NZ next May.
Construction of the 3.8km racing circuit began in February 2007, but was delayed by bad weather last winter.
The circuit runs clockwise and has nine corners, five right-hand and four left-hand.
The main straight is 950m long, with a kink in the middle and a 12m rise and fall.
New Zealand's newest motorsport complex, Hampton Downs is located near the existing Meremere drag strip and oval just south of Auckland.
It has three sealed circuits, pit buildings, industrial units, business park, lifestyle blocks, convention centre, restaurant and trackside apartments.

The goal has been to build an entertainment venue for the promotion of motor racing in New Zealand. The venue is proposed to be the country's premier venue and reflects a modern approach to circuit design and associated amenities.
There will be an emphasis on driver training and a testing facility.
Some privately owned trackside apartments will be available for renting.


Check out the Web site - Hampton Downs

Source: NZ Herald

Malaysian ute's score lowest in Crash-test

The Proton Jumbuck ($24,000 NZD) available in New Zealand has being given a dismal safety ratings by independent crash test organisation Ancap (Australasian New Car Assessment Programme).
The two-door Jumbuck was awarded the lowest possible one-star rating after its performance in frontal offset and side impact crash tests.

Ancap scores vehicles from zero to five stars, depending on the safety features and protection of the driver and passengers.
The ute's cabin was severely deformed in the 64km/h offset crash test. It offered poor head protection for the driver and passenger, and poor leg protection for the driver.
It also lacked airbags, ABS, and electronic stability control - a feature that senses skidding and individually brakes the wheels, helping the driver to regain control.

Watch for yourself on You Tube

I wouldn't want to be carting my family around in one... I'd hate to see us go backwards in vehicle safety - and the Proton does that at lightning speed.

Its a cheap and nasty death trap...

GM unveils all new 2011 V-8 Caprice (Holden) police car

Starting in 2011 keep your eyes in the rear-view mirror for this new Australian built GM Caprice police car.
In Denver, Colorado today at the annual International Association of Chiefs of Police, General Motors removed the wraps from the 2011 Chevy Caprice Police Patrol Vehicle (PPV).
GM displayed the prototype while at the same time confirming plans to build the V-8 and V-6 Caprice that will only be available to police departments and not the general public.

The Caprice is a rebadged Holden Commodore (Statesman) produced in Australia.
The Holden (Chev Caprice) has been part of the New Zealand and Australian Police fleet since about 2007.

Wheels Vote

Which American Dream machine do you rate as the dream car?

---------> Poll on side bar ------->

Mini Coupe Concept

Mini Coupe Concept

Celebrating Mini’s 50th birthday, two people at a time.
Fifty years ago, the original Mini was shown to the public for the first time, thus beginning the long history of a little car that continues to strike joy in the hearts of many to this day. To celebrate, Mini has built a chopped, two-seat super-Cooper called the Mini Coupe Concept for the Frankfurt auto show.


Full story at

NZ: Cash for clunkers Kiwi style

Cash for clunkers Kiwi style as auction firm tackles wrecks

Backyard mechanics rejoice - an auction company is offering to sell your rusting car wreck for free.
From tomorrow, Turners Auctions will offer free auctions to people wanting to offload old, polluting, unfixable cars, with profits going to the owner. As part of the deal, the car has to be deregistered.
A spokesman said the company wanted to help deal with some of the roughly 100,000 vehicles that became too unsafe, broken down or expensive to drive each year - so they did not end up rusting in a paddock.
The cars will be sold at no reserve and for no auction fee through a specialist auction division, Turners Damaged Vehicle Auctions.
Turners said it would pick up cars within a 30km radius of a branch for nothing, or take the proceeds of the sale it if arranged towing from further away.
Spokesman Todd Hunter said people would be surprised what an old car could fetch. "Even the saddest old wreck can fetch $200-plus as scrap."
He said the company was concerned about the environmental issues associated with used vehicles. "Vehicles that have been retired to a paddock or the backyard are exposed to the elements, leading to corrosion and engine and brake fluids leaking into the soil and waterways."

The offer runs until December 1 and follows a similar trial in 2007, when 238 drivable vehicles and 73 non-drivable vehicles were sold in three months.

For more information, see www.turners.co.nz.

Story from

Crash test geniuses: 7 out of 8 top tests

Seven of the latest batch of eight cars to be submitted to the Euro NCAP safety tests have achieved the top five-star rating, while the eighth, the Citroen C3, would have achieved five rather than four stars if ESC (electronic stability control) systems had been fitted more widely across the range.
NCAP testing - first introduced in 1996 - when four and five star ratings were very rare, even for the less comprehensive suite of tests then in use. But has there perhaps been an element of safety-test "grade inflation"?


Euro NCAP five star winners:
*Honda Insight
*Kia Sorento
*Renault Grand
*Scenic Skoda Yeti
*Subaru Legacy
*Toyota Prius
*VW Polo

2010 Chevrolet Camaro Transformers Special Edition

Evidently not content with all the positive spin that the Camaro’s starring role in the Transformers movies has garnered, Chevrolet has taken the inevitable (and rather predictable) step too far by introducing the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro Transformers Special Edition.
Yep, you too can turn that Rally Yellow Camaro you were about to order into a fake Bumblebee with the Transformers Special Edition option package. It includes nothing more than Autobot shields on the fenders, wheel center caps, and center armrest, as well as Transformers logos on the door sill plates and embedded within the black center rally stripes.
Does that seem worth $995? It does to some people, according to Chevrolet. "When the first Transformers movie was setting box office records, we had countless customers asking to purchase the ‘Bumblebee’ Camaro," said Karen Rafferty, product marketing director for Chevrolet. "Now, they can buy one with the new Camaro Transformers Special Edition. Streets all over North America will be buzzing in no time." Ah, so punny.
The cheesy package is available on any Camaro LT or SS, with or without the RS appearance package, so long as it is Rally Yellow. We suggest starting with the 400-plus-hp, V-8–powered SS model if you want your “Bumble” to “rumble.” And if you’re going to get one, we suggest doing it soon, while Transformers is still getting a lot of “buzz.”

Lada up their Game

World of motoring

Lada, the venerable AutoVAZ brand that was once a Soviet-era clearinghouse for ten-year-old Fiats, is on the move. And by "the move," we mean they're building brand new cars of 1990s vintage. And to show off its new direction, Lada showed up in Geneva with the Lada C, a prototype of a car it probably has no intention to build, but that looks like a rally hatch version of Mitsubishi's Concept X. Sure, it's probably just a fiberglass body dropped over a Fiat 124 chassis. But dammit, it shows they've got pluck, like the crew of the
Battleship Potemkin. Or those guys from "Weekend at Bernie's."

Throwing the car out...

Dutch pranksters dumping Smart Cars in the river

Dutch pranksters have dumped dozens of the tiny two-seater Smart Cars into Amsterdam's waterways and police fear the bizarre trend will spread to the UK and the rest of Europe. Eco-friendly Smart cars are small enough to be picked up by just a few people and dumped into the Dutch capital's canals, reports De Telegraaf newspaper. One victim, Casper de Jong, was woken by police after they found his Smart floating in the waterway outside his apartment.
Mr de Jong said: "Several weeks ago the same thing happened to my companion's Smart. Both cars were a complete write-off."
One Smart sales worker said: "We're not supposed to talk about this because the police don't want the craze to spread but we've had quite a few drowned cars returned to us."




As for the Picture above, atleast they are easy to park...

NZ: Older cars just need a little more loving

NZ: Are you hanging onto your wheels

My 1996 Honda Civic is approaching 200,000km and is still going strong. It may look like a dog's dinner on the outside and I haven't cleaned it in three years, but mechanically it's as sound as.
People are amazed it runs so well but there is no secret. I look after everything under the bonnet and change the oil and filters regularly.
In these times when money is a bit tight, people are keeping their cars longer so with the help of my mechanic and the Automotive Recyclers Association, here are some tips and suggestions for keeping the old girl running a bit longer. Treating the vehicle with a little tender loving care and following a few simple guidelines will ensure cars go further.
As I said before, make sure you change your oil and filters when recommended by either the mechanic or the manufacturer. Oil is the life blood of the engine and it needs clean filters.
Check the tyre pressures regularly to avoid flat tyres or bad wear. Also, correctly inflated tyres reduce excess strain on the rest of the car.

Find a mechanic who knows what he's doing - not your mate across the road who works out of his mum's garage. You need the right tools and knowledge to service a car correctly - not a handbook and a rough idea.
Listen to the car. Sure, an older car may make a few odd noises, but something loud and constant is a warning something's about to let go. Find out what the noise is and do something about it.
The same with liquid leaks, clouds of smoke from the exhaust or a funny smell when driving. The smell may not be last week's half-eaten burger but an early warning the car's overheating.
Check the driveway often to see if there's any pooling of either water, oil, clutch or brake fluid. Leaky brake cylinders will end in big tears. Check your fluids regularly. Simply lift the bonnet and scan the various reservoirs. Use the dipstick to check the oil level.
Use tune-ups to ensure the car's major components are running smoothly. Belts should be checked and replaced, brake lines inspected, spark plugs and air filter checked and replaced, and fuel injector checked.
Prepare the car for the seasons. In winter make sure the wiper blades work and don't scratch the windscreen. Fill the washer up. Make sure the tyres have tread to work efficiently in the rain. Check that all the bulbs work.
Remember: little checks often will help avoid big costly breakdowns - and the AA is not a bad friend to have.

NZ: Ford Falcon gets four-cylinder engine - no, really

Ford Australia has dumped plans to build the small/medium Focus across the ditch and will instead introduce a four-cylinder Falcon and diesel version of the Territory SUV.
The new product plans are part of an A$230 million ($287 million) programme to introduce more environmentally friendly engines to the Australian-built models.
Also included is a new, more technologically advanced version of its LPG engine.
Ford planned to build the Focus in Australia to boost its small/medium line-up there and in New Zealand. But it says global economic conditions meant it could not make a business case for the project.
It is believed the Focus will now be imported from Thailand.
The Falcon sedan will get a turbocharged 2-litre four-cylinder engine and the Territory will pick up a 2.7-litre V6 diesel sourced from Jaguar/Land Rover and Peugeot.
The company says the engine changes will be accompanied by other engineering developments such as lightweight components designed to cut fuel consumption.

Ford says the 2-litre Eco-boost engine will provide six-cylinder performance with about 20 per cent better fuel economy and 15 per cent fewer CO2 emissions.
The engine has been developed by its US parent and will arrive in Australia in 2011.
The carmaker expects it to deliver 8 litres/100km under the bonnet of the Falcon.
The diesel engine destined for the Territory uses 7.5 litres/100km in Jaguar's XF sedan and marginally less in the Peugeot 407 sedan. It has recorded around 8 litres/100km in the Land Rover Discovery 3.
The V6 will go into the Territory in 2011, where it will reduce CO2 by up to 25 per cent from six-cylinder petrol engines.
The new LPG engine will use the latest liquid-injection technology, which provides more power while delivering better fuel efficiency.
"We are ensuring our core Falcon and Territory vehicles will have the most advanced, high-tech and cleanest engines possible," says Ford Australia boss Marin Burela.
The Falcon will be the first rear-drive Ford to receive the 2-litre unit, the biggest environmental change in the car's 50-year history.
"Falcon customers will now have the choice of either the I6 [4-litre straight-six] engine, which will be Euro IV-compliant, or one of the first global applications of the Eco-boost engines," says Burela.
Australia's Federal Government will contribute A$42 million to the Ford programme through its Green Car Innovation Fund. The Victorian State Government will also contribute.
Burela says Ford could "not profitably manufacture" the Focus in Australia.
"The economic climate has changed. When we made the original decision it was the right one at the time."
He said there was "absolutely no way" for the company to build the Focus profitably and compete with cars built in low-cost plants overseas.
"We needed to bring the [Focus] in from low-cost economies but we needed to provide, absolutely, through our compliment of large cars, four-cylinder technology as well.
"Because Australians have said to us very clearly: 'We love the comfort, we love the driving performance of a large car. But what we also want is sustainability and fuel economy'.
"Our investments demonstrate not only our commitment to address climate change, but to bringing leading-edge technologies to the Australian and New Zealand markets."

Article: Computer-assisted carnage

NZ: Computer-assisted carnage

Yet more people are dying on our roads and everyone is ringing their hands in angst wondering how to fix the problem. There's talk of banning cell phones while driving - texting I agree with, but talking is pushing the envelope is a bit much. Next we'll be told we can't eat in the car or have a mouthful of water.
I've banged the drum for years about the standard of driving in New Zealand and as far as I can see, it's getting worse by the year. If the Government wants to reduce the number of deaths on the road, teach people to drive, not answer multi-guess questions.
And raise the age at which you can get a licence. It was okay back in the 60s and 70s to get a driver's licence at 15 when a traffic jam consisted of two cars at an intersection. Back then there were only about two million people in the country and bugger all cars. Now, we've got double the people and about four to five times the number of cars.
The mental age of most of the teenagers I meet these days is about 12, and they have the attention span of a gnat and are easily distracted. The thought of someone who is easily distracted in charge of a tonne and a half of metal doing 100km/h worries me.

And talking about distraction, Henry Ford would turn in his grave if he knew how much added baggage car manufacturers have added to his invention (well, not quite his, but he made the car available to the general masses).
There are now more gadgets, gizmos, widgets, knobs, buttons, dials and switches in the modern car than you can poke several sticks at. Soon drivers will have to fit a small nuclear power plant to their vehicle just to power all the electrical stuff.
On a side note, imagine how much fuel you'd be able to save if the engine didn't have to power more electrical things than the average house has in it. Also, before anyone gets up in arms about how much safer cars are these days with all the traction control, ABS and electronic this and that - just remember how bad most people are at driving.
If you let the car make all the decisions, people will drive faster and faster and if something does go wrong they won't be able to get themselves out of trouble.
I would hazard a guess that cars today have more computing power than the Apollo 11 spacecraft that put Neil Armstrong and co on the moon.
Computer microchips are so cheap today you'll find them controlling just about everything in the modern car. They control fuel supply, air/fuel mixture, anti-lock breaks, traction control, combustion timing, seat belts, airbags, transmissions, gear changes, GPS systems, heating and cooling and getting in and out of the car.
Then there's all the in-car entertainment. Why you'd want an in-car home theatre with widescreen TV and surround sound is beyond me. There are automatic headlights that turn on when it gets dark and windscreen wipers that turn on when it starts to rain. You've also got heated seats that remember who's sat in them, complete with back massagers, in-car refrigerators, sunroofs and a lot more.
And talking about distraction, Henry Ford would turn in his grave if he knew how much added baggage car manufacturers have added to his invention (well, not quite his, but he made the car available to the general masses).
There are now more gadgets, gizmos, widgets, knobs, buttons, dials and switches in the modern car than you can poke several sticks at. Soon drivers will have to fit a small nuclear power plant to their vehicle just to power all the electrical stuff.
On a side note, imagine how much fuel you'd be able to save if the engine didn't have to power more electrical things than the average house has in it. Also, before anyone gets up in arms about how much safer cars are these days with all the traction control, ABS and electronic this and that - just remember how bad most people are at driving.
If you let the car make all the decisions, people will drive faster and faster and if something does go wrong they won't be able to get themselves out of trouble.
I would hazard a guess that cars today have more computing power than the Apollo 11 spacecraft that put Neil Armstrong and co on the moon.
Computer microchips are so cheap today you'll find them controlling just about everything in the modern car. They control fuel supply, air/fuel mixture, anti-lock breaks, traction control, combustion timing, seat belts, airbags, transmissions, gear changes, GPS systems, heating and cooling and getting in and out of the car.
Then there's all the in-car entertainment. Why you'd want an in-car home theatre with widescreen TV and surround sound is beyond me. There are automatic headlights that turn on when it gets dark and windscreen wipers that turn on when it starts to rain. You've also got heated seats that remember who's sat in them, complete with back massagers, in-car refrigerators, sunroofs and a lot more.

Mercedes have come up with a concept that in the event of an impending accident, the car takes over - seat belts tighten, air cushions inflate and the windows close. Sounds more like the proximity fuse of a claymore mine. Imagine if you're at a set of traffic lights and a car passes too close. Within seconds you're cocooned in the car and unable to move.
More worrying though, and we all know that computers can have a mind of their own, is what happens at 110km/h when the machine decides it's having a bad day and just does its own thing. You might survive the ensuing crash but what about all the other poor buggers your safety tank has taken out as it pinballs down the road?
If you think getting your laptop repaired is expensive, spare a thought as to how much it'll cost to find and get rid of a gremlin in a high-tech car's various computer systems.
Come to think of it, nowadays you're not buying a car; you're buying a modern house on wheels. No wonder the art of driving safely has got lost among all the gizmos.

Below are listed, in no particular order, some of the more ridiculous things car manufacturers are including in their vehicles.

EMERGENCY TRUNK RELEASE
Even the smallest of cars are having these fitted now as a safety device. In most two-seater sports cars you'd be lucky to fit a hamster in the boot let alone a child.

EXCLUSIVE SOUND SYSTEM IN A FERRARI
Why? The sound of a Ferrari 612 V12 screaming its head off should be more than enough music to the ears. It would be travesty to try and listen to a wailing Bono from U2 over a wailing 5.7-litre engine.

REV COUNTERS IN AN SUV
People carriers, or loser cruisers as my daughter calls them, are all fitted, almost as standard, with a rev counter. Having something that was designed for race cars in a vehicle made for the school runs and stocking up at corner dairies is odd indeed.

CONTACT PARKING ALERT IN A MINI
If you can't park a car that small without having to resort to a parking sensor you should stick to taking the bus, or buy a pushbike.

EIGHT-SPEED GEARBOXES
Most forms of race cars don't even have that many gears. The speed limit in this country is 100km/h, so you'll never need to get out of third. The ratios must be so close you may as well buy an automatic. Paddles on the steering wheel I don't mind, as it means you can keep both hands on the steering wheel. Much safer but please, not in car that develops less than 100bhp, that's just plain silly.

NECK WARMER
What is with Mercedes? When the top is down you can now turn on a heater that blows warm air on to the back of your neck. A scarf does just as good a job.

Motorsport: Ford and Holden split on mounts

A bitter feud which has split V8 Supercar racing in half will come to a head today.
The simmering dispute between Ford and Holden involving front aerodynamic parts will go before Australian motorsport officials ahead of this weekend's Symmons Plains meeting.

Falcons have been using flexible front splitter mounts, produced by Triple Eight Race Engineering for the past four years and have been on-sold to four other major Ford teams.
But the issue blew up after a Jim Beam Racing employee moved to Tasman Motorsport and informed them of the unique splitter mounts used on the Fords.
Holden claims the mounts give Fords an unfair aerodynamic advantage while Ford says they simply make the front splitters stronger.

Officials at the last Supercar round at Winton examined the mounts and deemed them to be within the rules but Holden teams have accused V8 Supercars of mishandling the dispute.
A meeting of CAMS stewards today will decide whether or not to re-open the case. The time limit for a protest has passed but a meeting can be convened if extraordinary circumstances are involved.
The Triple Eight Falcons removed the mounts from their cars on the final day at Winton but Jim Beam Racing has declared it will run with them this weekend.
Triple Eight boss Roland Dane will not say whether the Team Vodafone cars will use the system at Symmons Plains.
Whatever the outcome, racing is expected to be cleaner here with fewer incidents which marred Winton after the introduction of the new soft Dunlop Sprint tyre.
Supercar driver standards official Tomas Mezera said drivers would be more cautious about aggressive tactics due to the fast nature of the Tasmanian track.
"(Winton) is the kind of place that invites people to have a bit of a rub and a bit of a punch because it is very slow," Mezera said.
"It's very different to give someone a rub in a second gear corner doing 60 km/h than in fourth gear doing 160.

"I think they all kind of respect that and you will see in the next races a little bit less rubbing than what we've had."
Meanwhile, in-form Team Vodafone racer Craig Lowndes is confident of extending his winning streak when he debuts a new FG Falcon in Tasmania.
Lowndes snapped the grip fellow Ford pilot Jamie Whincup had on the series when he claimed both races at Winton earlier this month. He has ditched the Falcon which was first used at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide and has only competed in four Supercar events.
His new Falcon was given a brief 20-lap shakedown at Queensland Raceway in the lead-up to this weekend's round and Lowndes has already declared it an improvement on the old car.
"Twenty laps (the limit under V8 Supercar rules) is all we got but nothing went wrong," Lowndes said.

"We didn't do any lap times but we checked the wiring looms and fuel systems.
"We believe that the latest one, which is the one which will be my regular car from Tasmania, is better than what I had," he said.
"Mechanically it's all the same ... but being in a brand new car just off the production line is exciting."

- AAP

Blast from the Past

Renwick 50 Street Race
Photo's from the Renwick 50 Street
race held from 1960-65, The photos
are from my late fathers collection.
(Renwick, Blenhiem New Zealand)

________________________________

Motoring News:

Holden says no immediate impact from Pontiac's demise
Tuesday Apr 28, 2009

Adelaide - Car maker Holden will lose one of its biggest export models with a move by United States parent company General Motors to dump the Pontiac brand.
Holden produces the Pontiac G8, a version of the Commodore, for the US market.
But GM said it would phase out Pontiac by the end of 2010 to focus on four core brands in the US - Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC.
It will also accelerate the shutdown of some American car assembly operations and cut extra jobs in the US.

But Holden spokesman Scott Whiffin said there would not be any impact on jobs in Australia.
"G8s are assembled at our plant at Elizabeth where we have been modifying our production volumes and we will continue to do so," he said.
"Notwithstanding the fact that this has only just been announced, we don't envisage there will be any job losses at Elizabeth as a result of this decision."
Holden has already announced a decision to axe its afternoon shift from early next month with plans to run two teams on a single day shift, each working one week on and one week off.

The move will cut wages for local workers but retain the 3,000 jobs at the Elizabeth manufacturing facility in Adelaide.
The company said it would also push ahead with plans to build a new small car in Adelaide from 2010.

Source: NZ Hearld

Motoring News

Holden shift cuts 'shore up long-term future'
Fri Apr 3, 2009

The Motor Trade Association (MTA) says Holden is wise to revise the shifts worked at its Elizabeth car plant in Adelaide, to deal with a fall in sales.
Ending months of uncertainty and production shutdowns, the car maker has told its production workers that the afternoon shift will be scrapped, meaning lower penalties for some workers.
Holden says no jobs will be lost, but there will be two production teams working week-on, week-off.
The head of the MTA, John Chapman, says it will create more certainty for components suppliers and should help ensure Holden's longer-term future in South Australia.
"What we're seeing is a good result in terms of that there will be some consistency in terms of their production," he said.
"That provides certainty for workers. It also provides certainty for component suppliers and that's very important to the economy of South Australia."
Holden says axing the afternoon shift from next month will help overcome the problems created for dealers and customers from its rolling production shutdowns of recent months.
Managing director Mark Reuss says it has been hard to supply dealers with a steady stream of cars.
He says a single shift operation producing 310 cars a day will overcome the problem.
"We look to be able to supply in a much more continual way cars that our customers are really demanding," he said.

Still committed
Mr Reuss says Holden remains committed to starting small car production at the Elizabeth plant late next year.
But he has not ruled out more staffing changes because of the global economic situation.
"We're looking at creating a new Holden here. We're looking at our business with a new small car and beyond here for the next five to 10 years," he said.
"We're re-inventing the company here, so we're not through with what that means for the entire workforce, we're just not through."
Mr Reuss is hopeful for the future of Holden in Australian at a time when parent, General Motors, in the United States is facing bankruptcy, with two months to submit a revised viability plan to the US Government.
"It's very important to know that bankruptcy of the parent company in North America does not automatically mean bankruptcy of any of the subsidiaries," he said.
Mr Reuss says Holden almost broke even last year but he will not reveal current figures until the end of the financial year.
South Australian Treasurer Kevin Foley says Holden is facing the same market conditions in Australia as car manufacturers in the US are facing.
He says the SA Government will not be giving Holden any financial support beyond $30 million already pledged to support its new model.
The Federal Industry Minister, Kim Carr, has applauded Holden for its efforts to protect jobs.
"This is about keeping people on the payroll and keeping skills in the company," he said.
"It's about re-inventing the company to make its operations in Australia sustainable in the longer term.
"Around 3,150 workers at Elizabeth plant will face reduced pay but everyone in the organisation is sharing the sacrifice."
Senator Carr concedes it is a tough time for families faced with reduced incomes.
"There's no question that scaling back production at Elizabeth will have a serious impact for many families and communities. The critical thing is that there are no retrenchments," he said.
The Industry Minister says there are no plans to cut shifts at Holden's Port Melbourne plant.
Entitlements
The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union says it will not be making any push for redundancy packages to be offered at Elizabeth.
Union official John Camillo says a key issue is entitlements.
"Our biggest issue is that workers take-home pay will be reduced and we are trying to manage how we do that in regards to, you know, long service leave annual leave," he said.
"We will be talking with the State and Federal Government in regard to training initiatives not only just for Holden but for the component sector and it is tough times for the next two months."
Northern Adelaide Business Enterprise Centre general manager Ron Watts says northern residents will feel the pinch as Holden cuts back.
"Any disposable income that they may have had will now dry up and probably go only into the essentials that they need to have to survive," he said.
"This is what then takes money out of our local economy and I think we're talking about many, many millions of dollars per month literally disappearing out of our local economy.
"Local government's got a big role to play here, they are the people who collect the rates and taxes, they are the people who should be really concentrating now on what is their strategy to assist small businesses to survive. If you don't help small business to survive, there is no industry."
The SA Treasurer says Holden's problems are quite different from those which brought an end to Mitsubishi's Adelaide car production last year.
"What Holdens could not predict or foresee is the complete meltdown in the automotive industry globally," Mr Foley said.
"But the difference with Mitsubishi to me is quite stark. You know, Holden's already are the market leader. They have a proven track record. They produce great cars and I think will do so for many years to come in this state."

News Source: ABC (Australia)

World Motoring News

Pontiac Reportedly to be Pronounced Dead on Monday

Citing an anonymous source within General Motors, Edmund's Insideline is reporting that the American automaker could announce the 'death sentence' for Pontiac as early as this Monday. If this is the case, then GM's original plans to keep Pontiac as a 'specialty' brand with niche products have gone out the window and the maker of the iconic GTO as well as of the Aztec (let's not forget about the flops) will join the fate of Saab, Hummer and Saturn.
Insideline called GM's spokesman Tom Wilkinson to ask him about the news, but the answer was somewhat vague. "There's nothing I can share with you at this time. Keep your eyes on our media site. Officially, nothing has changed with Pontiac's niche-brand status, until you hear differently," Wilkinson was quoted as saying. Either way, one thing's for sure; Pontiac's fate seems doomed...

Story thanks to

Hamilton 400 - Atmos

Rick Kelly takes a few moments
to sign autographs moments before
race two at the Hamilton 400.












There was a sea of Red and Blue,
but it was a blue outcome for holden fans.












Like watching it at home, just with
a ton more atmos.

..... Afternoon ladies




_____________________

TKR (Team Kiwi Racing)

Team kiwi sadly doesn't have a
kiwi driver, but us die hard fans
can only hope things get better for
the team.

_______________________

Hamilton 400

Reports say that over the three days crowds
exceeded 120.000, numbers did seem down on
last year, but still a great weekends entertainment.












Some of the between race
entertainment.

Some of the cars for the V8 Supercars
drivers parade.

V8 Supercars - Hamilton 400

V8 Supercars (Saturday)

Hamilton 400 - NZV8s

NZV8s heading out for race one
during the 2009 Hamilton 400.