Ford announce extension to Geelong plant beyond 2010

[Biggav]

yes welcome news

win win for everyone.

[uranium_death]

It's about bloody time the media actually TRUTHFULLY reported some good news, and instill some confidence into the general public that the Falcon is here to stay, and that the Australian I6 engine will remain in an Australian built and designed car.

Falcon. The Australian choice.

[Cobra]

Originally Posted by XR-CHIEF

Why can't we just continue with the current boss?

Therein lies the same problem the I6 had, the BOSS V8 is pretty much almost as unique to Australia as the I6 is, and like the I6, it too needs a lot of development $$$ to make it pass Euro 4. An alloy block would be a godsend, and go along way to helping it reach it's euro 4 target. But since there will be an all new engine in the states, we were supposed to get that instead of developing and assembling our own engines here. Who knows what is in store for us now? What's available in the US is one thing, what lobs down here is an entirely diffrerent thing altogether.

[Luke Plaizier]

Hmm. I thought one of the motivators, other than costs, was to make the Falcon compatible for exports without having to invest money into the parts/training of the Aussie I6 in overseas markets?

I get the feeling that this is battening down the hatches for the coming storm, keeping the car as locally self-sufficient as possible. While there is added cost in doing Euro IV development, is that less than the cost of certifying a whole new V6 drivetrain?

Could this be about setting Ford Oz up for a selloff?

I wonder if there's a chance that the government 'green car' funding might result in a Diesel variant, or aluminium casting, of the I6 block?

http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/Ar...eID=58969&vf=2

But it is good news. I for one hope that this is more than just a postponement of the shutdown.


Lukeyson

[metalmania]

Great news but i don't think that is the end of the story. I have been reading the US papers online, mainly The New York Times and Washington Post. They are reporting that the US auto industry is about to collapse.
Yesterday the senate review committee rejected giving US$25 billion to the 3 companies (Ford, GM ,Chrysler ) on the grounds that there is no guarantee that they won't go broke anyway. They also stated that if they handed out the money , it will set a precedent and other companies will want handouts.
Other rumours that we may have all heard is that Ford US could be looking at selling Ford Australia ( They are already looking at seliing their share in Mazda)and GM selling Holden.
This decision to keep the engine plant going could be because of the fact that Ford US is about to go down and that Ford Australia may run on its own or that it may be a more attractive package to sell. Interesting times lay ahead.

[GS608]

Don't like that drive article, they seem to be playing down the good news by bringing up all the previous bad news..

[barra240t]

Yessssssssssssssssss!

[Polyal]

Whats better is that gives me some more time to save for a F6

RE the V8, why they just dont crate a motor I dont know. Makes sense building the 6 here as it has good enough volume. The V8 must be a hard case to justify.

[XR6_190]

This is great news, not only for Ford workers, but all workers in the automotive and manufacturing industry.

Hopefully this will finally stop all of these doom and gloom threads from popping up all over the place.

!!LONG LIVE THE REAR WHEEL DRIVE INLINE 6 FALCON!!

[King Nothing]

God Drive is negative. Why make it sound like its a bad thing to be keeping the engine? The use of terms like "aging" and "decades-old" hides the fact that the I6 had more power and torque than the V6 that would replace it, while having less technology and development behind it.

[Dezza]

Awesome news! IMO a V6 has no place in the front end of a Falcon, particularly since the i6 is such a good donk. 1300 jobs saved, proof that they're loyal to the Falcon, well done! This is probably going to do more for the Falcon than Ford marketing has done in the last 10 years.

[Mr Hardware]

YES YES YES YES YES!
I am so happy!
This is awesome! Long Live the MIGHTY I6!!!!

[XRFutura]

so back online comes project huntsman!!!! This has brighten my day, I love the I6.

[Swordsman88]

Great news! I join with every other true car fan (and fan of the I6) in welcoming this decision. I don't think we should be blaming the previous guys for dropping the I6- the economics were very different when that decision was made. I also think in the long run the I6 will almost certainly go away because of small numbers and increasingly difficult emissions standards.

BUT, for now, it is great news and shoudl extend its life another 3 years at least (until the all new falcon post 123 etc.)

Now the question is - what are they going to do to get it compliant. THe press release notes 'new technology' to make it compliant, i think that it is not DI - i dont' see how that coudl be done in time or cost effectivley. Alloy block-maybe, but also on the time limit. It is clear ford waited as long as it could to make this decision but decided to bite the bullet and get the I6 development going agian before it was too late. I am sure the I6 will be able to stand up to its newer competition - i just hope they make real improvements not just make it compliant so it withers on the vine.....

[Cobra]

Originally Posted by King Nothing

God Drive is negative. Why make it sound like its a bad thing to be keeping the engine? The use of terms like "aging" and "decades-old" hides the fact that the I6 had more power and torque than the V6 that would replace it, while having less technology and development behind it.

It's not aging at all, nor is it decades old! It's constantly evolving, and the BA signalled the biggest upgrade of the I6 engine since it's been manufactured here. If someone reading it didn't know any better, they'd think we were using the same engine for the last 20+ years.

[The Stylist]

This is great news. There were rumours over the past few days that plans to bring in the 3.5L or 3.7L Duratec V6 were looking shaky, and fortunately the has I6 won the battle.

[Cobra]

Has anyone considered that maybe they're extending the life of the I6 to see out the production life of the FG and then after that that's it? One would certainly hope not, but anything possible and nothing would surprise me as Ford US are absolutely in the poo.

[cardinalred]

Has anyone considered that maybe they're extending the life of the I6 to see out the production life of the FG and then after that that's it? One would certainly hope not, but anything possible

Given the Premier and Federal Minister were there today and maybe dipping their hands into their pockets to help Ford with the engine modernisation program, you would hope they have secured some guarantees but maybe that is wishful thinking.

[Fireblade]

Originally Posted by Cobra

Has anyone considered that maybe they're extending the life of the I6 to see out the production life of the FG and then after that that's it? One would certainly hope not, but anything possible and nothing would surprise me as Ford US are absolutely in the poo.

Pulling the wool over our eyes, making it look like they here to stay along with the I6, easier to stay with that if shutting down than spending money on R&D for the V6 into a Falcon. I for one will keep on eye on how this all pans out. Don't believe anything you read or hear until you see it.

[wodahs]

Originally Posted by metalmania

Great news but i don't think that is the end of the story. I have been reading the US papers online, mainly The New York Times and Washington Post. They are reporting that the US auto industry is about to collapse.
Yesterday the senate review committee rejected giving US$25 billion to the 3 companies (Ford, GM ,Chrysler ) on the grounds that there is no guarantee that they won't go broke anyway. They also stated that if they handed out the money , it will set a precedent and other companies will want handouts.
Other rumours that we may have all heard is that Ford US could be looking at selling Ford Australia ( They are already looking at seliing their share in Mazda)and GM selling Holden.
This decision to keep the engine plant going could be because of the fact that Ford US is about to go down and that Ford Australia may run on its own or that it may be a more attractive package to sell. Interesting times lay ahead.

also been reading this and makes me think in a simular way

[music189]

maybe the reason the decision happened is, Ford US is so far in the poo that they may not make ANYTHING any more because they will be broke so that would leave Ford Aus without an engine for our cars

There may be more to this than is being let on!!!!!!!!!!!

All the same it is great news for those Ford Geelong workers and I wonder what the break through solutions Ford Aus are talking about for the I6 that they have come up with
we may end up with one hell of an engine with good fuel economy!!
Just look at some of those BMW I6 engines!!

[King Nothing]

What if Ford were to split themselves up? There would be ford europe, ford americas and ford asia. I understand that ford europe does ok for itself, and ford aus isn't anywhere near the basket case that is ford US.

Cobra, I don't think that would happen for a couple of reasons. Why would the government and ford agree to spend a lot of money making it euro IV compliant, just for 3 years? Surely the development costs wouldn't have been paid off by then. If that were the case, then why wouldn't they just shut up shop in 2010 after FG if the V6 is no longer economical?

I think it has more to do with a local running the company. Sure, at the end of the day it will come down to numbers, but the personal interest of the CEO will have some pulling power, and would be able to push the direction somewhat towards what he/she thinks. With the old CEO, being a yank, he probably couldn't see the problem and certainly wouldn't have understood the history and implications with axing the I6 as an australian CEO from the area would.

It would have been easier for him to say drop the I6, too bad if you don't like it, that's the way its going to happen, look at the numbers (as some yanks tend to be). The local would have been more likely to explore every avenue to save the I6. With the recent changes in the world economy, this would have given him more weight.

If Ford US does go under, or plans to sell us, then yes it makes more sense to keep a "complete package" for any potential buyer. That may indeed be on the radar, but I dont think the government would agree to giving so much money if there was a risk of selling it off to someone else in the near future.

No, I think it's just a case of the economics changing. The aussie dollar dropped significantly, adding probably ~35% to the cost of an engine. Imagine the lost sales due to a higher price, the decontenting to make the difference, or a combination of both. It would have killed the falcon. With the government agreeing to hand over wads of cash, it would have only helped the decision.

Either way I'm a happy camper right now!

[sgt_doofey]

Maybe they are looking at setting up the I6 as the global RWD platform? Who knows until there is more information available.
The I6 would be a nice cheap engine with the Aussie dollar the way it is now.

[MRJUCY]

Great news now we've just to hope they can sell some.

[Dr Smith]

Better tell the wife she has to make extra certain to stop scraping the rims in the CBD carpark and ensure the body isn't hit by nearby doors because we need to maintain the resale value of our G6ET now that it won't become an instant classic in 2010...and I couldn't be happier!!!

[Polyal]

FoA need Ford US.

Whats interesting now is that Ford US I think need FoA more than ever before. RWD development, small car production (our dollar going down isn't all bad).

Something else that I thought of. If the I6 was going, weren't they going to stamp focus/fiesta parts in those factories? What now?

[boris]

weren't they already doing some development towards euro iv before the whole v6 thing?

[Falcon_Crazy]

This is TOP news. I just yelled it across the floor at work. now people think I am even more Falcon Crazy than I am.

There si no doubt this motor has more life left in it - great news!

[Citric GT]

Heard this on the radio today. It was so good to here something positive in the auto industry for a change.

[Supercharged]

Originally Posted by metalmania

Great news but i don't think that is the end of the story. I have been reading the US papers online, mainly The New York Times and Washington Post. They are reporting that the US auto industry is about to collapse.
Yesterday the senate review committee rejected giving US$25 billion to the 3 companies (Ford, GM ,Chrysler ) on the grounds that there is no guarantee that they won't go broke anyway. They also stated that if they handed out the money , it will set a precedent and other companies will want handouts.
Other rumours that we may have all heard is that Ford US could be looking at selling Ford Australia ( They are already looking at seliing their share in Mazda)and GM selling Holden.
This decision to keep the engine plant going could be because of the fact that Ford US is about to go down and that Ford Australia may run on its own or that it may be a more attractive package to sell. Interesting times lay ahead.

What is the bet if they bail out the US car makers the only way to keep them afloat is to put in place large import tarrifs and perhaps give the funds in a round about way to the local makers.