And to make matters more complicated, the shields are being phased out in Victoria. Totally gone on the M80 Ring Road stretch between the Craigieburn Bypass (NR M31) and the Deer Park Bypass (NR M8)
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They were discontinued by VicRoads 5 years ago, as the federal government ânational highwayâ scheme from 90s/2000s had elapsed.
Always used to be until the scheme was discontinued. (Regular user of the Western Fwy for years to get to the Mallee).
â
NB/ just on the WRR, the reason some older 90s/2000s signs exist is because the project (if you can believe it) still isnât finished (started a decade ago but funded in sections, some still awaiting approval), Littlegezzyâs pic is above Boundary Rd in an old un-upgraded section
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Driving back home today, saw a lot of cars avoiding the new tunnelsâŠonly Gladys The Groovy Mule could fuck this up.
Next week is going to be hell.
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People always avoid the tolls initially, thatâs part of the reasons why the Cross City and Lane Cove tunnels both went broke. Over the years more people have used both tunnels and they appear to now be profitable for Transurban. I think it will take some years for these tunnels to work, but it will be probably some time after the remainder of the WestConnex is completed.
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I wonder if Sam Malone will update to this new Corvette.
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I can see this (and the Camaro) being the trigger for Holden rebranding as Chevrolet (given Holden sales have been on the slide since they ceased local manufacturing).
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It would be an unfortunate day when it happens but probably one of the wisest business decisions that need to be made. While the quality of Holden vehicles have vastly improved over the last few years, the distancing from their core demographic, most evident in the new Commodore range, has greatly impacted sales and has been a mess for the company
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Yes I think for Holden the beginning of the end was when they switched from the Euro Barina and Astra to the Daewoo products. Nothing against Daewoo really but you canât take such a leap backwards in your product without big damage for the brand.
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Both of those import sources were lemon factories. Opel import Astras were absolutely notorious for being lemons - just as bad Iâd say as the Daewoo shit heaps. The only redeeming feature of the Opel built cars was they would have those nice Euro touches and refinementâŠuntil things started to break.
Terrible, terrible cars. How many European Barinas do you see on the streets these days compared to 90s Japanese cars?
The only imports that were really worth sourcing for Holden were the Japanese cars - the ones based off of Suzukis, Nissans and Toyotas.
They were generally so good the manufacturers were able to do even better launching the models under their own brands.
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Itâll be interesting to see what General Motors do when their Australian import contract with Opel ends (as GM sold their European group to PSA Group a few years ago).
Which American or Daewoo vehicle will they replace the Opel Insignia-based âCommodoreâ with?
This looks like it may be when GM finally ditch the Commodore brand, but recent history - including how short-lived Opel as a separate brand was in Australia - suggests they wonât completely remove the Holden brand, but more likely theyâll reduce it/phase it out gradually by keeping the original branding on whatever replaces each of the Opels, such as a CadillacâŠ
⊠as theyâve already done with the Chevolret Camaro (& Silverado):
So probably more mixed-branding for years to come (like the crazy situation at 9NBN!).
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I owned a 1992 Holden Barina once that was really a Suzuki Swift with Holden badging.
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Suzuki Swifts have always been well regarded, they are great little cars.
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Holden/Toyota also exchanged a few models in a similar period. Between 1989-1997, 'Rolla & Camry were received by Holden, and named as Nova & Apollo, (pictured), respectively. Toyota received Holdenâs Commodore, dubbed Lexcen.
These didnât sell well, as many just bought the normal models ( 1 Nova - 5 Corollaâs).
Badge engineering at its âfinestâ.
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Probably made by GM China - being whatever they replace the Buick Regal with. Iâd assume theyâd each keep enough of the tech of the platform to mean theyâd be able to keep making essentially the same car, but import it from China instead of Europe.
That said, itâs probably essentially dead. Even none of the new taxis seem to be Commodores, and thatâs about the only market that there is for a sedan that size.
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Most taxis these days (here in Newcastle at least) are Hybrid Camrys - they are now about the same size as the Commodore at just under 4.9 metres long, similar to the Mondeo which is effectively the Falcon replacement.
@Frankie - the only time I reckon the Button Car plan truly worked was with the jointly developed Nissan Pulsar and Holden Astra of around 1989-1991. The Pulsar Q as shown below was a particularly popular model and was the first small car to move up to a 1.8 litre engine.
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I think youâre right that the Astra/Pulsar twins were probably the most successful badge engineered models.
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My 2006 Astra served me pretty well right up until June this year; I possibly got lucky though. I had 227 000 km or thereabouts on the clock. The only issue I had was a broken transmission shifter cable (auto) which occurred a couple of years ago. Mechanically it was very sound.
I have now got an i30.
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$2.30 for cars and $22.85 for trucks.
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