Ford boosts Geelong plant

By Karla Pincott
Carsguide
14 April 2010

This morning's announcement will provide peace of mind for hundreds of workers in Ford's supporting and supplier industries across Geelong.

In a move welcomed by Ford employees, the carmaker has announced increased investment in its Geelong plant.

A $20 million environmental and technical upgrade to Ford’s Geelong Casting Plant will increase the size of its workforce by 50 per cent and ensure vital automotive manufacturing skills remain in Australia.

The upgrade will create 50 new jobs at the plant, and secure the employment of 100 existing plant employees.

This morning's announcement will also provide peace of mind for hundreds of workers in Ford's supporting and supplier industries across Geelong.

Production work that was potentially headed to China will now take place in Geelong.

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Displaying 3 of 29 comments

I don't live near the sea. I don't like the beach. Even my friends from the country have the same problem with this Ford. Ford know about the problem. They think they are going to get away with it.
Theresa Posted on 23 April 2010 3:21pm
I have to admit that the lack of underbody protection & body rust-proofing and the like plus the micron thin paint jobs on a LOT of late-model cars (Fords included) is rather disturbing but, as stated by Wazza, the sea air will make quick work of them. This is obviously another area the manufacturers are skimping on to keep prices competitive...
Bartman of Perth (dammit) Posted on 23 April 2010 1:20pm
Theresa, salt air will do that to your car... Salt air doesn't care what make or model she destroys!
Wazza of No where near the sea Posted on 23 April 2010 11:33am
Well I hope they have learned to rust proof or they might go broke quick. Your car shouldn't rust in 12 months.
Theresa of brisbane Posted on 22 April 2010 4:38pm
OK Jason. The Boss V8s are built here in Australia and the head design was re-developed here for local requirements too, points made quite public at the time of their release as Holden were doing the crate-motor thing for the V8 Commodores. Back then the only DOHC 5.4 the US market had was in the Lincoln Navigator SUV and the 2000 Cobra 'R' Mustang (a VERY limited numbers car - 300 built). The Boss motors were 'Aussie-fied' (not unlike the local Cleveland V8s were in the 70s) and although they are largely identical to the US engines they are not the same spec and, most importantly, aren't imported crate-motors that are/were dropped straight into the Falcons. Where the parts are actually manufactured is anyones guess. I would say 'all over the place' - some here, some overseas. This would be determined by economics. Yes, the 80s are gone but the 'lost decade' of 82-92 when there was no V8 Falcon and the mid-90s years when they wouldn't develop the 5.0L power-wise means that Ford lost a whole generation of potential customers. The knock-on effect of that is that the children of those customers are now largely buying Holdens 'cos "Dad always owned one". This is what happens when the company's bean-counters have too much clout - short-term $ gain (maybe), long-term loyalty ramifications. Add to that the damage done by the styling of the AU (otherwise, not a bad car) and you can see why they are still trying to claw their way back to the top. I'll confess to being a Ford man, but I have restored & worked on enough different makes/models over the years to know what is crap and what isn't, regardless of the badge it wears, Ford included. The VE failed for me because I nearly cleaned up some poor dude at a crossroad as he was completely hidden behind the car's w-i-d-e 'A'-pillar, I thought the handling was very ordinary (non-HSV 6 & 8), the V6 was harsh & gutless, the steering wheel switches/buttons were not remotely intuitive to use & they fitted a unique battery to these things that were/are only available at a dealership? WTF? What if it dies when I'm in a small country town a couple of hundred kms from the nearest GMH dealer? (Unsure if this has changed). I don't like the styling at all, but that is a personal thing and I'm sure others do like it. For that matter, I don't really like the front styling of the current FPVs although the spec of the cars is decent, with the exception of the marginal Dana diff-centres these things have... Just trying to get the record straight and happy to accept any errors I may make if the point is made properly. Nice to have the discussion back on track although there are a few members of the 'peanut gallery' here who need to chime in constructively or not at all.
Bartman of Perth Posted on 22 April 2010 2:38pm
No worries, I love a good debate especially when the other side has conviction and are willing to back them self. But those that start flying off and call others idiots etc. because they don't agree lose me. And I'm sure bartman meant to call me arrogant not ignorant cause ignorance is bliss ... arrogance makes you a tool.
jason of melb Posted on 22 April 2010 10:54am
Jason, sorry, I read your post incorrectly, I retract my previous post.
shaun Posted on 21 April 2010 7:00pm
Jason... I've never sided with just one brand... and no, it is closer 70% imported, 30% local. Either way, the VE is the most ever imported Commodore. And when you talk about insults, you might be talking about Holdenmad... he is the one throwing the insults around.
shaun Posted on 21 April 2010 6:58pm
bartman sorry i directed some rebuttle at you that was suppposed to be directed at peter. it must be said i much prefer debating with shaun he has passion for his brand and agrues on merits not just trying to throw Sh-one-T around and the insults just distract form anything constructive that being said if you wanna jump at me like that ill jump back
jason of melb Posted on 21 April 2010 4:54pm
Bartman if my facts are incorrect please put them straight. The 80's are goon and they dont explain why the FG isn't selling in great numbers it is a very good car i know i have driven several but i bought the VE because i preferred it. I don't know who you are and can't really recall previous exchanges with you but hey if I'm right I'm willing to back myself to the hills if I'm proven wrong ill happily eat humble pie and say so i will not throw fact at a flawed argument i cannot back up in not an idiot that just spills crap and I'm not a sucker for marketing or part of the brainwashed masses they all drive corolla's and Camrys when the focus and Mazda 6/Honda accord are better respectively. Shaun i don't know the actual figure but I'm pretty sure its more 70% local made and 30% import the body engine suspension are all made here. they call it Australian because it was made buy Australians in Australia for Australia just as the falcon is some parts may be out sourced but this is sadly just economics. once again i don't know the figures but i would be very surprised if the falcon is not the same mix of imported components a lot of the suppliers are the same for both
jason of melb Posted on 21 April 2010 4:44pm
"Jason" et al. - you want to flame people on the basis of your 'facts' and then when you in turn are corrected for your ignorance, you refute those statements without presenting anything to back yourself up. I think maybe you want to look at your own argument before declaring anyone else's "flawed"..... And if you think that Ford's sales figures are low because their supporters "throw everything back to holden" when something good is done then you clearly haven't read MY comments re Ford dropping the ball in the early '80s. In fact, with your bizarre theories of how the car market works, I'm starting to think that you are head of Ford Oz's marketing dept.
Bartman of Australia (alas) Posted on 21 April 2010 3:58pm
Jason, I understand and agree with what your saying, but its hard to call a car 'Australian' when only 30% of the parts are made in Australia.
shaun Posted on 21 April 2010 2:18pm
Shaun the difference is in the engineering the cars a designed engineered here then built a lot of the parts that are now imported is due to the fact that the components suppliers rely on both Holden ford and to some extent Toyotas to survive and the volume is just getting to low for these companies to survive. to peter and bartman could you display a greater amount of idiocy. your facts are not entirely correct your argument is flawed and you clearly have not read my comments. i actually stated that the only reason i see ford sales are so low is the idiot supporters like your selves start acting like children and throwing all the attention back to Holden every time they actually do something good. i am very much looking forward to how you are gonna take the attention away from coyote but you will find away.
jason of melb Posted on 21 April 2010 10:17am
One thing I don't like about Holden is that they always peg themselves as an Australian company....... the Commodore is now 70% imported! And thats really the only car built here, well that and the glorified versions of the Commodore. Really Toyota is just as 'Australian' as they also assemble the Camry here. It's amazing at how many people are shocked when they find out every car bar the Commodore is imported.
shaun Posted on 21 April 2010 7:59am
Reading the comments here has only confirmed what I previously knew to be true - i.e. Holden is the choice of lemmings & uninformed bogans. The billion-dollar baby referred to barely bought the commodore up to the level of the then-current BF Falcon. The FG destroys the GMH product in every way and, for that matter, the current Mustang (with the exception of styling). If this does not compute, then you clearly haven't test driven & compared these cars. Holdens "torque-free" V6 is a joke and should have been ditched years ago and what have they got to compare to the Territory? The Craptiva? Gimme a break. Re-badged Korean junk. Their V8 in hipo format is only a tick better than Ford's turbo six and even then only in a straight line. FYI, the Boss V8s are built here, even though many of the components are 'manufactured' elsewhere. Mexico & China are the world's foundries/factories by & large- that's just the way it is. The catch-up you speak of is a result of Ford dropping the ball back in the early '80s and leaving GMH as the only player in local performance cars. This will continue to hurt them as the ONLY area holden leaves Ford in the dust is marketing. Go back to kindy.
Bartman of Perth (Bogan central) Posted on 20 April 2010 2:44pm
Holden mad and Jason are examples of the brainwashed masses - hapless victims of a Holden marketing campaign. These guys obviously don't read motoring magazines, the ones that declare Falcon the better car than the Commonbore every time the two go head to head....(they probably can't read, but thats another story) Holden you've got NOTHING. And when the Coyote V8's are released later this year, HSV will have NOTHING as well.
Peter Posted on 20 April 2010 1:44pm
To-shay jason
Holden mad of Brighton Vic Posted on 20 April 2010 10:06am
Yes, my bad should check my facts before hitting send... We can't begrudge them for playing catch up though... someone has to lead.
jason of melb Posted on 20 April 2010 9:12am
There is a reason why Holden keep out selling Ford. It's because they're always behind the 8 ball on everything. Terrorstory, NO diesel, curtain air bags not standard in every model, six speed auto only now standard. No 5 star ute. Yes they did beat us to a sedan however, that was because of a seat belt passanger warning light. Holden has had all these things as standard for a long time. The Ford on paper is a cheaper car, so as a message to Ford, people don't always buy on price. Step outside of the square and make things happen first hand instead of trying to keep up with the Jones's (Holden). We are about to put out some of the best designed cars for a long time and go to E85 by the end of the year, which will put out very little CO2. This means that we get to keep the power for a long time. Every time they play catch up, we will smack them out of the park. Jason, it's BILLION, not million, sorry mate.
Holden mad of Brighton Vic Posted on 19 April 2010 1:30pm
Its good news and about time that upgrades are done which means that new and latest types of fords will be built to match the Holden-built cars and revival its opposition.Unfortunately the ford company wont build the mustangs here.
gregory of South Australia,Adelaide Posted on 17 April 2010 5:33pm
This is the only reason i can see why falcon sales are stalling. Everytime ford do something good their supporters just start flinging sh1t at Holden instead of concentrating and highlighting the improvements to there product they get all the focus back on the million dollar baby. and people are pretty much gonna buy the first one of these two fine cars they drive and when there mind in on the Holden what do you think they are gonna try first?
jason of melb Posted on 17 April 2010 9:35am
Holdenmad, no need for me.... you already done that for me
shaun Posted on 16 April 2010 7:02pm
Colin, you talk about where a block comes from and how you support local, then you say you drive an imported car? Are you one of those guys that can't smell what your shoveling?
Holden mad of Brighton Vic Posted on 16 April 2010 11:48am
Jason, once again you beat me to it, good on ya mate. Put him back in his un-informed box. This is not a time where we have a crack at Holden, this is a time where we talk about the great news. Well done Ford! I'm just waiting for a stupid comment from Shaun?
Holden mad of Brighton Vic Posted on 16 April 2010 11:44am
@ Colin ... Only the V8's are imported, as are the Fords. Both 6's are made here.
jason of melb Posted on 15 April 2010 12:00pm
Glad Ford and the goverment have put up some money to support local jobs everything going to China now days. Holden engine blocks come from Mexico and heads from USA and Toyota V6 is imported except for the 4 cylinder! Finally some help for manufaturing in this country! Other manufacturers are doing nothing for local economy except dealer jobs! I drive an imported Toyota and Fords new products look more exciting to drive and run more economical. I would buy thier product for they support local jobs!
colin Edwards of Maidstone Posted on 14 April 2010 9:35pm
Yes very good news.
Wazza of South Aust Posted on 14 April 2010 9:22pm
Dave I feel the same as you always good news. But what going to happen with Falcon? I hope for does another model.
Car Lover Posted on 14 April 2010 6:41pm
Always glad to get more good news from Ford. Great news for Aussie workers.
Dave Posted on 14 April 2010 1:57pm

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