Holden Stops Production in Australia After 69 Years

Cue Green Day's Good Riddance because Holden has officially stopped production in Australia as of today. Rather than having some generic vehicle take the last lap around the assembly line, Holden's last vehicle was a VFII Commodore Redline. Although you may see smiling faces and bitter sweet exchanges among employees in pictures, it is definitely a sad day for the automotive community in Australia. 

Holden was the last major car company to produce vehicles in the land down under since Ford and Toyota pulled production. According to Holden, 7,687,675 vehicles were produced over 69 years and as far as we were concerned, Holden was one of the leaders in RWD V8 Sedans. In a public address to employees, Holden Chairman Mark Bernhard said, "Holden is the icon it is today only because of its passionate people. On behalf of everyone at Holden, I thank you for your service from the bottom of my heart." Obviously some very touching words during a difficult time for the brand. 

Fortunately 85 percent of Holden employees have already transitioned to another job and Holden will keep their Employee Transition Center open for another two years to ensure the remaining transitions go smoothly. In addition, Holden will keep 1,000 employees on the payroll for design and engineering rolls even after production ends.\