Greg Murphy's 'total shock' at Holden axing

Tuesday, 18 February 2020

'Hearing that Commodore had gone was bad enough – this is much, much worse. It's a total shock'

So says Holden's greatest hero in New Zealand, Greg Murphy, in reaction to learning the Australian make he raced for and now represents as a brand ambassador and road safety advocate is to die. The multiple Bathurst winner says announcement today that the Holden brand will be 'retired' at the end of this year is crushing news.

His immediate thoughts are with Kiwis who have jobs associated with Holden, not just directly with the brand but also through its expansive dealership network here: 'It's tough news for all those many people and I really feel for them.'

'A total shock' is how Greg Murphy describes GM's decision to close Holden.

Holden had been around for a long time in New Zealand and it had touched many lives here, he added. It was very much part of his own career, having been so intrinsic to his motor racing career and the brand that delivered his greatest successes.

**READ MORE:

Greg Murphy became a Bathurst legend with the Holden brand, electrifying the Supercar series with his record-breaking 'Lap of the Gods' on 2003 and winning the race multiple times.

* Greg Murphy says goodbye to Commodore

* Holden's bombshell sends a shockwave through the Supercars field

Murph wasn't just all about Supercars with Holden - he also rallied them too.

* Economy of scale killed Holden in the end

* General Motors axes Holden operations in New Zealand

* Red Bull Racing vows to give Commodore a good sendoff**

He was thinking today about those he knew at Holden New Zealand and also those many people he knows at head office in Melbourne and at its test track at Lang Lang on the south-east outskirts of that city. Approximately 600 of the 800 jobs those Australian locations provide are set to be lost.

'This has been hard news to hear but at this time I'm really thinking about all those people and how this decision might affect them.'

He said the question about whether Holden should have rebranded, perhaps as Chevrolet, when it ceased producing cars in Australia in 2016 was bound to crop up, but had become largely moot now.

News also that this decision is likely to also lead to General Motors abdicating production of its vehicles in right-hand-drive was less of a shock, he added.

Holden's parent has been making a slow retreat from other right-hand-drive countries over the past three years. GM stated developing new models just for the three remaining comparatively small markets (Australia, New Zealand and Thailand) was unprofitable.

David Crawford, chief executive of the Motor Industry Association, which speaks for all of New Zealand's new car distributors, concurred with that assessment.

'The cost of keeping Holden going as a brand in a small market such as New Zealand just doesn't stack up.'

That almost certainly means the Chevrolet Corvette will no longer be factory-made in right-hand-drive, but Murphy believes that won't stop the car coming here anyway, even as a left-hand drive product.

'Why not? If people really want it, they'll get it.'