Aussies will still buy Falcons

Fresh from announcing the end of local manufacturing and the death of the Falcon by October 2016, Ford Australia President Bob Graziano is now talking up the car’s sales potential.

And he’s also refusing to declare whether he would end production of the Falcon large car and ute and the Territory SUV early if sales levels fell below a certain threshold.

“We have a freshening for the Falcon and Territory coming next year and if you look at where Territory is tracking right now in the large SUV segment it’s doing pretty well,” Graziano told motoring.com.au.

“And we are continuing to make progress with the Falcon.”

Asked how shutting the factory and killing the nameplate could be defined as ‘progress’, he replied: “If you look at private share we are making progress.

“The segment remains under pressure but we are in there and we are looking forward to that freshening and, yes, it is our intention to still be here building cars in October 2016.”

In late May Ford announced the end of production at its Campbellfield plant in October 2016, citing the inability to make money from building cars here.

The decision came after a 12-month study of various combinations of vehicle production for local and export sales, from which Ford could not establish a profitable program.

Falcon nameplate sales have collapsed from a high of 81,000 in 1995 to 19,769 in 2012.

The Falcon badge is being killed off because Graziano says it is intrinsically linked to a locally built large car. The Territory name may live on, attached to an imported SUV.

Ford Australia lost more than $400 million in its last two financial years and says it loses money on every car it builds. Yet Graziano insists he does not envisage a sales level where he would pull the plug on local production early.

Effectively, that means he is committing Ford Australia to significant financial losses for the next three years.

“I don’t have a threshold in my mind where I would review that date,” he said. “As long as we can continue to produce vehicles here then yes, we want to continue to build these products right until October 2016.”

Rather than a sales downturn driven by potential buyers being turned off buying cars that will become orphans, Graziano said Ford’s backing should sustain confidence in both models.

“We have provided a terrific product in terms of quality, driveability and package and we are backing it up – we will have parts here and service capability through 2026. We want customers to have confidence that we will be standing behind these vehicles.

“That doesn’t change because of the announcement. So yes, I want Australians to continue to consider the Falcon and Territory because they are outstanding products in my mind - and yes, I will grant you I am biased in that regard -- and the next ones we will bring out, the freshening, will be the best ever for us.”

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