Holden Commodore and Astra axed

GM Holden has announced it will axe the Commodore and Astra when existing stocks run out next year, at which point it will sell only SUVs and utes.

The shock news is a direct contradiction of its statement last week, when Holden told carsales the Commodore nameplate will continue and that a facelifted MY20 Commodore would be introduced imminently.

Now it says the Commodore name, which dates back to 1978, will be retired when existing supplies are exhausted, and that the updated MY20 version may only be available to fleet customers.

Today’s announcement confirms the end of the European-sourced Holden Astra hatch and Commodore liftback, Sportwagon and Tourer.

It leaves Holden, which dropped out of the list of top-10 selling brands again last month, with just the Trax, Equinox, Acadia and Trailblazer SUVs, and the Colorado pick-up.

The all-new C8 Corvette will still come to Australia, later than expected in early 2021, but it will be sold by selected Holden dealers under Corvette branding.

Holden -- which dominated the local automotive landscape for decades after introducing the first all-Australian model, but so far this year lies 10th on the sales chart with less than 40,000 sales -- says it made the historic decision to focus on the largest and fastest growing sales segment in Australia.

“Holden is taking this decisive action to ensure a sharp focus on the largest and most buoyant market segments,” said interim chairman and managing director, Kristian Aquilina.

“So far this year SUVs and Utes have increased to 76 per cent of Holden sales, a trend we only see continuing.

“The SUV segment is approaching half a million units, and LCVs over 200,000 units. That’s where the action is and that’s where we are going to play,” Aquilina said.

To November this year Commodore sales are down more than 37 per cent with just 5417 sold in a large car market that has contracted from 217,882 sales in 1998 to about 8700 this year.

The new Holden boss paid tribute to the Commodore nameplate, which will disappear like the Falcon name axed by Ford when it ceased Australian car-making a year before Holden and Toyota in 2016.

“The decision to retire the Commodore nameplate has not been taken lightly by those who understand and acknowledge its proud heritage,” Aquilina said.

“The large sedan was the cornerstone of Australian and New Zealand roads for decades. But now with more choice than ever before, customers are displaying a strong preference for the high driving position, functionality and versatility of SUVs and utes.”

Holden said sales and deliveries of Commodore and Astra will continue through 2020, "albeit with diminishing model availability as part of an orderly runout".

It says all MY19 ZB Commodores and MY19 BK Astras ordered or delivered from today onwards will come with Holden's seven-year free scheduled servicing offer. Holden says it will back existing Commodore and Astra customers with warranty and roadside assistance commitments, and guaranteed spare parts supplies "well into the future".

Holden will launch an updated MY20 Equinox in the first quarter of 2020 followed by a "significant" MY21 upgrade for the Colorado in the final quarter of next year, before the 2021 arrival of the Corvette -- the only actual car that will grace (some) Holden showrooms going forward.