THE Electric Vehicle Council is urging state governments to clarify whether they intend to push forward with electric vehicle taxes or hold to their 2050 zero greenhouse gas emissions targets.

New research from the University of Queensland shows the decision by the governments of Victoria and South Australia to slug electric vehicles with new taxes will prevent these states from reaching their goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Dr Jake Whitehead's research on the impact of such taxes suggest that the move will reduce electric vehicle uptake by 50 percent. But 90 percent of cars on the roads must be electric by 2050 for zero emission targets to be viable. 

Electric Vehicle Council chief executive Behyad Jafari said state governments need to pick a position.

“State governments need to decide, do they want to introduce a tax on electric cars or do they want to commit to zero emissions by 2050? The research shows unequivocally they cannot do both,” Mr Jafari said.

“You don’t need advanced economics to understand that applying a big new tax on something discourages its consumption. These proposed state taxes will badly stunt Australia’s electric vehicle uptake before it even had a chance to get started.

“These taxes are like replacing declining tobacco excise with a new tax on nicotine patches. They are madness. And that’s why a few Australian states are so far the only jurisdictions in the world silly enough to flag this policy approach at this point in global history.

“What this research makes clear is that we cannot allow State Treasurers to continue deceiving the public. You’re either for an electric vehicle tax or you’re for a 2050 zero target. You cannot be for both.”

www.electricvehiclecouncil.com.au

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THE ORIGINAL 'hero car' of the cult movie Fast And Furious 4, driven by action star Vin Diesel, is up for auction in Australia.

It is the original 1970 Chevelle SS from the blockbuster movie and represents a rare opportunity for collectors. 

“This car was in fact the actual original ‘hero car’, driven by Vin Diesel himself on the set of the Fast and Furious 4 movie and was the principal car used while shooting the film,” Lloyds Auctions chief operations officer Lee Hames said. 

“We expect this car to reach six figures this Saturday, but what the final figure will be is anyone’s guess as it will be a car to treasure and will go down in history forever." 

In true Fast and Furious style, the four-speed manual car features a V8 Chevy engine, nitrous bottle, drift brakes and alloy wheels.

The current owner purchased the car from singer Jerry Wallace, also known as an avid car collector, and the car was then imported from America into Australia in late 2012.

The car has been left ‘as is’ to honour its role in the original film. It comes with the Universal Studios Certificate of Title.

“The car was even signed by Cody Walker, Paul Walker’s brother back in 2015 and has also been submitted with the Universal Studios Certificate of Title,” Mr Hames said.

He said the 2009 action movie from the phenomenon worldwide franchise is, to this day, one of the highest grossing sagas in Hollywood movie history, and now the opportunity presents itself for an Australian car enthusiast to own a piece of that movie history.

This car features as part of a major online classic car auction happening this Saturday at Lloyds Auctions, consisting of more than100 classic cars and bikes, ranging from Honda and Kawasaki classic bikes to Porsche and Ferrari classic cars.

www.lloydsauctions.com.au  

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FORD now has Andrew Birkic in the driving seat as president and CEO for the Australia and New Zealand region.

It seems to be a natural fit – Mr Birkic has played an integral role in the global success of the Australian-developed Ford Ranger and Everest vehicles – as former regional president and CEO, Kay Hart, gears up for a new global role as enterprise product line manager (EPLM) for Ford Van and Bus, based in Europe.

Mr Birkic, whose title changed today from chief product marketer for Ranger and Everest, will be based in Melbourne and report to Ford International Markets Group president, Mark Ovenden. 

“Andrew is a highly experienced and engaging leader who brings a wealth of insights into the evolving needs of customers,” Mr Ovenden said. “Andrew’s passion for bringing vehicles to market that truly serve our customers, his breadth of understanding of the local market, and his global expertise will serve as a strong foundation for the continued progress of the business. I am delighted to welcome Andrew into this role.”

Customers have been at the centre of each of Andrew Birkic’s roles with Ford in Australia, Asia and the US over the past 26 years. As chief product marketer for Ranger and Everest, Mr Birkic represented the needs of global customers in key product decisions, ensuring the unique requirements of customers from each region were considered.

He also has global responsibility to develop pricing, series and positioning strategies for future vehicles, working in close collaboration with the Ford Product Development team based in Melbourne.   

Prior to his current role, Mr Birkic spent three years in Detroit as global advanced consumer experience platforms manager, and two and a half years in Shanghai as Ford Asia Pacific director for dealer development and consumer experience. Working with dealers and Ford teams in each country to develop tools and strategies to better serve their customers was at the heart of both roles.

Before this, Mr Birkic held a variety of leadership positions across marketing, sales and the Ford Customer Service Division at Ford Australia, where he began his career in 1994.

“I am thrilled to be re-joining the fantastic team in Australia and New Zealand,” Mr Birkic said.

“I know how passionate and accomplished the team is, having spent the past two years working with the Ranger and Everest development team to grow the brands across more than 180 markets. I look forward to working closely with our team and dealers to serve our customers.”

Mr Birkic will now be responsible for Ford’s National Sales Company (NSC) in Australia and New Zealand, including marketing, sales and service, dealer relations, and customer satisfaction.

Mr Birkic’s appointment comes at an exciting time for Ford Australia and New Zealand, as the company prepares to launch the all-new Ford Puma and Escape SUVs, including the brand’s first electrified vehicle, the Escape Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV).

HART HEADS FOR EUROPE

Kay Hart, in a new global role as enterprise product line manager (EPLM) for Ford Van and Bus, based in Europe, will report to Jim Baumbick, EPLM vice president. She will now be responsible for the Van and Bus product lines in addition to carrying forward Ford’s Commercial Vehicle alliance with VW. Ms Hart has also been appointed a member of the Ford Otosan board of directors, and will be based out of Dunton, UK.

Ford’s EPLM organisation comprises cross-functional teams that manage distinct product lines as end-to-end businesses and leverage Ford’s human-centred design, advanced product marketing and user experience teams to create breakthrough products and customer experiences.

“Kay’s contribution to our business in Australia and New Zealand over the past two years has been outstanding, from delivering Ranger’s overall 4x4 leadership in Australia, to further strengthening our focus on customer satisfaction,” Mr Ovenden said. “We congratulate Kay as she transitions to her new global role.”

Ms Hart joins the EPLM team after holding a number of key roles in New Zealand, Thailand, China, the Philippines, the US and Australia over her 21 years at the company.

“I’ve loved my time in Australia and New Zealand,” Ms Hart said. “I have every confidence that our Ford team – both employees and dealers – will continue to strive to create an even better experience for our customers and introduce great vehicles to this rapidly evolving market.

“I am proud of our commitment to Australia, and the work of our 2,500-strong team who design and engineer world-class vehicles like the Ranger and Everest and look forward to following their progress in my new role.”

Ford is now Australia’s largest automotive employer, with more than 2,500 engineers, designers, technical, automotive and other specialists working at four locations across Victoria. Australia-based engineers and designers led the development of award-winning vehicles such as the Ford Ranger pickup and Everest SUV.

Australia is a key product development hub for Ford, with the company investing more than $1.9 billion in research and development in Australia between 2016 and 2019. More than $500 million of investment is planned for 2020.

Ford Motor Company of Australia Limited (Ford Australia) is a subsidiary of Ford Motor Company, founded in Geelong, Victoria, in 1925.

www.ford.com.au

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AN AUSTRALIAN AUTOMOTIVE record was broken over the weekend with the iconic first Bathurst-winning Harry Firth-engineered Holden HT Monaro race car achieving the highest price for a Holden sold at auction.

The 1969 HT Monaro 57D race car fetched $750,000 at auction, selling under the hammer to an Australian enthusiast who has vowed to keep the car in the country. 

“We are extremely excited that the car will remain within Australia," Lloyds Auctions chief operations officer Lee Hames said. "This important Holden achieved the highest price for a road registerable Australian Holden ever sold at auction,

“There were seven bidders on the Holden Monaro which came down to two Australian enthusiasts who fought it out, both with the intention to keep the car within Australia,” Mr Hames said.

After the car being flagged last minute as a potential export ban from the Australian Government, where it may have been unable to leave Australian soil, the scenario ended up being voided.

The winning bidder of the Monaro wishes to remain anonymous.

“The auction had a 95 percent sell-through rate of cars all with very strong prices showing that the market is as strong as ever,” Mr Hames said.

Australian market cars weren’t the only ones set to break records with both American and more particularly European luxury car sales indicating that markets were extremely strong at present, he said.

“It was fantastic to see the amount of people that tuned into the auction online from all over the world to watch the five-hour live event,” Mr Hames said.  

“The strong bidding and prices achieved for these cars and even the bikes in particular was great. I think it is fantastic that the majority of bidders were Australian, meaning the cars remain on Australian soil,” he said. 

Australia's former Formula One world champion race driver, Alan Jones said, “I am not particularly surprised at the prices achieved in this auction or the records broken over the weekend attracting all of the international attention.  It’s a testament to the cars and the passion of car enthusiasts.” 

Mr Hames said with the Holden Monaro remaining on Aussie soil and the majority of bidders being Australian it is safe to say that enthusiasts nationwide are extremely proud and passionate people, fighting to keep their beloved cars in their country where they can enjoy them.

www.lloydsauctions.com.au

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