Holden designed luxury Buick car for China and the world
Holden may be closing its car and engine plant, but its design team is working on cars for China and other countries.
Holden's designers caught the attention of the Detroit auto show even before the curtain was officially raised.
The all-new Buick concept car was unveiled at a preview event on the eve of North America's largest auto show Sunday night in the US, around 11 am Monday EST.
The finishing touch: the car was unveiled by former Holden boss Mark Reuss.
Buick Avenir - French for "future" - was a joint project between Holden's design studios in Port Melbourne and General Motors' design centers in Detroit.
However, Holden built the car by hand before it was airlifted to the US just before Christmas.
“Australia is really good at making some big luxury cars,” Reuss said.
"The car was built in Australia at Holden, in their workshops, and the interior and exterior were a collaborative effort between (Australian and American) studios."
For now, though, the Buick Avenir is just teasing a car dealership. The company did not say what type of engine is under the hood, but Mr. Reuss confirmed that it is rear-wheel drive, like the current Holden Caprice luxury sedan.
“Right now we don’t have any production plans… we want to know what people think,” Reuss said.
However, Holden insiders told News Corp Australia that the Buick Avenir is likely to be built in China and sold worldwide.
It could also show up in Australia as a possible replacement for the Holden Caprice once Elizabeth's car factory shuts down at the end of 2017.
If the Avenir enters production, it will be only the second Chinese-made car to be developed in Australia; the first was the Ford Everest SUV, introduced late last year.
The Buick Avenir won't reverse GM's decision to close the Holden plant, but it will highlight Australia's transformation into an engineering and engineering hub rather than a manufacturing hub for the automotive industry.
For example, Ford Australia now employs more designers and engineers than factory workers.
GM executives didn't speculate where the Buick Avenir might be built, but the chairman and president of GM's joint venture in China, SAIC, attended the opening.
In addition, of the 1.2 million Buicks sold worldwide last year — a record for a 111-year-old brand — 920,000 were made in China.
The opening of the Buick Avenir in Detroit solves one mystery. When Holden announced the closure of the factory, there were speculations that the next Commodore might be in China.
However, it is now clear that Holden designers have been working on a Chinese version of this new luxury Buick.
Instead, the next generation Holden Commodore will now be sourced from Opel in Germany, going full circle on the 1978 original, which at the time was based on the German sedan.
Buick may have an outdated image overseas, but is experiencing a resurgence in the US; fifth year of growth in 2014, up 11 percent over the previous year. In addition, it is now GM's second largest brand after Chevrolet.
