Falcon hopes ride on 5-star safety rating

Geelong Advertiser - Britt Smith, August 7th, 2008

FORD Australia hopes a new five-star safety rating for its latest Falcon will help secure the company's future in Geelong, its president said yesterday.

The FG Falcon sedan range, which is partly manufactured at Ford's Norlane plant, achieved the top score in the latest round of the Australian New Car Assessment Program.

It is the first Australian-built car to be awarded a five-star rating.

The achievement comes little more than a year after Ford announced the closure of its Norlane engine assembly plant, costing 600 jobs.

The blue oval has previously said it would try to absorb the employees who will lose their jobs, and the federal and state governments responded with a $24 million assistance package.
Yesterday Ford Australia's president Bill Osborne said the company was "working on a plan for a better future".

"It's unfortunate that we are in a situation where we couldn't afford to continue operations in Geelong with such small volumes." he told the Geelong Advertiser.

"Our goal is not to abandon Geelong, our goal is to try to create a more viable Ford for Australia so we can create more long-term security for all our employees.

"So we just ask them for their patience and to keep hanging in there with us."
The FG Falcon's shell and engines are assembled in Geelong, but after the closure, new V6 engines for its locally produced models will be imported.

Mr Osborne said the Falcon had a great future in Australia and while the large car segment had dramatically declined, Ford's performance remained strong.

He commended Geelong's contribution to the five-star rating, and hoped staff were proud of the achievement.

The Falcon was awarded 34.6 points out of a possible 37, marginally ahead of European luxury cars including the Volvo V70, Audi A6 and the Mercedes C-Class.

Local rival Holden VE Commodore received a four-star rating.

ANCAP conducted more than 5000 simulated and 426 physical crash tests, examining safety features including airbags, electronic stability, braking, driver fatigue warnings and a reverse sensing system.