Aussie ute to end with local manufacturing

[csv8]

"First it was the Sherrin footy, then the Akubra hat. Now it's the turn of the iconic ute to lose its local identity.

Weeks after it was revealed Sherrin had dumped its Victorian leather supplier, and Akubra was ditching Australian rabbit skins, News Corp Australia can now reveal no local car company will produce a vehicle called a "ute" when the Falcon ute finishes production next year.

Ford will instead opt for the term "pick-up" for its Ranger replacement, while Holden, although not keen to comment, appears to have resisted labelling its Colorado a ute, instead calling it a "truck" in marketing material.

Ford invented the utility vehicle in 1934, giving the world the term "the ute"

Japanese, German and Chinese makers have no qualms in calling their vehicles utes.

The move is all the more drastic for Ford, which invented the utility vehicle in 1934, giving the world the term "the ute".

Ford brand communications manager Neil McDonald said the traditional Falcon "ute" and its successor, the newer Ranger "pick-up" were different vehicles.

"As far as Ford is concerned, a ute in the traditional sense has a monocoque chassis, where the body is part of the chassis," he said.

Mazda, Volkswagen and Great Wall use the term ute, despite their vehicles being the same style as the Ranger and Colorado."
http://www.carsguide.com.au/car-news...4#.VaW3MfmFlE9

[vztrt]

They're not Utes so the term is correct by Ford and Holden.

[Sprintey]

coupe utility

RIP

[naddis01]

This is news?

[XR Martin]

VWs plan to capture the market once the local production ends.

[Whitey-AMG]

^^^^^^
Big horsepower - legacy Falcon and commodore Ute buyers will luv it.......


For the first time VW is also offering the Saveiro in a Double Cab configuration with an extra row of seats for three more passengers.

In addition to the standard, extended or new double cab body styles, buyers can also choose between Startline, Trendline, Highline or Cross trim levels, the latter adopting an off-road treatment to bring that much closer to the Amarok. A new 1.6-liter flex-fuel four mated to a five-speed manual gearbox offers up to 120 horsepower (in the Saveiro Cross) or 104 hp (in the less rugged models) and can run on gasoline, ethanol or both.

[vztrt]

Reminds me of this

[mik]

My 2 bob, chassis or not, small car like vehicles with a tray or ute body made to carry a small amount of freight .... ie: one or two tonnes and still drive like cars are still a ute in my book.

definition of a truck : a large, heavy road vehicle used for carrying goods, materials, or troops; has dual wheels, a lorry.
synonyms: lorry, articulated lorry, heavy goods vehicle.

apart from all that , a sad day to see another icon disappear from oz.

[Vesper Martini]

Oh dear looks like Proton also dropped the Jumbuck ute!

[minheim]

Originally Posted by csv8

" News Corp Australia can now reveal no local car company will produce a vehicle called a "ute" when the Falcon ute finishes production next year.

Gee quality reporting. So what are Holden doing between late 2016 and 2017 with their commodore utes

[Crazy Dazz]

When the original Ute was created, the only alternative was a comparatively large and uncomfortable "truck" such as an AA, BB, or later F series.
In their hay-day, Aussie utes featured saloon car comfort & features, with superior performance. They were miles ahead of the Japanese light trucks.
Now days that gap has closed, and (ignoring the high performance variant) those "Japanese" units offer a better spread of features.

Personally, I'm glad they have opted not to describe their light trucks as Utes. It's sad that the Aussie Ute is dying, but appropriate that the name be laid to rest with them.
Utes, like Falcons, will become classics.

[marty351]

I would hope that as we're about to be flooded with import "pick ups" and utes, GM could reintroduce the El Camino, along with V8 goodies.

[RANGEREST]

My truck/pickup doesn't have a hood, fenders or windshield, or even a trunk.
I don't put gas in it, especially not gallons.
I think I had better get to the drug store before closing, this Americanism of our great country is forcing me to require the use of my bathroom way too frequently.
I'm an Aussie and drive a UTE ! ( does that make me a redneck?)

[vbvbvb088]

Originally Posted by vztrt

Reminds me of this

image

Suzuki 'Mighty Boy'?

[LoudPipes]

Originally Posted by velvet

I think I had better get to the drug store before closing, this Americanism of our great country is forcing me to require the use of my bathroom way too frequently.
I'm an Aussie and drive a UTE ! ( does that make me a redneck?)

The so called Americanism of Australia has been going on since the advent of movies and popular music and sped up with the introduction of television and now is almost at even pace because of the internet.

Before all that we copied the Poms.

We’ve never had much of an Australian identity other than the ‘she’ll be right mate’ ethos and that got us nowhere other than to make us subservient to our Politicians.

Anyway, what’s in a name?

Products change and popular reference changes with it.

Redneck or bogan or left behind, I'd rather be none of them.

[mr smith]

A global world that is leaving us behind. Our identity is being diluted because of greed and apathy.

[Raptor]

There's still true coupe/utes available. You just need to look to South America (Brazil) or South Africa to find them, and they're based on more modern FWD platforms.

Some examples are;

VW Saviero (as mentioned above)


Chevrolet Montana


Fiat Strada


Peugeot Hoggar


Ford Bantam


Though I still think the locals did it better

Guess I'll be keeping the RTV in the family for a while yet.

[Bossxr8]

All rubbish ^^^

[Crazy Dazz]

[blackf6]

I will chop the roof off my GT, and load it up with hay before driving one of those Utes RAptor.

[XB GS 351 Coupe]

Old ute's will be next coupe, a good ute is probably more rare that a Falcon Coupe and probably more useful:

[Sabantien]

Yikes, if those are what's left of the ute, it's better off dead and buried.

[new2ford]

Originally Posted by Raptor

There's still true coupe/utes available. You just need to look to South America (Brazil) or South Africa to find them, and they're based on more modern FWD platforms.

The first FWD ute was actually an Australian creation and a very good one too:

http://bmcexperience.com.au/bmce-iss...0-utility.html

It had more practical space in the rear than the Holden and Falcon equivalents at the time, largely thanks to the independent suspension and compact front end.

[chevypower]

The world is getting smaller, as cultural influence expands beyond local borders. The automotive world is losing its regional differences everywhere. This is not just happening in Australia. I hope we all find that cultural identity goes much deeper than the cars we drive and clichéd phrases we use (or don't use).

[Dr Terry]

Originally Posted by csv8

Ford brand communications manager Neil McDonald said the traditional Falcon "ute" and its successor, the newer Ranger "pick-up" were different vehicles.

"As far as Ford is concerned, a ute in the traditional sense has a monocoque chassis, where the body is part of the chassis," he said.

Mr McDonald is not very knowledgeable about his company's products is he ?

What part of a 1934 Ford is "monocoque" ? I always thought that these pre-war Fords had a full old-fashioned chassis.

On another point, Falcon's since AU haven't been built as a proper "ute" either. The cab & tray are not one unit. XK-XG were true utes, as are the Holdens. But that's another debate for another day.

Dr Terry

[foxtrot3]

Hi. Maybe the correct term is "passenger car derivative". Cheers MD