26th January, 2009

GM Holden has announced that next month's introduction of the Cadillac brand into Australia had been delayed indefinitely.

GM Holden Chairman and Managing Director Mark Reuss said: "With the downturn of the Australian automotive market and the broader global financial situation, we have made a common-sense, commercially responsible decision to not introduce a new brand into the exceptionally challenging Australian market at this time."

"GM Holden was faced with making a significant investment to launch a new, niche brand into a tough market."

"There is only one chance to properly launch this brand in Australia and in these challenging times, we believe we couldn’t give it the best chance of success."

"This was a difficult decision but the only viable decision."

"There is no doubt the Cadillac CTS is a magnificent vehicle and the response since it was revealed at the Australian International Motor Show in October 2008 has been very positive."

"But obviously since then the market for new cars has continued to deteriorate, the challenging broader economic environment remains largely unchanged and the exchange rate has worsened for imports."

"At GM Holden we will devote our energies towards our core operations that include a range of alternative fuel technologies, a second car line at Elizabeth to build a new fuel-efficient 4-cylinder small car and future generation Commodores for Holden."

"Our Premium Brands, Saab and HUMMER, will continue to focus on sales and planning for future introductions of new models".