Engine Exports
The first shipments of Holden Family II four-cylinder engines, manufactured in Port Melbourne, were sent to the United Kingdom in 1981.
By 1983, markets also included West Germany, South Africa and New Zealand. Exports to South Korea commenced in 1987 and the one millionth export engine milestone was reached in 1988.
By the time the two millionth export engine was produced in 1994, more than $1 million in export revenue was being generated every working day, servicing a customer base that included South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, Germany, India, Egypt, South Africa and the UK.
The three millionth four cylinder export engine was shipped out in 1999, by which time Holden engine and component exports had generated more than $3 billion in export revenue.
In 2003 Holden began exporting Global V6 engines from its new $400 million engine plant at Port Melbourne. The plant is capable of producing 900 engines a day or 240,000 engines a year.
The four millionth Holden engine, a 2.8 litre Turbo V6 bound for Sweden and the engine bay of a Saab 9-3 Aero, was exported in November 2005.
In 2006, Holden exported 211,000 V6 and Family II engines. Export destinations included Italy, Germany, Sweden, South Korea and Thailand (Global V6); South Korea, China, Thailand and South Africa (Family II).
In 2007, Holden announced plans to export two versions of the Global V6 engine to China. They will power the new Buick Park Avenue being built by Shanghai General Motors.
