CAR ASSEMBLY PLANS

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31119, 23 July 1966, Page 1

CAR ASSEMBLY PLANS

Cable-Price Joins City Firm (From Our Own Reporter) WELLINGTON, July 22. ' A popular Japanese car, the Toyota Corona, will be assembled in quantity at the Addington works of Steel Brothers, motor body builders. The first will be completed in December.

A new company, Consolidated Motor Industries, Ltd., in which Cable-Price-Downer, Ltd., has a 50 per cent interest, has been formed and plans to assemble a range of vehicles produced by the giant Toyota Company. Plans are being made to increase the percentage of local components to go into the Toyota cars assembled in Christchurch.

Cable-Price officials say the proportion of local components, which is already well above the minimum approved by the Department of Industries and Commerce will be increased.

The Cable-Price corporation will be responsible for the distribution of Toyota cars throughout New Zealand. About 300 a year will be assembled. Cable-Price has also taken over the South Island agency for Allis-Chalmers farm equipment, and proposes to concentrate on the most highly needed machinery for farm development. The Canterbury Engineering Company, a long-estab-Christchurch engineering firm, is now being run by Cable-Price, which plans to expand its output. . Details of the new ventures and of the range of products which they represent, were given to dealers’ representatives earlier this week by the managing-director of the Cable-Price Corporation (Mr J. H. Ingram). Biggest In Japan The Toyota company, with 40 per cent of the Japanese market, is the largest vehicle manufacturer in Japan and the third largest producer of Commercial vehicles in the world.

The company plans to produce in Japan 540,000 complete vehicles this year, and to export 72,000. The Toyota Corona is a medium-size vehicle. It has a four-cylinder motor and four forward gears and is capable of 96 miles an hour.

Introduced into Australia some time ago, the car is selling at the rate of 550 a month. Australian sales in six months have been more than 1200. The Allis-Chalmers range of equipment will be brought ! initially from Britain, but I constant efforts will be made [to increase the New Zealandmade component. With the resources available to Cable-Price, it is believed this facet of the Canterbury project is capable of enormous expansion. Farm Equipment The Allis-Chalmers farm equipment range, as distinct from earth-moving equipment, comprises all kinds of wheeled tractors and their accessories, a small crawler tractor, binders, mowers, and combine harvesters. The Canterbury’ Engineering Company has been specialising in electrical switching gear, air brakes, and other items. Cable-Price officials believe this work can be expanded. They are greatly impressed with the work and potentialities of the company. A Cable-Price official said the Canterbury Engineering Company had supplied the electrical and other equipment to the Dunedin City Corporation for the Waipouri' hydro works. Cable-Price has acquired all the shareholding of Canterbury Engineering, and the company will operate as a

separate subsidy of the Cable-Price-Downer group. The only significant change is that the group’s resources are available to meet the necessary expansion programme. Mr Ingram is responsible to the Cable-Price Corporation board for the satisfactory running of the company. His co-directors are Mr D. S. Ritchie and the two previous executive directors, Messrs J. F. Davies and R. A. Rountree.