They said they build them in “left-hand drive and _____-hand drive.”

An industry friend told me a story that revealed how some people at global automakers regard Australia’s new-car market, and it’s a viewpoint our local industry learned to capitalise on long ago. But there’s a catch. My friend, a 25-year veteran of the local car industry, was on a guided tour of a European car […]
You’ll Be Surprised What We Create With Our Carmaking Know-How

Because we’re a carmaker doesn’t mean we only make new cars. In fact, it opened the door to our first aerospace project: to develop a prototype helicopter. My recent LinkedIn post about Australia’s carmaking talent sparked a bit of a reaction. And all those messages in my inbox got me thinking, mostly about the depth […]
After 55,000 V8 and Turbocharged Engines, Here’s Why I Bought An Electric Car

There are two black cars in our household. They’re both four-door sedans, both are fun to drive, each has made media headlines, and they both have loyal followings. Despite their similarities, they couldn’t be more different. The first one is my 2014 FG X Ford Falcon, one of the last examples of Australia’s own big […]
Premcar to develop and build the Nissan Patrol Warrior

The top of Australia’s off-road SUV market is facing a reset with Nissan Australia today announcing it has given the green light for Premcar to develop and produce the newest model to join its successful Nissan Warrior program: the Patrol Warrior. Following Nissan’s earlier announcement that its flagship Y62-series Patrol was under assessment to join […]
What’s your future plan?

It was a great question but he wasn’t expecting this answer. A few months ago we had some guests visit our new-vehicle assembly facility in Epping, just outside Melbourne. They were keen to discover more about our business so we showed them what we do and shared details about our 25-plus-year journey so far. They […]
Where did Australia’s car-making talent go?

It hasn’t disappeared. It’s still here, and mostly in Victoria. At least the best of it is. And much of it’s in Epping, about 30 minutes’ drive north of Melbourne. Yes, I know, I know; I’m a bit biased. But when I think of the projects keeping the Premcar team busy (confidential new-car development programs […]
There’s a story behind these suspension dampers.

They might be shiny, red and new but they went through hell to make the production line. These are the shock absorbers fitted to the Nissan Navara PRO-4X Warrior by Premcar, Nissan’s range-leading dual-cab 4×4 ute. What makes this car unique is it’s been engineered and enhanced in Australia. Nissan chose Premcar to develop this […]
How many people do you employ?

I had someone ask me this recently. It caught my attention because it was said with that ring of “which private school did you go to?” Now, there are lots of ways drop a business brag into a conversation and I figure I’ve just been reminded this is one of them. I get it; “bigger […]
How to quickly get more zero-emissions vehicles on Australia’s roads.

The answer’s in the car park – and here’s why. I’ll start with a few quick facts. Here’s what the International Energy Agency (IEA) had to say about electric vehicles (EVs) in its recent technology report titled Global EV Outlook 2022: Sales of electric vehicles (EVs) doubled in 2021 from the previous year to […]