Received this from Jim Hopson today - Nothing really new.

Received this from Jim Hopson today.

Chris,

You're the second person to ask me about the bumper issue. I haven't heard
of that particular problem, but it may have been something that was
discovered at the plant before any of the affected vehicles were shipped to
the U.S. It's not uncommon for components to deviate from the rather
strict specifications we have for them during either the manufacturing or
assembly process. That's why we have a whole series of quality checks both
at Holden and in the U.S. to catch and correct any issues before they get
to the customer. Typically, I don't hear about all of the minor issues
that are contained in this manner.

The rumor about "in-country" vehicles just going for special purposes is
incorrect. Certainly, some of the vehicle we have right now are tagged for
special purposes (regional marketing events, promotions, auto shows, etc),
but some of the cars are going directly into the hands of dealers and
customers. It all just depends on when a particular order is loaded on
what ship. While I have no doubt that some dealers may be reluctant to
give up their first GTO off the floor, the good dealers are going to know
that keeping their customers happy is the number one priority.

Right now, we have about 900 cars on the ground with another 1,200 more or
so on the water. The first of those cars were released for transportation
to dealers this week, so you should start seeing them trickle into dealers
over the next few days. The pace of shipment from Australia should also
begin to pick up a bit. We are a little behind where we would like to be
in production, but I understand that we plan to make up any slight delays
over the next few weeks. With as complex as this launch process as been,
it seems to be going pretty well overall.

As hard as it has been for those of us in the corporation to wait for the
cars to arrive, I know it has to be torture on those waiting on their new
GTO. All I can ask is for a bit more patience. We are going to try to get
everyone their cars as soon as we possibly can because you are our best
ambassador on the streets to prove that the GTO is really back and it's
really worth the wait.

I still have not heard any news on your particular order, but I'll keep trying.

As always, never hesitate to let me know if I can be of any additional
assistance.

Thanks!

Jim