Holden has not decided to go but is yet to commit to any long-term future for its Australian car making operations, with boss Mike Devereux failing to ease concerns for thousands of worried workers.
Mr Devereux said emphatically on Tuesday that no decision had been made to close the company's assembly plants despite growing speculation production would stop as early as 2016.
But he also declined to outline any timetable for a decision and warned that ongoing government support was vital for the company to continue to invest in local production.
"We need a public/private partnership over the long term to be able to be relatively competitive," Mr Devereux told a Productivity Commission inquiry into the automotive industry.
Holden is considering its future in Australia as it battles the high dollar, cost pressures and tough overseas competition.
The company agreed to a $275 million assistance package with the previous federal government in 2012 and was also promised more cash before the September election amid suggestions it needed as much as $500 million to commit to building two new model cars from 2016.
Acting prime minister Warren Truss says he's asked for immediate clarification of the firm's intentions in Australia.
Mr Truss said a statement released by Holden Australia's parent General Motors on Tuesday made no clear commitment to continue manufacturing in Australia.
Mr Truss said the company was reporting sustainable profitability two years ago, yet now it had not ruled out abandoning manufacturing in Australia.
"They owe this to the workers of General Motors - let us not go into a Christmas period without them making a clear commitment to manufacturing in this country," Mr Truss said.
Following the election, the coalition reaffirmed its plans to cut $500 million from overall auto industry assistance and says no further cash is on the table for Holden.
It is waiting on the Productivity Commission report, which is likely to determine the company's fate.
South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill said Mr Devereux had made it clear the company wanted to stay in Australia and had "kicked to death" reports that a decision to close had already been made.
"Mr Devereux has given the clearest of possible indications that Holden is not going to close and they want to continue making cars in Australia," the premier said.
"It's over to the federal government. No more excuses, the focus is on them.
"The future of Holden is in the hands of the prime minister."
The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) said Mr Devereux's comments were good news but failed to provide any assurances for workers.
"It keeps us in the ball game," a spokesman said.
Mr Devereux told the Productivity Commission the company was doing everything it could to cut the $3750 cost gap between building cars in Australia and building them in other countries.
"We do need to close the gap," he told the hearing.
"I don't suggest that we are asking to close that gap to zero."
He said the submission the company had made to the federal government clearly stated General Motors' threshold for doing business, but the details would remain confidential.
Holden said it generated $32.7 billion in economic activity in Australia from 2001 to 2012 and received $1.8 billion in assistance over the same period, a result it considered a good return on government investment.
