Buick Lucerne living large on dealer lots
General Motors would like to us view the Lucerne as one of its Value Pricing success stories. The big FWD sedan is selling well with few incentives, which means its average transaction price is staying relatively high. Buick has sold 22,124 Lucerne's in the first quarter, but is expecting to build 145,000 by the end of the year. What's more impressive, however, is the low 9.3-percent of fleet sales for the Lucerne in the first quarter. The Buick Park Avenue and LeSabre that the Lucerne replaces averaged 26-percent fleet sales. GM is hoping that it can boost the Lucerne's residual value by keeping those fleet sales in the basement.
Don't ask a Buick dealer how well the Lucerne is performing, however, as you'll likely get varying answers. Some are selling out and some are hardly selling any. That just goes to show how geographically isolated Buick's audience is.
Related posts:
2006 Buick Lucerne in the Autoblog Garage Day 1-2
2006 Buick Lucerne in the Autoblog Garage Day 3-4
2006 Buick Lucerne in the Autoblog Garage Day 5
[Source: AutoWeek]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tim UF 1:05PM (5/08/2006)
im guessing south florida and arizona locations were sold out until the spring thaw up north...
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Alan Anderson 1:16PM (5/08/2006)
OK, which regions have the slowest sales? Maybe I take a ride and see if I can get a deal.
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Richard Warren 1:23PM (5/08/2006)
"That just goes to show how geographically isolated Buick's audience is."
Wow, no there is a leap, exactly how did you come up with that? Geographically isolated? How about some data to back that up?
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Michael Karesh 1:27PM (5/08/2006)
To date there have been no rebates on the Lucerne.
But it's a subtle car, it doesn't jump out at you like a Chrysler 300, so awareness is likely to build slowly.
My page for the Lucerne, with a link to my review and most common price comparisons:
http://www.truedelta.com/models/Lucerne.php
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RossL 1:35PM (5/08/2006)
I'll bet that Lucerne sales are fairly rare in Canada. Why? Because GM seems to have priced it here based on exchange rates from two or three years ago. The Canadian dollar was worth about 65 cents just a couple of years ago. Now it's pushing 91 cents.
A Lucerne CXS starts at C$42,700 in Canada, which works out to about US$38,400 at current exchange rates. Across the border, the same car carries an MSRP of US$34,900.
I'm not blaming GM - the Canadian dollar has been on a tear for the past two years, so pricing for all sorts of vehicles (and other products) is way out of whack. But when I was pricing vehicles in this class recently, the Lucerne seemed to have among the highest exchange-rate differentials.
For Canadians, the lesson is probably to hold off on that new car purchase for a bit longer, because manufacturers may be forced to lower MSRPs or put more incentive money on the table.
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AM 1:41PM (5/08/2006)
A Buick stands out for one reason: Watch out because some old person with the reflexes of a snail is driving and therefore should be given a large berth.
You'd think they would come standard with a 3 wheeled scooter. Now that would move some Buicks!
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John Smith 1:45PM (5/08/2006)
Oh, it's Florida alright! Is there no way they can slow down production so that they do not over-produce?
Or has the UAW's Death Grip prevented GM from being that nimble (regardless of economic sense)?
A truly flexible plant would slow down production to avoid having a glut of cars to sell at year's end with tons of incentives.
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Marc 1:59PM (5/08/2006)
I have seen quite a few here in San Antonio, TX. Most were driven by 40 something men. The CXL and CXS seem to be the most popular.
This car is so much better than the two it replaces - most who drive it are probably very impressed and must go back outside the dealership to verify that it is a Buick store they are in.
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Rosie Scenario 2:23PM (5/08/2006)
Ha Ha!!! You guys are hilarious. When will you accept that the new Buicks are better than many of their foreign counterparts, and the new "Granny" car is the Toyota Camry. Consumer Reports rates the reliability of the Toyota Avalon below the Lacrosse. JD Power hands out awards by the bushel to Buick's North American plants. Buick just announced a $500 rebate on the Lucerne CX (entry level) in select areas. The car is selling without incentives.
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hj 2:53PM (5/08/2006)
I havent seen any LuCerns here in Boston but the new LaCrosse is EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK!
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tcc3 3:52PM (5/08/2006)
Rosie- I'll accept that GM and Ford have turned over a new leaf when they consistently make a reliable, long lasting car. Both GM and Ford go through "Quality assurace" phases every few years. Then when they think they've fooled everyone they go back to cutting corners and making shitty cars. If you happen to be unlucky enough to buy during the off years you're just SOL. One or two good cars are flukes at this point - too many people have been burned too often to belive otherwise.
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Tone 4:31PM (5/08/2006)
"too many people have been burned too often to belive otherwise."
Exactly, look at Hyundai, 20 years later they still battle people not willing to accept change. GM is no different, they will have to go through the same style of waiting and building *good* cars, and with a 3/36 warranty, it might even take them longer.
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dzot 4:50PM (5/08/2006)
I had the opportuinty to drive a rented Lucerne for about a week and, as a long time Camry/Accord owner, I can say the Lucerne is noticeably smoother and quieter than anything I have owned. It is nothing approaching a driver's car, but it is not supposed to be.
If -- IF! -- it manages to acheive Toyota/Honda levels of reliabilty, then it moves to the top of the class as far as I can see.
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jg 5:20PM (5/08/2006)
Actually, Buick beats both Honda and Toyota in quality. (JD Power) Also, in the NYC area, the Camry is clearly the preferred car among the granny set. Buicks are getting cool again!
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Tom Design 6:56PM (5/08/2006)
I've seen two Lucernes on the road in Boston this month. It's a classy, elegant style. I still think the old money, rich in U.S. like to drive quiet, big autos, like Buicks and Grand Marquis. Buick buyers want none of the bling-flash style from Europe or Asia that shouts "I made it! Notice me." The Tiger Woods and Martha Stewart fans, are wealthy and concerned about appearing proper not garish. My bet is that Buick doesn't "give a heck" what we autoblog contributors think. Their cars sell well, "and that's a good thing." The only foreign luxury car targetted properly is the Avalon, and unfortunately, it has slipped to average reliability since the new 2005 introduction, hopefully Toyota will correct this. And you can't beat the pricing of a CXL V8 at $29,500, cheaper than some Accords.
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Mal Fuller 7:19PM (5/08/2006)
" That just goes to show how geographically isolated Buick's audience is."
For sure. There are certain regions and seasons that make heated windshield washer fluid a hard sell.
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AR 8:59PM (5/08/2006)
>>>"I've seen two Lucernes on the road in Boston this month."
Two Lucernes this whole month. Wow. Cool, man.
>>>"Buick buyers want none of the bling-flash style from Europe or Asia that shouts "I made it! Notice me." The Tiger Woods and Martha Stewart fans, are wealthy and concerned about appearing proper not garish."
In other words, Buicks are dull and boring. Anyone with the cash to buy a Mercedes or BMW isn't going to cross shop Buick. Mercedes and BMW are out of Buick's league. Buicks simply say "I'm too dumb to realize my wealth could be spent on a better car".
Bottom line: The Lucerne is nothing special.
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John 12:31PM (5/09/2006)
The Lucerne seems to be selling well in the St. Louis area.
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Tom Design 12:57AM (5/10/2006)
AR => No you missed the point because you're too biased to appreciate automobile segmentation, intensive customer knowledge, and engineering quality. It was the 7th of the month, and spotting two cars in my affluent neighborhood of Brookline is something big. It's a Mercedes, Volvo, Lexus town and Buick has landed squarely. If I saw two in my limited goings, then there are many more. That is what this article is about, the success of the Lucerne in sales. I was responding to the earlier poster commenting on seeing none in Boston. But nothing would impress you since you are a basher of anything you don't like. Like I said, Buick is happy to lose you to your unreliable, blingy Euro lux sedans.
By the way, do you bash as "AM" also?
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Steve 1:15PM (5/10/2006)
Sales are "geographically isolated"? Yeah, the top markets for Lucerne are in such out-of-the-way places as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Tampa, Phoenix, and Minneapolis. But don't let the facts get in the way of a good story.
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