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GM brands might not go under the ax, but competing models will
It's no secret that GM is looking to sell or kill its once valuable HUMMER brand, but the big question now is whether the General will do the same with other brands. Unfortunately for GM, there isn't much to be gained from either killing or selling most brands. Saturn, GMC, and Pontiac are all US-only brands that don't exist without Chevrolet, and the bow-tie is GM, so it's safe as can be. Buick is a Chinese gold mine, so it's off the market. Selling Saab, Vauxhall or Opel likely wouldn't result in the kind of cash the General is going to need going forward, but at the expense of losing its European market share. Killing any brand, as GM already knows from its experience with Oldsmobile, would result in lawsuits from dealers and a dip in sales, which the General can hardly afford.What is likely to happen is that GM will take the same road Chrysler is already traveling by cutting overlapping models. Do we need a G5 and a Cobalt? Not likely. How about four Lambda crossovers? Two or three would likely be sufficient. How many different flavors of GMT 900-based SUVs is needed? There are currently several different flavors of Tahoe, Silverado, and Yukon, and some are superfluous, not mention stagnating on dealer lots. In the place of those vehicles will go more efficient models ranging from the sub-sub compact Chevy Beat (supposedly) to more Cobalt-sized products. The trick will be keeping the ship afloat until those models, along with the Chevy Volt, become reality. GM is likely to unveil more details during its next board meeting in early August.
[Source: Detroit News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Noe 10:04AM (7/09/2008)
BRAVO!!!! finally
Reply
TJ 10:19AM (7/09/2008)
not necessarily. the cost of vehicles is kept down by the use of platform sharing (read: platform, NOT BADGE).
If this is the steps that is to be taken, the general will have to switch from flex-man using the same architecture, to a platform that can be flex-manufactured in different lengths and widths. Otherwise, there is no cost-benefit and the individual platforms will be too expensive to be competitive.
ASEVENSEE4 11:03AM (7/09/2008)
I'm sorry but anyone that doesn't see what the Lambda's are? Badge engineering 2.0, redo the nose and touch back slightly, change a few interior pieces, PRESTO! The electronics, and power trains are all the same, as is the suspension components, 4 unneeded Crossovers, Two is MORE than enough.
TJ 12:09PM (7/09/2008)
You are kidding right? 99.9% of the population would not be able to tell you that the Enclave, Traverse, Acadia, and Outlook are related. The other .1% post here.
I will agree the Acadia and the Outlook are a little close on the exterior, but saying these are badge engineering 2.0 is like saying the pilot and ridgeline are also badge engineering 2.0, etc...
MasterCKO 12:57PM (7/09/2008)
seriously. I think that this is THE most level-headed post you guys at AB have done regarding the General. All you "kill all the brands" people should read this and at least consider the point of view before you go off on your diatribes.
PJ 2:00PM (7/09/2008)
The "kill all the brands" people are just trying to work within the realities of GM's labyrinthine bureaucracy.
If it were as simple as knowing that the competing "twin" models should be canceled, GM would have already done it. The problem is GM's dealer network. If Chevy dealers get a Cobalt, the Buick-Pontiac-GMC stores bitch and moan until *they* get one, too, regardless of the fact that they're pissing away their own brand equity and image.
There are a lot of smart people within GM who know the importance of product and brand positioning. But they can't shout over these decades-old internal squabbles.
Avinash machado 10:05AM (7/09/2008)
True. GM needs to cull overlapping models. Like Cobalt-G5, Aveo-G3, Malibu-Aura-G6, Solstice-Sky etc. Too much brand cannibalization.
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geo.stewart 10:47AM (7/09/2008)
Chevy Trax
Pontiac Beat
thats all i'm saying.
why not the LS2LS7? 11:01AM (7/09/2008)
I've seen several G5s in just the last week. I'm actually starting to think making that car was a good idea.
Then again, maybe they just sold because they ran out of Cobalts first, and thus if the G5 were killed and production turned into more Cobalts, it would work out fine.
jv2k 11:20AM (7/09/2008)
Well if that report from a while back is true, then the G5 will be replaced with a RWD version, so that shouldn't be an issue. Current G5's are true rebadges.
The midsized sedans are all fairly distinct from one another, although the G6 would benefit from better performance. It doesn't have to be a snarling muscle car, but RWD or AWD could help the vehicle's performance.
The solstice and sky compete with one another, but they are both fairly distinct looking vehicles. It's not like we've got the dodge and plymouth neons here.
For a time it did seem like GM was going to do what this article was saying. Then, of course, they announced 4 rebadged lambdas and the Pontiac G3.
I hope GM does follow through with ending rebadged vehicles, but I'll believe it when they cancel the Korean sub compact that is coming to their "Performance" division.
Dan Spalinger 10:10AM (7/09/2008)
Why again is the Volt mentioned as the be all, end all panacea to GM's issues? Sorry but a $40K plug in hybrid that will likely sell less that 30K units a year is not going to help their problems...Oh...and its at least 2 years away and seems to be shrinking in its performance and features by the day.....Why pay $40K for a Volt when you can buy 2 3rd gen Prius's (coming out a year earlier) for the same price?
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Pete 10:22AM (7/09/2008)
Buddy, pal, chump...
The Volt is a little over a year out.
This place is full of idiot armchair quarterbacks...if you were really that smart, you'd be doing my job...
rob 10:34AM (7/09/2008)
"Buddy, pal, chump...
The Volt is a little over a year out.
This place is full of idiot armchair quarterbacks...if you were really that smart, you'd be doing my job... "
Maybe its you who sucks at your job because GM has stated for a while now that the Volt is due out in late 2010. Seems more than a little over a year huh?
dan spalinger 10:37AM (7/09/2008)
Yes...late 2010 is the "due date" for this stillborn child...more than 24 months away...I think you may need some more fingers and toes to count on my inbred friend...and it could be released TOMORROW and it wouldn't do GM any good...$40K for something that people can but for $20K ain't gonna work...Oh...and what is it you do for work?? Besides being Lutz's personal fluffer that is...
why not the LS2LS7? 11:04AM (7/09/2008)
You'd buy a $40K Volt for the same reason people are buying $100K Tesla Roadsters. Because you want to go places without using any gas at all.
I agree sales will be tough to make at $40K, but GM has hinted that the price will drop as they begin to sell them, so perhaps by the time they've cleared out the crowd that is willing to pay $40K for a car of that sort, they'll be able to drop the price and reach more customers.
Lithous 11:54AM (7/09/2008)
"Why again is the Volt mentioned as the be all, end all panacea to GM's issues?"
How about some reading of the article? "until those models, along with the Chevy Volt, become reality."
"Sorry but a $40K plug in hybrid that will likely sell less that 30K units a year is not going to help their problems..."
Yes, and GM and others thought that a low priced, low volume car from the Japanese would have no effect either but it did. Now their cars are more expensive and sell many. The Volt will someday be less expensive and sell many models. I know it is hard for you to admit you have GM mentality of 30+ years ago but you do.
"and seems to be shrinking in its performance and features by the day"
By the day? Hmm. By the year or month or by the day, which is it? I'm trying to help you out since none of those are really true. Other than the fuel tank shrinking so that more gas isn't sitting in the tank unused for a longer period of time what features have shrunk? Actually, "performance" in the traditional sense will only get better with a smaller gas tank. Please show me the daily links to the changes GM has made in specs. This should be fun to read.
"Why pay $40K for a Volt when you can buy 2 3rd gen Prius's (coming out a year earlier) for the same price?"
First, the Volt is an electric car. I will gladly remove the spark plug from it when I get it and drive it around even at highway speeds for you once I receive mine. Please show me that in a Prius. Second, the Prius technology will be made in Japan. The Volt technology will not. The latest technology built in an area closer to me (where others buy products from near where I live is important to me) The 1.0L range extending engine is scheduled to be built in Flint, where is the engine in the Prius built?
".$40K for something that people can but for $20K ain't gonna work"
I guess being born with with fewer fingers is a sign of inbredness to you well your fewer brain cells must be a sign of something I guess. Again, the Prius is not the same as the Volt. I repeat: not the same. A Volt could be converted to an *all* electric vehicle with no range extender if desired with a new battery pack (assuming the 40 miles isn't enough for you) and engine and gas tank removal. The Prius would need a engine removal, transmission removal, gas tank removal, new controller, new larger electric motor (to go highway speeds), new transmission.
Than again, I guess a cobra and a garter snake are both the same thing.
"Oh...and what is it you do for work?? Besides being Lutz's personal fluffer that is..."
Oh, and what is it you do for work when not practicing geisha? You can dish it out but I know you can't take it. Weak.
dan spalinger 11:59AM (7/09/2008)
I have neither the time nor inclination to go into all the inaccuracies in your post Lithous but when two of the "big" three declare bankruptcy before the end of '09 I'm sure your delusions will keep you warm at night...
kory kickul 5:38PM (7/09/2008)
I totally agree with you. 30k volts per year production? The toyota camry sells over 500,000 per year. If the volt is a success all it will do is upset a lot of people who cant get one cause there arent enough of them to sell. might as well charge 80 grand for a volt, why not 100 grand. Maybe GM can actually make money on a vehicle for the 1st time in a long time.
ChopperDave 10:13AM (7/09/2008)
To quote Hyundai, "duh."
I'm with those who call for a stand-alone GM dealer network (well, except maybe for Saab and Saturn, the "quirky" brands), so that dealers don't beg for copy-cat models, which seems to be what breeds badge-engineering.
I'd love to see (not a perfect list, but hey, we're here to debate):
(One dealer)
-Chevy: Mainstream Economy and family (plus Corvette); Honda/Toyota/Nissan/Ford competitor;
-Cadillac: Sport-luxury for buy-American types; BMW/Audi competitor
-Buick: Plush-Luxury; Lexus/Jaguar competitor
(Another, lower-volume dealer)
-Saab: Sport-luxury for Europhiles; leader in alternative energy; Audi/VW/Volvo competitor (not BMW/Merc)
-Saturn: Economy/Family for Europhiles; trickle-down receiver in alternative energy; VW/Prius competitor
Pontiac and GMC: dead; covered by Chevy
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Frylock350 11:53AM (7/09/2008)
Pontiac covered by Chevy? I fail to see where "big-ass American RWD sedan" falls in that breakdown. The G8 must go somewhere and I like it fine where it is.