REPORT: GM already has nearly two year supply of Pontiac G3
2009 Pontiac G3 - Click above for a high-res gallery
In news that will doubtlessly result in a chorus of "We told you so" forehead-slaps from critics who noted the arrival of the Pontiac G3 with disdain, word is that General Motors has a bumper crop of the Korean-built subcompacts sitting on its lots.
How many? According to The Wall Street Journal, nearly a two-year supply at current sales rates. In the course of doing some research, writer Neal Boudette discovered that GM has 3,479 unsold G3 units clogging up its dealers and vacant lots. Combined with the knowledge that dealers sold just 141 units of the car in March (or one unit for every 19 of GM's 2,700 Pontiac stores), that means that GM has a supply of these Chevrolet Aveo5 twins that will last them 617 days, meaning that if the automaker stopped building new units, they would still have a supply that would last them until December 16, 2010.In all fairness, the G3 just came to market in February, and it often takes some time for a new model to take hold. It could well be that GM is planning a big marketing push for the car, but we've seen no evidence of this thus far, and in these cash-strapped days, it would appear that the General probably has bigger-margin fish to fry.
Gallery: 2009 Pontiac G3
[Source: The Wall Street Journal]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
JDMlover 1:04PM (4/14/2009)
No one should drive this...it should not even be considered a car.
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David 1:42PM (4/14/2009)
I rented an Aveo once. It was a more positive rental experience than the PT Cruiser I rented.
Would I buy one? No, but it wasn't horrifically terrible either. It was fine. I drove it over 300 miles.
I also don't find them ugly on the exterior.
My biggest problem with them is that they aren't nearly as good as their competitors, but cost nearly as much. I'm sure there will be great sales on these.
Bill 2:27PM (4/14/2009)
I had an Aveo sedan for a week as a rental. It's really not that bad. Not a great highway car, but a good city car. Easy to drive, good driving position, and roomy. Get over yourselves.
Tool 2:17PM (4/14/2009)
Once again, this proves that having duplicate, minimally re-badged vehicles that compete against themselves in the family (i.e. Aveo vs. the G3) makes no sense anymore.
Also makes a good business case for GM to place the entire Buick-Pontiac-GMC in the 'bad' GM company when GM files for re-org and creates the new GM in six weeks.
jv2k 2:34PM (4/14/2009)
This is what happens when GM listens to it's dealers. They have proven time and again that they don't know a damn thing about what they want.
James 3:42PM (4/14/2009)
What was that old mid '80s ad...
"Pontiac...We Build Excitement!"
Aprime 1:07PM (4/14/2009)
I have one. >_>
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Xcountryflyer 1:33PM (4/14/2009)
We are all certainly free to drive the auto of our choice, but my condolences.
Aprime 2:38PM (4/14/2009)
Why do you all mourn it? I did a bad choice, it's not likely to happen again.
akboss302 1:08PM (4/14/2009)
As a purely in-town runabout it would be great. Uber-cheap and compact means it can fit anywhere and won't break the bank. Wouldn't catch me on rural roads or highways in one though!
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9600baud 1:32PM (4/14/2009)
Make it the price of a Tata and maybe they've something worth looking at.
David 1:47PM (4/14/2009)
...and you won't cry every day when some jerk has bumped it, scratched it, or otherwise abused it due to on-street parking, because you paid so little for it.
tomguptill 2:38PM (4/14/2009)
The thing is, it costs $15,055. $14,055 after the $1000 rebate.
That puts it well above the base price of a Versa, Yaris or Accent hatchback, and right in line with the Fit, Soul, etc.
Although I don't have the hatred for this car that a lot of other people do (I've driven an Aveo for a few weeks as a rental and it wasn't bad), all of the cars I just mentioned are nicer.
travisty 11:26AM (4/15/2009)
@Tom - are you f'ing kidding me? $15k for an Aveo? Even on the "comparisons" page on pontiac.com it's the 2nd most expensive car listed ($400 cheaper than the Fit), and gets beat in most of the feature/benefits as well. Yes, they're running an (immediate) $1000 off, but that just means that the car started out $1000 too expensive. Ugh... This is rebranding at its worst.
Tomac 1:09PM (4/14/2009)
Honestly, did ANYONE think this brand-engineering was smart? The Aveo itself is a poor choice compared to the competition, why did anyone think slapping a Pontiac badge on it would entice sales?
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Kimura 2:10PM (4/14/2009)
No one thought it was smart besides GM. :P
apearlman 6:01PM (4/14/2009)
Maybe it's not selling well because everyone is hoping for a Cadillac version.
(Wow, thinking like a GM product planner is really easy!)
skabone 1:09PM (4/14/2009)
can you say rental car fleet sales?
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The Luigiian 1:09PM (4/14/2009)
It serves GM right for not learning a lesson from its extensive history of rampant badge-engineering.
I'm not saying they'd do any better if they were Chevy Aveos, but I am saying that all this vehicle does is dilute the Pontiac brand. Sports-car fanatics who see Pontiac as sporty cars are not going to want a Pontiac "sport" econobox, and people who want an econobox aren't going to want or care if their vehicle is a Pontiac.
If all Pontiac had on its lots were G8s and Solstices, it wouldn't sell any more cars, but at least it would have a recognizable brand image. As it currently is, Pontiac dealers aren't able to sell these cars *and* new vehicles like this will confuse most buyers even more as to what a Pontiac car is.
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jgp 1:30PM (4/14/2009)
Honestly, the only subcompact that would make any sense at all for Pontiac would be the Corsa VXR. Not any of the lesser models, just the VXR.