Re-Lease Me: GM starts leasing Cadillac, Buick, GMC and Chevy models again
2010 Cadillac SRX – Click above for high-res image gallery
Understatement of the Year: It's been a rough 2009 for General Motors. The 101 year-old automaker lost billions of dollars in record time, its market share plummeted, and overall sales were down over 30%. Oh, and the General had to ask for billions in loans from the US government before ultimately going through bankruptcy. A bad year indeed.
The fact that GM went through these tumultuous times without a leasing program made matters even worse, but that's about to be rectified. GM is teaming up with US Bank on a pilot leasing program in Michigan, Ohio, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. Already underway and set to run through August 31, the program will only apply to certain vehicles. The 2009 Chevy Malibu and Traverse, along with the Cadillac CTS and 2010 Cadillac SRX are included, joining the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Chevy Equinox.
While the program is regional for the time being, the launch of the SRX will be accompanied by a nation-wide lease program through US Bank. Mark LaNeve, GM's vice president of U.S. sales, feels the SRX lease will help launch the new luxury crossover. "Leases are an important part of the luxury market, so we decided that launching the all-new 2010 Cadillac SRX crossover with a national lease will add a lot of excitement." Hit the jump to read over the GM press release.
Gallery: Review: 2010 Cadillac SRX
[Source: GM]
PRESS RELEASE:
GM Announces Lease Program - Provides an Additional Consumer Financing Option for New Vehicle Purchases
* U.S. Bank offers rates on select Cadillac, Buick, GMC and Chevrolet models
* Five-state pilot program covers eight models
* All new 2010 Cadillac SRX lease available nationally
Detroit – General Motors Company announced an expansion of leasing today with enhanced lease programs on select 2009 and 2010 Cadillac, Buick, GMC and Chevrolet models. The leases, offered by U.S. Bank, are part of a pilot program that includes select GM vehicles sold in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Michigan and Ohio. In addition, a lease on the all-new Cadillac SRX will be offered by U.S. Bank nationally. The pilot is currently planned to run through August 31, 2009.
"GM and our dealers have done an incredible job without a leasing program throughout this difficult economic period, but we always knew that we would get back into leasing as it is important to a certain group of our customers," said Mark LaNeve, GM vice president of U.S. sales. "We have a number of products that offer a great opportunity for a lease option. Also, leases are an important part of the luxury market, so we decided that launching the all-new 2010 Cadillac SRX crossover with a national lease will add a lot of excitement."
"U.S. Bank has one of the largest auto loan and lease programs in the nation. We have supported the auto industry for more than 50 years, and this is an example of our continued commitment to the industry," said Tom Wirth, who leads indirect lending at U.S. Bank.
Initially, lease offers will be available on the 2009 Cadillac CTS, Chevrolet Malibu and Traverse. For 2010 models, leases will also be available on the Cadillac SRX, Buick LaCrosse and Enclave, the GMC Acadia and the Chevrolet Equinox. Monthly payments will vary according to the customer's down payment and the first month's payment due at signing, but are expected to be very competitive. No security deposit will be required.
For more information, customers in the five lease states (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Michigan and Ohio) should visit their local Cadillac, Buick, GMC or Chevrolet dealer.
About General Motors: General Motors Company, one of the world's largest automakers, traces its roots back to 1908. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 235,000 people in every major region of the world and does business in some 140 countries. GM and its strategic partners produce cars and trucks in 34 countries, and sell and service these vehicles through the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM's largest national market is the United States, followed by China, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia and Germany. GM's OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle safety, security and information services. General Motors Company acquired operations from General Motors Corporation on July 10, 2009, and references to prior periods in this and other press materials refer to operations of the old General Motors Corporation. More information on the new General Motors Company can be found at www.gm.com.
About U.S. Bank: U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), with $266 billion in assets, is the parent company of U.S. Bank, the 6th largest commercial bank in the United States. The company operates 2,850 banking offices and 5,173 ATMs in 24 states, and provides a comprehensive line of banking, brokerage, insurance, investment, mortgage, trust and payment services products to consumers, businesses and institutions. Visit U.S. Bancorp on the web at www.usbank.com.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Aloysius Vampa 6:13PM (8/03/2009)
Awesome. I couldn't afford to buy that CTS, but I can pretend to afford to lease it.
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Tourian 6:13PM (8/03/2009)
That's great news. Its the only way GM can expect to be competitive in this market. Hopefully they will be able to extend it to all models and all regions very soon.
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geo.stewart 9:43PM (8/03/2009)
their lease deals usually stunk.
Warroad 5:13AM (8/04/2009)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKViA_z6jwE
Yes please.
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Tang 6:40PM (8/03/2009)
NY, NJ, CT: money
MI, OH: political (as in, if these states weren't offered, it would probably be a stab in the back)
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xtasi 6:52PM (8/03/2009)
wait, wasn't the beatings that GM was taking in the returned leased vehicles (due to lower then expected resale value) that contributed a lot to their financial woes?
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Mr.Oak 7:30PM (8/03/2009)
Please explain? You sir is one of the FEW people that doesn't understand what was killing the US auto industry.
Aloysius Vampa 10:02PM (8/03/2009)
Hey, Mr. Oak,
I thought your English was perfect. What's wrong?
KT 10:20PM (8/03/2009)
No lease-end losses wasn't the cause but it didn't help either.
However, if you read the article it states the leases will be through US Bank. They'll be the ones holding the bag when these cars come back off-lease.
Somehow, I'm sure GM will share in the pain of any residual losses. If they don't subsidize the leases too much they may escape some of the problems they had with earlier leases.
xtasi 10:23PM (8/03/2009)
@Mr. Oak: if you would search in Autoblog for "gm lease" you would get this
http://www.autoblog.com/2008/10/06/gmac-dramatically-cut-back-on-leases-in-september/
Leasing is virtually non-existent for vehicles with low residuals, and Cadillac, which typically leases over 40% of its vehicles, leased at an 8.4% clip last month.
TigerMil 7:04PM (8/03/2009)
ROFLMAO.
Leases are for cars people WANT....otherwise the lease terms have to be giveaways to push tin that can't/won't be sold otherwise.
Call me when GM puts good/same lease factors on ZR-1 and CTS-V, for example.
GM is in the money making business again...has nothing to do with cars.
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Mr.Oak 7:25PM (8/03/2009)
TigerMill : Less that 10% of all CTSes sold will be of the V variety. Shows how much you know about business. Who said that the ZR-1 and the V are not going to have leasing available?
Ryan M 7:40PM (8/03/2009)
Notable absent is Saab, which is ironic since Saab started it's press conference to announce it's freedom from GM and restructuring with a song called "Release me..."
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ckm 7:50PM (8/03/2009)
GM's view of the world:
Leases == adding a lot of excitement
Talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel
"I was thinking about buying a Range Rover, but that new SRX leasing program has got me all excited"
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Dude 8:15PM (8/03/2009)
@ckm, Your post was pretty funny dude...
But it's just marketing speak from a complete moron. And, despite what LeNeve said I don't really think that GM believes that leases create "excitement". At least I hope they don't. I think that dude feels that they might just get a few more suckers, err, I mean lease customers in the showroom if they can offer leases (and they probably will get a few).
And, GM will have to reach for a little while until (hopefully) they get back on their feet and so anything to create a little hype might just help.
rudy 8:50PM (8/03/2009)
Is it me or does this look like a rebadged Opel?
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Aloysius Vampa 10:01PM (8/03/2009)
It's just you.
mikemaj82 10:07PM (8/03/2009)
My last car was leased. I bought my G8. It feels so much better. You're just throwing money away with a lease.
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KT 10:22PM (8/03/2009)
*wow that's a triple negative!
No. Lease end losses weren't the cause. But they didn't help either.
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Toledo Guy 2:16AM (8/04/2009)
So what? US Bank has been writing all kinds of leases. They muxt think they've found a way not to get burned on the back side. My wifes '08 Wrangler is leased thru them. Remember? Chrysler Financial stopped leasing? Well the dealer found someone to write the lease. We are used to leasing her car, looked at the terms and found them acceptable. Again, so what? GM found someone to write leases for them. Just read the fine print before signing....
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