Autoblog

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]