[spectra1]

Got this from are guys at outlook forum

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2009-09-30-penske-gm-ends-saturn-talks_N.htm?csp=34

 

[OneLove19451981]

Not surprising and (in my opinion) kind of a good thing. Yes, I do understand that it will cost many people their jobs and that is not a good thing. However, when I first learned of the gov't bailout, I was pretty upset that my tax money was going to support the production of Saturn, GMC, Chevy, Pontiac, Buick and Cadillac and maybe one or tow more I can't think of. Now that my tax money is only going to support Chevy, GMC, Buick and Cadillac, I am ok with that. It is not necessary to have 6 different makes with essentially the same model. The lambdas are a perfect example of that. Is it really necessary to make a Chevy Traverse, a GMC Acadia, a Saturn Outlook, and a Buick Enclave when they are all essentially the same vehicle? That may have been a part of the problem that got GM into bankruptcy to begin with. Flooding the market with more products than the consumers were willing or able to buy.

 

[rbarrios]

Overproduction I think was more of a problem- cause then they had to offer big discounts to move the car..

At the moment- they are more in line with production/demand. actually they cant keep the Equinox/ Camaro/Terrain on the lots- they sell as soon as they are unloaded.
If they can keep low amounts on the lots- then they sell for more- have better resale value, and massive discounts dont have to be offered.

And the Lambdas- are currently different enough on the exterior to give people options....

not like a decade ago- where GM cars were VERY VERY similar that you could literally swap body panels.

 

[09Enclave]

Not surprising and (in my opinion) kind of a good thing. Yes, I do understand that it will cost many people their jobs and that is not a good thing. However, when I first learned of the gov't bailout, I was pretty upset that my tax money was going to support the production of Saturn, GMC, Chevy, Pontiac, Buick and Cadillac and maybe one or tow more I can't think of. Now that my tax money is only going to support Chevy, GMC, Buick and Cadillac, I am ok with that. It is not necessary to have 6 different makes with essentially the same model. The lambdas are a perfect example of that. Is it really necessary to make a Chevy Traverse, a GMC Acadia, a Saturn Outlook, and a Buick Enclave when they are all essentially the same vehicle? That may have been a part of the problem that got GM into bankruptcy to begin with. Flooding the market with more products than the consumers were willing or able to buy.

When you go to a restaurant, how many types of chicken can you get? It's all about having many to choose from, you will appeal to more of the public, resulting in more sales. The reason Saturn failed is because of so few dealerships, and the fact they started out trying to be different than the other divisions, that when that didn't work, they started to offer the same types of vehicles as the other divisions, which made them look like just another GM division. Bottom line, they should have never had Saturn, and kept Oldsmobile, but kept more style differences so that they actually looked different between the divisions. As for the Lambdas, I think each is unique, but the Saturn and the Acadia were too much the same.

 

[OneLove19451981]

When you go to a restaurant, how many types of chicken can you get?

As many types as they have the demand for, and not much more. If they offer too many types of chicken, they'll just be throwing away lots of chicken every week because it didn't sell. That's essentially what happens to cars when GM is offering 0% financing on top of $2500 off sticker price on top of $5000 cash back on top of free extended warranties on top of blah, bah, blah. They are more or less throwing that car away because it has reached it's expiration date (end of model year). That was my point. If you offer too many choices, only the "good" ones will sell and the rest will get "thrown away."

 

[bobg1951chevy]

"That's essentially what happens to cars when GM is offering 0% financing on top of $2500 off sticker price on top of $5000 cash back on top of free extended warranties on top of blah, bah, blah".



All of the above are "incentives" to offset the results of our faltering USA economy.

The ordering process for the dealership is based on "allocation".

The physical make up of the vehicle sitting on the lot is the result of the dealership individual who puts "X's in boxes" to determine options and color combinations. Sometimes, those "ill chosen colors and options" contribute to the vehicle getting spider webs on the lot!