gm4life

I have hope for some RWD and a new G8 or Bonneville.

Actually, it's not so much were I'm at, but that the dealership is far more established, centralized and trusted. They have a larger service center and body shop. My area is the exact flip of yours in that the wealthier pull their fifth-wheelers with luxurious GMC trucks. Mostly seniors drive the Buicks and the families have more selection from the larger PBG lot than the Chevy/Cad. dealer. There's isn't as heavy a thought on the heritage and history with an American car company. About the only major influence for some may be whether they wish to buy a domestic vehicle over an import; however, even that appears balanced with the import consumers... at least based on what I see on the road.

Yeah know the well off folks around here buy way more loaded up Chevrolet's than GMC's. Honestly it is nearly a flip, are Pontiac's especially products like the G8 and Solstice popular with the well to do people in your area?

The Volt is going to be cross-shopped with the Prius and Insight and HS250, as well as anything else in the $40k price range.

Yup at least hopefully they give the Volt a chance, there is a 7,500 tax rebate on her tho!

To everyone who sneers when I suggest a Malibu over a Camry/Accord/Altima I always say, "At least go test drive it so you know you make an informed decision.". I'm confident the Malibu has a chance to win people over if they'd just get through the Chevy dealer door. If they still choose an import, well that's their choice, but at least they gave the Malibu a swing and didn't dismiss it outright without even trying.

Exactly, someone I told ended up buying one instead of a Camry.

The fleet numbers on Pontiac probably aren't any prettier than they were a a few months ago. Lets go with the low number and say 30% of Pontiac's sales are fleet.

So of Pontiac's 17k (and change) sales, 5100 were sales that weren't to people who preferred the styling, or the name on the trunk, or necessarily thought the car was good. Those sales were strictly because GM was the lowest bidder.

The new G8 still had a great month with very few fleet sales I bet. Also I bet the new updated G6 is helping sales as well. Honestly I know you dislike Pontiac and everything it stands for but they are the "black sheep"-- as someone said, and have come back before... If the economy were doing better the G8 would be on fire, I would bet. I am glad Pontiac had a good month and had such a low sales percent decrease, if there is any brand that could do it, it is Pontiac. Lets just kill 'em right? Because they outsold Buick, Saturn, Cadillac and nearly GMC, the third best selling division! That sounds like a brand I would want to kill even if they had some fleet sales it is SALES volume and that is still important to GM. Good for Pontiac, let 'em prove 'em all wrong!

Pontiac is car.!

ALthough because the liberal left communist socialist east coast west coast educated journalist media lawyers socialites think it makes sense for GM to get rid of the brands. UM KEEP PONTIAC FOR EFFS SAKE!

as a side note, i was bumming around my downtown today and outside the mens clothier i get stuff from from time to time, a BRAND SPANKING NEW and BEAUTIFUL Pontiac G8 GXP. SILVER. GORGEOUS.

Amen to that... I saw a new G8 GT well, not one but two! In the past week. I agree with what your saying about Pontiac tho!

She is in Delaware and has been for a while now ...

Awww I gotcha, well be sure to take her out and light them front tires up sometime for me! :AH-HA_wink:

It's parked in one of the spaces in my garage ...

Ohhh good glad you didn't get rid of her. She is a great car! Can I ask is she in the states or across the pond?

Our local PBG dealer has been around longer than I have and is quite successful. So much so that the owners gained enough capital to start a Mazda dealership next door. Eventually, it was closed and reopened as a Toyota dealership that grew so fast the entire lot was given exclusively for trucks and used cars and they just finished a new facility beside it for the new cars and main building. All the while, PBG kept plugging along, unchanged.

I spoke with a sales rep the other day. The Chev/Cad/Hummer dealer in the next town 20 minutes from them is a dead stick. The sales rep at PBG does more in one month himself than they do altogether. They will likely be merged or moved to join or replace the PBG dealership... depending upon the overall outcome within GM.

PBG could not be better promoted out here, enjoying the majority of sales within the GM divisions. The local consumers the sales rep speaks with say they don't really prefer one over the other when it comes to the cars; however, they do prefer GMC over Chevy trucks.

Really where you at? Chevrolet is big around where I am, two large dealers in towns less than 10 miles away! Pontiac's aren't nearly as big or well stocked at the dealer in town, but still very popular with country folks thus more stocked at small dealers in small towns. My small town B/C/P dealer has more G6's and Vibe's than the in town Pontiac dealer. Chevrolet's are popular with everyone even "well off" people in my area, they drive Suburban/Tahoe/Avalanche LT/LTZ's and then commonly have a loaded Benz or Audi to go along with 'em.

I'd rather have an Aveo5 LT or G3 with sport pack and power features... Seriously.

April Fools .... :rotflmao:

Really... PCS? Where'd that nice GXP go I always enjoy looking at that in your sig...

No politics, but uhh seriously he has alot of people whom watched Nascar and voted for him and love Chevrolet cars and trucks, very silly. (if true...)

I've got mixed feelings about this.

for the record: NASCAR is a cog in the economic machine too... as lame as it may be.

Yup I do too. I dislike Nascar and don't watch it anymore. Having said that what would happen to all the Teams who drive Chevrolet or Dodge? Oh give more to Toyota, and loose another key group of customers whom are VERY brand loyal the red-neck Nascar crowd, not a good idea if true. Chevrolet will not go for, therefore GM won't. These NASCAR watchers also are like 75% more likely to buy domestic cars I believe if I heard that stat right. This is a stupid move because of all the advertising and pride involved in the silly sport yet. I can't fathom RCR Racing or Hendricks driving Toyota's...Crossing my fingures for chapter 11... JUST DO IT.

^If this is true that is my view...^

But I still think it is B.S.

Goverment should not have this much power. After the current generation G8, CTS, Corvette, Camaro, Solstice we can kiss goodbye any fun RWD cars. After 2015 the industry will look very different. Make no mistake goverment won't make choices on whats out now but ahead. I seriously don't care anymore, if I can't buy cars I want to drive then I'll become 68. All of this is part of the reason I have not been around as much lately, I so feed up with it. File CHAPTER 11 Fritz mentioned it again as a VIABLE option and the goal would be to come out stronger than ever! JUST DO IT. I predict it will happen like this... Obama won't like GM's plans in 60 days, GM files chapter 11, GM kills the UNION all of it, lets 'em strike and hires the people back with fair wages like Honda or Toyota in America. That is what needs to happen... I hope Fritz can do it.

With Pontiac not far behind.

I hope not.

My question. Since Henderson is coming in, will be be the puppet and Obama the puppet master in an automotive puppet regime?

Dear Lord lets hope not, because you can kiss any fun cars or V8 powered cars good-bye, hybrids for everyone.

I just got off the phone with President Obama. Looks like I'm going to be the new CEO of General Motors since he's so impressed with how I turned around C&G's finances.

That'd be fine with me, seen as you wouldn't kill any fun or RWD cars. Also I know you'd plus and bring back the 4.5L diesel V8 and push diesel motors in general which would be good for GM.

Just another GM lifer, I think..same old, same old.. was previously CFO, like Wagoner.

Fritz

Well then its change for changes sake. Maybe it'll help PR seriously or not...

Change for change sake. Why bother?

To the mainstream media and the folks it "looks" good. Like GM is finally changing, I just hope Fritz knows his sh*t and if he is CEO I hope he finds a balance between efficent cars and performance ones.

Ok guys, time to take off your tinfoil hats.

Looks like it's going to be GM COO Fritz Henderson

I read that too, this wouldn't be their worst choice.

I know damn well Frank and Dodd will not run it. My point is it is not the goverments call to who leads a large corperation.

First off no political appointee should be put in place Dem or Repub. This is a choice for the Corperate Board of Directors to make for the share holders not some creap in DC. If the goverment wants to add their opinion that is fine but GM get the choice.

I know Rick was smart enough to know he needed to hang on till they had things ready for him to step down and someone to take up for him. the question is were they ready before Obama asked for him to leave so they could get more funding.

What is next is Obama going to dictate what products they have to sell?

What if Obama said GM has to stop selling SUV?

What if they were told to stop making V8 engines?

What if they were told to stop all performance vehicles?

What if they were told they could not sell anything under 25 MPG?

I am not saying that any of this will come to pass but when you realize many of the backers of the Democratic party and Obama are heavy hitting eviromentalist things like this could happen. Mightn not now but in the future.

Theses are the same people who are loaning money to companies in trouble but also are looking to passing emission laws that will cost some of these companies 14 Billion dollars to meet. Hmm Not very smart planning to me.

There are those in his cabinet already wanting to go to a smart gride that could control your heat and AC. Obama already commented during the election on home tempertures.

I an not an alarmist but I have been seeing thing happen of late that cause me to be concerned. I Find it dangerous for the goverment to call for leader changes in a company. If they want to request it fine but do not hold them at ransom fo funding. It they get away with this where do they stop?

If GM can find a new leader to come in that could make changes and a differance other than a PR move I say fine let do it. But if all they are doing is a PR move at the request of the president and just put Fritz in then why bother?

It will be interesting to see what GM has in the change in leadership If it is nothing but a PR move that will be sad. I also am waiting on the other shoe as Obama keep saying he wants changes at GM. Some will be painful. Rick leaving is not painful. What does he have in mind? If he calls for some radical unresonable changes I hope GM tells him to stuff it and files Chapter 11 to remove the goverment from their company. The last capitalistic goverment to run a auto industry was the British. Look at how they faired.

The state of things are this the auto industry in America has been poorly run for years and I can only think of one other thing more poorly run. Yes the goverment who is not wanting to tell the auto industry how to do their work.

If Obama has not pissed of Wall Street he might have gotten some more help. There are people there that could be doing wonders at the treasury. Honest people do work on Wall Street but are smart enough not to get into the middle of this. Note none are willing to work as a under secretary in the treasury that should tell you womething stinks.

I say we will give them Rick if they give us Tim Guitner. But then again who would you replace him with?

At least Rick pays his taxes!

Thank you! I agree with nearly everything you said about being concerned about goverment power, and killing V8's and SUV's. You have taken the words right out of my mouth, and GM should tell the goverment to stick it and go it alone like you said, but not later NOW. Maybe my next V8 powered car will come sooner rather than later, it scares me what else they could "do" to GM. Cars like the G8, Solstice, Corvette, CTS, Camaro all could be heading for the chopping block because if goverment can kick Wagoner out what is stopping them from doing this?

I know, right? Unleash the chimpanzees with dart boards and finger paint, and I think some better decisions would have been made. The man truly has abysmal instincts.

The great part is you can react whatever way you want. I am very fearful for GM amoung many other things. Look at the history of how government has been run by both parties and then ask yourself is more of "that" what GM needs or is to go to the school of tough luck and start with a fresh slate? Just asking, and that is why I am very scared, and if you like General Motors and believe in this once great American company you might actually realize where I am coming from. Goverment with CAFE, emissions standards and now this has created lots of "new" and recent problems for GM instead of letting consumers demand from them. Then the tax payers feed them billions of billions of dollars, to solve nothing but get the CEO canned. Chapter 11 is sounding better to me as every second passes. I hope GM doesn't get the money tomorrow and they file chapter 11 and tell all parties involved including white and blue collar works to get real, and accept there problems that currently make them un-profitable. Believe if or not GM has alot going for them on the product end, but on this end they need work and the only way it will happen and its become clear to me is Chapter 11. So GM do it for your own good. I see how well goverment has been run and how well GM has been run and mix the two together you have a perfect storm, what possibly could be the end of another Great American Car maker... This doesn't scare you?

Why? I'm much less worried now that Red Ink Rick is gone. Hopefully we will get an outsider to GM, but someone who is familiar with the auto business--that would be ideal.

And get a grip on your "fear"--it's pretty ridiculous, honestly. Either make peace with the unknown and yourself, or start reading a lot more and gaining information--those are the only productive ways of dealing with fear. Going off into fantasy land with these complex conspiracy theories that would make Rube Goldberg confused as hell is NOT optimal or rational.

I agree an outsider to GM would be fine but someone who understands the auto biz. No I don't find it ridiculous what I find ridiculous is GM taking the bailouts and giving goverment this kind of power over a company up until a few months ago was owned only by stock-holders not goverment. Doesn't someone saying to you "get out" especially Uncle Sam scare you? Then again I look at the role of goverment different and maybe inside Rick was tried of all this dog and pony show b.s. I just hope good can come from this. Still I have many doubts...

Well this isn't good either... I just hope it works for them and they can re-enter the market.

If anyone really thinks that the administration will install someone from Congress to run GM.....well.....you should be getting fitted for your tin foil hat.

Chris I certainly hope not. It just is scaring me all of it...