smk4565

5-series sold 2900 last month, that is a bad month, they are usually in the 3-4k range. (plus global sales which helps economies of scale) I think $40k is as high as a front driver can go from any brand (I know what a S80 and DTS cost, those aren't exactly sales winners). The sweet spot for Buick is in the $28-35k range I believe, with a loaded up sedan going to $40k like the ES350 and MKS. People will pay $30-35k for a car because they have been paying that much for SUVs for years. SUV sales are dropping, families are downsizing, gas will go back up eventually and people will want a vehicle that is a step up from the CamCords of the world, but won't want an SUV. This is the demographic Buick needs to get after, small to midsize premium will emerge here as it has in Europe, Buick better be ready.

They tried that, it didn't work. GM is spending more money than they bring in to try to keep all these brands going and it still isn't enough. What bothers me is GM won't make the hard decisions (something they could have started a year or so ago before running out of cash). There should be a greater sense of urgency and more elaborate plan on how to "right size" the company. If they don't do it, the government is going to force them to bankruptcy and do it for them. And that may not turn out great.

Cadillac for sure needs a car smaller than the CTS, and should be given at least $1 billion to develop it (the 08 Malibu cost $500 million). It has to be rear wheel drive and 180-183 inches long. They may need another $3-400 million to get coupe or convertible variants, but it will be worth it. Base price should be $34,000-34,995. Overhaul the CTS and move it to $47,500 base price.

I think these are good engines, no where in my original post did I bash them. If the 04-07 Malibu, Impala, Buicks, G6, Grand Prix all had a 3 liter DOHC V6 they might not have picked up the unrefined label when compared to the Japanese sedans. I am glad GM has caught up and even gotten ahead of the curve a little with DI and will have class leading engines. About the 180 hp four, I meant DI didn't do much to raise power. 30 mpg highway on an SUV is very good, hopefully the Equinox isn't overweight like the Vue.

These are good engines, especially the V6. The 2.4 makes 174 hp as is, adding DI didn't do much, but at least 180 is an upgrade. Probably tuned for mileage. GM should have made the push to DOHC years ago. I remember in 04-05 when the 3500 and 3900 "high value" engines were GM's new thing and thinking how that was a mistake because everyone else had DOHC. At least they got it right this time. The 3.0 V6 will be successful because 255 hp is enough for the vast majority of motorists, and it should have good fuel economy. In hilly areas of the country the 4-cylinder will probably seem inadequate in something like an Equinox but in the flat states like Florida it will be ok. The 2.4 DI will be good fr the Cruze and Malibu.

Yet the UAW employees get paid 95% of their wages while sitting at home. Why should they get taxpayer money to pay people to sit at home. This is a business that is guaranteed to fail, that is why Cerebus won't put their own money in, the gov't shouldn't either. I think GM and Ford will be better off if they are the only domestics and Chrysler dies. The market is supporting 10 million sales, take out Chrysler's 1 million and GM, Ford and the rest will pick it up, those domestic suppliers will still sell parts.

Toyota will be fine in the long run, they won't go down. They just like their slow, steady growth and don't want any shocks thrown into the system. If Toyota was so worried about the Detroit 3, they could buy them and inject cash in, but clearly they want no part of that mess.

Too many models, too many brands. They need to dump brands fast. Without downsizing, they will be in Chapter 7 liquidation before 2009 is over, even with a government loan. GM is currently losing $67 million per day. If that keeps up for a year, it will be $24.4 billion, even with the $18 billion dollar loan they are still bankrupt in September 09.

At least GM tries to hide the platform sharing now, the Cimarron was god awful, they didn't bother to change anything really.

While maybe not the worst car ever (those Russian communist cars take that title) the most damaging was the Cimarron. 25 years later and Cadillac is still haunted by that. Luckily, they'll never rebadge a Chevy into a Cadillac again. Oh wait, the XLR, 2010 SRX and 20?? Lambda Escalade, hmmm.

Only works if GM's only brands are Chevy, Buick, and Cadillac and they have 2 sales channels. Otherwise they are just Lincoln-Mercury and a big step down from what BMW and Mercedes are. Cadillac's image right now is too frail to be associated with Buick, and Buick isn't near good enough to be associated with Cadillac. (Buick-Cadillac also only works if the base model Buick is at least $28k and they don't need discounts)

Also a chapter 11 bankruptcy will likely lead to a chapter 7 liquidation unless the government loans them money and keeps them afloat while they reorganize. GM doesn't have the cash to survive chapter 11, if they filed a year ago they might have been able to. I think best case scenario is Chevy-Buick-Cadillac, and about 15% market share if they manage this well. Given Wagoner's track record, Chevy-Cadillac and 10-12% market share wouldn't surprise me.

There is a point around $40k where front drive cars stop selling. The DTS is declining, the S80 and 9-5 never had good sales, Acura RL despite being AWD, is front drive based andnever caught on. But the TL and ES do pretty well, the MKZ does okay; front drivers work in the $30s, but fade fast as price nears $40k. Buick sedans will be in that low $30s range (which is still an up market move from the mid to high $20s they are now) so they won't overlap Cadillac much. I agree with your other post about Regal competing with the Aura and Malibu. GM competes best with GM.

I think the "niche" strategy is GM public relations smoke screen for an eventual phase out of the brand. They can't get rid of Saturn, Saab, Hummer, Pontiac all in the same year. So Pontiac will drop to Solstice and G8 until around 2011-2012 when I suspect the brand is eliminated. Barring some miracle comeback in auto sales volume.

BMW is doing 8 gears in response to Lexus LS and GS having it. I am sure they could care less about Hyundai. BMW will probably have the 8-speed before Hyundai, so they aren't playing catch up to them. I give credit to Hyundai for trying with the Tau V8, and the features on the Genesis. It makes them look like a respectable brand, and they were a joke 15 years ago.

The 2010 5-series is getting an 8-speed from ZF. I'd imagine the 7-series will also.

The Insignia/Regal is 190.2 inches long, a Volvo S40 is 176, the TSX is 183. For the Regal to compete with those cars it would have to be Cobalt size at most. 190.2 puts it squarely against the Aura (190.9), Malibu (191., Milan (191.4), Azera (191.5), Camry in size (189.2). The Avalon and Taurus are bigger but similar price, and similar purpose of being a slight upgrade over the CamCords of the world. Acuras/Nissan/Infiniti are too sporty for Buick to compete with. No Buick competes with the Genesis. The Genesis is getting an 8-speed in 2010, the Lucerne still has 4. Even the STS V8 is 55 hp shy of the Hyundai.

The Regal is on Epsilon, the LaCrosse is on Epsilon, I don't see the point. They aren't that different like the Lucerne and DTS or Camry and Avalon, and we already have the Malibu on Epsilon for the mainstream, LaCrosse can be the step up like the TL and MKZ are. a. If the Regal is the base mode Buick, yes b. $29k c. $29k d. Azera, Milan Premier, Malibu, Aura, LaCrosse, Lucerne e. Avalon, 2010 Taurus f. nope, I wouldn't buy a Buick anyway g. Oldsmobile Aurora 4.0

When they go into bankruptcy, the dealers will be out of luck and won't get any compensation. My nearest Pontiac dealer is Pontiac-GMC-Saab-Hummer, looks like they'll just be GMC and compete with the Chevy dealership half mile away.

SRX doesn't stand out from the crowd is what I said. The 2010 version may be better than the Volvo (how could it not be?) or marginally better than some of the imports, but the 3-point star, blue/white propeller and L carry a lot of status, the wreath and crest doesn't anymore. Lexus can sell cars on quality, reliability and resale value. People trust Toyota/Lexus, where as they may not trust the soon to be bankrupt GM or they got burned in the 80s by a piece of junk and won't consider a domestic.

They are feeling it, but on the bright side M division car sales are up 52% this year. Refreshed 3-series, new Z4, and 7-series for 2009, new 5-series in 2010, they have fresh product, they'll weather the storm and be fine when things turn a little. Mini is doing well, so that should help them a little. It will just be a hard 08 and 09 for them.

01 or newer STS then, because in 01 they got new 17 inch wheels, HID headlamps and a couple other features. In 2002 or 2003 it became the first car with XM radio, I think 02, because I got my car in 03 and installed XM to it. I always liked the gauges in the 98-04 Seville.

2005 STS can go to under $20,000. V8 and awd might be low 20s, which isn't a bad deal since they were $55k+ 3 years ago. I've seen STS-V's for $35-40,000, why get a new CTS when a 2 year old STS-V is cheaper. Cadillac resale value is horrid, which kills their new car sales, but for used cars they are a good deal.

GM getting market share in the SUV segment is all well and good, but market share does not equal profit. GM is out of cash and needs a government loan (because no bank will lend to them) and Toyota made $17 billion in profit last year. One of those companies had a good plan, one of them didn't.

Don't buy any Pontiac, all that plastic on the interior will fall apart. My step brother had a 90s Grand Prix and has a Firebird now and both fell apart. DTS is over 207 inches long, STS was 204, Aurora is 199. 2004 was SLS only. I own an Aurora 4.0, I used to use 93 octane, but when gas went over $3 I went to 89 and don't notice any difference. Post 2000 Northstars can run on 87, they may recommend higher for optimum performance. I also get about 18 mpg in mixed driving, unless you are on the highway in at least 80% of your driving, don't expect better than 18-20 out of a Northstar. I have driven the SLS and find it floaty, and the Aurora kills it in handling. The STS I rode in, but didn't drive it, it should get closer to the Aurora in handling, but the Aurora 4.0 is 250 pounds or so lighter. I have driven Devilles, that is like grandma floating in her boat going down the river. The Aurora 3.5 handles pretty well because it isn't as nose heavy as the 4.0 and has decent pick up, but the 4.0 is faster and sounds way better. 03 Auroras should be under $10k, 02-03 STS are always cheap also, can't go wrong with either. I suggest getting a warranty though. If something breaks they are expensive. My torque converter broke, and to fix it they had to drop the transmission (the 4T80 is over 300 pounds and one place I called wouldn't even work on them) to get to it, then take the sidewall off to change a solenoid. The Cadillac dealer wanted $2800 for this, luckily I went to a local transmission guy and he did it for $1450. Needless to say I won't be going back to the dealer. I have seen 05-06 CTS with 50k miles for $13-14,000 to throw that out there.