[Cmicasa the Great XvX]

Originally Posted by Number 3

The problem is that Saturn buyers were unique. They were something like 85% NOT likely to consider GM. So you have pretty much lost 85% of Saturn to somewhere else.

Pontiac in it's hey days was fine. But in a more and more crowded market, Pontiac only held Chevrolet down. The Malibu couldn't be quite as sporty because you had to have room for the G6. And Pontiac dealers demanded G3s and got them, G5s and got them. All those two products did was give a buyer the chance to go to a Chevy dealer and say heyyyyy, I can get a sporty G3 for $xx,xxx how much for the Aveo.

Pontiac had a romantic past and that's it. It had no business potential. Buick did. It's that simple.

Now, Chevys can be sporty and even Buicks, without overcrowding the GM Brand landscape.

I understand the love for Pontiac. But Pontiac had the G6 selling well and that is it. The G8 was sadly a great car that didn't sell at all. A rebadged Equinox a rebadged Aveo and a rebadged Cobalt. The sadness is nostalgic, not real.

GM will work hard to retain those customers. And I hope the success rate is very high.

as I said in another thread... I LOVED PONTIAC.. we all kno that.. But Pontiac was a brand with dwindling prospects...

Let me explain that one...

BASED on the current climate.. or at least the climate of the last 5 years... Pontiac's "EXCITEMENT" credentials haven't lived up to that title anymore than Chevy... The G6 can be a performance type car.. but no more so than the Malibu.. and the G8 was certainly MAGNIFICENT... It was simply TOO NICE.. to not be a Buick or Cadillac... in fact the price almost demands it... since Pontiac's core buyers are to young to afford the car and while it certainly has BMW beat in performance... it fails to have one thing the 5series already has... the LUXO.. which it could get as a Buick and Caddy (in longer Wheel Base)

Almost 40% of Pontiac's sales were Fleet... and even tho I have no problem with Fleet sales.. for the sake of sales.. it's not as PROFITABLE as GM needs it to be.. and I certainly can see Pontiac buyers moving to Chevy...

Pontiac "EXCITEMENT" appeals to young guys... who nowadays seem more smitten with Chevy, Ford, Dodge, Mitsu, Subie, and Nissan for performance.

BUICK actually shows GROWTH... even with only 3 models... The Enclave is proof-positive that Buick can still draw a crowd... and it is not, as was previously thought, pigeon-holed to one (old) demographic.. as the Enclave sales numbers and buyers have been both plentiful and decidedly YOUNGER despite the economic downturn..

Cars like BUICK are necessary.. they offer a more clear-cut solution to harsh times or even inability to afford a top tier vehicle like a Caddy or Benz... THEY ARE PROFIT CENTERS, especially if SUV/TRUCK sales were to fall... NEAR LUX would pick up the pace