http://businessweek.com/magazine/con...1045_mz011.htm

 

The print article has a table showing the number of "days of inventory" for various products.

Here's another shocker...

Pontiac G6: 123 days of inventory
Chevrolet Malibu: 46 days of inventory

Why is the dumpy Malibu moving more quickly than the G6? Did the Oprah give-away poison the G6's launch? If you don't think the Malibu's sales numbers are relatively hot, consider this fact....

Chrysler 300: 41 days of inventory
Chevrolet Malibu: 46 days of inventory

Judging by the inventory numbers, the Malibu is almost as hot as the Chrysler 300.

 

I think this thread was about Ford's problems. How bout we stay on topic?

 

Malibu has a $3K rebate, G6 has a $1.5K rebate.

I also tend to beleive that even with rebates factored in, the G6 is a bit to expensive to the people who would buy it. Even with rebates factored in...dollar for dollar, buying a G6 over an Accord or Altima is just silly. I also think not having a cheaper 4 cylinder model yet is hurting sales.

 

Or maybe GM just has the projections on sales pegged at this point and knows just how many Malibu's to build.

 

The G6's initial quality right after launch is pretty lousy as well.

 

My analysis....

G6 is an unremarkable car trying to sell itself as remarkable.

Malibu is unremarkable....but at least has no pretensions about it.

 

We have a winner. I think.

Call me crazy, but I happen to like the 500 and Freestyle (even if I'd never buy them). They are conservative, but proportioned well and cleanly styled and definately better looking than the Accord, Camry, Maxima and Avalon.

Personally, I think a lot of newer cars are "overstyled", particularly in the interiors.

BTW, I bet they'd be selling significantly more G6's if they just called them Grand Ams in the first place.

 

From the article...
"Sure, two sexy low-volume models, the Mustang and the GT sports car, are selling briskly."

The Mustang is a low-volume model?!?!
GT = 1500/year. Mustang = 150,000/year.
To me, that was a big-time mis-statement.
Mustang will break 150k units easily for '05 and it is a short model year since they didn't hit the lots until November.


While I agree that sales are not off-the-charts for Ford's new units, I think we are reading a lot of opinion in the article above. Fair enough.

 

I agree the statement about the Mustang was way off, but I didn't think it caused them to miss the larger point of the article. Still, a pretty bad error on the part of Businessweek's auto editors.

 

Fords lack of engines and drivetrains is killing their comeback. They so desperately need the Duratec 35 in their lineup right now, I feel it's the only thing keeping them back. The Duratec 30 held its own 10 years ago, now it's just simply outdated and insuffficient.

 

They would sell G6's like hotcakes if they decreased the price by 3 to 5k. The asking price is out of ine with the market. The Ford 500 is good at 21k but the awd at 29.5k is out of line.

 

Not to hijack this thread, but once again...the G6 is NOT OVERPRICED. When you look at what you get, for the price that you pay, it is fair. Even the import biased car mags agree the price is fair.

Take it from someone who sells Pontiacs (and actually just sold 2 G6s on Saturday alone). Customer walks in with a Grand Am for a trade. Customer looks at a G6 GT and gets sticker shock compared to what he paid for his GA GT 4 years prior. But then you explain that car has a $1,500 Moonroof. On Star. A much higher quality leather AND seat heaters. Show them the 6 CD changer, in dash. Show the customer what a G6 IS and what a Grand Am IS NOT, and the price is justifiable. I owned a Grand Am GT. I am not surprised by what the G6 costs because I know how much more content is in a G6 and how much better the car is. Now that the name awareness is higher, they're flying off our lot. We sold 4 this week...as many as we sold in January! Werm brought up the name awareness issue...I completely agree.

One more thing about the turn issue. Dealers are the ones who order the cars. If Malibus were not selling well, dealers would see a higher turn rate and would order less product. Maybe the dealers have better figured what sells and how much to stock, hence a better turn. Either way, I see a ton of new Malibus around here...maybe sales really are picking up.

Back to the point of the thread. I agree, there is not one dynamic new Ford model aside from the Mustang. The Freestar looks so much like the old model they had to change the name just so people could figure out the change!! The 500 looks like a 6 year old Passat. Nice car, but I think in 2 years it will REALLY look dated. I would take the more stylish Equinox over the Freestyle in a heartbeat, but admit I've seen more Freestyles on the road at this point...I think the Freestyle will probably outsell the Nox by a fair margin.

All this conservatism, IMO, will bite them 2 years from now when they spent all this $$ on new models that look somewhat dated now!

 

I disagree. Better yet, I am a consumer and I disagree. I like the G6 when I sat in it. When I looked at the sticker, I liked it much less. Thats regardless of the extra content. I can get a better optioned 300 for the same price. The 300 feels like its priced right. The G6 feels like you are paying too much.

 

I agree that they would without a doubt be selling far more if they simply called it Grand Am. The Grand Am, however, has a horrible history and most people look down on it as a cheap pile of donkey doo. You can't drive 500 feet without seeing one ont he road - they are all over, but they still have a horrible reputation. The G6 will gain some ground eventually but it'll take a couple years. Keep in mind we have the G6 now to help Pontiac break away from the whole cheap pile of crap brand complex.