Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
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Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dl.../60221001/1041
And just how many years up until now has Saturn gone by with no updates or traffic-endusing product? Obviously, Chevy needs better product, but what GM brand doesn't? Hasn't Chevy enjoyed big truck sales year after year?
It's listening to dealers every whine that produces cars like the Pontiac G5.
Saturn Steals the Spotlight
Brand's rebirth vexes Chevy dealers
By Leslie J. Allen | AUTOMOTIVE NEWS
AutoWeek | Published 02/21/06, 8:16 am et
Saturn dealer John Bergstrom is facing an unexpected dilemma. Weeks before the Sky roadster hits the showroom, it is generating so much buzz that he has started a waiting list at all six of his stores.
"Sky is just a flat-out home run," said Bergstrom, chairman of Bergstrom Automotive in Neenah, Wis. "I've never had that before. They've never even considered a Saturn."
Waiting lists are unfamiliar for Saturn, sometimes dubbed the brand for people who don't like cars.
General Motors is pouring money into the 16-year-old marque, hoping that a new arsenal of Euro-look vehicles will help Saturn steal buyers from the imports. The Sky debuts in the spring, followed by the Aura mid-sized sedan and the Outlook eight-passenger wagon.
But nagging questions remain: Will sales rise enough to justify Saturn's fatter marketing budget at a time when Pontiac and Buick must trim their own ad campaigns? And is Chevrolet, GM's strongest and biggest mass-market brand, actually a better candidate to battle the imports?
Chevy dealers say they could easily fit mid-priced vehicles like the Outlook and Aura into their lineups. They also note that GM is promoting Chevrolet as its mass-market global brand.
However, Saturn does have two big factors working in its favor: a group of dealers who enjoy bulletproof customer satisfaction ratings and some ability to attract America's import owners.
...
If Saturn "is not making money, it shouldn't be anointed with such wonderful product," said Gordon Stewart, president of Stewart Management Group in Harper Woods, Mich., which has GM stores in Michigan and Florida. "Why does it continue to be fed at the expense of the other divisions?"
GM does not disclose the financial performance of individual brands.
Mike Maher, owner of Maher Chevrolet in St. Petersburg, Fla., said that if GM were to take what it spends on Saturn and put it into Chevrolet products, "you probably would have sold twice as many. If you take it away from a very strong division and give it to a weak division, you've likely diluted your outcome."
...
Brand's rebirth vexes Chevy dealers
By Leslie J. Allen | AUTOMOTIVE NEWS
AutoWeek | Published 02/21/06, 8:16 am et
Saturn dealer John Bergstrom is facing an unexpected dilemma. Weeks before the Sky roadster hits the showroom, it is generating so much buzz that he has started a waiting list at all six of his stores.
"Sky is just a flat-out home run," said Bergstrom, chairman of Bergstrom Automotive in Neenah, Wis. "I've never had that before. They've never even considered a Saturn."
Waiting lists are unfamiliar for Saturn, sometimes dubbed the brand for people who don't like cars.
General Motors is pouring money into the 16-year-old marque, hoping that a new arsenal of Euro-look vehicles will help Saturn steal buyers from the imports. The Sky debuts in the spring, followed by the Aura mid-sized sedan and the Outlook eight-passenger wagon.
But nagging questions remain: Will sales rise enough to justify Saturn's fatter marketing budget at a time when Pontiac and Buick must trim their own ad campaigns? And is Chevrolet, GM's strongest and biggest mass-market brand, actually a better candidate to battle the imports?
Chevy dealers say they could easily fit mid-priced vehicles like the Outlook and Aura into their lineups. They also note that GM is promoting Chevrolet as its mass-market global brand.
However, Saturn does have two big factors working in its favor: a group of dealers who enjoy bulletproof customer satisfaction ratings and some ability to attract America's import owners.
...
If Saturn "is not making money, it shouldn't be anointed with such wonderful product," said Gordon Stewart, president of Stewart Management Group in Harper Woods, Mich., which has GM stores in Michigan and Florida. "Why does it continue to be fed at the expense of the other divisions?"
GM does not disclose the financial performance of individual brands.
Mike Maher, owner of Maher Chevrolet in St. Petersburg, Fla., said that if GM were to take what it spends on Saturn and put it into Chevrolet products, "you probably would have sold twice as many. If you take it away from a very strong division and give it to a weak division, you've likely diluted your outcome."
...
It's listening to dealers every whine that produces cars like the Pontiac G5.
Last edited by jrp4uc; Feb 21, 2006 at 08:17 AM.
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Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
If Saturn "is not making money, it shouldn't be anointed with such wonderful product," said Gordon Stewart, president of Stewart Management Group in Harper Woods, Mich., which has GM stores in Michigan and Florida.
This guy is probably a millionare. Think about that then go cry.
This guy is probably a millionare. Think about that then go cry.
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Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
I remember when saturn came about. The big fanfare was you didn't have to negotiate as the price was what was on the windshield.
Seemed like it had a big following to and a bunch of loyal owners. Thought they even had a get together for all the owners every year too.
Now suddenly everybody is bitching about how saturn sucks and should be dumped. Are they losing money?
Seemed like it had a big following to and a bunch of loyal owners. Thought they even had a get together for all the owners every year too.
Now suddenly everybody is bitching about how saturn sucks and should be dumped. Are they losing money?
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From: Pewee Valley, KY
Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
Originally Posted by Aaron91RS
I remember when saturn came about. The big fanfare was you didn't have to negotiate as the price was what was on the windshield.
Seemed like it had a big following to and a bunch of loyal owners. Thought they even had a get together for all the owners every year too.
Now suddenly everybody is bitching about how saturn sucks and should be dumped. Are they losing money?
Seemed like it had a big following to and a bunch of loyal owners. Thought they even had a get together for all the owners every year too.
Now suddenly everybody is bitching about how saturn sucks and should be dumped. Are they losing money?
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Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
So Saturn has the ability to mark up their carrs now? I was the one of the better things about saturn, the sticker was what you paid and for the Sky, this would mean you actually got the car for what it was intended to sell for...instead of what dealers are doing with the solstice.
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Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
Personally, I take dealer bitching on this with a grain of salt. On the other hand, there are more than afew Saturn fingerprints on the corpse of Oldsmobile, and now Saturn is taking marketing funds away from Buick and Pontiac. Has Saturn even EVER made a profit for GM?
And the name. It sound like a Disney character. Like Pluto's buddy or something....
Whatever.
And the name. It sound like a Disney character. Like Pluto's buddy or something....
Whatever.
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Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
Originally Posted by jrp4uc
It's listening to dealers every whine that produces cars like the Pontiac G5.
I understand what GM is tring to do by creating the G5. They want the BPG stores to have a compact offering available to them. No harm done right? Well, not quite. The Cobalt has done us well, but now that becomes diluted by offering a twin with an arrowhead on it. For us here, it becomes a matter of "do you like bowties or arrowheads?" For the BPG store, there is nothing to offer that customer. Do I think that the G5 would be better off based on another model or at least a more distinct body? Absolutely.
Personally, I take dealer bitching on this with a grain of salt.
Maybe Saturn will turn around, and it looks as if they may, but at what cost to Buick and Pontiac in addition to piggy-backing Chevrolet? It's a circle.
It's much like how this country believes that import manufactures coming over here are creating new jobs. Sure they are creating new jobs, but at what expense to the current domestic jobs? It's a circle here too.
The only way I figure that Saturn could justify its existence would be by offering models unique in nearly every way to the current GM offerings. But again, how much would that cost, and a new circle would get put into motion.
There's just no really good answer that will make everyone happy.
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From: Ontario
Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
Originally Posted by lbrowne
So Saturn has the ability to mark up their carrs now?
But now the dealers can smell blood (money, actually) with Sky and some are taking advantage of it.
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Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
If Saturn dealers are smart, they will NOT markup prices, while keeping the no haggle policy.
Heh, I forsaw this all back in the past when we heard the W-bodies were gong to get a revamp and continue soldier a few years longer since that global rwd platform was going to be delayed.
Originally Posted by HAZ-Matt
Poor Chevrolet. I feel sorry for that brand because they don't get any cool cars.
Heh, I forsaw this all back in the past when we heard the W-bodies were gong to get a revamp and continue soldier a few years longer since that global rwd platform was going to be delayed.
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Re: Chevy dealers miffed over Saturn rebirth
Originally Posted by Z284ever
Personally, I take dealer bitching on this with a grain of salt. On the other hand, there are more than afew Saturn fingerprints on the corpse of Oldsmobile, and now Saturn is taking marketing funds away from Buick and Pontiac...
GM's logic is that Saturn has been accepted on the same level as Japanese imports, so it wants to grow the brand. Being that Saturn's were never really all that great cars to begin with (buzzy engines, notchy shifters, wide body & interior , gaps, etc...) it's obvious that it's no haggle price and it's autonomy from the rest of GM is what crated that image. Adding models, moving it upscale, incorperating it's lineup and management with the rest of GM is going to elimiate that, yet Saturn can't stand on it's own.
GM is dumping billions into Saturn, and (again in GM logic) they feel combining it with Opel will make it cost efficient. I can see the reasoning in that, but Saturn winds up being a combination of Buick & Chevrolet.
York feels GM needs to focus on Cadillac, Chevy, Buick, GMC & Pontiac (GM's core brands), and sees the money being drained into Saturn, Saab, and to a degree, Hummer, as taking away from divisions that do need money... yesterday. No doubt that means Pontiac and Buick.
Buick should get the Aura. Buick was closely associated with Opel in the 70s (they even marketed the original Opel GT here), so the Sky should naturally go there as well. Saturn's Outlook should have been a Chevrolet. The Ion is nothing more than a Playskool made Cobalt, and should be deep sixed. Equinox is such a better (and similarly priced) Vue. Adsorb Saturn dealers into the Buick-Pontiac-GMC network. Combine Opel, Saab, Subaru, and Chevrolet design and engineering.
The 9-2x is already a Subaru, the 9-3s are all Cobalts under the skin, the 9-7x is a $40K Trailblazer with a 5.3, so one could make the case that Saab's dead already, so why not kill it off as well?
York seems to be making better sense every day.
