Could be Art.

 

come to think about it... we havent had any for a while...

 

The hold is only because of the number of "sold" vehicles we have on backorder. Currently, we've placed vehicles for production thru, as I recall, May. That is not to say that we won't resume placing orders....and it is not to say that there are not some TrailBlazer SSs coming to dealerships that are not sold............

 

.... but it does mean they didn't listen when Scott told them how many of them they could sell.

 

Is there a reason why they simply can't build more SS's as opposed to regular TB's?

Are there CAFE issues that limit the build number (like I've heard is the reason Corvette Z51's have been on and off constraint throughout the C6's lifespan) or some other reason(s)?

 

The TB needs a redesign, badly... especially on the inside.

Take the interior of the Buick Enclave, add the TB SS' motor and a 6-speed auto.

You'd have one heck of an SUV both in terms of luxury, comfort, and sport.

 

CAFE is not affected.

It's a matter of how many sets of components we can get from suppliers. Believe me.....if we can increase production, we will........(God forbid we have too many vehicles that people want to buy!!!)

One of the hardest jobs a marketing team has to do is to forecast option load.

It may seem easy to some who've never done it, but here's the problem:

Let's say you forecast that an option will sell at a 40% rate.......the public decides it will sell at 80%....where does the additional capacity come from? It isn't just like "well.......make more of 'em!"........ the contract is drawn up at a particular level and the supplier tools for that volume.....and most components are made up of many more components...and THOSE components are tooled to a certain volume..........

..........see what I mean?


Conversely, let's say you forecast 40%.....and the public sez 20%......what do you do with the capacity? Buy 'em and put 'em in a warehouse?

I remember working with a group in Detroit when the Corsica Hatchback came out. (yeah.......longggggggggg time ago.....) The Corsica was available as a 4-door sedan....but we had the opportunity to do a hatch as well. Looking at the gajillion Citation Hatches we built.....and looking at customer questionaires...it was definitely a 50% runner......and I was concerned that we'd not be able to keep up with demand.

wellllllllll.........................I think it MAY have hit mebbe 10%..........

that's a disaster.

Another more recent example: the 6-speed on the LS1 Fcar. Looking back at the LT1, we planned for, as I recall...50% of total V8 production to be ordered with a 6-speed on the new LS1 engine..and that was stepping outta the box...... Contracts were signed.

Well....go look at the penetration to total production on the 1996-1997 Camaro/Firebird....then look at 1998-1999.........HUGE difference. The manufacturer of the transmission sold out....and the new company was obligated to provide the number of transmissions based on the contract already signed. Well.......we already know that demand for the V8 skyrocketed....and the demand for 6-speeds surpassed that.....as a result, many customers were waiting as long as 6 months for a new Camaro or Firebird with the V8 and 6-speed. We went to the manufacturer of the transmission and said "we wanna buy more!".........and they said...."tough......"

We ended up paying huge premiums to have the tooling changed and more transmissions built to meet demand......it cost us untold dollars to do so..........

So.........it's all in the forecasting........and the Ouija Board or the Crystal Ball is usually off..............

 

Interesting info.

 

So it's safe to say that this product is a sales success?

 

Someone I work with was looking into one. They couldn't even find one to test drive though because there were just none on any of the lots.

The Chevy dealers basically said if you want one, you need to order it. The demand for the TBSS was too high for it to just be part of dealer stock.

 

Cool information. Thanks.

Great to hear that it is a success, I guess if you have a problem, this is the kind of problem you want to have.

Do these contracts for the number of specific parts typically run for one model year? If so, I'd imagine they would be re-worked to compensate the following year....

 

I agree that it needs a new interior. I still think it looks good on the outside (though what I'd like is an Envoy with the SS running gear).

However, what that has to do with this thread is pretty much beyond me, especially given Fbodfather's post (2.5 hours prior to yours) saying that the SS model is on hold because they have sold out through May and can't support the demand.

Evidently there are a few people out there who find the interior acceptable enough to order an SS. After all, the list of SUVs in the mid $30k price range with ~400 hp is a pretty short one. As in, the SS is basically it (GC SRT8 starts closer to $40k, but that is the only one even close in price).

 

Put my wife and I on th list of those that don't mind the all black interior ... in fact we prefer it to the faux wood and chrome our '02 Envoy had. I'll take good ergonomics to eye candy any day. The things I'd change to make the package better are:
- HUD ... I spend way to much time playing with the XM ... I'd like to be able to do that without taking my eyes off the road
- Cruise Control switches .. I'd like them on the steering wheel so that they can be operated with gloves/mitts on
- Cover plate where the 4WD control is in the regular trucks needs something in it ... an analog clock would be nice ... the one in the nav screen is hard to read
- DIC / memory controls ... have been decontented from what the '02 Envoy had. That really irritates ...especially for a 2 driver vehicle.
- 4 speed auto - 4.10 gears ... great for performance ... really hard on gas .... needlessly so when cruising at 80 mph

Overall ... we love the truck and are ecstatic that we got it when we did.

 

I dunno, why don't you ask the other people in this thread who've also been discussing the vehicle itself. Threads do go on slight tangents ya know.

Predicting low demand and getting moderate demand doesn't mean they couldn't get even better demand with a redesign.


Yeah the SRT8 starts at 39,300 but comes mostly loaded up starting out. I think the performance numbers on the SRT8 are pretty impressive relative to the TBSS though, so I guess it might be a question of 'that much more' performance for 'that much more money'.

 

Perhaps they predicted moderate demand, and got high demand?

Why do you automatically assume they predicted "low demand"?

They vehicle is 5 years old, though... it is due for a re-make in the near future... I'm sure that will happen.