It amazes me how everyone wants to go upmarket nowadays: Pontiac, Buick, Chrysler, VW, etc. Do the automakers not realize that going upmarket will almost certainly mean a reduction in volume? There's fewer buyers up there and they're more discriminating. Taking a "cheap" brand like Pontiac and trying to magically reposition it higher up the food chain is not an easy task. It has no brand credibility and therefore the cars have to be absolutely outstanding to make headway. Making outstanding cars has not been GM's strong suit lately (e.g. Ion, Grand Prix, 9-3)

GM has already shown they don't have the stomach to tolerate a reduction in volume, especially on the scale of what will have to happen if they try to take brands upscale. History has shown that as soon as the 10-day sales reports show a dip, they automatically pile on more rebates. That will not help the brand image one bit.

Or put it another way: if Pontiac wants so badly to be BMW, will they accept BMW-levels of sales (which are about half of Pontiac's tally)? I'm willing to bet the answer is no.

I will admit Cadillac is an exception to this, but they were already regarded as a premium brand (if somewhat tarnished). Also, being in 5th spot in their sales category left more room for improvement.