What would you think of the Buick Velite, if it ended up not being based on Zeta? What if it was put into production as a FWD, based on Epsilon, with the G6 vert's steel convertible top and a blown/turbo'd HF V6?

 

call me biased but i don't think much of anything about front wheel drive cars

the turbo v6, i would say, should become a mainstay in buick's lineup and should be incorporated in more than one or two vehicles.

 

RWD = good

FWD = Bad

For me the drive wheels are more important than the engine. I'd rather drive a 220HP RWD than a 300HP FWD.

 

Honestly, does GM really need yet another derivitive of Epsilon? Malibu, G6, Aura and the list goes on and on....even though I really like the Aura, do something different!!!! If Buick is to get serious about being a mid-lux brand it needs a RWD flagship.

 

actually add the 9-3 and the list stops there. Nothing wrong with another Epsilon, it is a good platform. GM is doing a great job with that platform, ever car looks different inside and out, they have multiple wheel bases, lots of different engines. Epsilon would probably have been a better platform for the LaCrosse that the mid-lux (W) platform.

I agree 100% Velite needs a 350HP Turbo DOHC V6 and you just can't do that with FWD.

 

Buick will not bring high end, Lexus, buyers into the showrooms to look at the Velite. These buyers will be cross shopping the Velite with the IS or GS families. FWD will not be a suitable substitute if Buick is to make a comeback.

 

What would I think?

1. GM got feedback from clinics that the Velite seemed too large (something I've mentioned to reps both times I saw it).

2. GM decision makers got a look at the cost of producing the Velite.

3. GM decision makers got a look at the price they would have to sell the relatively low production Velite at to make a profit (you thought the Thunderbird at 40 large is expensive?).

4. Buick needs a halo car NOW, and instead of waiting till later decade till another, perhaps smaller coupe structure is ready, GM is going with a ready made structure, even though it's FWD.

5. GM made a good decision.

I'd say they created a vehicle that's going to be more cost effective, more likely to be priced in a range that's likely to attract buyers, most likely to sell far better to the "scarey-cats" who don't believe a RWD car and winter can co-exist. Especially if AWD is available or standard.

How many people on this site would actually, and I do mean ACTUALLY (none of this "I would" BS), rush out to buy a pretty large, potentially $50,000+, convertible steel topped, 4 passenger, auto trannied, turbo V6 car, sold in a Buick showroom?

Didn't think so.

 

If Velite goes FWD, I would make a dismissive sound and promptly forget it exists.

If it has to be FWD, I'd rather they just bag it and start over.

 

I agree. Dont make it at all if it has to be fwd. That alone will ruin the cars image..makes it feel cheap.

 

Guy makes a good argument for a FWD Velite. Personally, I'd prefer a RWD Velite, but really.......I wouldn't cry if it goes forward as a FWD. I don't think it's a car I'd buy, either way.

Here's an interesting twist. Maybe, just maybe, a FWD Velite is good for Camaro.

Maybe, piggybacking a future Camaro on to Velite and GTO wasn't a very good thing for Camaro. And to tell you the truth, I never really understood the wisdom of effectively compromising a much larger and more lucrative Camaro program.....in order to make more financially feasible, the manufacture of a mere 10,000 Velites and 20,000 GTO's. It just made no business sense to me.

I say, let the Buick and GTO go their own way and make a better business case for a less compromised.......maybe "more pure", more Camaro-like Camaro.

First thing to do in this new Camaro business case, is revise the projected sales numbers. The numbers circulating around for awhile have been 70,000-80,000 units annually. IMO, those numbers are ridiculously low. Even the 4th gen F-car (Camaro/Firebird combined) approached that number in their last year....with a 20 year old chassis, 10 year old styling and 30 year old ergonomics.

I think 125,000-135,000 annual units for Camaro is much more realistic. Someone NEEDS to make THAT business case effectively. That's when you'll see some movement.

 

Or maybe Buick Velite should be the one car that follows the road less traveled and doesn't go FWD like every other car out there. If you want to talk about not having to compete with other cars of the same brand/maker, GM already makes plenty of FWD V6 cars. They don't want to steal all that G6/G8/Impala/Grand Prix/etc. thunder do they? That being said, an AWD Velite would be a stronger selling point (safe in the winter!), provided they could keep the car relatively affordable.

Camaro splintering off from the current run of upcoming vehicles to do it's own thing...that could explain the later than 2007-2008 launch. But why would GM invest in a different chassis to only move 30,000 GTOs and Velites combined without Camaro making the whole thing profitable? If that were the case, build the Buick somewhere else and bring back the Firebird to be built on the same line as Camaro. Wouldn't that be sexy?

 

I agree, but I dont think that number is maintainable without pretty frequent redesigns and freshinings, something GM is seemingly loathe to do on ANYTHING. Without constant attention to cars in that market, buyers shift their purchases elsewhere. Look at cross-generational Fbody production...Its real high for the first few years of each new body style, then trails off, and spikes again when freshinings are done.

Sport coupes NEED lots of design attention, or they get stale.

 

Ok, so Velite becomes a small, G6 sized hard top convertable....but what about the deal of a large RWD Buick? Is that still game, or does the buck stop at Luceren?
I would also assume that Velite would be based on EP2, where AWD will be available.

 

Optional AWD would charge things IMO, still disapointed about the loss of RWD but at least AWD would be able to handle the 300+HP better.

...but isn't a 4wd convertable kind of like a 2wd snow plow

Does this mean the Camaro won't be getting a convertable version????

 

Yes and no.

I agree with what you're saying....coupes need to stay fresh.

But look at the SN95 Mustang for example. In a decade, it only had 1 major freshening, and yet sold great until the very end. It worked because it was the right size for the time, kept getting interesting new models that spiced up the line-up, (Bullitt, Cobra, Mach1), and even the lowly GT could be had with a choice of cool 17" wheels.

True, coupes need more design attention than sedans and trucks. But it's more than that. Enthusiasts and the rest of the buying public need to feel that GM is taking the car seriously, for them to want to buy it. Short of people like RP and just afew others....that is something the F-body hasn't had in over a decade.

Do it right....and I believe 125,000+ per year is a "no-brainer". I am absolutely serious.