[377Z]

Two things made me eventually get a GM card:

1) Most other credit card reward programs I am aware of are also of questionable value, so there was no clearly better alternative
2) I heard about the top-off lottery, & decided to roll the dice & see if I get lucky.

The bottom line is I didn’t get the strictly on the program’s ‘published’ merits.

I currently have some $2,700 points racked up. Since redemption allowances for most cars are under $2,500, I’ve quit using the card. Thus, HSBC no longer profits from my use, though they still get to collect interest on the $2,700 points I ‘have,’ & they will probably end up getting all of the $2,700 back since I don’t forsee buying a new GM in the next 7 years. But, I don’t plan on using it again under the current scheme, so that revenue stream is gone for them. I’ve gotten the occasional ‘top off’ notice, but unfortunately once again there is nothing in the GM portfolio that is a value to me. I’ve toyed with the idea of getting a GMT360 if the incentives & redemption limits are bumped up, but I wasn’t really looking for an SUV, so the deal will have to be REALLY sweet for me to bite.

If they just allowed full points redemption, I’d probably drive nothing but new GM cars forever—I could concievably rack up $5-7,000 between replacing cars. That would make the difference in the big picture of how attractive a vehicle is to me, and this is the only thing that would pull me away from buying the same model but 1-2 years old. I like the fact that they’ve FINALLY included Saturn cars, as they make the closest to something I’d buy at this point, and I NEVER thought that would happen.