GM May Sales Down 16%

[rsbaker]

What's this? They sold 93 Oldsmobiles. Who has any of these left? Almost all of the high volume vehicles that show decline are due to be replaced or seriously updated in the very near future. GM needs to speed up Malibu and need to get the Aveo out right now to do battle with the Yaris and the Fit. LaCrosse needs to update the from end using the version sold in China it look great. I was supprised at vibe Sales being down. I would be nice if GM/Pontiac had it's own wagon like vehicle to replace it. Perhaps the G5 will bring in some of those sales.

[ghughes]

LaCrosse (-26%) SHOULD HAVE BEEN CONCEPT BODY FOR SAME PRICE, STS (-38%) Looks way, way too close to CTS, XLR (-27%) Too short and excellent competition, with the top up looks completely unremarkable,
Malibu (-40%) - FUgly -
Co., Canyon - new interiors and square them off ala 60's land rovers & w. prominent grilles.

[boblutzfan]

The cars that suffered the most are the ones that need attention quick!

Malibu - GM needs to bring the new model out this fall. I'm not sure how long this model will last if they keep cutting back on fleet sales.

Lacrosse - needs an exterior and interior update and the six speed auto. Bring out the updated one for this fall or start selling them to Enterprise and company.

STS - would have been good ten years ago. It is finally RWD but the exterior lacks emotion and the interior is borring compared to the Lexus GS and LS. The interior fit and finish is not that great with huge interior panel gaps. The STS is a competent car that would have wowed the press and public back in the 90's or early 2000's. Not now..

XLR - a nice car if it were priced cheaper. GM does not know how to do folding hard tops. When you look at Mercedes, Volvo and Lexus - their tops are much better and take up less space in the trunk. The XLR is just too expensive and not refined enough to compete in the price category.

Pontiac GP - has a terrible interior from the 80's - too many buttons and surfaces. It needs the six speed auto and an exterior update.

Pontiac Vibe - dump it.

Saturn Relay - who cares. The Outlook is coming and will solve this problem.

Colorado/Canyon - two of the ugliest mid size trucks on the market. They need an exterior and interior overhall. Also - who thought of putting an I5 in a midsize truck. These need a potent V6 to be competitive.

Hummer H2 - it is tired looking. I hope that GM is working on the GMT-900 replacement with a more luxurious and less toy like interior.

GM - you are making steps in the right direction - but as the list above points out - there are still too many holes in your product line up.

[mbukukanyau]

Originally Posted by norway12

The LaCrosse and Grand Prix need updates desperately.. But I just do not get it, why does the STS sell so poorly? It looks good to me.. Canyon and Colorado also need to get new interiors quickly!!! And how many of those Malibu sales from last year do you think were fleet sales? Seems like most of them were, as it is down by 8 000 units. It is going to get an update soon anyway, so at least that is taken care of. G6 sales look good, but shouldn't they be at around 15 000 a month?

STS is not doing well due to bad press.. That is why GM needs to win those Comparos, as bad as they are.. improving in one model year what motortrend and edmund says is a vehicles shortcoming, especially in this segment market of consumer reports customers would help STS alot...
Like you see guys trading in their new E class for the Infiniti M45, simply becouse it won a comparo

[jbartley]

Originally Posted by GM_Fanatic

Rentals down 28%!!

Schnicky! Will you check out the Lucerne sales! 7,311!

Impala pushing over 20,000 and G6 pushing 10,000! (with fleet sales down consistently over the last few months, mind you)

....ya...not a whole lot to be excited about, but I tried to find the bright spots. Overall the huge drop in Rentals explains a lot...and the Silverado/Sierra being in their final strides.

Lucerne sales are crazy! i wouldn't be surprised if by the end of the year it's pushing 9-10-11k a month!

[jbartley]

Originally Posted by mbukukanyau

STS is not doing well due to bad press.. That is why GM needs to win those Comparos, as bad as they are.. improving in one model year what motortrend and edmund says is a vehicles shortcoming, especially in this segment market of consumer reports customers would help STS alot...
Like you see guys trading in their new E class for the Infiniti M45, simply becouse it won a comparo

I agree 100%.

if they put a new interior in it that matches the level of the new escalade and NG CTS, then it will have no problem selling.

it's got the look, handling, and interior room, just give it a nice dash!

[boblutzfan]

Originally Posted by jbartley

Lucerne sales are crazy! i wouldn't be surprised if by the end of the year it's pushing 9-10-11k a month!

The Lucerne is GM's best looking full size sedan - and that includes Cadillac. I love the CTS and look forward to the next generation - but the STS borders on being boring inside and out - while the DTS just looks like a hodge podge of previous designs and the current Escalade.

The Lucerne is selling well because it very nice looking and has a great interior. Now imagine how well it would sell if it had the six speed auto and the 3.6L as the base engine. Unfortunately GM will probably use the sales success of the Lucerne to justify not updating the powertrain until the next generation.

[WishIhadatruck]

Originally Posted by boblutzfan

Unfortunately GM will probably use the sales success of the Lucerne to justify not updating the powertrain until the next generation.

Lets hope not. At least it looks like the new 6T75 transmission was designed to handle the 4.6L so lets hope it is in there soon.
http://media.gm.com/servlet/GatewayS...74&docid=26311

[69Firebird400]

Originally Posted by rsbaker

What's this? They sold 93 Oldsmobiles. Who has any of these left? Almost all of the high volume vehicles that show decline are due to be replaced or seriously updated in the very near future. GM needs to speed up Malibu and need to get the Aveo out right now to do battle with the Yaris and the Fit. LaCrosse needs to update the from end using the version sold in China it look great. I was supprised at vibe Sales being down. I would be nice if GM/Pontiac had it's own wagon like vehicle to replace it. Perhaps the G5 will bring in some of those sales.

They actually didn't sell any Oldsmobiles in May 2006. The 93 Oldsmobiles were May 2005. They have sold a few straggler 2004 Oldsmobiles during 2006, however - just none in May. Those suckers hopefully have some nice discounts on them - who would want to buy a 2+ year old new car unless you're the biggest die-hard Olds fan out there?

I think the LaCrosse would look even worse if it got the Chinese version's front end only and the rest of the car stayed so oval-focused (aka 1996 Taurus). The Chinese LaCrosse also has fender flares, a different rear window shape (with a BMW-looking dogleg), etc., etc.:


I think the nose looks a little Maybach-ish, and the rear taillights look kind of like Aura/G6 ones.

If anyone wants Chinese LaCrosse wallpaper, they have it on the GM China site http://www.buick.com.cn/en/c_model/w..._lacrosse.aspx

[hymeballs]

We've seen are production rise the past weeks at Orion for the G6. We're trying to get as many 'verts out as possible. Sales up 22% from last May, but we didn't offer the coupe then. I hope GM jumps to advertise the new Gov't study that gave our car 5 stars for safety and best passenger car for safety. With our new 07' models starting soon they should sell better too with the new engine that gives more horsepower and better gas mileage.

[cfch3399]

This compares May 06 - April 06. Impala down, G6 up, Solstice down, HHR down!, Buick SUVs up.

LaCrosse 4,990 5,759
Lucerne 7,311 6,998
CTS 4,869 4,612
DTS 3,786 4,003
STS 2,171 2,088
XLR 320 320
Aveo 5,784 4,745
Cobalt 21,247 19,249
Corvette 3,317 3,516
Impala 23,702 25,879
Malibu 12,881 14,721
Monte Carlo 2,112 2,590
SSR 350 403
G6 11,534 9,296
Grand Prix 6,878 10,987
GTO 817 923
Solstice 1,804 1,828
Vibe 4,197 3,934
9-2X 104 80
9-3 1,986 2,144
9-5 385 406
ION 7,782 8,873
Sky 1,041 612
Rainier 1,141 1,373
Rendezvous 5,122 4,938
Terraza 775 690
Escalade 3,546 4,109
Escalade ESV 1,369 393
Escalade EXT 297 290
SRX 2,108 2,028
Colorado 8,368 8,640
Equinox 10,233 12,583
HHR 7,827 9,352
Tahoe 13,218 13,138
TrailBlazer 15,573 12,792
Uplander 4,881 4,768
Avalanche 3,336 2,284
Silverado-C/K Pickup 55,316 57,709
Canyon 2,076 1,886
Envoy 6,014 5,946
Sierra 17,756 17,179
Yukon 6,142 5,978
Yukon XL 3,809 1,832
HUMMER H1 40 25
HUMMER H2 1,279 1,436
HUMMER H3 3,418 3,952
Montana SV6 1,796 2,369
Torrent 3,392 3,057
9-7X 555 514
Relay 460 508
VUE 6,064 6,849

[SobeSVT]

WTF, That chinese LaCrosse is the best looking GM sedan ever. Which makes even weirder the fact that the US LaCrosse is one of the ugliest GM sedans ever. they need to bring the Chinese laCrosse in here NOW! look better than any Cadillac. WOW, I am impressed.

[Butz]

GM May Sales Down 16%

Why?!

[OrlandoGuy80]

Someone needs to check their math. Take a look at ION sales this year over last year.

[grayhorse]

Originally Posted by boblutzfan

The cars that suffered the most are the ones that need attention quick!

Malibu - GM needs to bring the new model out this fall. I'm not sure how long this model will last if they keep cutting back on fleet sales.

Lacrosse - needs an exterior and interior update and the six speed auto. Bring out the updated one for this fall or start selling them to Enterprise and company.

STS - would have been good ten years ago. It is finally RWD but the exterior lacks emotion and the interior is borring compared to the Lexus GS and LS. The interior fit and finish is not that great with huge interior panel gaps. The STS is a competent car that would have wowed the press and public back in the 90's or early 2000's. Not now..

XLR - a nice car if it were priced cheaper. GM does not know how to do folding hard tops. When you look at Mercedes, Volvo and Lexus - their tops are much better and take up less space in the trunk. The XLR is just too expensive and not refined enough to compete in the price category.

Pontiac GP - has a terrible interior from the 80's - too many buttons and surfaces. It needs the six speed auto and an exterior update.

Pontiac Vibe - dump it.

Saturn Relay - who cares. The Outlook is coming and will solve this problem.

Colorado/Canyon - two of the ugliest mid size trucks on the market. They need an exterior and interior overhall. Also - who thought of putting an I5 in a midsize truck. These need a potent V6 to be competitive.

Hummer H2 - it is tired looking. I hope that GM is working on the GMT-900 replacement with a more luxurious and less toy like interior.

GM - you are making steps in the right direction - but as the list above points out - there are still too many holes in your product line up.

Sales of Toyota is only buoyed by their new model sub-compact cars and truck but in the full-size truck there sales is down while GM is up: Sequoia (-38.2%); Tundra (27.5%); Lexus GX470 (-30.3%); Lexus LX470 (-30.3%); RX350/400h (-16.3%).