Is GM Right Ruling Out The Holden Commodore Returning To The US As A Chevrolet?

[vcs2600]

Originally Posted by Dr. Show-Me

So when conditions change, they can justify it. When they figure out the business case, which will require production in North America, they will bring the car out, after the mce and getting the tooling in place in Oshawa.
Don't get your shorts all bunched up over this!

I wouldn't hold your breath for another Zeta car being produced at Oshawa. Especially when Holden is way under capacity.

[RamJet502]

My initial reaction was strongly negative and I want the car here as an Impala like most people do but if its not going to be profitable it shouldn't happen. This is the kind of tough decision that has to be made.

[kenman923]

GM is making a big mistake!

[TriShield]

Originally Posted by 2002 Caddy

I voted YES, but only becuase it shouldn't be a Chevy... it should have been retained as a Buick.

The Commodore would make a terrible Buick. I've had three Holden vehicles now and none of them are luxurious in any way.

They are nice family cars with athletic design, but they do not fit Buick nor do they offer the comfort elderly Buick buyers want.

Holden makes a better Chevrolet, they are the Chevy of Australia. The Commodore is the Impala we should have and GM should have been producing here all along.

[govey]

I am extremely disappointed that they are not going to bring it back as a Chevy but I am not at all surprised. Though I do think that cars like the G8 get all hyped up on the internet but no one goes and buys them and that is why they don't stick around. Plus the fact that the President and his minions now control GM there really is no hope for stuff like a new Impala SS to happen even if it made sense. Look out for your new GM smart car. That will ease our woes...

[mikesright]

I voted no. They wouldn't make money on the car, and it would have ended up cannibalizing existing Chevy and/or Cadillac CTS customers.

GM needs to keep moving Cadillac more upscale and they also need to make the next gen Commodore in Oshawa for Buick as a 300C competitor. Chevy can stick with Super Epsilon for the Impala, because it's the best choice for volume, and it gives Buick some much needed brand space.

[christpher]

i would have loved to have seen how the G8 would have done in a market that didn't implode upon itself like a neutron star the instant the car hit dealership lots. had this car in it's current form been on the market back in 2004 as a replacement for the Grand Prix at that time, i happen to think it's sales would have been much stronger. unfortunately... gas prices that almost mandate priuses for everyone(at the time) and economic ruin where nobody is buying much of anything killed the G8 before it ever had any chance to succeed in the market. all the critical acclaim and praise that's been heaped upon the G8 by the automotive press is little solace when nobody is buying

[christpher]

while personally i would like to see the G8 marketed here in the U.S. as either a Chevrolet(Impalla or Bel Aire maybe but not with the Caprice name) or a Buick(Park Ave or Roadmaster), considering that it will cease to exist as a Pontiac in a few more months..... i just don't expect to see it actually happen. i think that maybe when the next gen version of the Zeta chassis is developed maybe then we will see a rear drive 4 door Chevy or Buick. probably not before that though.

[mikmak]

IMO they should have (and still should) get the Commodore into the Chevy lineup as soon as the update (including the 3.0DI) arrives in a few months. Even if they only make a dollar/unit, I believe it essential that GM has as much diversity in its line up as possible. The Holden Commodore has enough variation in its lineup to find the right product for Chevrolet, going in to combat the new Taurus.

[from oz]

Originally Posted by TriShield

The Commodore would make a terrible Buick. I've had three Holden vehicles now and none of them are luxurious in any way.

They are nice family cars with athletic design, but they do not fit Buick nor do they offer the comfort elderly Buick buyers want.

Holden makes a better Chevrolet, they are the Chevy of Australia. The Commodore is the Impala we should have and GM should have been producing here all along.

That said you have only owned 3 Holden sports models. Holden's luxury models have different suspension settings, better quality interiors (though they still need improving) and a more luxurious looks.

But your probably right in saying the current Holdens don't have the attributes of what a Buick buyer wants... which seems to be a Toyota Camry with a GM badge on it.

I just wish they made a final decision on the GMNA Commodore/Statesman. This constant "we will/we won't/actually we will/ nope sorry, we won't" is damaging not only to GMNA, but to Holden back home.

[Shotgun]

I don't think it should have been brought over to begin with. It has been a money-loser since day 1. The costs are too high, and no one was buying them without huge incentives. The only way it would make sense would be to produce it stateside, not imported from Australia.

[Mustapha Mond]

The Commodore/G8 is a fine automobile. I am saddened that it is being withdrawn from the market. Now having said that I also feel that badge engineering it to be a Chevy would not be helpful in enhancing GM's reputation.

One of the loudest complaints consistently heard from the automotive press is how GM has relentlessly badge-engineered so much of their lineup over the years. My G5 after all is just a slightly reskinned Cobalt. If the Commodore was reskinned to be a Chevy you can bet the automotive press would be all over GM for swapping logos yet again with an existing product and trying to market it as fresh. The corporation will survive without a RWD Chevy family car, it's better optics I think for the company than prying off the arrowhead and affixing a bow tie. With all that I voted no.
-Elliott

[Caprice ET]

If you have an outstanding product that not enough people are buying, what do you do? If you’re GM you cancel the car. A smart, well-run business would attack the barriers – whether they be cost, marketing, or sales and bring the market to the car.

Here we have a unique product - an intermediate size mid-priced RWD sedan and sports sedan built by an American car company. Well alright it comes from Australia, but they have the same engineering, design, and production aesthetic as North America – just as Canada does.

These cars sold in the hundreds of thousands a few years ago and the market has not abandoned them – they have abandoned the market which will return under the proper conditions.

GM simply cannot give up on this car. Business cases are built on assumptions. The “hard” numbers are relatively straightforward – cost of production. But the “soft” numbers – volume, exchange rates, etc. are what make it go and they need to work on fixing the business until the business case aligns with the reality of the marketplace. The "New GM" cannot continue with the business practices of the old GM.

Badge engineering is not a sin when the original product (Pontiac G8) departs the market – the Chevrolet Lumina/Caprice/Impala/Bel Air/Whangdoodle can be marketed in its place and should be with all possible energy.

I’ve bought 12 GM products in a row and if they abandon this car, I’m going to abandon them. I don’t think they can succeed if they lose customers like me.

[V8GMT360 Guy]

Originally Posted by neshapop

I agree with you, that would add more spice into current Buick offer and remove a stigma of old people's car. They can also charge Buick price for entry luxury performance sedan.

They would have to do some work to make the current G8 worthy of the Buick badge though; the G8, even when bought "loaded" isn't exactly equipped for luxury the way many buyers would expect. No power adjusting seat back, no NAV option, etc.

I do think the current-gen G8 would have been best as a Chevrolet; though the next generation coming in the form of perhaps the Regal GS or something of that sort would have made good sense.

[63GrandSport001]

I voted no because we need vehicles for the North American market that are designed for the North American market.