[NINETY_EIGHT_REGENCY]

GM scraps big rwd sedans for Chevrolet and Buick

General Motors has killed plans to develop large rear-drive sedans for Chevrolet and Buick. The result: The next-generation Chevrolet Impala will remain front drive. "Serious fuel economy issues" killed the rwd vehicles, which were expected to debut around 2011, says a GM source.


It is from Automotive News.

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I could not see the rest of the article. I am registered, but not subscribed plus we are not allowed to post the entire article. I hope you find this tidbit helpful.

 

[ksr]

For Chevrolet, I don't think a terrible thing.

For Buick, a disaster.

 

[CamaroCrazy]

Get your G8's while they last!

 

[paul8488]

So what platform are they going to build the next Lucerne on? Buick NEEDS a large sedan. Is Impala going to get a new large platform that it can share with Buick? Is there enough volume for that? Could such a Buick go to China alongside the Holden-sourced RWD Park Avenue?

 

[Hitman1970]

The odds of me not replacing my current Buick with a future Buick just went up. I went from a small FWD hatchback to a larger FWD sedan with a desire to "trade-up" to a large RWD sedan. So either I buy a Pontiac or a Cadillac to stay GM.

I hope the G8 is still around in 2012/2013. I will not buy before then.

If I stay FWD GM better do something spectacular to top "Superman" Taurus in a couple of years.

 

[member12]

Well I guess I'm going to have to go with the BMW then after I get my high paying job....

Lincoln is all FWD, and their owners are all q-tips.

It's rediculous that GM doesn't care about Chevrolet's largest sedan....the Chinese get better Buicks that we do and the middle east get better Chevrolets.

 

[steinravnik]

Is there really that much of a trade-off with RWD in regards to fuel economy? I had a Camaro Z28 that got nearly 30 MPG highway, RWD, V8, and all. Seems like if you added all the new fuel saving technology, fuel economy for highway could rise to the mid 30's. There must be more to this than merely fuel economy.

 

[DirtyMoney]

Styling is the bidggest issues troubling Buick. Get the syling down and `buick will have it's sells.

 

[jkennedy293]

How many times have we heard the whole "RWD is dead/No wait it's still alive" waffling from GM? I'll wait until I actually see the replacements for Buick and Chevy big cars before I pass judgement.

 

[nadepalma]

For Chevrolet, I don't think a terrible thing.

For Buick, a disaster.

I agree with that.

For Chevy, I dont see this being a big deal. The next Taurus will remain FWD/AWD. The Avalon and Maxima both sell well for FWD offerings. And if they offer AWD as an option, I'm almost certain 95% of the customer base will find it acceptable.

Chevy can get away with this for another generation til they figure the RWD/CAFE equation a bit further. So they better figure it out and get a RWD Impala to market for the generation afterwards - if for any other reason than to simply differentiate themselves in the market more from their competitors. Right now, Chrysler is the only game in town (besides the G8).

But for Buick? This will certainly hurt their ambitions of becoming a more luxury oriented brand, IMHO.

Plus, it makes me wonder what will happen to the STS/DTS's replacement too. That was supposed to be built on the same platform as the next-generation Lucerne.

God I hope GM doesn't screw this up too much.

 

[Tone]

Is there really that much of a trade-off with RWD in regards to fuel economy? I had a Camaro Z28 that got nearly 30 MPG highway, RWD, V8, and all. Seems like if you added all the new fuel saving technology, fuel economy for highway could rise to the mid 30's. There must be more to this than merely fuel economy.

Two things: first -- yes, the Camaro and Corvette can get 30 mpg on a straight highway run. However, they (if memory serves) couldn't get 30 mpg highway for CAFE purposes, and their relatively low city rating also brought the overall average down. So, while they do relatively well for powerful sports cars, they don't really help GM's overall CAFE rating, which is what the issue is.

Second -- RWD cars can get decent fuel economy. In fact, most of the Japanese economy cars that sold like hotcakes in the 1970s (the Corolla, for example) were RWD. But, RWD in a smaller, lighter car has less room inside that an equivilent FWD car, which is a tough sell.

Moreover, the cars in question (the Impala and large Buick) were to be build on an existing platform (Zeta) which is fairly heavy (a G8 V8 is very close to 4000 lbs, pretty much what a RWD B-body weighed back in the 1980s). Getting something that heavy to get much better fuel economy that it does now will be difficuilt, engineering weight out of the platform over the next few years would be hugely expensive.

If demand for large, powerful cars continues, perhaps GM will engineer a much lighter RWD platform that could work. But, in the short term, adapting an existing FWD platform for their larger cars in probably a lot more practical.

 

[igor]

in the meantime - Ford barrels forward with their RWD plans .. 3 Lincolns and 2 Fords (incl Mustang).

No FE concerns there...

Igor

 

[New_Mexico_Sunset_on_Rt66]

My only question is. Is Infiniti and Lexus going to stop making RWD?

It seems to me the competition is continuing to make RWD products.

I can understand "large" RWD, but what about a smaller RWD platform, like the Kappa, or NG Kappa?

Buick needs an exciting RWD product.

 

[Aromanances]

How about using Lambda for a large Buick. As for RWD, I have a 08 CTS and it will get 29 MPG on fairly flat interstate runing 75 MPH.

 

[Aromanances]

How about using Lambda for a large Buick. As for RWD, I have a 08 CTS and it will get 29 MPG on fairly flat interstate runing 75 MPH.

 

[Mikkoo]

I'd have really been happy to see the Impala back as a RWD vehicle. More
than CAFE killing that possibility, the market forces of $4.00 per gallon fuel
costs in the USA will have the same effect. And to be honest, speculators
are driving the cost of a barrel of oil up at an alarming rate, so you could
see $5.00 per gallon within the next few years.

Let's hope for a really awesome styled Impala, even though it will continue
as FWD. The Malibu proves that great styling and packaging sells.

 

[1G6]

So GM wanders in the wilderness for 12 years, finds the promised land, then decides to go back to Egypt.

This is insane.

 

[Tico]

The odds of me not replacing my current Buick with a future Buick just went up. I went from a small FWD hatchback to a larger FWD sedan with a desire to "trade-up" to a large RWD sedan. So either I buy a Pontiac or a Cadillac to stay GM.

I hope the G8 is still around in 2012/2013. I will not buy before then.

If I stay FWD GM better do something spectacular to top "Superman" Taurus in a couple of years.

You will be lucky if anyone is offering a main stream RWD 4 door V8 in 2013. Only nich players such as BMW will still offer anything close to that and you will pay dearly for it.

 

[zete]

It makes little sense to kill the Buick, the sales numbers wouldn't impact GM's overall numbers sufficiently to matter.

Worrying about Chevrolet, on the other hand, makes sense as that's the volume brand.

Overall, I think they'll still do a Park Avenue in RWD trim. They'd sell, what, 60k of them? That's immaterial to their FE numbers.

What GM really needs is to not focus on the few RWD cars they'd sell and instead focus on building massively fuel efficient small cars. Those will sell in massive numbers. Besides, for the larger RWD cars they could offer them only in hybrid form to keep the numbers up.

But I'm talking logic again. Stupid me.

 

[Stéphane Dumas]

My only question is. Is Infiniti and Lexus going to stop making RWD?

It seems to me the competition is continuing to make RWD products.

I can understand "large" RWD, but what about a smaller RWD platform, like the Kappa, or NG Kappa?

Buick needs an exciting RWD product.

+1 about the NG Kappa/"Kappa II" or Alpha, the KappaII/Alpha platform would suit Buick if it marketed right on the target

in the meantime - Ford barrels forward with their RWD plans .. 3 Lincolns and 2 Fords (incl Mustang).

No FE concerns there...

As I mentionned in a earlier post, Ford upcoming engines Twin-Force/EcoBoost ("EcoForce" would probably more sounding well to my ears however ) is the key and the hidden ace of future Ford RWD plans

Now for Chrysler, what they'll do with the next-gen LX? I wish to see a diesel version of the 300 coming in North America.