$100 million ad campaign touts new Malibu

[Flybrian]

GM pedal to metal for Malibu
Automaker plans to pump $100M in a marketing blitz for a redesigned '08 sedan critical to its future

Sharon Terlep | Link to Original Article @ The Detroit News

NOVI -- General Motors Corp. plans to pump more than $100 million into a massive marketing blitz for its upcoming redesigned Malibu sedan, the automaker's most critical car launch in years.

Chevrolet marketing director Cheryl Catton said Wednesday that advertising and other promotions for the dramatically remade Malibu will rival Toyota Motor Corp.'s campaign last year for the made-over Camry as well as Chevy's investment last year to launch the revamped Silverado pickup truck, GM's best-selling model.

When asked if GM would spend upward of $100 million, Catton said that's the level of spending required to make a mark in the brutal midsize sedan segment dominated by the Camry and the Honda Accord.

"We're going to market with a company that is saying, 'What's it going to take?' " Catton said.

The first new Malibus will hit showrooms Nov. 1 as 2008 models. GM has been working to generate hype around the vehicle since last winter, when the automaker released photos of a striking two-tone interior that will come as an option on the vehicles.

The Malibu debuted at the Detroit auto show in January. Pricing has not yet been announced. A 2007 Malibu LS starts at $17,865.

While still largely dependent on sales of its high-margin trucks, GM is looking to its cars more this year as it prepares for the Malibu launch and the debut of the made-over Cadillac CTS.

Meanwhile, sales of GM's new pickup trucks have fallen short of expectations in a tough market.

"This is GM's attempt to get back into the passenger car market," said analyst Erich Merkle, of IRN Inc. in Grand Rapids. "It's incredibly important. They have to figure out how they're going to be competitive outside of pickup trucks. They can no longer neglect every other segment."

GM officials have said they're considering a strategy for the Malibu similar to one used to pitch the new Saturn Aura sedan. Called the "Side-by-Side-by-Side" comparison, the promotion had dealers make an Accord and Camry available in showrooms for consumers to test drive along with the Aura.

Catton said GM plans to cut almost in half the number of Malibus sold for use in daily rental fleets. About 40 percent of Malibus are currently sold to fleets. Catton said GM wants to get that closer to 20 percent. Fleets sales are less profitable and vehicles known as rental fleet favorites generally lose their value faster than other models.

[jbartley]

excellent, but i'd like to see fleet sales cut to 10%!

they should just keep making the "classic" for the next few years. Then GM can have a bona fide hit, and a rental car star, haha.

[plane]

Well, hopefully the new Malibus offer Toyota-resistant bumpers.

[enzl]

Now that's an ad campaign!

Perhaps the General can learn from their mistakes regarding intro's (Aura, anyone?).

I'm interested to see how this works out---will the 'bu steal sales from the Impala or will it truly make inroads against the Japanese/Korean competition?

[CARBIZ]

For sure it will canabalize the Impala. I love the Impala - it is my kind of 'American' car; however, with the older platform, the rear seat room is only the same as the current Malibu. If the new Malibu addresses these issues, plus has a better powertrain, ride, etc. , why would anyone buy the Impala?

If GM gets this right and moves the Impala upscale and RWD in 18 months or so, then Chevy could have 2 hits on their hands. I am waiting with breath held.

[Sixty8panther]

I'm alreading thinking it looks dated. This design is a bit odd....

[CARBIZ]

It looks better in real life.

[gm4life]

It will hurt Impala sales how much of an impact it has remains to be seen. Gonna love it tho and should bring in import buyers! This could be the one to out-sell the Camry!

[buyacargetacheck]

Great. Now let's see if they can keep the buzz going year after year. Or will they cut ad spending to the bare minimum so that they can promote the next 30,000 unit Saturn, Pontiac or Buick?

[smk4565]

This car in real life in LTZ trim looks as good or better than the Camaro or CTS. It is a great looking car with the silver wire mesh grill.

Fleet sales should be limited to 5%. The Camry and Accord are about 7% and the Malibu should be less. The Impala is already a fleet sale god, the Cobalt isn't far behind, if GM wants Chevy to be a legit brand to compete with Toyota and other imports they need to cut fleet sales and plain white with gray interior super base models that only Avis buys.

They can fleet sell Pontiac G6s and G5s and Vibes.

[buyacargetacheck]

Wonder what the sales target is? If Toyota spent the same $100M to launch the new Camry and then sold 450K copies that means they spent $222 per car to advertise. Is Chevy aiming that high? If they sell 250K of the new ones (about the same number as the old one) while spending $100M that means they'll essentially spend $400 per car. Add to that GM's supposed health and pension disadvantage per car and you get a picture of what GM's up against. Maybe if GM hadn't axed the Malibu in 1983 and futzed around with Celebrity and Corsica and Lumina for so long we wouldn't be talking about Chevy catching up to Toyota.

[smk4565]

Great. Now let's see if they can keep the buzz going year after year. Or will they cut ad spending to the bare minimum so that they can promote the next 30,000 unit Saturn, Pontiac or Buick?

GM loves to do this. They have too many models to continually advertise, and they change names like crazy, so they advertise a ton when the vehicle is new, then forget about it for 5 years and watch sales die. This is why Saab is a waste of time, the whole brand sells 30-35,000 a year in the US, and they keep putting money into it. That money should go to the Malibu and a new Cobalt that can crush the Civic.

They need to sustain Malibu advertising and upgrades to the vehicle. The goal should be 350,000+ sales with only 5% volume from fleets. I'd like to see 400,000 sales a year be the target, but I know that is too lofty for GM to go for.

[buyacargetacheck]

Amen! Let's "pray" GM does the right thing but expect (as always) they'll do the wrong thing. How are these guys still in business?

GM loves to do this. They have too many models to continually advertise, and they change names like crazy, so they advertise a ton when the vehicle is new, then forget about it for 5 years and watch sales die. This is why Saab is a waste of time, the whole brand sells 30-35,000 a year in the US, and they keep putting money into it. That money should go to the Malibu and a new Cobalt that can crush the Civic.

They need to sustain Malibu advertising and upgrades to the vehicle. The goal should be 350,000+ sales with only 5% volume from fleets. I'd like to see 400,000 sales a year be the target, but I know that is too lofty for GM to go for.

[carman21]

The new Malibu is designed to compete against the Ford Fusion, Hyundai Sonata, and Chrysler Sebring.

Expect Pricing to be set betweeen $18-24k.

Leave it to either Saturn or Buick to build GM's Camcord.

[Drew Dowdell]

Make sure it's money well spent.... $100 million worth of dopey ads is just $100 million worth of dopey ads.

[CARBIZ]

The new Malibu is designed to compete against the Ford Fusion, Hyundai Sonata, and Chrysler Sebring.

Expect Pricing to be set betweeen $18-24k.

Leave it to either Saturn or Buick to build GM's Camcord.

Only Chevrolet or Ford have any hope of selling 400k+ of ANYTHING. As much as I would love to see the Malibu sell 400k - without being whored out to Fleet, I doubt very much that can happen ever again. There are too many decent entries into this segment for the consumer to choose from - no matter how good the Malibu turns out to be.

The best we can hope for is that it can bloody the Camcord's nose and bring their numbers down, rather than eating the Impala alive.

[Z-06]

Make sure it's money well spent.... $100 million worth of dopey ads is just $100 million worth of dopey ads.

And........... we will be in the same familiar territory.

[smk4565]

The new Malibu is designed to compete against the Ford Fusion, Hyundai Sonata, and Chrysler Sebring.

Expect Pricing to be set betweeen $18-24k.

Leave it to either Saturn or Buick to build GM's Camcord.

Chevy is the mainstream brand. Saturn is more of a niche brand that should be made a little more upscale (finer interiors, more fuel efficiency) to get Mazda or VW, or Mini Cooper type buyers. Buick is a old person's car, they would have to spend $5 billion probably to change that.

I read the Malibu was going to be around 19 or 20,000 up to 28,000 when fully loaded. This is their car to fight the Camry, they need to invest heavily in it. If they can't sell 350-400,000 a year they are doing something wrong.

The Camry is making a run at outselling the entire Buick and Saturn brands combined. Think of the cost advantage that gives Toyota. 1 car to design and advertise, vs 8 cars/trucks for GM to design and advertise to get the same sales.

Edited August 16, 2007 by smk4565

[pow]

I hope it's better than their current POS website.

The vehicle mix they initially release -- to both the press and dealer lots -- will be important, too.

[Flybrian]

Chevy needs to 3.6l/6As and 2.4l/6As, no 4cyl/4-speeds

[carman21]

Chevy is the mainstream brand. Saturn is more of a niche brand that should be made a little more upscale (finer interiors, more fuel efficiency) to get Mazda or VW, or Mini Cooper type buyers. Buick is a old person's car, they would have to spend $5 billion probably to change that.

I read the Malibu was going to be around 19 or 20,000 up to 28,000 when fully loaded. This is their car to fight the Camry, they need to invest heavily in it. If they can't sell 350-400,000 a year they are doing something wrong.

The Camry is making a run at outselling the entire Buick and Saturn brands combined. Think of the cost advantage that gives Toyota. 1 car to design and advertise, vs 8 cars/trucks for GM to design and advertise to get the same sales.

Yes, Chevy is a mainstream brand but, so is Ford and I believe that if Chevy does sell Malibus at $28k that many will no longer see the point of Saturn, Pontiac, or Buick. You cannot have 3 niche brands in the price ranges covered by Chevy and Caddy.

No, I argue that the Malibu will be no more than $24k. At $24k they can be equipped to compete with a Camry XLE V-6. Chevy can boost volume by being value priced compared to an equivalent Camry.

Also, the next Impala will target the Chrysler 300 which starts around $24k.

Ex. A Buick Camcord would be priced $20-28k, but remember the base car will be equipped to take on the Camry XLE I-4 and the top CXL V-6 will be targeted against the ES350.

Again its all hypothetical until we get some concrete info.

[buyacargetacheck]

...if Chevy does sell Malibus at $28k that many will no longer see the point of Saturn, Pontiac, or Buick. You cannot have 3 niche brands in the price ranges covered by Chevy and Caddy.

Exactly. Many of us already don't see the point of Saturn, Buick or Pontiac for just that reason. Instead of Buick getting a high-end Malibu, Cadillac should get it to take away some ES350 sales. LaCrosse (or Regal) and Aura aren't prestigious enough for that job and the Buick and even Saturn dealer experience doesn't coddle like Lexus. Again, no sense in throwing away money for the brand rebuilding efforts at the Three Amigos. Cadillac and Chevrolet need it more.

[Z-06]

Exactly. Many of us already don't see the point of Saturn, Buick or Pontiac for just that reason. Instead of Buick getting a high-end Malibu, Cadillac should get it to take away some ES350 sales. LaCrosse (or Regal) and Aura aren't prestigious enough for that job and the Buick and even Saturn dealer experience doesn't coddle like Lexus. Again, no sense in throwing away money for the brand rebuilding efforts at the Three Amigos. Cadillac and Chevrolet need it more.

So get rid of the "Three Amigos" along with some Billions which the dealers of theirs will bitch about and put GM on the route to Bankruptcy?

[buyacargetacheck]

Maybe. Might be a better approach than the multi-decade death of a thousand cuts going on now.

Listen, there's a reason why trees get pruned - for future beautiful growth. Right now GM is an old tree dying because its branches haven't been nurtured for a very long time. The whole tree (especially its biggest trunk Chevy and the part with the sweetest fruit Cadillac is ill while we sit here mourning about the branch Grandma and Grampa had their first kiss under - Buick Pontiac Saturn.

So get rid of the "Three Amigos" along with some Billions which the dealers of theirs will bitch about and put GM on the route to Bankruptcy?

[smk4565]

Chevy needs to 3.6l/6As and 2.4l/6As, no 4cyl/4-speeds

I second that, every Malibu should be 6-speed auto standard. The hybrid has a 4-speed auto, so I don't see how great the fuel economy can be with an old transmission.

The Ecotec family could use an update too do make them smoother, and add direct injection. The Ecotecs aren't that refined, and they don't deliver any kind of spectacular fuel economy numbers, basically average.

[smk4565]

Yes, Chevy is a mainstream brand but, so is Ford and I believe that if Chevy does sell Malibus at $28k that many will no longer see the point of Saturn, Pontiac, or Buick. You cannot have 3 niche brands in the price ranges covered by Chevy and Caddy.

No, I argue that the Malibu will be no more than $24k. At $24k they can be equipped to compete with a Camry XLE V-6. Chevy can boost volume by being value priced compared to an equivalent Camry.

Also, the next Impala will target the Chrysler 300 which starts around $24k.

Ex. A Buick Camcord would be priced $20-28k, but remember the base car will be equipped to take on the Camry XLE I-4 and the top CXL V-6 will be targeted against the ES350.

Again its all hypothetical until we get some concrete info.

Right now Pontiac is basically a $16k to $29k brand, Buick has 2 models that base under $26,000 and always have a discount on top of that. They overlap Chevy already, one of them should die or become the fleet sale brand. Saturn should probably move up $1500 in price and put better interiors in there, because the Euro-style buyers are more demanding and aren't going to be impressed with the base Aura.

The Camry and Accord can run to the high $20s. I Malibu LTZ with the wheel upgrade and sunroof and all options is $26,000 or so now, so I don't see a problem with a base Malibu being $19,500 and the LTZ with every option box and destination charge being $27,980 or so.

The Malibu for the last 10 years has been cheaper ("the value alternative") than the Camry and the Camry has crushed it in sales every year. Price doesn't matter at all. They will never beat Toyota on price, they have to beat them on gas mileage, fit and finish, reliability, quality, resale value and image. Those are the hard ones, beating them on driving dynamics should be simple.

GM has tried the "value alternative" for years and they have built junk. The whole w-body lineup is a joke, their minivan was about $4000 less than the Honda, yet the Honda outsold it with ease. All "cheaper than a Camry" car are good for is rental sales, that is why so many Chevy's and Pontiacs 30-60% fleet sale and the Camry is 7% fleet sale. People won't buy junk just because it is cheaper, they are going to buy a good vehicle that is built to last.

[smk4565]

About the 3 amigos, they could probably make Pontiac 100% fleet sale for the next 5 years and kill the brand. The Solstice can move to chevy, the would be rear drive Alpha car can be a Saturn designed to compete with the Mini, VWs, Volvo C30 or whatever that ugly thing is. The G8 would not be needed because the zeta Impala would take care of that. If they wipe out Saab and Pontiac, they could divert resources to Cadillac and Chevy where they need it. Cadillac is the last high end American brand, if they fall like the rest have, GM and American cars will lose credibility, just has imports have gained credibility because so many high end cars are imports. Cadillac doesn't have enough in the pipeline right now to keep up with MB, BMW and Lexus.

The Malibu could be great, but I worry GM will hold back on technology and penny pinch, and fleet sell it, and prevent it from being a great car.

[balthazar]

>>"...GM and American cars will lose credibility, "<<

The thing you 'kill-all-the-middle-marques' types always gleefully overlook is, purposely & obviously imploding 3 or 4 marques ('all-fleet Pontiac to death') would be a catastrophic image nightmare/death sentence. How can you have all the answers yet miss that mile-wide & on-fire factor ???

[CaddyXLR-V]

Or, GM could make Pontiac into the brand it should be, and sell a RWD G6 on Alpha (The platform needs to be shared somewhere to make it viable for Cadillac to make a true competitor to the 3 series, it won't work as a Chevy, a RWD G5 on Kappa II if it is flexible enough, the G8, which the Impala will not satisfy because the suspensions will need to be soft enough in the Impala to be marketed towards the mainstream buyer. Yes they could make an Impala SS, but they won't be cheap, and there will still be some people who don't need 400+HP and still want a stiffer suspension and more focus on performance than the Impala can offer, but with a 3.6L instead.

It makes more sense for all the performance oriented cars to go to Pontiac, and not to Chevy. Chevy can't sell a RWD compact, a FWD compact, then a RWD midsize, and a FWD midsize, and can't make the Impala too performance oriented without losing the core Impala buyer. That's where Pontiac fits in. Pontiac only needs the RWD G5/G6/G8 and Solstice, they would have an extremely focused lineup, and they can build up the brand as a credible performance brand. Trying to make Chevy everything to everyone just won't work. I don't see Toyota trying to sell sports cars under the Toyota brand because it would be a conflicting image, do they sell economical cars, or sport cars? The sportiest non-luxury car Toyota offers is a Scion, I wonder why?

[plane]

The Malibu will never and I repeat never be anything close to the Camry.

Never.

Ever.

Not even with the benefit of epochs of time.

It just doesn't have the nose for it.

[thegriffon]

GM loves to do this. They have too many models to continually advertise …

You make the same mistake most people do when using this argument—you assume that if they had fewer models there would be more money to advertise those they have left. They won't. Instead that revenue is lost, cutting the money available for advertising and development. You just end up with fewer models, selling no more than they did before. Following this argument to its conclusion and you end up with only the Chevrolet Silverado in the lineup, and still not enough money to advertise it properly and develop new models.

[thegriffon]

Yes, Chevy is a mainstream brand but, so is Ford and I believe that if Chevy does sell Malibus at $28k that many will no longer see the point of Saturn, Pontiac, or Buick. You cannot have 3 niche brands in the price ranges covered by Chevy and Caddy.

No, I argue that the Malibu will be no more than $24k. At $24k they can be equipped to compete with a Camry XLE V-6. Chevy can boost volume by being value priced compared to an equivalent Camry.

Also, the next Impala will target the Chrysler 300 which starts around $24k.

Ex. A Buick Camcord would be priced $20-28k, but remember the base car will be equipped to take on the Camry XLE I-4 and the top CXL V-6 will be targeted against the ES350.

Again its all hypothetical until we get some concrete info.

The problem is that everything is value priced, and everyone bitches and moans every time the price moves even slightly toward competitors. Fine, let Chevy be value priced, but let Saturn be priced directly against the mid-priced Toyota and Honda, let Pontiac be mid-price sport sedans and coupes, let Buick and GMC be premium-priced instead of the current bargain-prices, and let Cadillac be priced appropriately for a luxury brand (not offering "more for less"). "More for less" is not a luxury brand mission statement. FCOL, even Hyundais and Kias are more expensive than most comparable GM products.

[smk4565]

In response to Caddy XLR-V, it would be nice if GM could make 3 excellent Pontiacs, 3 excellent Buicks, and make them what they intended, but they have failed badly over the past 10 years to do that. Instead they have made rebadges and tried to use smoke and mirrors marketing to say how it is better than a Chevy. Problem is GM doesn't have the money to do what they want. Toyota spends about $15 billion a year on product development, GM spends about $14 billion. GM has 8 brands, Toyota 3. GM can't outspend Toyota, that is why they have the current gen Malibu, G6, and W-bodies that are all average cars that rely heavily on fleet sales, and Toyota dumped all their money into one car and made a winner.

I don't see GM, which currently 25% fleet sale, cutting to about 10% fleet sale. So they might as well make one brand that is a fleet brand that has more dated cars, then the other brands can get better resale values. They can cut brands and boost sales, it is very possible. They had 40% market share, added Saab, Saturn and Hummer, and now have 24% market share. If they narrow their focus and build world class cars they will gain sales. If they function the same as they did in the 80s and 90s and rebadge like crazy and use dated platforms or leave a car on the market for 8 years (Trailblazer) then the imports will keep cutting into their market share.

Thegriffon is right, everything at GM is value priced, and that hasn't helped. Especially with Cadillac, who wants a luxury car with "costs less than a BMW" as it's #1 feature.

[smk4565]

You make the same mistake most people do when using this argument—you assume that if they had fewer models there would be more money to advertise those they have left. They won't. Instead that revenue is lost, cutting the money available for advertising and development. You just end up with fewer models, selling no more than they did before. Following this argument to its conclusion and you end up with only the Chevrolet Silverado in the lineup, and still not enough money to advertise it properly and develop new models.

This I disagree with. Saab has lost money 15 of 17 years, why keep them. Pontiac and Buick are losing sales fast. If the new Malibu is better than a Camry or Accord, why would a GM fan want a plastic piece of junk G6 over a Malibu? 4 great cars will always outsell (in retail) 8-10 mediocre ones.

[Flybrian]

What's with all the plastic, cladding, et al references with Pontiac? What year is it? Yeesh.

[CaddyXLR-V]

In response to Caddy XLR-V, it would be nice if GM could make 3 excellent Pontiacs, 3 excellent Buicks, and make them what they intended, but they have failed badly over the past 10 years to do that. Instead they have made rebadges and tried to use smoke and mirrors marketing to say how it is better than a Chevy. Problem is GM doesn't have the money to do what they want. Toyota spends about $15 billion a year on product development, GM spends about $14 billion. GM has 8 brands, Toyota 3. GM can't outspend Toyota, that is why they have the current gen Malibu, G6, and W-bodies that are all average cars that rely heavily on fleet sales, and Toyota dumped all their money into one car and made a winner.

I don't see GM, which currently 25% fleet sale, cutting to about 10% fleet sale. So they might as well make one brand that is a fleet brand that has more dated cars, then the other brands can get better resale values. They can cut brands and boost sales, it is very possible. They had 40% market share, added Saab, Saturn and Hummer, and now have 24% market share. If they narrow their focus and build world class cars they will gain sales. If they function the same as they did in the 80s and 90s and rebadge like crazy and use dated platforms or leave a car on the market for 8 years (Trailblazer) then the imports will keep cutting into their market share.

Thegriffon is right, everything at GM is value priced, and that hasn't helped. Especially with Cadillac, who wants a luxury car with "costs less than a BMW" as it's #1 feature.

GM wasn't even acting as if it were a global company for the past 10 years. That has changed. The cars I stated that Pontiac needs, can all be sold in other countries as well. Cadillac could use a 1 series sized car in Europe (Kappa II shared with the G5), a 3 series sized car (Alpha shared with G6), Holden could use Alpha for a car below the Commodore. Holden could also use the export volume of the G8 to keep their plants running. I agree that Pontiac should not be rebadges, but killing the brand is not the solution. And what happens if GM does kill the rest of the brands, and focuses on Chevy and Cadillac, if the higher sales do not come right away, if ever? Pontiac still sells over 200k for retail sales. That's alot of sales for the Impala and Malibu to pick up. Saturn is selling about 50k Auras, that's even more the Malibu would need to pick up. Even if the Malibu and Impala were class leading, I wouldn't expect them to sell near the 700k needed to make up those lost sales. Other brand face the same problem, whether it's Mazda with the Mazda6, or Nissan with the Altima. I think both are better cars than the Accord/Camry, but yet they don't come close to the sales numbers. How can you expect Chevy to do so, in a relatively short amount of time? The market is getting more and more fragmented, not less. Edited August 17, 2007 by CaddyXLR-V

[regfootball]

wow, there are a lot of painsintheass on this thread.

the malibu looks like a good car.

do we need another thread about people having sex with a camry or impending GM bankruptcy?

the malibu is vastly improved, and if the aura is an indication, is a very good car.

if you really want a camry and the loser stigma that goes with it, be my guest.

like c/d says......toyota never designs their cars to outperform, just to outsell. chevy is the one nameplate that could bite into camry sales if it takes off.

[plane]

Yes, sarcasm can be sublime.

Yes, the Malibu looks great.

Yes, the Aura also looks great.

No. I don't care what anyone does with their Tercel in the privacy of their garage.

However, Huntsville law enforcement likely does not share this viewpoint.

I just checked my garage and found 4 GM vehicles therein, none with any signs of torture, abuse, or any unsightly stains.

No, GM isn't going bankrupt any time soon.

No, I don't prefer the parrot-beak-melted-dove-bar-import-purchased-by-lemmings look.

Yes, I do believe the current Malibu Maxx is highly underrrated.

Yes, I am looking forward to GM having a competitive mid-size-sedan-for-the-masses at a reasonable price, with a 2.4L/6 speed combination.

No, I certainly did not forget rule #6.

Did anyone else?

wow, there are a lot of painsintheass on this thread.

the malibu looks like a good car.

do we need another thread about people having sex with a camry or impending GM bankruptcy?

the malibu is vastly improved, and if the aura is an indication, is a very good car.

if you really want a camry and the loser stigma that goes with it, be my guest.

like c/d says......toyota never designs their cars to outperform, just to outsell. chevy is the one nameplate that could bite into camry sales if it takes off.

[regfootball]

Yes, sarcasm can be sublime.

Yes, the Malibu looks great.

Yes, the Aura also looks great.

No. I don't care what anyone does with their Tercel in the privacy of their garage.

However, Huntsville law enforcement likely does not share this viewpoint.

I just checked my garage and found 4 GM vehicles therein, none with any signs of torture, abuse, or any unsightly stains.

No, GM isn't going bankrupt any time soon.

No, I don't prefer the parrot-beak-melted-dove-bar-import-purchased-by-lemmings look.

Yes, I do believe the current Malibu Maxx is highly underrrated.

Yes, I am looking forward to GM having a competitive mid-size-sedan-for-the-masses at a reasonable price, with a 2.4L/6 speed combination.

No, I certainly did not forget rule #6.

Did anyone else?

[/quote)]

thanks for looking at the bright side

[CARBIZ]

Look, the days of any Ford or GM car selling 400k+ are gone. The last time that happened, Nissan, Honda and Toyota were still a joke and the truck market was tiny. Throughout the '60s,'70s and '80s, a hit GM or Ford (like the Chevette, Falcon, or when Chevy could unload 290k Montes and 390k Chevelles in the same year ['73]) could hit 400k, but no more. Chevrolet may be selling at near its peak, but more than half of those are trucks, or truck wannabees like the Equinox.

I understand why GM can't just wipe out entire divisions, and believe me when I say I am feeling their pain in my own portfolio of customers. However, it is badge engineering that is killing the company. Either GM has to figure a way to prune its dealers by 30% or more, or get rid of a couple divisions. That much is plain. Pitting dealer against dealer is benefiting no one, and I'll bet that a significant number of confused and pissed off customers just shrug and to to Ford or Nissan.

It won't matter one bit if the Malibu is the best car ever built by anyone if GM does not figure out how to market it and NOT have the same damned car at Pontiac and Saturn. This may be GM's last chance at keeping their market share successfully over 25%. If they screw up this launch, we will be seeing the bottom side of 20% within a year.

[smk4565]

Carbiz is right. They need less dealers, and to execute cars like the Malibu well to keep sales and profits up.

Obviously GM can't close 4 brands, but they could close 1 or 2 and limit Pontiac and Buick to three models each. They have to cut down the number of brands and models to market. Not massive cuts, but enough that allows them to develop more class leaders, less of the losers.

The Camry and Corolla are going to combine to sell over 800,000 cars this year. So I don't see why if they scrap the G6 and G5 and make the Malibu and Cobalt best in class they can't get 650,000-700,000 sales. The Malibu will likely be the best family sedan GM has ever built, I hope they don't neglect it like they did with the Trailblazer or some other cars.

[Camino LS6]

Trimming dealers? Yes.

Killing brands? No, isn't going to happen.

[thegriffon]

This I disagree with. Saab has lost money 15 of 17 years, why keep them. Pontiac and Buick are losing sales fast. If the new Malibu is better than a Camry or Accord, why would a GM fan want a plastic piece of junk G6 over a Malibu? 4 great cars will always outsell (in retail) 8-10 mediocre ones.

Pontiac and Buick are losing sales because fleet sales are being cut dramatically, and a lot of models have been cut (just as you said they should). Looks like that doesn't work, huh? More models will be cut from Pontiac in future, and new models will have much lower sales targets with dramatic reductions in low-margin fleet sales. Despite that BPG may still outsell Ford in most segments (not a great achievement I admit).

You can argue that GM only needs 4 midsize sedans - bargain (Chevrolet), Midrange (Saturn), premium (Buick) and luxury (Cadillac), but the G6 outsells the Aura by nearly 3–1, at much higher prices than the Malibu (and the Grand Prix for that matter). That's a solid stream of revenue that is hard to give up. Of course the Grand Am sold even better, so perhaps a smaller sport sedan would do just as well and leave the Aura to target Camry and Accord. That may yet happen if an Alpha-based G6 gets the go-ahead.

Great cars do not sell more. The right car will sell the most, even if there is a much better car a little off the markets sweet spot (how else does an old Corolla outsell a new Civic?). Offering more vehicle at a lower price generally doesn't work against a clearly successful competitor(s, any better than less vehicle at a higher price does, and at least the latter has the benefit of higher margins to make up for lower sales.

[CARBIZ]

Price is always a factor. The Civic is over-priced. Those with brain tumours are paying what they ask. Smarter folks are buying Mazda 3s. Really smart folks are buying Cobalts. Stepford families are buying Corollas because they were told to, and they are cheaper than the superior Civic.

[gm4life]

Thank you fly I thought the same thing. We have to wait another year for the six speeds in the GMT-900's and the Malibu with a 4 cylinder. &#036;h&#33;! They build something good and still manage to f@#k it up! Just like with the Silverado and Tahoe etc.

Edited August 18, 2007 by gm4life

[carstar]

Price is always a factor. The Civic is over-priced. Those with brain tumours are paying what they ask. Smarter folks are buying Mazda 3s. Really smart folks are buying Cobalts. Stepford families are buying Corollas because they were told to, and they are cheaper than the superior Civic.

buying a civic, cobalt, focus, corolla, or 3 doesn’t determine how smart you are.

[Oracle of Delphi]

Stepford families are buying Corollas because they were told to, and they are cheaper than the superior Civic.

CARBIZ you make me laugh! :AH-HA_wink:

[I hope GMRULES again]

I saw the 08 MAlibu LTZ today at the Dream Cruise and I'm telling you the car was beautiful. Its was a dark red, burgandy, much nicer than the silver one that was on the car show circuit. The car is stunning and could easily pass for a car costing 10K more. I'm sure if the Malibu name wasn't on it people would think it was and Audi or a small Lexus. To quote what I heard a guy say "if Chevy can't boost sales of the Malibu with this car they may as well through in the towel and join forces with Toyota"

[sciguy_0504]

The Aura launch didn't go as well as hoped (or planned). I hope what GM has in store for the Malibu is better. $100 million should be spent wisely...only on good marketing. Otherwise, it's a waste.

I don't think the new 'Bu will beat the Camry or Accord, though. You can't do it in such a short period of time. The car may be better than those models but the market doesn't see it that way.

[Z-06]

CARBIZ you make me laugh! :AH-HA_wink:

Hey you did not "Tick Tock" here.