Cadillac News: Cadillac Not Giving Up On Europe

[William Maley]

For the longest time, Cadillac has been trying to crack the European market. All of its attempts so far have fallen flat. The brand's latest attempt featuring the ATS and CTS has been shelved for the time being due to financial problems and finding better success in China and U.S. That doesn't mean Cadillac has given up.

"Clearly our number one priorities are the US and China, but in the longer term there is a role for Cadillac in Europe," said GM President Dan Ammann.

Ammann also was realistic about chances the brand has in Europe.

"Is it going to be a high-volume contender in the medium to long term future? Probably not. But is there a role for something other than the three German luxury brands? I think there is. We’ve got to figure out what it is, what our portfolio is, a different value proposition. But trying to out-German the Germans will not be the path to success. We have to have a different proposition.”

Ammann didn't give a timeline of when the brand would be coming fully to Europe.

Source: Auto Express

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.

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[smk4565]

Problem is Europeans don't think there is a role for something other than the three Germans, with the exception of Jaguar/Land Rover which mostly relies on the UK for sales.

[Z-06]

Problem is Europeans don't think there is a role for something other than the three Germans, with the exception of Jaguar/Land Rover which mostly relies on the UK for sales.

 

And you know how?

[G. David Felt]

If one looks at history and how Cadillac was coveted with designs that were not European but stood out by themself's I think Cadillac can do this as long as they deliver a unique design that gives the requested needs. Diesel is one of them.

[ZL-1]

No diesels... No RHD models... No dealer network in places potential shoppers go to... 2014 Euro CTS appears to have the amber turn signals at the top of the tail lamp assembly, thus breaking what has become the standard Cadillac visual cue of the top to bottom red LED strip tail light...

 

 

 

One wonders if anyone at GM knows what they're doing re Cadillac Europe...

[Z-06]

No diesels... No RHD models... No dealer network in places potential shoppers go to... 2014 Euro CTS appears to have the amber turn signals at the top of the tail lamp assembly, thus breaking what has become the standard Cadillac visual cue of the top to bottom red LED strip tail light...

 

 

 

One wonders if anyone at GM knows what they're doing re Cadillac Europe...

 

This. It is more of a GM problem than Europeans not wanting anything other than the three German brands. GM has been half-hearted with Cadillac's presence and expansion in Europe.

[ZL-1]

 

No diesels... No RHD models... No dealer network in places potential shoppers go to... 2014 Euro CTS appears to have the amber turn signals at the top of the tail lamp assembly, thus breaking what has become the standard Cadillac visual cue of the top to bottom red LED strip tail light...

 

 

 

One wonders if anyone at GM knows what they're doing re Cadillac Europe...

 

This. It is more of a GM problem than Europeans not wanting anything other than the three German brands. GM has been half-hearted with Cadillac's presence and expansion in Europe.

 

More like half-assed

I mean: I don't expect Cadillac to break into the market easily: Lexus and Infiniti have had great difficulty in overcoming shoppers' biases. But if GM doesn't go at it consistently, then it has zero chance of ever making a decent inroad into our markets...

[G. David Felt]

I think if they had a true 4 door Hybrid, Diesel, CNG and a proper support chain they could make a difference. Half-ass only gets you a luke warm response. Either all in or all out.

[Drew Dowdell]

I think before any issues with product are addressed, Cadillac needs to fix and replace the current dealership network in the EU. .... right now in Germany, if you want to buy a new Cadillac, you have to go to the back of an old Esso/Exxon station.

[Drew Dowdell]

This is the closest (technically) Cadillac dealership to the place I stay in Cologne.  Cologne is the 4th largest city in Germany.  This is a 45 minute drive to the neighboring city of Düssledorf.

 

 

 

 

Here's another one....

 

 

This isn't one of those puzzles where you have to stare at the picture for a long time to see the problem....

[G. David Felt]

DUDE, Wheres my Cadillac!

[smk4565]

There are many issues, but Lexus and Infiniti have failed too, Acura or Lincoln haven't even tried.  The market is hard to crack, you have a lot of different countries a lot of buyers loyal to what is made in their country.  Here are mid-size luxury car sales for Germany, you can see the dominance of the German trio, "other" is 8.5% of sales.

 

[Drew Dowdell]

I think the point is that without the proper sales channels, it really doesn't matter what the product is. Luxury car buyers are not going to go to the dusty, unmarked corner of an Opel dealership to buy a luxury car.

[smk4565]

True, the sales channel has to be there, so they either need to make their own dealerships, or partner with Opel.  What GM should have done years ago, and maybe still can is to phase out Opel/Vauxhaul and put Chevy in Europe, then you can have Chevy/Cadillac dealerships instead.  Ford has streamlined the products so they basically have the same cars here as in Europe, GM needs that approach even if that means different engines or interior options, you could still sell the same basic car in both places.

 

They have to build a product line simultaneously with the sales channel though.  If they get dealerships then send the SRX over there and a pair of gas V6 sedans, they aren't going to sell anything in those dealerships.   Cadillac can't convince Americans to buy an ATS over a 3-series or C-class, how will they convince Germans to buy an ATS?

[Drew Dowdell]

They already stated that Chevy is leaving europe and Opel/Vauxhall is going to be their everyman brand there.  We'll get the higher trim Opel models here as Buicks.

I notice that Cadillac doesn't even bother offering the V6 ATS there... only the 2.5 auto, 2.0T Auto, and 2.0t manual

[smk4565]

They will have to put Cadillacs in Opel dealers and fancy up the Opel dealerships then.

 

Cadillac better go diesel crazy, there should be plug-in hybrid versions of the ATS and CTS also.  I am not convinced though that they are willing to spend the money on technology and powertrains to make this happen.  This is a go big or go home type of deal, and Cadillac works with a limited budget and the GM parts bin.  Plus given the recall expenses coming of the next couple years, I doubt GM is going to turn over several billion dollars to Cadillac for R&D.

[riviera74]

I still am not sure why Cadillac is trying to break into a market essentially sealed shut by the Germans.  This is not the USA of 1971, where competition was actually welcomed.  Europeans are extremely brand loyal and nationalistic in their car purchases.  Moreover, the eurozone is an economic shambles.

 

Cadillac should greatly focus on the USA and east Asia (i.e. China) instead of the failing Old Continent.

[smk4565]

China is expected to surpass the USA as the #1 country for luxury car sales within the next few years; China is already the largest overall car market.  The Germans are ahead there too though, according to Forbes, 73% of luxury car sales in China in 2013 were Audi, BMW or Mercedes.  BMW is selling over 325,000 cars a year in China and growing while Cadillac and Lexus are in the 50-70,000 a per year level. 

 

Cadillac does have a better chance in China than they do in Europe, but they face a similar battle.  At least the Chinese market is growing though, and not flat like Europe.