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Rumormill: GM Considering Buick Coupe

Remember when we received tips of a Buick Regal coupe late last year? Well, it looks like our sources were right after all – as The General has officially gone on record about considering a Buick coupe.

According to John Cafaro, director of design for Buick and Chevrolet, Buick is undergoing a transformation similar to what Cadillac has gone through. (Actually, we think Cadillac is still going through its Renaissance period). “Cadillac said: ‘What we are doing is not working. Our customers are dying off. We have to carve a new image.’ That is where Buick is right now… A coupe is definitely where you say, ‘I’m back,’ said Cafaro.

Moreover, a coupe would make a strong statement for Buick “and a statement means it is going to be the flagship. All the design cues and everything would drive themselves down into all Buicks.”

To be honest, Buick has been on a roll lately, delivering hits such as the all-new LaCrosse and Enclave as well as announcing gems such as the all-new Regal. And no Buick article can exist without mentioning the (unconfirmed) Verano (compact sedan that will share its architecture with the Chevy Cruze) and a rumored small crossover. A coupe, which may become the flagship of the Buick line, would most likely be based on the Epsilon 2 platform used by the Regal and LaCrosse.

The only question is – should the coupe be a Regal or a LaCrosse?

The GM Authority Take

While a coupe is definitely a step in the right direction, Buick is not where it should be, since brand positioning is still unclear. The best approach, in my humble opinion, would be to position Buick as a pure luxury brand that puts luxury first. Cadillac, on the other hand, would target the performance-luxury market – the crowd that wants some spice mixed in with its luxury. Furthermore, my proposition calls to join the dealer networks of Buick and Cadillac, making the resulting stores the ultimate luxury car shopping experience. When a customer walks in to a Buick-Cadillac dealer, s/he would be offered the biggest choice in luxury transportation – be it pure luxury (Lexus style) or performance-luxury (BMW, Audi style). But I can’t do my strategy justice for GM’s luxury divisions in a single paragraph, that’s why we released an entire podcast about it that you should listen to right here.

[Source: Automotive News, sub. req.]

GM Authority Executive Editor with a passion for business strategy and fast cars.

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Comments

  1. Mr. Alex’s opinion about joining Cadillac and Buick in one dealer is not proper. Buick is much cheaper than Cadillac, so customer would simply make their choice for Buick. That would make the same mistake of Pontiac-Buick Dealers. Pontiac has affected Buick sales as cheaper and sportier brand. And Buick should never be pure luxury, I always believe Buick is good at being something in the middle between Cadillac and Chevy. Buick is excellent being head to head with Lexus/Infiniti. Cadillac which should always be the ultimate pure luxury brand and has its own identity and high level customers, just like Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Jaguar.

    Reply
    1. Hey Bawazir – thanks for the comment! I was of the same opinion until I started visiting dealers and paying attention to the way customers shop for cars.

      From what I’ve been able to gather, the pure luxury segment is beginning to branch into two different types of buyers – pure and performance lux. One the one extreme, you have BMW, and on the other – you have Lexus (respectively). From a competitive strategy standpoint, it would make sense for GM to compete against both – Lexus and BMW are sales leaders in the luxury market and cater to two different luxury customers. And I think it’s safe to say that Buick and Caddy today don’t compete effectively against the sales leaders that are Lexus and BMW (just look at the sales numbers compared to Lexus or BMW). Also, Lexus as we know it today is a pure luxury brand and Buick doesn’t compete with it one bit – the image and intangible characteristics are simply non existent. It’s not considered premium. Sure, the LaCrosse and Enclave are nice, but where are Buick’s IS and LS fighters? Will the upcoming Verano cut it against the IS? Probably not!

      That said, the point of a middle-luxury brand – something between mainstream and luxury – is slowly beginning to disappear. Currently, Acura and Infiniti can be considred mid-luxury.

      However, Acura is in the process of moving upmarket and becoming a full-fledged luxury brand with a high-tech emphasis. The next-gen RL, for example, will move Acura into the field of S-Class, 7er, A8, etc. Infiniti will eventually compete there as well with the next-gen Q. It’s already there in its SUV/CUV lineup, with a performance emphasis. That leaves Volvo and Saab as middle-of-the-road luxury brands – not pure luxury, not pure mainstream. If you look at their sales numbers, they get outsold by BMW, Acura, Lexus by a 10:1 margin (if not more) every single month! That tells me that the mid-lux market is slowly disappearing. Looking into the future, GM should compete in an area where the market is moving, not where people don’t shop any more.

      Hopefully I’ll get a few more GM Authority readers and/or listeners defect to my side 🙂

      Reply

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