General Motors is continuing to pursue the registration of the term Velite as a trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. According to USPTO sources speaking with GM Authority, the USPTO last week approved a request by the automaker to delay the filing of a key document in the trademark process.
The Background
General Motors filed the application to register Velite as a trademark with the USPTO on November 19th, 2014 (and before that, in 2012). The application was filed for the Goods and Services category of “Motor land vehicles, namely, automobiles, sport utility vehicles, trucks, vans, engines therefor and structural parts thereof”.
From there, the application was published in the official USPTO Gazette on April 28th, 2015 — a process that enables those opposed to a trademark being registered to voice their concerns and prevent further registration of the mark by the applicant.
Then, on June 23rd, 2015, the office issued GM a notice of allowance, which allows GM to proceed in registering the application only when it files a Statement of Use — a crucial document in the trademark process in which the applicant “claims in good faith” that it will use the mark in commerce (in a real-world product or service).
Since GM currently has no real-world product or service called Velite, it requested an extension to file the document November 25th, which the USPTO approved on November 27th. So now, GM has six months to file the Statement of Use document; it can request a total of five extensions each lasting six months.
What It All Means
So, what does all this trademark process stuff tell us? One thing: GM is ardently pursuing trademark rights to the Velite name.
It would be a colossal waste of time and energy, if not completely worthless, to trademark a name without planning to use it in a real-world product or service, simply because an application wouldn’t be successful in securing rights to the trademark without a Statement of Use. All this leads us to believe that GM has serious intentions to bring a vehicle called Velite to market.
What Would A Velite Be?
Back at the 2004 New York International Auto Show, GM’s Buick brand unveiled a concept car called the Velite. The concept was a four-seat convertible based on GM’s rear-drive Zeta platform. And when we unearthed the Velite trademark last year, some publications believed that Buick would use the Velite name for its twin of the Opel Cascada convertible; that ended up not being the case, as Buick stuck with the Cascada name for the Delta 2-based drop-top.
All that leads us to believe that GM has other plans for the Velite name. What it can be is difficult to predict at this point, but our bets would be on the following possibilities.
The first is a midsize Buick coupe and convertible derived from the next-generation 2017 Buick Regal, which will be based on GM’s new E2XX platform.
A rendering of a Buick Regal Coupe, which was rumored to become the Opel Calibra
The second is a compact Buick coupe, which could come in the form of a sleek and compact two-door hatchback on the D2XX platform, serving as an extension of the second-generation Verano family.
The current Opel-Vauxhall Astra GTC, which could become a Buick Velite in North America and China
To note, we can see both vehicles being sold as Opel-Vauxhall cars in Europe as part of the hybrid Buick-Opel-Vauxhall trifecta: the midsize coupe could become the long-rumored, but never-realized Opel Calibra, while the compact coupe would become a replacement for the outgoing Astra GTC. Just as well, it could be a sub-compact city car for the Tri-Shield brand.
The Buick Riviera could hint at an electrified Buick of tomorrow.
Another possibility is that these two predictions are completely off the mark, and the Velite could be something else entirely. Such as a plug-in hybrid or even a full-on electric vehicle. Murmurs of an electrified Buick have been floating around for some time, and the continued pursuit of the Velite trademark could be additional evidence that such a vehicle is coming.
If you have a thought, talk about it in the comment section below.
Comments
My bet is that Astra will be Velite.
Buick makes amazing concept cars. If built, these cars would transform brand.
The Astra is the Verano. The Astra GTC could be Velite.
Buick’s four-seat convertible concept car called the Velite and the Rivera is car-porn as these things are smoking hot; but you just don’t know whether General Motors’ Board of Directors will build these cars which a niche market cars at best because while we like how the Velite looks, one has to wonder whether someone is willing to pay $65-75K or more for it while the Rivera was a concept from China which means this could be a plug-in hybrid.
Forget the show cars of the past. This name could go anywhere and on just about anything here.
But I will promise it will be interesting because this is the White Space Duncan spoke of and the one I said could very well transform Buicks image. This could make them the most interesting brands around.
Scott3, I would like to see Buick’s image transform and become a successful division of GM in the US market. But I am not sure what type of cars that they can create or do.
Unfortunately Buick was selling great in China at the time of the GM bankruptcy so they were kept alive ( I was sad to see any of the 8 divisions go)…perhaps I’m living in the past but niche cars would most likely do better in the NA market (or even globally minus China) under the Pontiac division if it still was around.
Buick has badly ruined it’s image in the United States in the past couple decades.
Cadillac may have had some issues but it is still prestigious and even “cool” to own a Cadillac.
Buick has been that division that many consumers in the US gravitate away from that are looking for something that is “cool to be seen in”. Like who wants to be seen in a Buick. It’s unfortunate but true.
I do like Buicks and always have, but I am an enthusiast of all GM divisions…my comment is just an observation about Buick’s past and it’s present.
At the end, Pontiac was far from cool. It screamed BAD CREDIT; PURCHASED AT DISCOUNT.
Pontiac was destroyed in the 90s with plastic cladding and even worse a failure to attract, stay current with, that trail end of Gen X buyers.
It screamed Motley Crue when buyers of that age were listening to Pearl Jam.
You analysis is a bit over exaggerated. cause I can rip on any car buyer.
It might have “screamed” bad credit, some of Crue’s greatest hits and purchased at a discount but it still had some of the highest sales out of most of the car divisions in united states.
Buick is unfortunately not a sought after brand in the North America and has not sold well here in years.
Stephen just curious what you drive?
Pontiac screamed performance but yet when Lutz arrived they had none?
It is bad enough that Pontiac became a Chevy based styling project but then they killed the performance at the division. Lets face it the Firebird died with the 4th gen platform and that left them with no RWD performance .
Then they were left with two FWD sedans detuned not to kill the transaxles. Then the cars like the G6 and G5 both really had no real performance options. Why was not the LNF turbo offered in either?
That is what finally finished Pontiac off after decades of failure to understand and manage them properly by GM. The lack of money also did not help either. GM did not go bankrupt in 2008. It took several decades to get there.
Scott3, I am not disagreeing with your post, because the General should have given Pontiac a G5 GXP with a 260hp 2.0 L Ecotec LNF Turbo I4 to go along with the Cobalt SS instead of the weakly powered G5 GT with a 170 hp.
BUT- Pontiac did have the 04-06 GTO, and then the RWD G8 GT & GXP.
Besides the Corvette? what real performance cars did Chevy have from 2003-2009?
The FWD Monte Carlo SS? HHR SS? Malibu SS? and the Cobalt SS? no doubt the Cobalt SS was cool for a FWD tuner. but c’mon GM failed Pontiac. I know what’s done is done, but in the 2000s GM really didn’t have any RWD performance cars in general.
oh anyways back to Buick…hopefully they can turn it around cause I definitely see where Gino is coming from!
The G5 GXP did not exist because GM decided to focus 2.0T sales on the Cobalt SS. The G5 was resisted by many on the Pontiac team, but Buick-Pontiac-GMC dealers wanted a successor to the Sunfire, and the G5 was the only car at the time that could do it.
The G6 couldn’t handle LNF due to Epsilon platform issues. Saab put their smaller 2.0T in. The LNF required a massive twin-scroll intercooler. You’ll notice that there really aren’t any success stories of putting LNF crate engine into a G6, despite efforts to do so.
Before Lutz was ousted, he was well on his way to paring down Pontiac to an all-RWD badge, with one FWD token car (Vibe) to handle the mass-sales. Had he stayed on, every Pontiac would have been either RWD, or FWD with AWD optional.
I would argue Pontiac had it right when they were shut down. It was the President’s Auto Task Force, not GM management, that forced its demise.
My fingers are crossed for either an Alpha-based 2 door or 4 door coupe!…C’mon Buick! Make something interesting!……
GM’s has already said the Grand National’s not coming so I don’t think they’re building something similar just with a different name.
Or would velite fill the white space?
When it comes to Buick, I could give a d@mn what it’s named if it doesn’t have the look, feel, and presence of the original concept or the current Enclave than it’s a bust. It ain’t a proper Buick. There is nothing to aspire to, and frankly it more likely than not, won’t have any class.
The only reason a Ecoboost Limited flex is in my driveway verses a Enclave is because no matter how much i liked the enclave; I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was to young to own one. I was 34 at the time. But the styling and execution of that model resonated with me as a “True Buick” unlike the other crap-tastic, old mans car, bland mobiles Buick had at the time and through most of my adult hood.
However, The Velite Convertible – or something just like it in execution – would have went miles toward alleviating that impression.
Buick’s Image in China IS NOT an appropriate image for the US. In China, Buick is a vehicle of the officials, and executives. A reminder of the great Buicks of China’s past, when supposedly 1 in 6 cars in China were Buicks (at a time when ONLY the rich had cars) and Buick was one of the first car companies in China.
In fact GM capitalized on Buick being the car of the officials and elite by catering a minivan to Chinese executive market which became the Buick’s and China’s best seller! We all know that there’s no way in hell anyone would “aspire” to any minivan here in the states.
GM needs to get back to making Buick what Audi, Lexus, Mercedes, BMW, and even Jags are now…refined, high content, luxury transportation with sophisticated, retrained styling. More inline with a Audi/Jag with the guaranteed reliability and quality of a Lexus. In a word, make Buicks like they did in the 40s to early 60s. When Buick was the “restrained, slightly more refined answer to Cadillac”.
I know this is a of topic rant. But it irritates the hell out of me to see GM continuously turn out these home-run, nearly production ready, high end luxury concept coupes and sedans for Cadillac and Buick. Yet produce these lame, milk toast, euro copy sedans for the street. None of which are half as dynamic or brand focused as the concepts.
Ciel vs CT6 anyone? When you compare the two there is nothing but utter amazement at GM’s inability to transmit the excellence and impact of the former to the latter!
With the way Buick is going, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Velite name show up on some Opal based compact. It may sell well enough to keep the lights on, but in a few years it will be looked at in the same way as the 90s Skylark. More of a “what the hell were they on about” head shaking nostalgia, verses something to aspire to.
Maybe the Velite was suppose to be the Cascada’s name but since GM couldn’t get it they just settled for Cascada.
I believe Buick is in a transitional role of creating a new image for the brand . The old Enclave is being replaced , and it still sells well for its aged platform . The Encore is a hit with all demographics , They have a new convertable coming in the spring of 2016 and the Envision coming from China to fill in that gap in the portfolio , plus the new LaCrosse is all new and has design cues straight from the concept shown in Detroit. The Velite name I believe is going to be an ultra-luxury sedan , or their ” Halo ” car . Like the article said its anybodys guess but a high end car that tops the LaCrosse makes sense to me .