There was once a time when the minicar was a hot segment to play in, where Mini and Fiat ruled with sexy, quirky metal. Buick was poised, too, to get in on the action with an imported variant of the Opel Adam.
While the Opel Adam continues to find love in Europe, Duncan Aldred, head of Buick and GMC brands, thinks the time has passed to bring the Adam to the United States. Two years ago, when Aldred took the helm at Buick, he states the Adam would have fit well. Now, not so much.
“I very much did feel when I came over that that could really help accelerate the Buick brand story,” said Aldred speaking of the Adam minicar. “I don’t see that as much. Whether the market shifted or the fashion nature of those cars has changed, I don’t know. But I wouldn’t be looking for a small, B-segment car today.”
Cheap gasoline and the boom in the crossover market have lead to diminishing sales in the minicar segment in the United States, and it seems the Adam will remain forbidden fruit for some time to come.
Besides the Opel Adam, Aldred stated he was currently thrilled with the Buick lineup, which houses three sedans and three crossovers, plus a convertible. He still did not dismiss the idea of a new halo vehicle either, after the 2016 Buick Cascada runs its course for the brand.
Comments
Stupid stupid stupid. You want Buick owners to skew younger? How about giving young single types a beginner Buick?
Damn. It would have been great to have that over here. It looks great and would still look great with the new Buick design language. It’s practical and would be a hoot to drive (even with being kinda weighty). And, yes, gasoline is still very cheap, but am I the only one to notice that gas has gone up like 25 cents in the last month? It’ll probably slowly but steadily rise this year as consumption catches up to production. Wouldn’t be surprised to see gas at $3-4 in 2-3 years. But GM better have this and other small cars federalized and ready to go by then.
GM is world champion in missing opportunities.
They only think quartely not able to see the long-term impact.
Well, I am not an expert of the US market but I am sure if Buick wants to be a game changer and to step out of the shadow they need to offer something special.
The Encore (Mokka in Europe) shows how such a trendy car can change a brand.
fiat 500 and adam is same one class. fiat 500 is big car and belongs audi a1 class.
fiat500 vs adam .only two cars i know this class and segment
audi a1 vs mini. only two cars i know this class and segment
yes little cars are others to but this not same game and players
little cars ihhii. but adam and fiat 500 is separately
i dont know why people buy mokka. because its cheap i think. not to bad but not something to be proud of to. i see market so many other cars mokka class at same price and more things. i want to said only that gm worke harder and harder more and more quality all things. quality cant be cheap. i want to said good gm product not said thats not bad
mini vs adam
This car always belonged in the Chevy line up much like Spark (Karl/Viva) guys well into Opel/Vauxhall.
Fiat and Mini are having trouble moving super minis; the segment is played out in terms of premium or wannabe luxury. A Mini rival at a Chevy price point could be a win for the General. It’s becoming clear that GM it’s moving to allign Opel with both Buick and Chevy as evidenced by Spark, Bolt and the global Chevy Sail.
I like the car, but he’s correct — there’s no current market for it. Buick (and the rest of GM) needs to focus on crossovers, SUVs (particularly off-road), crossovers, sedans, and crossovers. You go where the market is.
GM can’t get distracted by a car that will fit in a now tiny market. If that changes, GM can readily bring this over.
Funny you mention off-road capability. There’s off-road SUVs, then there’s the FWD mall crawlers that permeate the market. Buick SHOULD make premium mall crawlers so Cadillac and GMC don’t have to.
I agree that if there was a time for it, that it has passed. Not to say that there won’t be another time for it, but the time is not now. Not with $2/gallon gas. Minis keep getting larger, and so do Fiats. The chunky four door variants of both are what’s selling right now, not the smaller two door originals like the Adam. Not only are crossovers where the money’s at, it’s what the younger demographic wants anyway.
Makes sense. The Adam doesn’t really fit Buick’s image. The smallest Buick should go is a Gamma-based sedan/hatchback, maybe… a coupe (fitting the white space mission)?
Based on the rate of conversion, Opel’s Adam would have a price of about $13K which would make it attractive for someone wanting their first car and could be a way to get someone young started into Buick for years to come, Chevy has too many small cars to entertain the thought of adopting the Adam.
No, that is about the price of a Spark. While I think it would have to certainly be a good chunk less than a Mini Cooper (like 3-4k less at least) I also think it would have to be more than a base Fiat 500. Mainly due to slightly larger size and slightly better performance. Definitely at the very highest the same as a post-rebate Verano (18-20k?). Then it would be a choice between a larger car or a cooler car. But preferably it would be closer to a true starter Buick (under Verano). Around 16-18k would be the sweet spot I think. 13k would eat into new Sonic sales I would think, not to mention I would have to trade my 2016 Spark for an Adam at 13k and shoot myself in the foot. Full disclosure right there. 🙂
This car would have proved difficult in the USA.
Ultra small cars here have had a poor track record here. Smarts never set the world on fire and the Fiat 500 is far from the over whelming success that was predicted.
It would have never been priced at $13K here
Here is the problem. One small cars are a struggle to sell here. Second this car was not built with the American market in mind so it would have had some things it would lack that could help it here. Finally if Buick it so to do a 3 door thatch the Astra is better suited and at the Buick price could be offered in the OPC version here too.
When ever they get to a second gen Adam they may be able to better suit the car to this market but even then the challenge will be to sell it here. Micro cars just are not a thing Americans clamor for.
What I find really interesting is the differences in the color palette……..the US has been simplifying colors — getting rid of two tones for example — while Adam has lots of two tone color choices with roof colors, etc. Why the difference? Maybe there is an opportunity here for the US too, both financially (charge for two tone) and market wise (increased sales).
Of course, if you’re driven solely by the Harbor reports, you’ll ignore things like this