You’re going to keep Buick?
In what appears to be another example of The General thinking not much further along than what’s for lunch that day, GM announced plans to chop the brands down to four.
Sure. It’s a pretty obvious move and a good one. Not sure why they wouldn’t cut to two. But four is a good start.
But here’s the Soup of the Day moment: The four they’re keeping: Chevorlet, Cadillac, GMC and Buick.
I didn’t stutter. Buick.
Don’t get me wrong, i think it’s sweet that GM wants to keep the single remaining Buick devotee in cars for the remaining days she has on the planet. Especially since she turfed her last Regal.
But Buick? Really? Were GM execs worried that all 4,429 members of Buick Forum would be upset and start an online protest? If so, apparently it’s unlikely they’d do so during daylight hours. Actually, I have to say I was shocked to find an online Buick community. I expected there to be only a few pen pals. But even Pen Pals have gone online it seems.
Everyone needs a friend.
And it seems like The General is worried about not having any. I thought General Motors pulled up short when they only let Oldsmobile go in 2000. They should have kept going then. Why not pack up Buick at the same time? A twofer. Get that Band-Aid off in one, hard, sudden pull. But they checked up. One couldn’t possibly alienate close friends like Michelle. Not when they keep you informed on the latest celebrity gossip.
Instead The General went back to picking around the edges.
Why not keep Saturn? And maybe let it live up to its original intent of offering cars that are inherently different from the rest of GM’s offerings. Supported by dealers that actually want to help the customer. Do something clever. . . like. . . I don’t know. . . A car with dent-proof door panels that gets 40 miles to the gallon?
Something interesting could have come of the integration of Opel vehicles into the Saturn line up. But instead they’re going to keep Buick afloat. It’s like building a raft out of cinder blocks. As far as I can tell: Anyone who owns a Buick now and plans to purchase a new Buick probably has one remaining purchase left.
The way the GM executives really think through the long term health of the company—it’s inspired.
Or maybe they drive Buicks. Or they feel the world just doesn’t have enough luxury crossover vehicles. No. I’ll bet they drive Buicks.
As long as the whole company doesn’t go belly up before I can get around to buying a used Cadillac CTS-V it’s fine by me.