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The New GM
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Both.
If you look at the current MSRP of the Malibu ($23K to $31K), there are much nicer cars that can be found for that much, including the Prius.
IMO the Malibu is and always has been an ugly car. The new Impala is boring and ordinary looking. The previous model was similar in that regard.
I'm sure that the vast majority of people would take an Accord, Altima, or Camry over a Malibu at the same price. The Cobalt could also use a re-design. It seems to be a good car mechanically, but IMO it is also an ugly car. Look at the new Civic and the Mazda 3, then at the Cobalt. There is no comparison IMO.
As someone who has driven several GM vehicles over the years, I can sympathize with LOUIS's opinion.
We had the following GM cars:
- an Astro van (died very prematurely; it only lasted 5 years or so)
- an 86 Cavalier (very crappy car; the tranny died fast and it rusted out as well)
- a Pontiac 6000 (1990 I think - this car was terrible and lasted about 5 years as well; it also had tranny problems)
My grandparents also owned a relatively high end Oldsmobile and it gave them tons of problems as well. The only good GM car we ever had was a 1994 Saturn SC2, but it needed to have its engine rebuilt; we were lucky it was still under warranty and had to fight the dealership tooth and nail to get them to fix it.
Sure, GM makes a few good cars. The problem is that their crappy cars far outnumber their good ones, and they built terrible cars from a reliability standpoint for way too long for most people to forget about. I don't think Honda and Toyota have ever built unreliable cars.
We had the following GM cars:
- an Astro van (died very prematurely; it only lasted 5 years or so)
- an 86 Cavalier (very crappy car; the tranny died fast and it rusted out as well)
- a Pontiac 6000 (1990 I think - this car was terrible and lasted about 5 years as well; it also had tranny problems)
My grandparents also owned a relatively high end Oldsmobile and it gave them tons of problems as well. The only good GM car we ever had was a 1994 Saturn SC2, but it needed to have its engine rebuilt; we were lucky it was still under warranty and had to fight the dealership tooth and nail to get them to fix it.
Sure, GM makes a few good cars. The problem is that their crappy cars far outnumber their good ones, and they built terrible cars from a reliability standpoint for way too long for most people to forget about. I don't think Honda and Toyota have ever built unreliable cars.
Mermaidman
Diamond Member
The Impala is boring and ordinary, but it's also way overdue for a refresh. How long has it been since the last redesign--4 yrs? Surprisingly, the Impala was the best-selling large car in May:
Ford F-Series 33,381
Chevrolet Silverado 31,463
Toyota Camry 31,325
Toyota Corolla 23,576
Honda Accord 22,597
Honda Civic 20,723
Ford Fusion 19,786
Chevrolet Impala 18,709
Nissan Altima 18,408
Ford Escape 16,391
(Notice how the Camry and Accord are outselling the Corolla and Civic respectively.)
Bignate603
Lifer
Yes it does. It's the Buick brand name that's a selling point in China. Buicks are considered a status symbol because historically communist party leaders were chauffeured in Buicks. The last Chinese emperor owned a Buick. People are buying it for the brand as much as they are the vehicle itself. If you kill the brand name you lose that advantage.
Oil turning to sludge, welds coming apart and frames rusting out completely? Being number one in recalls last year? Honda does very well, but Toyota's reputation outweighs its actual track record.
Buicks are more entry level luxury though, if you can even consider them that. It's hard to place them, as there aren't really any other brands in that spot. Maybe Acura, at least from perception of where it sits (I don't think most people really put Acura into a full-fledged luxury marque).
They say that Americans do not like small cars; that probably explains what you're saying about the Corolla and Civic.
I'm surprised to see the Impala outselling the Altima, but you did just prove my point. Without even looking at other models, there are at least 4 midsized cars being sold for every Impala sold.
Bignate603
Lifer
It's easy to say what they should do without seeing their books. They kept both because of the strength of sales and predicted sales in the future. If the math didn't work out it would have been Buick on the chopping block rather than some of the other brands.
Bignate603
Lifer
The Impala is full sized and you're comparing it against the sales of midsized? That doesn't really make sense. It seems like the midsized may be selling more just because people want midsized cars rather than anything to do with the Impala.
The Impala sells more than its full sized competitors, comparing it to cars it doesn't compete against isn't a good comparison.
Bignate603
Lifer
I was wondering that too. It may be that if China is selling enough to cover the cost of the design work they don't have to be making as much money per car in the US to make it worthwhile for them to keep it opened here.
China dosen't actually have to cover anything to do with design, they are pirates, they just steal the design
Seriously GM put a Buick plant into china, officially and all, and China proceeded to just duplicate the plant multiple times. They excel at stealing other people's work.
Bignate603
Lifer
I meant if GM was selling enough to cover their design costs. If they couldn't turn a profit even with the piracy there they wouldn't be making as much money as they are there.
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