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M$1.00  Funded By Mahalo ? |  April 28, 2009 08:40 AM

Why is GM getting rid of Pontiac?

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April 29, 2009 12:27 AM | view on twitter
They are a brand that has been plagued by bad product decisions over the past two decades. Cars like the Aztec, and Sunfire hurt their brand image. Currently their product lineup isn't compelling, and is mostly based on other GM products. G3 is essentially a re-badged Chevy Aveo. The G5 is a re-badged Chevy Cobalt. The G6 is based on the same platform as the Saturn Aura, and previous Chevy Malibu. The Solstice, being one of their better products, still shares its platform with the Saturn Sky. The Torrent is based on the Chevy Equinox. The Vibe is a joint venture with Toyota, and shares its platform with the Matrix. The G8 is the only product they have that is truly unique to the brand.

GM used the tactic of platform sharing as a way of spreading the cost of development across multiple products. What they did not do, was differentiate the products from each other well enough. This led to the brands cannibalizing sales from each other, rather than adding sales to GM as a whole. Saturn is very similar in this regard. What GM is doing is cutting down on competing with themselves. They are doing this by cutting the number of vehicles per platform. Rather than the Malibu, Aura, G6 sharing versions of the Epsilon platform, they will focus on the Chevy Malibu, which is part of their core brand.


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Helpful: nyssa

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Voted as best: philipy, cjd
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xds xds
 
April 28, 2009 04:00 PM | view on twitter
Not killing testament to what Seshankrishnan has said.

Going in the completely opposite direction however ...
Another idea might be that GM is trying to create a lifeboat for some of their most hard working executives who simply don't want to be under government control.
(Or any of them for that matter)

It's just like dismantalling a sinking ship, ...

You know it's going to sink, you see all of the signs on the horizon so you detach a part of the hull that you think might float .

This has i'm sure happened before in business.
Pontiac isn't all that bad either , they do have some great offerings they have brought to the table.

GM might just trying to be nostalgic and keep the idea of the American muscle car alive.

Kind Regards,
XDS

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Voted as best: romeo0830
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May 01, 2009 01:19 PM | view on twitter
extremely good question. i live in adelaide where they are produced and i owned a similar type of utility vehicle. it was truly a work of art and to think that some dull big wig has decided to cripple our little niche of performance cars that could've been enjoyed by the whole world. well i'm glad i can still buy the aussie version right here, its really your loss guys!

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