TriShield
07-06-2005, 08:19 PM
More horsepower, scoops move GTOs
http://www.autoweek.com/images/articles/102201
What do you do when your resurrected muscle car turns out to be a weakling in the marketplace? Add a pair of sleek hood scoops and some horsepower.
Sales of the 400-hp Pontiac GTO -- 50 more than the 2004 model -- are up 76.9 percent through May, and dealers are short of the Australia-made coupes.
Early sales had been disappointing since the December 2003 launch. For the first five months of 2004, GTOs sold at a rate that translated to just 7,300 a year -- well below GM's target of 16,000. This year, Pontiac says, it expects to sell 12,000 to 14,000.
Pontiac spokesman Jim Hopson says Los Angeles is the country's hottest GTO market -- an unusual feat for a General Motors car.
Critics griped about the 2004 model, which didn't have hood scoops or true dual exhausts. Says Hopson: "We listened."
http://www.autonews.com/images/masthead/automotivenews_medlogo.gif
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http://www.autoextremist.com/arrowup.gifhttp://www.autoextremist.com/arrowdown.gifGeneral Motors. The world's largest automaker, under the gun from every possible angle, blew the lid off of the U.S. market in June with its "Employee Discount for Everyone" promotion, selling an incredible 558,092 new cars and trucks - up a staggering 46.9 percent compared to year-ago numbers. It was GM’s best sales month since September 1986.
GM's crushing sales performance included an all-time industry record for truck sales (382,601), which were up 68 percent. GM also led the industry in full-size pickup deliveries, with its Chevrolet Silverado up 102 percent. GM's car sales (175,491) were up 4 percent, with several new vehicles - including Cadillac STS, Chevrolet Cobalt and Aveo, Pontiac G6 and Buick LaCrosse - posting record sales results. GM's monster June sales performance spiked its share of the U.S. market to 33 percent, up dramatically from its 25.8 percent share in May.
Following this performance, GM announced late yesterday that it will extend the incentive program until Aug. 1, continuing to offer employee pricing levels on most 2005 vehicles, except for the all-of-a-sudden hot-selling Pontiac GTO (which we've repeatedly called the high-performance value of the year), Chevrolet Corvette and the Mastadon-like Hummer H1. The GM program was so popular that it caught its chief domestic competitors off guard - and Chrysler and Ford have now announced plans to offer similar discounts this month. GM insiders view this promotion as a last gasp-type of incentive program, a precursor to the company eventually going to a one-price "value proposition" selling strategy. GM has already announced lowered prices for the 2006 model year to get deals closer to the actual transaction prices, in an effort to position itself for the new, more competitive products coming in their portfolio.
The one key result from this latest GM program that's not getting enough play? Owners of competitive makes and imports are visiting GM showrooms in droves - the first time in, oh, maybe 25 years that this has happened. If GM does eventually get to a one-price selling strategy - where the components of the deal include GM offering vehicles featuring competitive quality, value, performance and design - with enough profit for its dealers - they may be on to something. If, however, this latest marketing idea is just the latest gimmick in a long line of sales gimmicks, GM will get closer to the point of no return - with nowhere else to go but down.
www.autoextremist.com
http://www.autoweek.com/images/articles/102201
What do you do when your resurrected muscle car turns out to be a weakling in the marketplace? Add a pair of sleek hood scoops and some horsepower.
Sales of the 400-hp Pontiac GTO -- 50 more than the 2004 model -- are up 76.9 percent through May, and dealers are short of the Australia-made coupes.
Early sales had been disappointing since the December 2003 launch. For the first five months of 2004, GTOs sold at a rate that translated to just 7,300 a year -- well below GM's target of 16,000. This year, Pontiac says, it expects to sell 12,000 to 14,000.
Pontiac spokesman Jim Hopson says Los Angeles is the country's hottest GTO market -- an unusual feat for a General Motors car.
Critics griped about the 2004 model, which didn't have hood scoops or true dual exhausts. Says Hopson: "We listened."
http://www.autonews.com/images/masthead/automotivenews_medlogo.gif
------
http://www.autoextremist.com/arrowup.gifhttp://www.autoextremist.com/arrowdown.gifGeneral Motors. The world's largest automaker, under the gun from every possible angle, blew the lid off of the U.S. market in June with its "Employee Discount for Everyone" promotion, selling an incredible 558,092 new cars and trucks - up a staggering 46.9 percent compared to year-ago numbers. It was GM’s best sales month since September 1986.
GM's crushing sales performance included an all-time industry record for truck sales (382,601), which were up 68 percent. GM also led the industry in full-size pickup deliveries, with its Chevrolet Silverado up 102 percent. GM's car sales (175,491) were up 4 percent, with several new vehicles - including Cadillac STS, Chevrolet Cobalt and Aveo, Pontiac G6 and Buick LaCrosse - posting record sales results. GM's monster June sales performance spiked its share of the U.S. market to 33 percent, up dramatically from its 25.8 percent share in May.
Following this performance, GM announced late yesterday that it will extend the incentive program until Aug. 1, continuing to offer employee pricing levels on most 2005 vehicles, except for the all-of-a-sudden hot-selling Pontiac GTO (which we've repeatedly called the high-performance value of the year), Chevrolet Corvette and the Mastadon-like Hummer H1. The GM program was so popular that it caught its chief domestic competitors off guard - and Chrysler and Ford have now announced plans to offer similar discounts this month. GM insiders view this promotion as a last gasp-type of incentive program, a precursor to the company eventually going to a one-price "value proposition" selling strategy. GM has already announced lowered prices for the 2006 model year to get deals closer to the actual transaction prices, in an effort to position itself for the new, more competitive products coming in their portfolio.
The one key result from this latest GM program that's not getting enough play? Owners of competitive makes and imports are visiting GM showrooms in droves - the first time in, oh, maybe 25 years that this has happened. If GM does eventually get to a one-price selling strategy - where the components of the deal include GM offering vehicles featuring competitive quality, value, performance and design - with enough profit for its dealers - they may be on to something. If, however, this latest marketing idea is just the latest gimmick in a long line of sales gimmicks, GM will get closer to the point of no return - with nowhere else to go but down.
www.autoextremist.com