GM has definitely run itself into the ground due to mismanagement, excess brands and nameplates, badge engineering, poor quality/reliability, emphasis on truck/SUV sales, and lack of development for small and mid-size cars. They've only started turning themselves around within the last few years because the competition has gotten light-years ahead of them and sales have gone down.
I've never understood why GM would need to own and operate so many brands - Chevy, Pontiac, Saturn, GMC, Hummer, Buick, Cadillac, Saab. The way I see it, they have so many brands that GM is competing with itself. An SUV buyer might have a hard time deciding between the Chevy TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy and Buick Rainier - three models based on the exact same design, share 90% of the parts, look nearly identical, and are all subpar compared to competitors.
I think that, overall, GM is starting to get things right. It's a shame that it took this economic crisis for them to finally make the tough decision to streamline their company and cut the excess. Saturn, as a brand, was not performing well. And that's a shame. I actually really like Saturn's new products (even if they are mostly rebadged Opels from Europe). I wasn't a fan of their plastic-paneled cars from the 90's. The designs never appealed to me. The new Saturns are dramatically better. But I don't think GM really knew how to market Saturn. What type of brand do they want to be? Pontiac doesn't seem viable as a brand. Pontiac was supposed to be their sporty, performance brand, but GM has down a poor job maintaining that image. Shrinking Pontiac to a "niche" brand with one or two vehicles sounds like a lame excuse to keep the Pontiac name around when it isn't relevant anymore. Hummer as a brand is now useless thanks to the gas crisis and current economic woes. Dump it or sell it. Saab has no appeal for me.
Shrinking the company down to Chevy-GMC-Buick-Cadillac is a dramatic change for this company. Could they do more? Probably. I think having only two or three brands might be even better. However, I understand that GMC does well, especially with their larger trucks. A lot of companies probably rely on GMC. I would keep GMC as the "truck brand" and consolidate all of the trucks under that brand. Chevy can have all the cars, and maybe the Silverado because it's so well-known. Buick is growing in China, so GM is reluctant to kill it. And I will admit that Buick's new and upcoming models look great. The Enclave is a gorgeous SUV. It may be viable if handled properly.
I've never understood why GM would need to own and operate so many brands - Chevy, Pontiac, Saturn, GMC, Hummer, Buick, Cadillac, Saab. The way I see it, they have so many brands that GM is competing with itself. An SUV buyer might have a hard time deciding between the Chevy TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy and Buick Rainier - three models based on the exact same design, share 90% of the parts, look nearly identical, and are all subpar compared to competitors.
I think that, overall, GM is starting to get things right. It's a shame that it took this economic crisis for them to finally make the tough decision to streamline their company and cut the excess. Saturn, as a brand, was not performing well. And that's a shame. I actually really like Saturn's new products (even if they are mostly rebadged Opels from Europe). I wasn't a fan of their plastic-paneled cars from the 90's. The designs never appealed to me. The new Saturns are dramatically better. But I don't think GM really knew how to market Saturn. What type of brand do they want to be? Pontiac doesn't seem viable as a brand. Pontiac was supposed to be their sporty, performance brand, but GM has down a poor job maintaining that image. Shrinking Pontiac to a "niche" brand with one or two vehicles sounds like a lame excuse to keep the Pontiac name around when it isn't relevant anymore. Hummer as a brand is now useless thanks to the gas crisis and current economic woes. Dump it or sell it. Saab has no appeal for me.
Shrinking the company down to Chevy-GMC-Buick-Cadillac is a dramatic change for this company. Could they do more? Probably. I think having only two or three brands might be even better. However, I understand that GMC does well, especially with their larger trucks. A lot of companies probably rely on GMC. I would keep GMC as the "truck brand" and consolidate all of the trucks under that brand. Chevy can have all the cars, and maybe the Silverado because it's so well-known. Buick is growing in China, so GM is reluctant to kill it. And I will admit that Buick's new and upcoming models look great. The Enclave is a gorgeous SUV. It may be viable if handled properly.
