2021 Buick LaCrosse - NOT available in a dealership near you.

Greaser · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

2021 Buick LaCrosse - NOT available in a dealership near you.

MC · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Nice looking car. To bad that the companies have stopped (or severely cut down) selling sedans in Canada and US markets. Now we're stuck with boring vans and SUVs, or god-awful huge pickups, to buy from the US manufacturers. The European, Japanese and Korean makers still sell 'cars' here, but wouldn't you really rather have a Buick? Apparently not.

Oh well, at least China will get to enjoy this one...

2021-Buick-LaCrosse-Avenir-China-exterio

2021-Buick-LaCrosse-China-exterior-03-72

-- Edited by MC on Monday 1st of June 2020 01:44:43 PM

73SC · A Poncho Legend!

I'll agree with the others, this is a very nice looking car. There is something about Buicks and the Chinese Market, I rarely drive my Buick to work but every time I do there is one guy from China who fawns all over it saying " Beautiful car Ray!"

-- Edited by 73SC on Monday 1st of June 2020 11:29:52 PM

MC · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Johnnee D wrote:
www.thedetroitbureau.com/2014/01/credit-a-communist-chinese-leader-for-buicks-survival-and-record-sales/

-- Edited by Johnnee D on Monday 1st of June 2020 04:27:20 PM

Quote from the Article:

"And that posed a conundrum in 2009 when GM plunged into Chapter 11 protection and was ordered by the government to abandon half of its brands in return for a federal bailout. While there was strong pressure to get rid of Buick, whose U.S. sales had fallen over 80% over the previous three decades, It would have sent the wrong message to Chinese consumers, recalled Ed Welburn, GMs global design chief, in a conversation with TheDetroitBureau.com.

Instead, GM wound up pulling the plug on Pontiac, Saturn, Hummer and Saab. Meanwhile, it began laying out plans to rebuild Buick."

...So, if it weren't for China's affection for Buick, then we still might have the Pontiac brand?

MC · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Johnnee D wrote:
no, there wouldn't be Pontiac nor Buick...

So, you think that GM just decided to not reduce their brand load by 1 in order to keep Buick? Wouldn't there be more complex requirements like dealer organization, etc. in play?

My thoughts would be that their target for number of brands to keep was fixed, and the decision on which brand to keep was made on Buick's popularity in an ever growing market in China, vs Buick being the least popular brand in the US. i.e. Pontiac being more popular in the US would have made it the brand to keep if China had not been a factor.