GM may drop Pontiac and GMC brands

By Zack Newmark
April 16, 2009 8:44 PM
Filed Under: American, Corporate/Financial, General Motors, GMC, Industry, Pontiac

Bloomberg is reporting that General Motors may call it quits on Pontiac and GMC. The two brands would be dumped as part of GM's restructuring plan, a plan due in to the Obama administration by June 1. GM has been working on a new plan directly with members of the President's staff since they were told their first draft was not enough.

The Obama staff also demanded the resignation of former CEO Rick Wagoner, if bailout talks were to continue further.

Despite the possible fates of Pontiac and GMC, Bloomberg is also saying Buick, Chevrolet, and Cadillac are likely not in danger of the chopping block. Either the death, or sell-off, of Hummer, Saab, and Saturn is also a likelihood. Black Oak Partners private equity firm is believed to be in talks about Saturn assets and dealerships. Several suitors are supposedly pitching GM for Hummer as well. Bids for that division have not topped $200 million.

The Big Three automaker has already taken $13.4 billion in bailout loans, approved by the Bush administration. The former President also approved an additional $4 billion for the company. However, since that time, Chapter 11 bankruptcy has begun to emerge as the most likely outcome for the company. A decision on bankruptcy should come as the new restructuring plan develops in the coming months.

Source: Reuters

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Comments

Renegade

April 16, 2009 8:48 PM

That's a shame.

benz_man

April 16, 2009 8:54 PM

Like so many have stated before me, bankruptcy is the best solution for GM, but arguably, the worst solution for America.

Renegade

April 16, 2009 9:02 PM

You see, Obama will be the biggest twip of he let GM fall and let it's brands to be bought by chinese or indians. Save GM or support the consequences.

LMS

April 17, 2009 12:08 PM

The whole American concept is capitalism. There is nothing in that concept to support state-owned companies.

You make good decisions, you make a profit; you make bad decisions, you lose. No bailout, no government support, just pure economics.

I wouldn't trade that concept for a failing automaker, especially GM who have been stuck up their own ass for over 50 years.

I don't like Obama either but you should have gone with the republicans instead of that wildcard of a president. They would have bought GM.

Edited by user on April 17, 2009 at 12:11 PM

kumbze

April 16, 2009 9:45 PM

Atleast pontiac will go down in history with one of the greatest American cars ever made. The G8

politz

April 16, 2009 11:34 PM

you mean... with one of the greatest AUSTRALIAN 'american' cars ever made, right?

dbehmoaras

April 17, 2009 7:01 AM

That's a stupid comment because the Corvette is clearly thousand times better and that's 100% American.

daviepops

April 19, 2009 12:51 PM

Don't panic ... even if the Pontiac name is cut from GM the G8 will almost certainly live on as a Chevy in North America as it already wears that badge in both the Middle East and in South America ... all that's needed is to stop adding the Pontiac face on the production line.

nendor

April 16, 2009 10:08 PM

Let the Indians Buy GMC and Pontiac they did really well with Jaguar and Land Rover, At least we still see those brands and who cares who owns the brand whether they are indians or chinese

Renegade

April 16, 2009 10:21 PM

What did they did? They are still working with Ford projects and design language, and they are asking for bailout at the british gov.

mphillips12000

April 16, 2009 10:17 PM

Frankly, I've never understood why GM needed to sell the same trucks and SUV's through both Chevrolet and GMC outlets. If GMC bites it, who will really care?

thethirdjq

April 16, 2009 10:32 PM

why not nix the chevrolet moniker. pontiac has a pretty good lineup, especially with the solstice, vibe, and G8. And gmc seems to have a refined design compared to chevy trucks and suv. i guess the pontiac corvette doesn't work but the HHR, colbalt, and Aveo are terrible.

howe2002

April 16, 2009 11:36 PM

GM stands for "Got Money?", or "General Muck-up".

coopergt

April 16, 2009 11:47 PM

why or why do they insist on keeping Buick in the USA. Do u know anyone under the age of 50 who would dream of going to a Buick dealership let alone buying a retired persons car. If they keep Buick they are doomed in the USA. Sell Buick to the Chinese, who love them.

politz

April 16, 2009 11:55 PM

if they don't find buyers for both brands, they could simply 'squeeze' them into chevy's lineup: 'sporty' niche models would carry the pontiac logo, trucks would carry the GMC brand and all would be sold in chevrolet showrooms.

hey, that makes sense to me!

Renegade

April 17, 2009 12:03 AM

Yeah and what would be left for Chevy.

politz

April 17, 2009 12:06 AM

just to make a point: the vibe and the solstice wouldn't find competition under the chevrolet umbrella; the g8 could be sold as a top spec sports sedan positioned above the impala, which is probably due to retirement or at least some deep, complex, extensive, EXPENSIVE redesign - so that maybe just offering a g8 instead would do; the acadia would probably be nixed, since the traverse is more recent and its family hauling purposes have more in common with chevrolet's core values than GMC's; the terrain could be sold in top spec versions only, bridging the gap between the equinox and the srx; and all of GMC's actual trucks would prevail over chevy's, leaving the colorado and silverado names maybe just for the entry level work versions.

politz

April 17, 2009 12:15 AM

Chevy could sell mainstream offerings... smaller cars, like the Corsa (yes, from Opel), maybe that new Astra or the next Meriva... the Cruze... big sellers like midsize sedans and crossovers... the Vette, yes... and the Volt, of course!

I mean, leave the car enthusiasts to Pontiac, the truck buyers for GMC and make Chevy focus on making reliable, mainstream cars for the American family... just like it was supposed to!

Bike_Me

April 16, 2009 11:56 PM

I said it before, and I will say it again. Make the Vibe and Solstice and G8 a Chevy and drop Pontiac brand. For little or no investment, the Vibe will complement the new Chevy Cruze and the Solstice can become a 'poor man's vette'. The G8 is a great car and will fit perfectly with a bow tie (maybe even make a police version to compete with Ford and Dodge). As for Saturn, move the Sky over to Buick and drop the rest of the line. The next generation Aura is already planned to become a Buick Regal. As for GMC, I think it complements the Buick line-up and provide their dealers with a line of truck to compete with the rest of the industry (as long as they can make it profitable)....otherwise, dump GMC just like Pontiac and Saturn.

politz

April 17, 2009 12:07 AM

The G8 actually wears a bow tie in the brazilian market, where it is sold as the Chevrolet Omega.

daviepops

April 19, 2009 12:46 PM

Holden Commodore (alias G8) is the most commonly used police car in Australia

politz

April 17, 2009 12:09 AM

I agree 99% on that; I just think the Pontiac and GMC names don't need to be dropped altogether. They can stay as 'specialty' brands inside Chevrolet... like Abarth/Fiat.

genie

April 17, 2009 12:43 AM

Why do articles keep saying the big three have taken government loans? Thats completely wrong, Ford hasn't taken anything, and still achieved more than GM and Chrysler. Dropping Pontiac and GMC will help though, even by just simplifying marketing and dealerships.

Viking79

April 17, 2009 2:15 AM

Interesting that kumbze rates the G8 as the greatest American car ever. If I were to choose (and strictly from Pontiac) I would have to think that the original GTO would have to take that spot. The Judge was awesome!!

wjaprep

April 17, 2009 3:00 AM

Ill miss Pontiac (maybe... not really) but I wont missed the rebadges Tahoes and Suburbans, even though I think the GMC versions looked better.

hata0101

April 17, 2009 6:16 AM

enough said...this story dragging to long. does GM make up their mind yet? who's on chopping board & who's not? please, put your so-called "recontruction plan" in actions! btw, we're living in 21st century, global economy is the main theme, who cares if american brands owned by indian, chinese or whever? as long as they can...manage & run the company well.

tbrodie

April 17, 2009 7:08 AM

It's interesting how folks get so connected with a brand. For the marginal investment for cosmetic differentiation, they've sold a lot of cars based on brand perception.

I hate to see Saturn go now that their line-up has been refreshed with Opels.

The ongoing drama of this suggests a lot of vestigial fiefdom infighting at GM. If they can truly change their mentaility around brands, they could be much better off down the line. Heck channel the cosmetic efforts into real engineering substance and GM could be a contender by 2020.

Sammy_R-Gti

April 17, 2009 1:14 PM

just for those who dont know and keep saying let them move the G8 to chevy,,, i just wanna say that the g8 is sold in the middle east with a chevy tag and its called

chevrolet lumina SS

mnovakowski

April 17, 2009 2:02 PM

So are all the taxes the big three have paid washington over the years a bailout of the government? If so maybe they should fire Obama, Pelosi and Frank and cut off a couple divisions of the government. This would actually benefit taxpayers more than what is actually happening.

hata0101

April 17, 2009 3:33 PM

big 3 have huge tax break from the government! please remember...they didn't pay "enough" taxes when they were making money (er...those profits went to top executives as bonus), they even got lots of tax credits! big 3 always the benefit taker, not give.

mphillips12000

April 17, 2009 2:48 PM

A couple years ago, I would've wondered about the wisdom of keeping Buick. Two sedans and a crossover hardly make a brand, and for the median age of its buyer, impending Death is close enough to have discernable features. Two things have changed my mind: the more clearly defined design direction, starting with the Enclave and taken up by the newly redesigned LaCrosse, and plans that have more products coming from Opel now that Saturn is exiting the picture. The new look for Buick says luxury convincingly while being distinct from the architectural lines of Cadillac. Assuming Opel survives, and remains a GM marque, these two factors could make Buick more hip, less hip replacement.

Edited by user on April 17, 2009 at 2:50 PM

politz

April 17, 2009 6:18 PM

Exactly... Buick has got potential, and not only in China and the US... other markets, particularly the developing ones like Latin America, Russia and the Middle East, could offer some interesting opportunities for that 'new' Buick.

politz

April 17, 2009 6:18 PM

'more hip, less hip replacement'

LOL

bmwadam

April 17, 2009 6:51 PM

They need to drop Buick altogether, and just call it Opel. Im sorry. I dont care what they do with Buick, I still remember the old person boring junk cars of the 80's and 90's....I do not want to see a Buick logo anywhere on my car, I dont care how good of a car it is. Neither do I wish to see the Pontiac logo. I remember the junk they kept putting out for years on those cars! GM itself into this mess. The G8 is a great looking car, but some of the fit and finish is typical Pontiac garbage. Gotta love their ridiculous hand brake on that car.... GM never fails to dissapoint me (Except with the upcoming Camaro, C6 Vette, and the new Malibu)

Andres2007

April 20, 2009 12:42 AM

you don't care about Buick but billions of Chinese do. And guess whose opinion is more important for GM.

Edited by user on April 20, 2009 at 12:42 AM

Prince_Ash

April 20, 2009 8:59 PM

about time! honestly pontiac and GMC are stupid. same goes for hummer i mean they are basically brands that nobody buys unless they have deals or the car is shown in some kind of music video or movie.

mattavocato

May 27, 2009 7:11 PM

they should get rid of buick and keep pontiac. Pontiac has better fuel economy cars than buick. come on

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