Sales of GM hybrids almost non-existent in first quarter
I missed covering this tidbit of information last week while I was traipsing through Europe, but some interesting information emerged when GM released their March sale results. GM has been making an awful lot of noise about their two-mode hybrid system with lots of announcements about all the vehicles the system will be installed in. What they aren't bragging much about is sales. That's because there isn't much to brag about. In fact it appears that the sum total of hybrid sales for all models offered by GM in the first three months of 2008 was 843. That is not a typo, it's 843. Unlike other manufacturers, GM has never broken out sales of hybrid models from conventional versions. Perhaps this is why.
During the same period Ford moved 5,225 Escape and Mariner Hybrids and Toyota sold...well let's just say Toyota sold a whole lot more than that. While GM has made plenty of auto show announcements about hybrids and they run lots of print and TV ads promoting their green-ness, they haven't really done a lot to promote hybrids on the lot. Perhaps they don't actually want to sell that many because the cost is so much higher and they don't want to lose all that money. Or perhaps customers just don't really want a hybrid full-size truck. Perhaps, as Troy Clarke told us at the Chicago Auto Show, they were holding them back for captured fleet testing until they were sure everything was right. Have any of you readers actually tried to find a hybrid at a dealership or tried to buy one? Let us know about your experience.
[Source: The Truth About Cars]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Lou Grinzo 9:26AM (4/08/2008)
My guess: Consumers who are being pushed by high prices into buying more fuel efficient vehicles have far better options, MPG-wise, than these trucks.
The nasty truth that GM doesn't want to face is that a very high percentage of SUV sales are fashion statements. People buy them not because they truly need that kind of vehicle, but simply because they want one. When gasoline prices rise, those customers are the first ones to abandon that category of vehicle completely and buy a sedan that gets 10 to 15 more MPG than a dual-mode hybrid the size of a Manhattan apartment.
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Mike 10:26AM (9/23/2008)
I bought a Saturn Vue Hybrid in October of 2007 and I tell everyone that it is the best car I ever bought. My average mileage since I bought the car is 26.9 miles per gallon. The car is going on 2 years old. I keep my gas purchases on a spread sheet on the computer so I know the the average miles per gallon is accurate. On the highway, I have averaged 32 to 35 miles per gallon. Those people that are bad mouthing GM and their Hybrids are probably the ones that own Japanese Junk. I wouldn't trade my Vue for any Jap car on the market and I wouldn't sell it for 5000 more than I paid for it. The drive train on this car is warranteed for 100,000 miles and the Hybrid system is warranteed for 8 years. I have not had a single problem since I bought the Vue. That's not one single problem. It's a thrill for me every time I drive the car.. So my advice to everyone is, don't bad mouth something that you don't know anything about.
AES 9:29AM (4/08/2008)
How many hybrids has GM actually manufactured? I mean how many have rolled off the assembly line. It's one thing to have made them and no one buys them, it's another to have made very few and sold all of them.
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Tim 9:40AM (4/08/2008)
Soccer moms who don't need to pull a trailer or 4 wheel drive are moving away from suv's, hybrid or not.
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5 watt 9:49AM (4/08/2008)
The attachment rate comes out to be 2.34%. Not great but considering its 50K price not unexpected. I think the Escalade has the best chance of attacking buyers for this.
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jonathan 10:02AM (4/08/2008)
This is GM as usual. THey spend a lot more on advertising hype and far less money actually selling the cars. My local dealer told me that the allotment of Hybrid Tahoes for the whole state was 1 vehicle.
I wish they could spend the advertising money on developing a engine and perhaps a six speed tranny for the Malibu
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BoomBoom 10:04AM (4/08/2008)
GM is using this as a marketing ploy and hoping that the average consumer is dumb enough to buy it. If the last 20 years of US auto history has proven anything, it is that the US consumer will buy into the hype for a time but eventually find out the truth... and at that point, popular conception will be that GM doesn't really sell hybrids and folks will head on over to the nearest Japanese dealer (and buy a hybrid made in Indiana or Ohio). If GM continues this greenwashing, it will have a hard time digging out of the hole. (Unlike Ford, which though it only has one hybrid, it is one you can actually buy and actually saves gas.)
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Tim 10:10AM (4/08/2008)
America's Downsizing Car Drivers
SYNOPSIS: Sales of small cars like the Kia Spectra were up 41 percent - and Toyota Yaris - up 83 percent last month, with similar growth for other automakers compact cars. Hybrid sales also grew.
"We're seeing many more people coming in with the fullsize SUV and pickups trying to trade out, and the problem is it's almost like it's flooding the used car market," said Pat Tuminello, sales manager of Moss Motors Honda, whose Honda Fit hatchback showed the second largest growth in March sales.
http://www.theadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080407/BUSINESS/804070316/1046
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MarkR 10:14AM (4/08/2008)
As a friend said when she saw the hybrid Tahoe commercial, "21mpg on a hybrid Tahoe? Why? I already get 19-20 mpg in my suburban."
I'm assuming your talking about the tahoe. because hasn't the Saturn hybrids been selling longer than 3 months? No one ever seems to talk about how Saturn hybrids are doing sales wise. I'm just curious.
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Chris 10:23AM (4/08/2008)
I though for sure there would be better sales than that in the first quarter. There has to be at least that many politicians that are wanting to trade up to a bigger American built hybrid... (for security purposes, of course). Besides, isn't Paris Hilton one of those 843?
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Travis Rassat 11:02AM (4/08/2008)
At $50k+ in a down economy, this doesn't surprise me at all. If these were in the $25-30k price range, then I'd be more surprised by these figures.
I just hope the low numbers don't discourage the bean counters at GM and they decide hybrids are bad. I'm looking forward to the Saturn Vue two-mode, which should probably be a more cost-competitive vehicle with a good potential customer base.
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doug 11:51AM (4/08/2008)
About 45 days ago I was able to test 2 of these units (Tahoe and the Yukon). The MSRP of 54K knocked me out especially for a vehicle that has been decontented to this extent, ie; no memory seats, cheap and ugly wheels, bland looking interior etc. The hybrid operation, however, worked wonderfully, and I've owned an '07 Escape and an '08 Mariner (hybrids) to somewhat accurately make the comparison. Very impressive indeed, but not worth the bucks. And oh yeah, as of this week, both are sitting in the showrooms unsold.
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tankd0g 11:56AM (4/08/2008)
Maybe Maximum Bob should STFU and stop telling people the Volt is just around the corner, he migh move some EXISTING product.
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John E. 12:11PM (4/08/2008)
I think that people haven't bee. Buying any of gm hybrids because they are xpensive and they are not as good as a regular model... If u look at cnets hybrid gm vehicle review ull see people saying that they were the worse car they ever own... First they don't come equipt as well as the other models... Some not all... Second they are way to much money... Mpg is not good at all almost the same as a regular model...now I ask y bother?
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m 12:24PM (4/08/2008)
If it is too much bother to spell check the entire article, at least run it on the title:
non-existent, not non-existant. m
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jpm100 12:32PM (4/08/2008)
GM decided to do a hybrid SUV back when gas was $2-ish and regular SUV sales hadn't been impacted yet. They probably thought they were being somewhat novel considering they're somewhat late.
Anyway, this is the wave of the future with the new MPG standards. The rich will pay a small premium to drive Hybrid enabled versions of their old sports cars & SUVs while the rest of us will drive Geo Metros.
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sensitive_man 12:41PM (4/08/2008)
jpm100: Long live the Geo Metro, I get 45+MPG in mine!
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Brent DesRoches 1:05PM (4/08/2008)
For all of the moms buying cars, I don't see why the 2-mode transmission isn't offered in a mini van.
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Alan 4:36PM (4/08/2008)
I tried to find ANY Saturn or Chevy hybrid before I bought my second Prius. Absolutely nothing out there to see despite all the advertising. GM: get a clue!
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MikeW 5:49PM (4/08/2008)
No spare wheel.
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