MeanBuicks
Scaring the neighbors!
- Joined
- May 24, 2001
Last Oldsmobile to roll off assembly line Thursday
- Thread starter MeanBuicks
- Start date
buickman69
Retired Buick Enthusiast
- Joined
- Dec 2, 2001
Great, "HOPEFULLY" Buick will be next. 
(I pray)
(I pray)GN One Day...
Senior Member
- Joined
- May 28, 2001
I don't know why they dumped Olds. The Aurora, Intrigue & Alero cars were some of the nicer cars--as well as good looking--put out by GM in the last few years. Dropping GMC would have made sense to me, since they have Chevy for trucks, just add more packages. Just my .02, but they still haven't put me in charge.
buickman69
Retired Buick Enthusiast
- Joined
- Dec 2, 2001
The only thing about that, "to me" the GMC is MORE appealing than the Chevy as far as looks and style. I HATE the front end styling on the Chevys.
A sad day indeed. I grew up around Oldsmobiles. My parents, almost all of my Aunts & Uncles, and both grandparents had Oldsmobiles. Lots of memories in all those cars....Cutlasses, the huge '60's and '70's 88's and 98's.
Someone mentioned on another board that the last Olds should be buried, with Roger Smith at the wheel, alive....got a good chuckle from that!
The Alero, Intrigue and Aurora were some of the best looking cars on the market. They should have killed Saturn first. Has that division even made GM a dime yet, or are they still operating in the red?
Oh well, what's done is done. Can't kill the morons that are going to deprive the loyal followers of new Oldsmobiles, so someday I'll create my own tribute to Olds, via a bad ass '71 Cutlass.
Steve
Someone mentioned on another board that the last Olds should be buried, with Roger Smith at the wheel, alive....got a good chuckle from that!
The Alero, Intrigue and Aurora were some of the best looking cars on the market. They should have killed Saturn first. Has that division even made GM a dime yet, or are they still operating in the red?
Oh well, what's done is done. Can't kill the morons that are going to deprive the loyal followers of new Oldsmobiles, so someday I'll create my own tribute to Olds, via a bad ass '71 Cutlass.
Steve
Little6pack
Active Member
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2002
WIll that make my 1996 Olds a classic?
GN One Day...
Senior Member
- Joined
- May 28, 2001
Gotcha. That would be fine too, same effect. Send the trucks to GMC only, free up Chevy to concentrate on cars. I don't see why they have GMC but keep making trucks in Chevy, Cadillac etc. It's all redundant. Keep GMC and put all the trucks in there. Keep Olds and the interesting cars they recently turned out.
if you think about it, where does Olds fit in anymore? Buick is for the over 50's crowd, Caddy if fastly becoming the "HOT" car to own for all, Pontiac and Chevy for the everyday people to get to work and haul the kids, GMC for the trucks and suvs, saturn for the younger set. olds just doesnt fit in anywhere.
88 CuttyClassic
The Enviromental Hitman
- Joined
- Oct 30, 2001
f GM , get rid of olds and keep saturn so lesbiens have a car to buy. saturn is junk, i don't wanna hear a reply with "well this car they made was good cause my wife drives one" Geo was junk also. GM sucks. they let ford have the whole RWD sedan market for years. they neutered themselves. Notice that RWD is comming back cause people realized that small FWD cars are junk. Fuel economic car is code for small POS. Saturds make me sick. GM is run by absolute idiots. Long live OLDS!!!!!
Pronto
No amount of evidence will ever persuade an idiot.
- Joined
- Dec 9, 2002
I agree. Olds styling is much nicer than the current Buicks. GMC/Chevy trucks is redundant too.Originally posted by GN One Day...
I don't know why they dumped Olds. The Aurora, Intrigue & Alero cars were some of the nicer cars--as well as good looking--put out by GM in the last few years. Dropping GMC would have made sense to me, since they have Chevy for trucks, just add more packages. Just my .02, but they still haven't put me in charge.
Olds could have fit in GM's lineup if they played it right. Saturn should have gone first. Saturn is just not a viable contender in a market where imports dominate with remarkable customer loyalty. GM has to have a stake in the small car market, but IMO they did it wrong. And there's no way they'll kill GMC, the truck market is too much of a money maker. People buy trucks, whether they legitimately need one or not. It's just fashionable to those who don't actually need them.
With the right products and marketing strategies, positioning Olds upscale of Chevy and Pontiac as an import fighter (not necessarily sport compacts) could have worked. If they had given Olds the current GTO, or at least a version of it, it could have been a formidable player, IF (big IF) the price was right. Olds could have been an outstanding division, but they made it fail. Too bad Lutz came in too late in the game. I bet he could have done something to help keep Olds alive.
I think GM has had an absolutely horrible record of anticipating where the market was heading, at least when it comes to cars. Perhaps it has more to do with the length of time it takes to bring a product to market. How long has retro-style been hip? Yet the only true retro vehicle they have is the SSR, which was only made available to the public recently? How long has RWD been making a comeback? Hell, BMW is a proven winner, and they have never built a FWD car! Yet the only RWD cars that GM has are the GTO and the CTS? The F-bodies were in production for 10 YEARS and they can't develop and bring a replacement to market in that time? Pathetic.
How much of Olds' failure can be blamed on unwarranted bad press, or lack of press at all? It's almost nauseating how biased some of these ragazines are. I can't even speak the words "Car and Driver" without feeling the need to vomit explosively.
*sigh* Regardless, it's over. Long live Olds!
Steve
With the right products and marketing strategies, positioning Olds upscale of Chevy and Pontiac as an import fighter (not necessarily sport compacts) could have worked. If they had given Olds the current GTO, or at least a version of it, it could have been a formidable player, IF (big IF) the price was right. Olds could have been an outstanding division, but they made it fail. Too bad Lutz came in too late in the game. I bet he could have done something to help keep Olds alive.
I think GM has had an absolutely horrible record of anticipating where the market was heading, at least when it comes to cars. Perhaps it has more to do with the length of time it takes to bring a product to market. How long has retro-style been hip? Yet the only true retro vehicle they have is the SSR, which was only made available to the public recently? How long has RWD been making a comeback? Hell, BMW is a proven winner, and they have never built a FWD car! Yet the only RWD cars that GM has are the GTO and the CTS? The F-bodies were in production for 10 YEARS and they can't develop and bring a replacement to market in that time? Pathetic.
How much of Olds' failure can be blamed on unwarranted bad press, or lack of press at all? It's almost nauseating how biased some of these ragazines are. I can't even speak the words "Car and Driver" without feeling the need to vomit explosively.
*sigh* Regardless, it's over. Long live Olds!
Steve
GN One Day...
Senior Member
- Joined
- May 28, 2001
Other than trucks/SUV's and the Vette, what exactly does Chevy offer that's selling? If the trucks/SUV's were moved to GMC, they could have dropped Chevy for all I care. UNLESS they bring in some good cars that are functional as well as interesting (ala Dodge Magnum), I'd be ok with them falling off in place of bringing back Olds with a more price varied lineup (bring back the Aurora/Alero/Intrigue and a 16-20k car of similar styling). The name would add prestige where the price didn't.
88 CuttyClassic
The Enviromental Hitman
- Joined
- Oct 30, 2001
saturn hasn't turned a profit for GM since it started. thats the basis of my statement
88 CuttyClassic
The Enviromental Hitman
- Joined
- Oct 30, 2001
dead at 106
I think GM decided to sacrafice a line to narrow their investment (developement). To bad they chose the wrong line.
I agree about the Olds Aurora - I just perchased one and WOW, what a nice car...doesn't even feel like a typical GM and looks - in a class by itself (definatley different).
If GM cared about Olds you would at least think they would put their name SOMEWHERE on their flagship...check it out - NOWHERE on the outside/interior of the car does it say "Oldmobile" or even have an Olds emblem (it has a stylized "A" instead on the hood). The only places I could find a brand name were on the engine cover (very small) and on the instruction manual.
Sad
I agree about the Olds Aurora - I just perchased one and WOW, what a nice car...doesn't even feel like a typical GM and looks - in a class by itself (definatley different).
If GM cared about Olds you would at least think they would put their name SOMEWHERE on their flagship...check it out - NOWHERE on the outside/interior of the car does it say "Oldmobile" or even have an Olds emblem (it has a stylized "A" instead on the hood). The only places I could find a brand name were on the engine cover (very small) and on the instruction manual.
Sad
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