NAIAS Report: General Motors - Buick and Cadillac

Automotive Playbook was invited by General Motors to be their guest at the 2010 North American International Auto Show this past week in Detroit. It was an incredible opportunity and an exhilarating experience. Although a guest of GM, I had more than enough of a chance to attend the rest of the show and examine what the other major manufacturers, sans Nissan/Infiniti and Porsche, had on offer, as well.

My take on what Ford and Chrysler, the Germans, Koreans, Japanese, and the more minor players showed and announced will be coming soon. GM, however, gets the first set of analysis.

At this year's show, GM was down to displaying 4 "core brands" - Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC - as opposed to the eight they had last year. It was extremely important that GM put its best foot forward, as it had a terrible 2009 involving a bailout, a bankruptcy, and big managerial shakeups. Because of my lack of concision, the Chevy and GMC perspective will be up in about 3 days. For now, here's Buick and Cadillac:

Buick is seen these days as the "wild card" brand. Few in the industry seem to understand why GM kept it, and what it stands for anymore. Fewer still see how the brand can overcome the old person's car image that has been associated with the brand for a couple of decades now.

AP Spotlight: 1965 Buick Riviera

A friend of mine just this evening asked me the following question:

If you could have any non-new car that costs less than $100,000.00, what would it be?

The answer to this question changes weekly. Tonight, as I was searching for photos of the vehicle in question, the thought occurred that my constantly changing automotive infatuations might make for a half-decent midweek feature for Automotive Playbook. So what the heck. I'll try it out.

This week, it's the 1965 Buick Riviera. This is an extremely pretty car, in my opinion. But I'm not alone in it. Sergio Pininfarina, renowned designer of many classic Ferraris, said that this vintage of Riviera "[is] one of the most beautiful American cars ever built; it has marked a very impressive return to simplicity of American car design."

The car debuted with this body for 1963. But by 1965, Buick made some changes. They moved the horizontal quad headlights from the grille to the front fenders. But rather than leave them exposed, Buick stacked them and hid them behind retractable grilles. This emphasized the width of the front, giving it a smoother, meaner look and gobs of road presence.

The dummy twin air scoops that were mounted on the rear fenders just aft of the front door aperature from '63-64 were dropped in favor of a cleaner, smoother look. Chrome rocker panel moldings stretched between the wheel wells, emphasizing the car's visual length, while reducing its visual height. To further emphasize the long, low look of the Riviera, Buick mounted its tail lamps lower in '65, integrating them into the rear bumper.

The '65s were also special because they were the first of Buick's personal luxury coupes to offer the famous Gran Sport option package. Buyers who selected it could get a heavy-duty suspension system, power steering and disc brakes, and a limited slip differential for better wet traction and faster starts off the line.

The centerpiece of the Gran Sport package, though, was the new 425ci (7.0L) V8 engine that breathed through dual 4-barrel carburetors, making 360 gross horsepower and 465 lb-ft of torque. Called the "Super Wildcat 465", the engine gave the 1965 Riviera GS athletic performance to complement its pretty-boy looks.

And though it may have only had 4 seats accessed through two long, heavy doors, the Riviera wasn't impractical inside. Not in the least.

Both front and rear seat passengers were offered more than enough space to stretch out and relax, with enormously comfortable seats and a light, airy, glassy cabin that freed passengers from the claustrophobic feelings that were all too common in contemporary sporty cars. The two rows of plush bucket seats were divided by their own consoles, giving each person, front or rear, the sense that they were being enveloped and cosseted by a truly luxurious car.

The Riv also earned practicality points at the rear, with a trunk that was easily commodious enough for four people's weekend luggage.

All in all, the 1965 Buick Riviera GS offered mighty performance, a satisfying dose of practicality, and good enough looks to cause excessive salivation. It was the car to have for the time. And today, 45 years later, it's not one iota less impressive or desirable. Today, a ridiculously well-restored example will fetch about $30-$40,000. One in good, daily driver condition should run about $10-$15k.

The 1965 Buick Riviera: GS or not, it's an achingly beautiful, competent, historically significant piece of rolling automotive sculpture. It's part of the reason that this writer has such a soft spot in his heart for Buick today.

Buick needs to start making cars like this again. And soon.

Why GM would really rather have Buick

copyright GM Corp.

Since GM announced the phaseout of the Pontiac brand, many automotive enthusiasts have been scratching their heads.

"Why oh why", they ask, "is GM keeping Buick, a brand with one foot in the grave and customers to match, while they kick a storied performance brand like Pontiac to the curb?" Their songs of lament are beginning to sound the same.

Verse One usually invokes all the Pontiac patron saints, from the canonized (GTO, Firebird, Trans Am), to the merely venerable (Grand Prix, Bonneville), to the dubious (Fiero). As they don their sackcloth and plop down on piles of ashes, the Disciples of Pontiac start Verse Two, which tells of the recent introduction of the critically acclaimed G8 and Solstice and the justice they've done to the brand's good name. And throwing dust into the air, they flow into Verse Three, mourning the unkept promise of a future wherein Pontiac would become a performance car-only "niche brand". A future with nary a re-grilled Chevy Aveo (G3), Cobalt (G5), or Equinox (Torrent) to be seen. A promise GM couldn't afford to keep. And in between each verse is a rousing chorus of "Why oh Why", sung with crocodile tears flowing. It's getting a little old.

Truth be told, it was a sad day this last April 27th, when GM announced that they were pulling the plug on one of their most damaged, yet storied and dynamic brands.

Started in 1926 by GM as a companion marque to now-defunct Oakland, Pontiac (after the Native chief, and an Oakland County, MI town) enjoyed an 84-season run. In fact, the last arrowhead badge was just affixed to a white G6 sedan, which left the Fairfax, KS assembly line on November 25th, 2009.

Since the late 1940s, Pontiac lived a rung above Chevrolet and below Oldsmobile on the GM brand ladder. By the mid-'60s, they were known as GM's rebellious "We Build Excitement" division, and they had stuff like the GTO and Firebird to back up their claims. But when the oil embargo of 1973-74 hit, fuel prices skyrocketed. And Pontiac began a struggle to stay true to its performance image while offering cars with enough economy to satisfy customer demands. It was a battle they'd eventually lose.

Conversely, Buick was started in 1903 by David Dunbar Buick, and was the company from which General Motors sprang in 1908. Later that year, Buick bought out an independent Oldsmobile, and the new company picked up GMC Truck, Oakland, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and others between 1909 and 1917. Since the founding of GM, Buick has been positioned as an upscale brand, slotting above Oldsmobile and below Cadillac in the GM hierarchy.

Up through the 1970s, Buick enjoyed an enviable reputation as a builder of large, powerful, high-quality, plush cars. They became known as "doctors' cars", as they were often the choice of professionals who appreciated the finer things, but didn't want their clients to think they were making Cadillac-type money off of them. Buick's long-held tagline, "Wouldn't You Really Rather Have a Buick?" perfectly encapsulated the understated, aspirational quality of the brand. And the formula worked for a very long time. Buick sales peaked in North America in 1984, with 1 million cars bearing the tri-shield sold that year.

However, in the years since, GM has seen their market share erode to the imports while the piled on other responsibilities. At one point, Buick was one of 9 North American vehicle divisions GM had to juggle. GM would cope by giving each division the same basic vehicles, in order to hold down costs. Yet each brand had to figure out a way of differentiating their vehicles from their sister brands' in hopes that each brand's lineup would attract a different set of customers and thus prove its worth. But with eroding share, the shrinking pot of money GM had meant that less and less could be allocated to each brand. So the differences between Chevys, Pontiacs, GMCs, Oldsmobiles, Buicks, and Cadillacs became very muddled as GM added Saab, Saturn, and Hummer to the portfolio.

With this business model, Buick became the brand full of sensible shoes, wallowy sedans with bench seats, column shifters, and wire wheel covers. They were cars that were meant to attract the hats-in-the-back-window crowd. And it worked. By 2000, Buick's average buyer age was 67 years old, and sales were less than half of what they'd been 15 years earlier. Since 2000, Buick sales have fallen another 60%, as they managed to move barely 200,000 vehicles in the 2007 model year. The problem with GM's strategy for Buick was that the brand was positioned in such a way that it stopped being relevant to younger buyers. Ignored were demands for console-mounted shifters, bucket seats, alloy wheels, and firmer suspensions that prevented their cars from cornering on their chromed doorhandles. All the while, the customers Buick was attracting were literally dying off.

So it's understandable why some people, particularly the Pontiac faithful, would be confused about why GM kept Buick, but deep-sixed Pontiac. Dig a little deeper, though, and the logic presents itself. Let me explain.