GM May Slash Six Car Models to Combat Slumping Sales, Avoid Plant Layoffs(Including Volt)

[IsailedawayfromFR]

United Auto Workers President Dennis Williams said the union is working with General Motors (GM) to avoid layoffs as U.S. auto sales slump, AutoBlog reported.

GM is considering producing more trucks and SUVs while killing off six slow-selling models produced at underused car plants such as Hamtramck in Michigan and Lordstown in Ohio. It's unclear if the plants will start producing newer, more popular models.

GM has cut shifts at several of its U.S. plants as inventories of small and midsized cars grow. If GM stopped producing the six models under consideration, it wouldn't happen until 2020. The models at risk are the Chevrolet Volt, Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac CT6, Cadillac XTS, Chevrolet Impala and Chevrolet Sonic.
https://www.thestreet.com/story/14238982/1/gm-to-consider-axing-six-models-to-combat-slumping-sales-avoid-plant-layoffs.html?puc=yahoo&cm_ven=YAHOO&yptr=yahoo

[Oceander]

The Volt.  I thought electric was the wave of the future.

[DB]

The Volt.  I thought electric was the wave of the future.

Government Motors is designed to fail.

[Bigun]

Government Motors is designed to fail.

They already have as far as I'm concerned!  I'll walk for the rest of my life before I buy anything they sell!

[jmyrlefuller]

The models at risk are the Chevrolet Volt, Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac CT6, Cadillac XTS, Chevrolet Impala and Chevrolet Sonic.

Hmm. Let's see:
- Chevy Volt: never all that popular, and I never saw one on the road. I've seen more Saturns and Oldsmobile Aleros, two GM makes that haven't been manufactured in over a decade, on the road than I have Volts. Without the Obama administration propping the model up, it was doomed.
- Chevy Sonic: A Korean subcompact formerly known as the Aveo, its main selling point when it launched was that it was one of the last new cars available for under $10,000. It now is priced at over $15,000 and Chevy has put more emphasis on its nearly ubiquitous Chevy Cruze. I suspect it may continue to be made for overseas markets where subcompacts are far more popular.
- Chevy Impala: This one surprises me. It's one of the more popular used cars out there and fills a niche for people who need a mid-sized car bigger than the Cruze. Emissions standards might be the only thing that realistically threatens this model.
- Buick Lacrosse: From what I read of this one, it's a victim of botched upbranding as GM tried to pass off a mid-level brand as a luxury car.
- Cadillac CT6/XTS: Both full-sized premium cars from Cadillac. Considering that full-sized luxury cars are Cadillac's brand specialty, I have a hard time believing they'll get rid of both of them. One of them might be eliminated just to avoid duplicity, but not both.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

- Chevy Impala: This one surprises me. It's one of the more popular used cars out there and fills a niche for people who need a mid-sized car bigger than the Cruze. Emissions standards might be the only thing that realistically threatens this model.

Or just plain old fashioned cheapness.

Was at Hertz a couple of months ago and rented an Impala.  Car had only 8k miles on it and when I started it up, the AC would not work.

Based upon that experience, I would never get one.