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Months ago, in a related article, I covered five new or revised car models set to be launched on the North American market. The Jaguar XK, Saturn Sky, Toyota FJ Cruiser, Land Rover Freelander, and Dodge Nitro are already in showrooms or soon to make their appearance there. Beyond these five there are quite a number of other models also being planned and some have already been released. Let’s take a look at five more models catching the attention of auto enthusiasts everywhere.

Nissan Versa – Yes, Nissan has its own Scion fighter planned and just in time too as two other cars, the Honda Fit and Toyota Yaris, will also be making their debut in the fast crowding Generation “Y” category. The Versa looks more like a Toyota Matrix as opposed to the bread box looking Scion xB. Available as a four door sedan or five door hatchback, the car will come equipped not stripped and include an AM/FM/CD sound system, air conditioning, 6 speed manny tranny, and power mirrors as standard equipment. Best of all, the roomy Versa will be priced at about $12,000, right in Scion territory.

Saturn Aura – Finally, General Motors is paying some serious attention to Saturn, its “sometime” division. Now that Oldsmobile is out of the way, GM appears ready to take a look at how best to position the Saturn brand. Thanks to GM’s European division, Opel, Saturn looks as if it will benefit from a few new models and the Aura sedan is one of them. Powered by a 3.6L V6, the Aura is shapely, stylish, and much more inviting than its “L Series” predecessor which was also Opel inspired.

Dodge Caliber – Dodge’s Neon replacement goes where no small Dodge has gone before it. The five door wagon/hatchback sits on beefy 19 inch wheels and incorporates the aggressive Dodge crosshairs grille so popular on all of its vehicles. Three engine choices including 1.8L, 2.0L, and 2.4L I4s set the vehicle apart from the crowd. Dodge will be marketing the car well beyond North America in DCX’s quest to spread the Dodge brand worldwide. With a base price around $14,000 the Caliber will be competitive. Still, a Mexican built Scion like “Hornet” will likely become the entry level car within a few years as DCX prepares to take on Scion and the coming cheaply priced Chinese cars.

Volkswagen Minivan – A yet to be named minivan will soon be marketed by Volkswagen. Not much has to be done by VW to prepare for the vehicle’s arrival as it will be a rebadged version of Chrysler’s successful minivans, the Caravan and Town & Country. Yes, VW is turning to its German competitor to fill a void in its line up. For its part, VW will be sharing technology with DCX in the form of the Scion like Dodge Hornet to be built in Mexico. The Hornet will be based on the VW Polo, another vehicle that may be imported to the US market.
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The venerable Buick Park Avenue is no more, having been replaced by the all new Buick Lucerne, a down market version of the Cadillac DTS. With a 275-hp Northstar V8 engine, the Lucerne becomes the first Buick car in nearly ten years to arrive equipped with a V8. The entire Buick line up is in the process of being overhauled, so let’s take a look at this make’s newest flagship and see how it plays a part in GM’s overall strategy.

If you are a fan of the Buick brand you have witnessed your fair share of changes over the past five years. Gone are the Park Avenue, LeSabre, Century, and Regal, and in its place are the Rendezvous, the Rainier, LaCrosse, Terrazza, and the Lucerne. All the changes are the result of General Motors’ broad realignment strategy in the wake of retiring the Oldsmobile brand, lifting Saturn into the fold, and setting strategy to compete against the nonstop onslaught of foreign brands including Toyota, Lexus, Nissan, and Infiniti.

One look at the Buick and you will notice a strong resemblance to the Cadillac DTS. The Buick’s oval grille sets it apart from the Cadillac’s firm nose, but a cursory examination of the body lines tells you that these cars are in fact twins. In the past, Buicks were essentially “stripped down” versions of Cadillacs, while Oldsmobile and Pontiac were more luxurious or sportier versions of Chevrolet models. Clearly, GM is repositioning Buick to have a more distinct “near luxury” look without stepping on Cadillac’s toes, while giving the Buick division a much needed replacement for the aging Park Avenue.

For the car shopper, the Lucerne is value priced, arriving at in showrooms at just under 27K. With a standard 3.8 V6, the automaker can claim decent fuel mileage of 19 mpg city and 28 mpg highway. In these days of hyped up gas prices, favorable fuel economy is a keen marketing tool, but expect many buyers to opt for the ultra powerful Northstar V8 instead. Why? Because, if they want to purchase a Buick, they likely will want the power to go along with the luxury. It remains to be seen how well the V6 operates in a car that is 203 inches long and weighing in at nearly two tons.
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The jury is in regarding the recently released big SUVs from General Motors: they are an overwhelming success story. The Chevy Tahoe along with its GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade siblings are bringing in big gains for GM. Just in time too as the automaker pares excess capacity, closes plants, and lays off tens of thousands of workers. So, what is it about the Tahoe that is stimulating sales? Everything!

Just what is it about the new Tahoe that is bringing in the customers? With sales up nearly 50% over the previous year’s model there has to be something that sets the big SUV apart from its predecessor. In fact, everything has changed with the Tahoe as it is an all new model:

New body – The size of the Tahoe remains about the same: it is big. Yet, the body has been restyled with fresh sheet metal giving the truck a thoroughly modern and imposing look. The Tahoe is much more aerodynamic than the preceding model with a wind drag that is lower than the smaller Porsche Cayenne SUV according to Chevrolet.

New engine technology – Back during the 1980s, GM experimented and failed when it launched Cadillac vehicles that could shut down unneeded cylinders at various times during the engine cycle. Two decades later, the company has perfected the technology and its “displacement on demand” engines are some of the most economical motors sold today. In fact, car critics have noted that the Tahoe’s fuel mileage is comparable to the much smaller Kia Sorento.
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Lots of folks are speculating about GM’s future. If you take all the press reports at heart, you would think that General Motors is on life support. Quite frankly, the opposite is true especially when you look at the global picture. In 2005, “the General” sold more than 9 million cars worldwide, the first time the automaker reached that figure since 1978. Yes, U.S. auto sales are down and some are calling for GM to reduce its many brands, currently numbering 8. Who should GM let go? Or, should General Motors stick with the game plan and maintain all 8 brands?

For the record, GM’s 8 brands are: Cadillac, Buick, Pontiac, Chevrolet, Saturn, GMC, Hummer, and Saab. You could take Saab out of that pack as the Swedish automaker (although fully owned by GM) builds few cars in North America. Still, GM includes Saab in its marketing schema so we’ll keep them in for argument’s sake.

Clearly, Cadillac is GM’s luxury division; Chevrolet is it’s budget or “All American” division; while GMC is the truck division. Beyond that, there is much muddling of divisions, but Buick is a maker of “near luxury” vehicles (Cadillac lite) while Hummer is GM’s specialty truck division. The Saab line is a bit confusing as it once was a true European division. Now, the make is chiefly featuring rebadged GM and Subaru vehicles with little original models to show for it. Finally, Pontiac and Saturn duplicate much of what the other divisions do, although the Saturn mystique of “no haggle pricing” gives the make a certain aura to it. That leaves Pontiac.
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