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Saturn Executive Says Brand Not On Auction Block
There is a lot of talk swirling around that General Motors, desperate to save cash, may be dropping Saturn.
On the other hand, Jill Lajdziak, the managing director of Saturn, is pushing back with insistence that the brand is doing quite well.
Her evidence? Well, Saturn reached a 20 percent improvement in market share in 2007. Sales of new products like the Aura sedan, the Vue crossover, and larger sibling Outlook have gone up 3.4 percent through the month of July.
Evidence for the other side? The subcompact Astra is not selling as well as the Ion, the model’s predecessor, with overall deliveries down 17.9 percent and retail sales are down 18.5 percent.
Still, Ms. Lajdziak argues that sales of the Astra have been steadily climbing and that may be because it is what the public wants -- it has a fuel economy rating of 32 mpg. She points out sales haven’t matched the Ion yet simply because the it is is priced at $18,200 compared to the Ion’s price of $15,100.
Lajdziak also argues that Saturn’s stable of products is the “freshest” in the industry. Average transaction prices have jumped 43 percent over the last two years from $17,100 in 2005 to $24,400 in 2007.
More evidence in her favor is that residual values have jumped 8 percent from third quarter 2004 to third quarter 2007. It is said that the Saturn Outlook residual value matches the popular Honda Pilot and Toyota Highlander.
It is said that GM has a long term plan for Saturn which calls for it to reflect the Opel brand in Europe. Our take? It's way, way, too early to call quits on Saturn. Predictions of its demise are as premature as Hollywood breakups. Oh, wait....
On the other hand, Jill Lajdziak, the managing director of Saturn, is pushing back with insistence that the brand is doing quite well.
Her evidence? Well, Saturn reached a 20 percent improvement in market share in 2007. Sales of new products like the Aura sedan, the Vue crossover, and larger sibling Outlook have gone up 3.4 percent through the month of July.
Evidence for the other side? The subcompact Astra is not selling as well as the Ion, the model’s predecessor, with overall deliveries down 17.9 percent and retail sales are down 18.5 percent.
Still, Ms. Lajdziak argues that sales of the Astra have been steadily climbing and that may be because it is what the public wants -- it has a fuel economy rating of 32 mpg. She points out sales haven’t matched the Ion yet simply because the it is is priced at $18,200 compared to the Ion’s price of $15,100.
Lajdziak also argues that Saturn’s stable of products is the “freshest” in the industry. Average transaction prices have jumped 43 percent over the last two years from $17,100 in 2005 to $24,400 in 2007.
More evidence in her favor is that residual values have jumped 8 percent from third quarter 2004 to third quarter 2007. It is said that the Saturn Outlook residual value matches the popular Honda Pilot and Toyota Highlander.
It is said that GM has a long term plan for Saturn which calls for it to reflect the Opel brand in Europe. Our take? It's way, way, too early to call quits on Saturn. Predictions of its demise are as premature as Hollywood breakups. Oh, wait....
