Archive for the ‘incentives’ Category

General Motors is ramping up for the holiday season with huge sales across its four brands. Starting today, the automaker will be launching massive incentives for each brand in an effort to get rid of as much remaining 2009 inventory.

Chevrolet will go with the “Red Tag Sale,” Buick-GMC with the “Holiday Event” and Cadillac with the “Season's Best” sale.

The automaker is also hoping to wind down inventory levels for the defunct Pontiac and Saturn brands, both of which are expected to sell their very last models towards the end of the first quarter in 2010.

GM’s market share in the U.S., meanwhile,...

Speaking at a World Economic Forum in New Delhi, Carlos Ghosn -- head of Nissan Motor Company and Renault SA -- had some interesting things to say about the global auto industry. Among the most notable and encouraging items, Ghosn believes that the international sales slump has ended and that the industry is beginning to rebound. He had previously predicted global sales to ring in around 55 million units, but has now upgraded that figure to 60 million. (For reference, 2008 and 2007 each saw sales in the 70-million-unit range.)

Like his rivals at Toyota, Ghosn attributes much of the rebound to sales incentives offered by governments around...

General Motors' new "60-Day Satisfaction Guarantee" (pitched by new CEO Ed Whitacre in the TV spot above) has sparked a good bit of comment, both positive and negative. Those in support of the policy argue that GM has finally taken notice of customer-oriented programs offered by its competitors (e.g. Hyundai Assurance), which have proven popular with the general public and often stimulated sales without hurting the bottom line.

On the other hand, detractors argue that the gist of Hyundai's Assurance program is that the company will take back cars if the buyer loses his or her job. GM's plan, on the other hand, allows customers to return...