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That was my next question. Why do you buy GMC anyway?If they are sold by Buick and Cadillac dealers they sure hide it pretty well. The arguments that GMC is for this group of people and Chevy is for that group people was said about Pontiac and Olds and they got canned.
Doens't really matter, GMC was teh truck devision that the non chevy dealers could sell. Dealers are independant entities and the GMC truck line was for franchisees of BOP (and now Caddy). THat's t only reason it stuck around (and the fact that it is a license to print money basically).
GMCs usually had an upscale option list compared to Chevys. And sometimes the style was a little better.
Ford had the same deal for their Mercury dealers in Canada, with a full line of Mercury trucks that were slightly upscale Ford trucks. And now they do that for Lincoln dealers.
I have friends that work for GM and they will never get rid of the GMC brand. It stood for toughness because GM at one time made semi trucks that were called GMC.
No it didn't. GMC pickups are completely unrelated to GMC semis. The only differences over the years have been cosmetic.
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Also they have different trim packages between the two.
They could easily integrate the trim packages into one platform without maintaining a separate brand.
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GMC always sold better than Chevrolet.
Please cite a source for this. I couldn't find a comprehensive list, but just perusing a few monthly reports in recent years shows that Chevrolet generally outsells GMC by better than 2:1. Usually closer to 3:1.
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Also chevy is made for the younger people while Buick is for the older people and cadillac for the richer people.
Irrelevant. There are many dealerships that sell Cadillac, Buick, AND Chevrolet. The dealerships that carry Buick/Cadillac because they want to position themselves as upscale probably aren't carrying GMC anyway.
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Believe me GM is no dummy they know what to make and what not to make they have been in business a long time.
True, which is why it surprises me that they don't combine their truck lines and save a crapton of money in administrative and marketing costs.
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And every division has their specialty car.
True. Including Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Mercury, and Plymouth. So what's your point?
That was my next question. Why do you buy GMC anyway?
Because you've driven Buicks for years and you've always dealt with the same dealership, so when you decide you want a truck you'd rather go back there than visit someplace different.
Or, your first truck was a GMC and it was a great truck so you've just stuck with it.
There are some styling differences so there's a matter of personal preference, but if one of the brands went away people would adapt.
Olds and Buick seemed to target the exact same demographic, so it made sense they got rid of one.
I suppose back prior to the 90s when American cars were the majority on the road, it added a little diversity to have the same basic cars branded 5 different ways.
I believe they still ride on the same chassis and share much of their exterior panels as the Chevy counterpart (with minor changes like grille, lights, etc). I'd definitely feel silly paying the premium over a Tahoe/Suburban.
Yeah they share chassi and suspension and I'm sure a lot of internal components. But the front end differences go beyond minor changes. The grille headlight treatment, hoods, fenders are completely different. The bed sides are different also. You're not gonna mistake a chevy for a GMC. Back in the 70s-80s-90s you removed badges there was little to no difference in style. In the 00 GMC started moving away from the exact look alike copy. As well they should
Back in the day when I was selling buicks, I always thought that GM liked the idea of having several cars basically the same (nova, skylark, omega, etc) because car shoppers would very often narrow their choices down to two GM brands ( Cutlass vs. Chevelle for example).
That theory sort of went out the window somewhat when GM cosolidated their divisions.
They spend a bunch of money developing a truck or SUV, and then they can sell the same vehicle with different grille and upscale packaging with higher profit margins. Particularly the Denali brand.
And yes, most times Chevy stands alone and BPG (now without the P) were separate dealers and wanted trucks to sell too.
Between the current trucks, there's about a $500 difference if they are equipped exactly the same. For that $500 the GMC will have accent LED lighting in the headlamps, real brushed aluminum trim inside and exterior fender trim. The Denalis push the differences further over a loaded Tahoe (and to a lesser extent, the High Country) and right now there are no High Country HDs. So people who want a luxury HD truck can get in to a Denali HD for more $$$.
It is about brand and appearances, along with higher content packages. When we bought our Yukon XL, we did not even consider the Suburban since it looked "cheap" in comparison to us. I wanted to buy a Terrain this last time, but my wife did not like the bulging fenders on them, so she got an Equinox. A loaded Equinox LTZ is a bit cheaper than a Terrain when equipped the same, but IMO it was almost worth it. And they offer the Denali packages that have much better interior materials and nicer exterior accents. I still regard a Chevy as being a couple of rungs lower than GMC in my book.
Also, here in town we have Chevy dealers just down the street from the Buick, GMC (and formerly Pontiac) dealers. If GM did away with GMC, then a lot of dealers would only end up with one or two brands. As a result, it would not be as economically feasable for them to remain in business.
The point of GMC is to fill a different market than Chevy fills. They are even marketed differently. More managers and upper level employees buy GMC than Chevy. GMC sells at a higher price than Chevy. GMC has the Denali line that Chevy is lacking. That alone could make GMC the Luxury Truck line for GM. On top of that they are build on the same assembly line.
Trucks make up the brunt of the income for all of the American brands. I don't see GM getting rid of a money maker like GMC. Chevy may outsell GMC but GMC on its own sells over 300,000 trucks a year. They could be their own manufacture if they were cut loose. Because of the lower sales the resale value is much more.
My last truck was a GMC and I liked having something that seemed more exclusive. I think many others feel the same way.
Yeah they share chassi and suspension and I'm sure a lot of internal components. But the front end differences go beyond minor changes. The grille headlight treatment, hoods, fenders are completely different. The bed sides are different also. You're not gonna mistake a chevy for a GMC. Back in the 70s-80s-90s you removed badges there was little to no difference in style. In the 00 GMC started moving away from the exact look alike copy. As well they should
They are built on the same line my friend works at their truck plant one day a truck came off the line one side said Chevy other side said GMC. Just like the Yukon and the Denali and the escalade suv built on the same line also. Just different trim.
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