Automotive News - March 31, 2008 - (Page 6)

6 • MARCH 31, 2008 New Saturn ads will promote Aura, Vue, Outlook Jamie LaReau jlareau@crain.com Saturn will launch an advertising campaign in late April, trying to whip up demand for some products that have been sales disappointments. The campaign will tout the Aura sedan and Vue and Outlook crossovers, with initial emphasis on the Vue and Aura. Sales of the Aura and Outlook have failed to grow at the pace General Motors executives had hoped. Saturn’s advertising agency, Deutsch LA spent months developing several campaigns until Saturn was satisfied, sources say. Saturn leaders say the campaign will help the Saturn’s Jill Lajdziak: “Last year we launched a product every few months in the marketplace. When you do that, you don’t have stability in the marketplace.” brand do what it was unable to do last year: Deliver a consistent marketing message. “Last year we launched a product every few months in the marketplace,” says Jill Lajdziak, general manager of Saturn sales, service and marketing. “When you do that, you don’t have stability in the marketplace.” Saturn also will rely on dealers to do more grass-roots marketing, Lajdziak says. She’ll outline Saturn’s plan for dealers at a national brand planning meeting scheduled Tuesday through Thursday in Washington. GM sold 59,964 Auras in 2007, well below expectations of over 100,000. The Outlook is the slowest-selling of GM’s three new crossovers, with 107 days of inventory as of March 1. The Buick Enclave had a 44day supply and the GMC Acadia a 70-day supply. The Aura debuted in August 2006, the Outlook in December 2006 and the redesigned Vue in June 2007. Saturn’s campaign will focus initially on the Vue and Aura, Lajdziak says. Later in the year, Saturn will add the Outlook. Some Saturn dealers would like to see the Outlook message come sooner. “Traditional electronic media will be dominated by the Vue and the Aura, but the million-dollar question is what do they do with the Outlook?” says John Pitre, general manager of Motor City Auto Center in Bakersfield, Calif. “The Vue has been our strongest performer for the first part of this year. The Outlook is still the car that nobody knows about.”c Hal Riney won the Saturn account with the tag line: “A different kind of company. A different kind of car.” Hal Riney, Saturn campaign creator, dies Hal Riney, whose creativity helped launch the Saturn brand, died March 24, at age 75. Understated, low-key advertising was Riney’s hallmark. In 1988, General Motors hired Hal Riney & Partners, of San Francisco, to introduce Saturn and attract import-minded buyers. GM’s move was an unexpected break from working with longtime automotive agencies. Riney won the Saturn work with the tag line: “A different kind of company. A different kind of car.” The campaign, which broke in 1989, highlighted Saturn’s new plant in Spring Hill, Tenn. In 2002, Saturn ended its association with the agency, moving to another San Francisco agency, Goodby Silverstein & Partners. Riney was born July 17, 1932. He began his career in 1956 in the mailroom of the San Francisco office of BBDO. He founded Hal Riney & Partners in 1985. In 1998, the agency was sold to the Publicis Groupe and renamed Publicis & Hal Riney. — Mary Connelly Reynolds removes dealership modems Ralph Kisiel rkisiel@crain.com © GM CORP. GM showed the Beat concept, which is shorter than the Chevrolet Aveo, at several international auto shows in 2007. GM works on small global car Alysha Webb awebb@crain.com See our Web site to watch a Riney Saturn commercial. autonews.com SHANGHAI — General Motors is working in China on a small, inexpensive car suitable for developing markets. The automaker is mum on the car’s mission. Suppliers and others suggest that the car is an answer to the Tata Nano. The Nano, which is being developed by Tata Motors Ltd. in India, has an expected wholesale price of about $2,500. But GM isn’t looking to come out with such cheap transportation. Rather, it is looking to China to produce a much lower-cost car than is now available. “We aren’t interested in trying to produce a car for $2,500 because of the compromises, but we’ve got to think about getting a little bit closer to it,” says Nick Reilly, president of GM Asia Pacific. In China, GM is developing the small car, the next-gen- eration Chevrolet Spark, on its global minicar platform. The next Spark will be produced at SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile Co. starting in late 2009. Engineers at Wuling confirm they have been asked to work on producing a very low-cost car, and that the Nano is the impetus. They have been asked to cut production costs as much as half, say the engineers. The current Spark produced at SAIC-GM-Wuling sells for 39,800 yuan, or $5,650 at current exchange rates. The engineers did not discuss the content of the car. GM showed the Beat concept, built on the minicar platform, at several international auto shows in 2007. The Beat is several inches shorter than the Chevrolet Aveo. c Kevin Huang in Guangzhou, China, contributed to this report Despite chatter to the contrary, Reynolds and Reynolds Co. continues to remove dial-up modems from dealerships that use its ERA dealer management system. In recent months, some competitors have questioned whether Reynolds was backing off its controversial policy of removing the modems. The modems, once used by Reynolds to maintain its ERA software, are now used by third-party vendors to access the dealership’s system to extract data, usually with the dealer’s permission. Reynolds spokesman Thomas Schwartz says there are no policy changes or delays. Removing the modems will take 12 to 18 months, he says. “We have been notifying dealers of that and working with dealers when there’s a third party involved,” Schwartz says. When Reynolds discovers a thirdparty vendor using its modem, it invites the outside company to become certified to access Reynolds’ systems — a lengthy, costly process. Early this year, Reynolds stopped using the modems to update its software in dealerships. It now uses a secure Internet connection. “I don’t know whether it’s going slower than others think it ought to,” Schwartz says. “It does take time. It takes some resources, and you want to deal with each dealership. So you do it in a way that makes sense for their business.”c This Spring Hill launch is a fraction of the first one NASHVILLE — A $690 million overhaul in Spring Hill, Tenn., is expected to be done in time for the plant to start building the new Chevrolet Traverse in September. The crossover will reach showrooms in October. The factory makeover is a far cry from Spring Hill’s birth as the first Saturn factory in 1990. At that time, General Motors spent lavishly to install cutting-edge technology and unfamiliar factory processes, racking up costs of nearly $2 billion. The Traverse project is looking for ways to cut startup costs, says Juan Carlos Jimenez, Spring Hill’s operations manager. To create a new and enlarged paint line at Spring Hill, GM transported the paint booths and ovens of its closed Oklahoma City plant to Tennessee. Oklahoma City previously built the Chevrolet TrailBlazer SUV. But the transition from Saturns to Chevrolets is still a massive retooling. Spring Hill is one of GM’s biggest plants. It will switch from producing its own plastic body panels to making steel body panels for the first time. The final plant head count will be 3,900 when the factory is running again this year. That is a reduction from the 4,700 who worked at Saturn when it began shutting down in 2006. Spring Hill employed about 8,500 workers in the 1990s but struggled to maintain full capacity as the small-car market waned. It never came close to its original 1980s goal of expanding to produce 500,000 cars a year. — Lindsay Chappell © GM CORP. The Spring Hill, Tenn., plant will build the Chevy Traverse. http://autonews.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Automotive News - March 31, 2008

Axle strike leads GM to alter production plan Industry expert Ferron joins Automotive News Group Hummer adds E85 models Lear expands in China Ford spills the beans on car seats Concern ... confidence ... curiosity — welcome to America, Tata Expect most Ford-bred executives to stay put Tip for Tata: Let British brands be British brands Dana CEO sees need for growth in Asia Chrysler: Any deal for partner would be done by Cerberus Farley retools Flex marketing strategy Malibu attracts import-minded buyers European purchasing execs to suppliers: Costs must fall Reynolds removes dealership modems New Saturn ads will promote Aura, Vue, Outlook This Spring Hill launch is a fraction of the first one GM works on small global car Hal Riney, Saturn campaign creator, dies Dealer sours on China importer Secret computer lets Nissan planner peek into future XM-Sirius merger: Lower prices, more choices? Key Chrysler product developer resigns Ford's new boss in HR plans no major changes Wagener to replace Pfeiffer as Mercedes design chief It's time to break the glass ceiling Autos don't cause all global warming Toyota plumbed the depths of Scion Customer loyalty is serious business Future bright for Tata brands Dauch sends wrong signals as Axle strike drags Yanase opened Japan to Western cars Fewer dealers, sure, but more brands What if Ahn falls short? Want to inspire Lori Queen? Just say no Hanwha to build GM Powertrain assembly line Toyota enters untapped Korea, home of Hyundai James O'Rourke Jr. Picture This -- March 31st, 2008 Lexus pays dealers for innovations Suppliers to the 2009 Dodge Journey Ricardo center has battery focus Howa USA opens interior parts plant in Kentucky N.Y. show suggests a future of smart powertrains, muscle BMW sees new models as sales saviors Ford contract has unique take on core jobs 6 more PACE-setters in auto innovation Buy-here, pay-here may grow Dealers Mercedes SL: A fresh face — with 1 flaw Ex-Chrysler design chief John Herlitz dead at 65 Future could be bright for Jag, Land Rover Land Rover in good shape, but challenges remain Fuel economy fines loom for Tata As segment shrinks, Chrysler minivan output takes a big dip Mercedes names 27 AMG dealers Continental to cut jobs Cobalt SS price: $22,995 Kia opens Ga. training center Nissan idles Mexico plant Plastech legal bill: $1 million for a month Magna will add 3 plants in Mexico El Camino diehards say Pontiac G8 should have been a Chevy No 2nd chance for Nasser, other Ford alums Buick grabs a name from the past After short list, a short stay for Laymon Lori Queen or Ellery Queen? Daimler's mum on BMW Southern supplier strategy Tracing the Camaro's bloodline Alfa searches for a U.S. factory

Automotive News - March 31, 2008

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