clambake
08-19-2008, 03:53 PM
GM Offers Employee Pricing Deals
By SHAWN LANGLOIS
August 19, 2008 11:57 a.m.
General Motors Corp. said Tuesday it will again offer employee discounts on most of its vehicles to customers in an effort to spur sales and clear out inventory.
The discounts cover "nearly all" 2008 model-year cars and truck as well as some 2009 models. The promotion excludes 2008 medium-duty trucks but includes the 2009 Chevy Cobalt and HHR, the Pontiac Vibe and G5 and the Cadillac CTS.
The deal, a revival of a similar promotion that triggered a sales boom in 2005, is set to run from Aug. 20 through Sept. 2 and is timed to coincide with the auto maker's 100th anniversary, GM said in a news release.
The latest employee pricing plan follows a surprise zero-percent financing deal GM announced back in June.
"This is a phenomenal offer for consumers," Mark LaNeve, head of GM North America sales and marketing, said in a release.
GM's U.S. sales surged 41% in June 2005 to an all-time industry record on the truck side when it first announced a sweeping plan to offer the public discounts generally offered only to employees.
GM, as well as most of its competition, has been affected by the prolonged housing slump and persistently high gas prices. In July, GM reported a steep 26% drop in U.S. sales as drivers continued to move away from bigger trucks and sport-utility vehicles.
GM offered an average $4,214 per vehicle in incentive spending during July, according to car-buying research Web site Edmunds.com. That's well above Chrysler and Ford Motor Co. and amounts to three times the promotional spending from Honda Motor Ltd. and Toyota Motor Corp.
By SHAWN LANGLOIS
August 19, 2008 11:57 a.m.
General Motors Corp. said Tuesday it will again offer employee discounts on most of its vehicles to customers in an effort to spur sales and clear out inventory.
The discounts cover "nearly all" 2008 model-year cars and truck as well as some 2009 models. The promotion excludes 2008 medium-duty trucks but includes the 2009 Chevy Cobalt and HHR, the Pontiac Vibe and G5 and the Cadillac CTS.
The deal, a revival of a similar promotion that triggered a sales boom in 2005, is set to run from Aug. 20 through Sept. 2 and is timed to coincide with the auto maker's 100th anniversary, GM said in a news release.
The latest employee pricing plan follows a surprise zero-percent financing deal GM announced back in June.
"This is a phenomenal offer for consumers," Mark LaNeve, head of GM North America sales and marketing, said in a release.
GM's U.S. sales surged 41% in June 2005 to an all-time industry record on the truck side when it first announced a sweeping plan to offer the public discounts generally offered only to employees.
GM, as well as most of its competition, has been affected by the prolonged housing slump and persistently high gas prices. In July, GM reported a steep 26% drop in U.S. sales as drivers continued to move away from bigger trucks and sport-utility vehicles.
GM offered an average $4,214 per vehicle in incentive spending during July, according to car-buying research Web site Edmunds.com. That's well above Chrysler and Ford Motor Co. and amounts to three times the promotional spending from Honda Motor Ltd. and Toyota Motor Corp.