U.S. sedans roaring back
09-21-2004, 10:44 PM
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U.S. sedans roaring back
U.S. sedans roaring back
Detroit using style, power to compete with foreign rivals
By Mark Glover -- Sacramento Bee Auto Editor
September 19, 2004
The American-made sedan, that family vacation icon from before the minivan and SUV eras, is making a comeback.
Detroit is building sedans in bunches for the 2005 model year and beyond, hoping to catch the monster sales wave that Chrysler Group has been riding since its 300 sedan was introduced last spring.
The Chrysler 300, which comes in four versions ranging from $23,295 to $32,870, has been ringing up an average of more than 12,000 sales a month since May - astronomical numbers for a 4,000-pound passenger car.
The sedan has propped up Chrysler sales in an otherwise tepid 2004 for domestic automakers. Gary Dilts, Chrysler Group's senior vice president of sales, crowed that the 300 is the "most talked-about vehicle in America right now," and he might be right.
But it could be the Pontiac G6 sedan. Oprah Winfrey gave away 276 of the midsize sedans to audience members last week on her show. The Pontiac promotion garnered lots of publicity for the car, which starts at $21,300.
Various theories have been offered for Americans' renewed interest in sedans: high gasoline prices turning buyers away from big sport-utility vehicles, the cyclical nature of the auto business and the Big Three automakers' realization that they foolishly surrendered passenger-car market share to foreign companies while pushing profit-producing pickups and SUVs.
Some auto industry watchers attribute the domestic automakers' sedan drive to a switch in style. Simply put, U.S. manufacturers are starting to produce four-door passenger cars that turn heads.
The Chrysler 300, for example, has an enormous chrome grille as the focal point for aggressive styling that includes an aerodynamic roof, 18-inch aluminum wheels and dual exhausts. The 300 can be equipped with a 5.7-liter Hemi V-8 with a robust 340 horsepower. Even then, the car starts at less than $35,000 - an attractive number in a market dotted with $50,000-plus sedans.
"I loved it the first time I saw it," said Charles Leiber, who was shopping with his wife, Cheryl, at AutoWest Dodge-Chrysler-Jeep in the Roseville Automall. "I've been waiting for a (sedan) that looks like this ... something that looks good and runs strong."
The Sacramento couple are considering the 300 as a replacement for the family's 2000 Ford Explorer.
"I've always like sedans," said Cheryl Leiber. "I wanted to have one even when we bought the SUV, but there wasn't anything big enough at the right price. Now there is."
That's music to the ears of America's Big Three - General Motors, Ford and Chrysler - all of whom have been taking a beating in market share from the likes of Toyota, Honda and Nissan. Foreign automakers now dominate passenger-car sales in the United States, and their strength is particularly evident in California, the nation's No. 1 automotive market.
In 2002, 660,723 of 815,959 new cars sold in California - nearly 81 percent - were made by overseas-based manufacturers. That was the most recent year for which statistics were available from registrations filed with the Department of Motor Vehicles. Foreign manufacturers were nearly as dominant in the Central Valley (76.6 percent of vehicles sold) and in Sacramento County (77.7 percent).
With the success of the Chrysler 300 and Detroit's belief that foreign automakers are now vulnerable in passenger cars, a flood of new or restyled four-door sedans will hit the market in the 2005 model year.
The lineup includes the midsize Buick LaCrosse, the upscale Cadillac STS, the full-size Ford Five Hundred, the Mercury Montego and the Pontiac G6. Chevrolet is touting what it calls a premium compact sedan in its new Cobalt, a front-driver that will be priced below $20,000.
American sedans being updated for 2005 include the Cadillac CTS and CTS-V, the Chevrolet Malibu and the Mercury Grand Marquis. On the horizon for 2006 is an all-new Lincoln Zephyr sedan.
"Just look at all the new sedans," said Brian Moody, road test editor for Edmunds.com, an online auto information firm. "The Chrysler 300 is all new, the (2004) Malibu is all new. Styling has become so much more important in the competition.
"People are sinking a lot of money into these cars. They don't want something that is boring."
At Mike Daugherty Chevrolet in Sacramento, sedan shopper Theresa Montgomery-Taft said style made points with her.
"I can't tell the difference between some of the cars I see. They all look vanilla to me," Montgomery-Taft said. "I want a car that looks good ... one I feel good when I'm in it. I like the Malibu, and I like what I've seen of that new Cobalt. I like a car with spice."
Moody pointed to another factor he believes will help Detroit sell more sedans: Foreign automakers gained passenger-car market share in the 1970s to 1990s with powertrain reliability, but he thinks that has become less important as domestic manufacturers have built more dependable vehicles.
"There's not much chance that any car is going to leave you stranded by the side of the road today," he said. "I wouldn't say that there is a level playing field, but (domestic automakers) are doing much better with their reliability and features. Even when Toyota was doing well, it was still maligned for making cars that were boring. But people liked (Toyotas) because they were dependable.
Moody also contended that American passenger-car manufacturers lost their way for a while: "I think Chrysler had some so-so products ... really nothing like the 300. I think they got back to offering a lot of car for the money."
Some industry analysts see a golden opportunity for American sedan builders to regain passenger-car market share lost to foreign competition - partially due to foreign manufacturers' recent emphasis on selling more light trucks in the United States.
Detroit using style, power to compete with foreign rivals
By Mark Glover -- Sacramento Bee Auto Editor
September 19, 2004
The American-made sedan, that family vacation icon from before the minivan and SUV eras, is making a comeback.
Detroit is building sedans in bunches for the 2005 model year and beyond, hoping to catch the monster sales wave that Chrysler Group has been riding since its 300 sedan was introduced last spring.
The Chrysler 300, which comes in four versions ranging from $23,295 to $32,870, has been ringing up an average of more than 12,000 sales a month since May - astronomical numbers for a 4,000-pound passenger car.
The sedan has propped up Chrysler sales in an otherwise tepid 2004 for domestic automakers. Gary Dilts, Chrysler Group's senior vice president of sales, crowed that the 300 is the "most talked-about vehicle in America right now," and he might be right.
But it could be the Pontiac G6 sedan. Oprah Winfrey gave away 276 of the midsize sedans to audience members last week on her show. The Pontiac promotion garnered lots of publicity for the car, which starts at $21,300.
Various theories have been offered for Americans' renewed interest in sedans: high gasoline prices turning buyers away from big sport-utility vehicles, the cyclical nature of the auto business and the Big Three automakers' realization that they foolishly surrendered passenger-car market share to foreign companies while pushing profit-producing pickups and SUVs.
Some auto industry watchers attribute the domestic automakers' sedan drive to a switch in style. Simply put, U.S. manufacturers are starting to produce four-door passenger cars that turn heads.
The Chrysler 300, for example, has an enormous chrome grille as the focal point for aggressive styling that includes an aerodynamic roof, 18-inch aluminum wheels and dual exhausts. The 300 can be equipped with a 5.7-liter Hemi V-8 with a robust 340 horsepower. Even then, the car starts at less than $35,000 - an attractive number in a market dotted with $50,000-plus sedans.
"I loved it the first time I saw it," said Charles Leiber, who was shopping with his wife, Cheryl, at AutoWest Dodge-Chrysler-Jeep in the Roseville Automall. "I've been waiting for a (sedan) that looks like this ... something that looks good and runs strong."
The Sacramento couple are considering the 300 as a replacement for the family's 2000 Ford Explorer.
"I've always like sedans," said Cheryl Leiber. "I wanted to have one even when we bought the SUV, but there wasn't anything big enough at the right price. Now there is."
That's music to the ears of America's Big Three - General Motors, Ford and Chrysler - all of whom have been taking a beating in market share from the likes of Toyota, Honda and Nissan. Foreign automakers now dominate passenger-car sales in the United States, and their strength is particularly evident in California, the nation's No. 1 automotive market.
In 2002, 660,723 of 815,959 new cars sold in California - nearly 81 percent - were made by overseas-based manufacturers. That was the most recent year for which statistics were available from registrations filed with the Department of Motor Vehicles. Foreign manufacturers were nearly as dominant in the Central Valley (76.6 percent of vehicles sold) and in Sacramento County (77.7 percent).
With the success of the Chrysler 300 and Detroit's belief that foreign automakers are now vulnerable in passenger cars, a flood of new or restyled four-door sedans will hit the market in the 2005 model year.
The lineup includes the midsize Buick LaCrosse, the upscale Cadillac STS, the full-size Ford Five Hundred, the Mercury Montego and the Pontiac G6. Chevrolet is touting what it calls a premium compact sedan in its new Cobalt, a front-driver that will be priced below $20,000.
American sedans being updated for 2005 include the Cadillac CTS and CTS-V, the Chevrolet Malibu and the Mercury Grand Marquis. On the horizon for 2006 is an all-new Lincoln Zephyr sedan.
"Just look at all the new sedans," said Brian Moody, road test editor for Edmunds.com, an online auto information firm. "The Chrysler 300 is all new, the (2004) Malibu is all new. Styling has become so much more important in the competition.
"People are sinking a lot of money into these cars. They don't want something that is boring."
At Mike Daugherty Chevrolet in Sacramento, sedan shopper Theresa Montgomery-Taft said style made points with her.
"I can't tell the difference between some of the cars I see. They all look vanilla to me," Montgomery-Taft said. "I want a car that looks good ... one I feel good when I'm in it. I like the Malibu, and I like what I've seen of that new Cobalt. I like a car with spice."
Moody pointed to another factor he believes will help Detroit sell more sedans: Foreign automakers gained passenger-car market share in the 1970s to 1990s with powertrain reliability, but he thinks that has become less important as domestic manufacturers have built more dependable vehicles.
"There's not much chance that any car is going to leave you stranded by the side of the road today," he said. "I wouldn't say that there is a level playing field, but (domestic automakers) are doing much better with their reliability and features. Even when Toyota was doing well, it was still maligned for making cars that were boring. But people liked (Toyotas) because they were dependable.
Moody also contended that American passenger-car manufacturers lost their way for a while: "I think Chrysler had some so-so products ... really nothing like the 300. I think they got back to offering a lot of car for the money."
Some industry analysts see a golden opportunity for American sedan builders to regain passenger-car market share lost to foreign competition - partially due to foreign manufacturers' recent emphasis on selling more light trucks in the United States.
09-23-2004, 09:50 PM
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Good article. People moving back to mid-size sedans from SUV's and Crossovers will want something that looks good and is exciting, as well as offering great powertrains, driving dynamics and tons of features. This is good for domestics, as they have usually been better at creating exciting designs then the imports, which are often seen as boring.
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