While Buick (and GM) is penetrating the Chinese market, to say it is popular there (IIMHO) is an overstatement. Most people will purchase a domestic brand due to its low price tag, or go with name brands (particularly MB, BMW, Toyota, and Honda). This is just my observations from trips and stays in China.

 

My days of wanting to fold myself into a Miata sized car are over (as well as recent back surgery). But if I had to pick one right now that has mileage I could live with and definite bias toward the driving experience I would say 535. Haven't had a chance to drive an E320 Bluetec (only recently became Cali approved) yet and the mileage, probably rivaling the Miata, could overcome my reluctance to go MB. But back to the original post, you have hit the nail on the head, there aren't any good alternatives out there right now. Might just wait, I keep looking at the GS and what I would be replacing it with just isn't very appealing, and that was the intent of the original thread.

 

OK.....I'll use a different term then. Buicks are considered highly desirable in China and a status symbol. Having been over there, you will agree to that, won't you?
Much about that has been written in the auto press.

And, as far as popularity goes, they apparantly are popular enough for GM to have built at least one Buick assembly plant there.

 

Sorry, but I wouldn't even go far as even remotely desireable. The best thing going for GM is that they have a Shanghai GM plant, so domestic desireability goes up, but more or less it was to get a presence in China. As far as the "typical" Chinese, most would rather have a MB, Lexus, BMW for status symbol or a comparable Toyco or Honduh if they couldn't afford those. GM sells a lot of company cars (as does Audi) in China...probably trying to parallel their fleet sales success in the US. Don't believe everything you read in the press...there are marketing departments for a reason.

 

This is from Wikipedia....an impartial Internet reference library, and not part of the auto press.

GM in China
General Motors is the best selling auto maker in China.[8] The Buick brand is especially strong, led by the Buick Excelle subcompact. Cadillac initiated sales in China in 2004, starting with imports from the United States. GM pushed the marketing of the Chevrolet brand in China in 2005 as well, moving the former Buick Sail to that marque. The company manufactures most of its China-market vehicles locally, through its Shanghai GM joint venture. Shanghai GM, a joint venture between the Chinese company SAIC and General Motors, was created on March 25, 1997. The Shanghai GM plant was opened December 15, 1998 when the first Chinese-built Buick came off the assembly line. The SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile joint-venture is also successful selling trucks and vans under the Wuling marque.GM plans to create a research facility in Shanghai for $250m to develop hybrid cars and alternative energy vehicles.[9]

And Warren Brown, the auto writer for the Washington Post (who I know, but casually), spent time in China testing and writing up the Chinese-produced versions (he actually had a higher opinion of the Asian-produced Buicks than the American-produced ones, and, according to him, GM executives agreed......."We don't build better Buicks in America because the public does not expect them....in China, they do"

Here: check it out:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...071901266.html

 

This is getting way off topic, but I'll be back in Shanghai again in 2 weeks and will make a mental note again of Buicks I see (lackluster last time) and query, first hand, my Chinese colleagues on their opinions (they have Buick Company Vans presently). Citing "Buick Excelle" (our American Suzuki Forenza basically) as a strong seller doesn't give me much confidence in those statements.

Back on topic, I do agree with your initial assesment though. Gas prices, mortgage fears, and the ever decreasing value of the dollar against international currency (higher imported car prices here) is probably the biggest contributors to the slowdown.

 

Actually, we weren't that far off topic. Auto sales are no longer just an American issue alone.....they are also tied in to the world economy, which China is running more and more of these days.



And there is also another significant issue cutting down on new car sales (and don't laugh......it is true). Some people either become so emotionally attached to their old cars, for whatever reason, or who are just so stingy with their bank accounts, or who want to coax every last possible mile out of a worn-out old car, that they have a psychological barrier against going out and spending the money for a new car, even if they need one and CAN afford it. I have seen this happen a number of times. I've had some friends that had cars so old, and with so many miles on them, that they were borderline dangerous....rust in critical areas in the underpinnings, leaky exhausts, slop and play in the steering, door locks that didn't work, loose seats inside, etc..........that they saw the light and replaced those cars only when I refused to keep riding in them and told them that they were tossing the dice every time they drove them. Not all states have yearly safety inspections, either.....and in those states that don't, you often have a lot of sub-standard cars on the roads.