GM Reveals 2013 GMC Acadia

[DGthe3]

Originally Posted by Dragoneye

The former Vue?

What, in Europe I think, right?

Yes, its the former Vue. 5 points

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

Nope...still alive and well in the US.

I saw one today in fact.



Chevrolet Captiva Sport.

Correct ... you get the other 5

Originally Posted by Dragoneye

In the US? Fleet vehicle? I don't see it on Chevy.com...

You get 5 bonus points for mentioning that its a fleet vehicle

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by Dragoneye

In the US? Fleet vehicle? I don't see it on Chevy.com...

Yep. Fleet-only.

DG beat me.

[Mr. Wyndham]

Originally Posted by DGthe3

You get 5 bonus points for mentioning that its a fleet vehicle

I win!!

Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65

Yep. Fleet-only.

Ah, well...if it's fleet it doesn't count.

[Number 3]

Not sure why there is any GM bashing on this one. The intent for the 2013 Lambda was to give them a fresh, newer look and improve the interior materials and technology.

Now if you owned a company and you could use a part you already had a tool in place for that gave your vehicle a different look would you use it? Or would you go spend several hundred thousand dollars?

Both choices meet your objective - give the vehicle a different look - one is free the other costs you a LOT of money.

And by the way, the Opel Antera has been in continuous production, essentially the Saturn Vue. It never went away, just here in the U.S.

[TheCaptain]

Originally Posted by DGthe3

I'll give the 10 internet points Fenstick gave me to the person that can name the other zombie Saturn that GM is selling.

Though not really a zombie, the upcoming Buick Encore is on that platform as well!

[Hylton]

Originally Posted by Number 3

Not sure why there is any GM bashing on this one. The intent for the 2013 Lambda was to give them a fresh, newer look and improve the interior materials and technology.

A fresh newer look? The interior is awesome but the exterior is 2007 from the firewall back.

Originally Posted by Number 3

Now if you owned a company and you could use a part you already had a tool in place for that gave your vehicle a different look would you use it? Or would you go spend several hundred thousand dollars? Both choices meet your objective - give the vehicle a different look - one is free the other costs you a LOT of money.

A part or a complete body and glass from a defunct brand? How far do you want to take that train of thought? Perhaps the 6th gen Camaro should be a rebadged 2002 Trans-Am with a new Camaro front clip and LED tail lights - it will be a different look but be free right?

The leadership has clearly stated that GM was done with badge engineering and this smacks of it in the worst way. I think the leadership really has to look at the impact these decisions have on the public and shareholders perception of the "new" GM.

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by TheCaptain

Though not really a zombie, the upcoming Buick Encore is on that platform as well!

That's actually Gamma-based. VUE/Captiva Sport is Theta.

[Number 3]

Originally Posted by Hylton

A fresh newer look? The interior is awesome but the exterior is 2007 from the firewall back.



A part or a complete body and glass from a defunct brand? How far do you want to take that train of thought? Perhaps the 6th gen Camaro should be a rebadged 2002 Trans-Am with a new Camaro front clip and LED tail lights - it will be a different look but be free right?

The leadership has clearly stated that GM was done with badge engineering and this smacks of it in the worst way. I think the leadership really has to look at the impact these decisions have on the public and shareholders perception of the "new" GM.

I take that train of thought to exactly where it went. You are taking it wayyyy past my point.

A freshening of the front end and interior, rear LED taillamps and cleaning up a few things using off the shelf parts. Sorry, but anyone making a big deal of this is digging for trash. It makes perfect business sense.

Also, you are jumping on the "badge engineering" garbage truck. Using an off the shelf exterior fascia is not badge engineering just like using a corporate steering wheel or corporate radio isn't badge engineering.

So do you honestly believe that there is some type of accountability to shareholders over a great business decision? And really it is a great business decision. You (not you Hilton, the figurative you) really have to admit it is quite clever. What is the impact of this "decision" to reuse a high quality currently tooled part that requires some accountablility?

And you would probably be surprised at how much this really happens. It happens with parts you can't see allllll the time. So is that wrong too?

[ironpeddler]

Originally Posted by Hylton

It's not the Saturn Outlook parts bin, it's the Saturn Outlook. Very surprised that they would do this.

2007 Saturn Outlook:




2013 GMC Acadia:

This is pretty disturbing. I had no idea that like this even happened until I started reading this thread, I'm so naive.....and the Vue also...WTF. I mean come on, seriously. I don't even know what to say. This is 6 MY's later and it looks almost identical from the outside. It's so funny and sad at the same time. But I mean... what a clever way to try and get rid of a ton of extra parts that probably would have went to waste. A very good idea in that regard.

Does anybody know of any other manufacturers that have done this recently or ever? It's kind of interesting to know.

[DaBears]

Personally I dont care. I think it looks good and could care less where the parts came from. The Acadia is a great vehicle and correct me if im wrong but its the biggest CUV you can purchase right? Durango and Explorer are smaller in terms of overall interior space.

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by ironpeddler

This is pretty disturbing. I had no idea that like this even happened until I started reading this thread, I'm so naive.....and the Vue also...WTF. I mean come on, seriously. I don't even know what to say. This is 6 MY's later and it looks almost identical from the outside. It's so funny and sad at the same time. But I mean... what a clever to try and get rid of a ton of extra parts that probably would have went to waste. A very good idea in that regard.

Does anybody know of any other manufacturers that have done this recently or ever? It's kind of interesting to know.

Ford did it with the Crown Vic.

A lot of media outlets are praising GM for it. The tooling's already there, and the Outlook always looked more GMC-ish than the Acadia, so why not use it?

It's a non-issue. Most buyers won't even notice or won't care, and as JusticePete said in another thread, it makes the Acadia look stronger while freshening the design at the same time.

By the way, it's important to note that in no way did Acadia even need an MCE. The vehicle is still selling well. For all of you who are yelling "old GM," the old GM would've let the car wither on the vine with no changes and redesigned it only because they had to.

[Hylton]

Originally Posted by Number 3

I take that train of thought to exactly where it went. You are taking it wayyyy past my point.

A freshening of the front end and interior, rear LED taillamps and cleaning up a few things using off the shelf parts. Sorry, but anyone making a big deal of this is digging for trash. It makes perfect business sense.

Also, you are jumping on the "badge engineering" garbage truck. Using an off the shelf exterior fascia is not badge engineering just like using a corporate steering wheel or corporate radio isn't badge engineering.

So do you honestly believe that there is some type of accountability to shareholders over a great business decision? And really it is a great business decision. You (not you Hilton, the figurative you) really have to admit it is quite clever. What is the impact of this "decision" to reuse a high quality currently tooled part that requires some accountablility?

And you would probably be surprised at how much this really happens. It happens with parts you can't see allllll the time. So is that wrong too?

You are looking at this from an engineering POV and I am looking at this from a design POV.

I am not against the use of common parts but I do believe that using a 7 year old exterior design from a "discount" brand as something that is marketed as all new for a "premium" brand is a poor business decision.

You don't have to look far to understand what I am saying - the Terrain and Equinox share a boat load of common parts but exterior wise, look entirely different from one another. I think both products look like GMC and Chevrolet respectively.

With respect to the 2013 Acadia, go ahead and share the platform, electrical, drivetrain and suspension components but design the door skins and quarter skins to look different than the Saturn. At the minimum, give the quarter and fender flares the GMC squared highbrow design a la Terrain, Envoy and Sierra.

It all boils down to brand identity. If you feel you can take the "look" of one dated product and spin it as an all new "look" for another product of another brand, more power to you but updating the tail lights and throwing a new fascia and hood on it is not enough IMO.

[FenwickHockey65]

Actually, the fender flares ARE very GMC-esque on the Outlook. The squared off fender flares on the Terrain look similar to the Outlook's.

And if you remember, Saturn was starting to move upmarket when the Outlook was launched. Not so much of a "discount" brand anymore.

[Mr. Wyndham]

Is nobody considering that since Saturn is dead, this is a non-issue to the buying public?

7 years old is in the eye of the beholder, I'd say. Had nobody told me that this refresh was swiped from a past Saturn program - I'd have to say it looks newer than the current design. And I'd consider myself an enthusiast - think about all the people who couldn't give a rat's behind. If it looks good, it looks good!

I've got to echo Number 3's sentiments on this one. While it is weird -- it's a smart, $$-saving move with the exact same outcome as if they spend a quarter million on a new design & tooling. It also regenerates some of the money lost from the killing of Saturn, in the first place. Anyone who has a serious core-problem with this would definitely appear to be digging for dirt, imo.