Jamie LaReau
Automotive News
April 14, 2008 - 12:01 am ET

DETROIT — Sales of new General Motors hybrids, including its touted full-sized SUVs, are taking off at a crawl.

GM sold 843 hybrids in the first quarter — 655 of them the Two Mode hybrid versions of its full-sized Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon SUVs. The rest are mild hybrids: the Saturn Aura Green Line, Saturn Vue Green Line and Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid.

Sales are slow because the Malibu Hybrid and the Two Mode SUVs are just entering the market, says a GM spokesman. "We talked about a model-year volume of 8,000 to 12,000 for the Tahoe and Yukon, and that hasn't changed," says GM spokesman Brian Corbett. "Generally hybrid vehicle sales tend to be a little slower initially compared to regular vehicles. We're expected to increase sales as awareness increases."

GM has been advertising the Tahoe and Yukon Two Modes since the Super Bowl in February, says Don Butler, executive director of Chevrolet truck advertising.

Pitching mpg

GM is also advertising the Tahoe online and in print publications such as Runner's World magazine and The New Yorker. GMC has targeted high-profile events such as the Academy Awards. A 30-second spot that will run this month will emphasize that the Yukon hybrid gets 50 percent better city mileage than the nonhybrid version, says Steve Rosenblum, GMC marketing director.

The two-wheel-drive Yukon hybrid is rated at 21 mpg city/22 mpg highway, compared with 14 mpg city/20 mpg highway for the nonhybrid model. The nonhybrid has a 5.3-liter engine, while the hybrid has a specially tuned 6.0-liter V-8 and other features that enhance fuel economy.

"Our strategy was to come out with a large awareness bang and then back off to follow up in the nontraditional media," Rosenblum says. "We're early on, and our plans haven't been all that realized yet. We're just starting out."


'Cutesy' ads?

But analysts say there has been no bang so far.

"The marketing for selling hybrids is too soft and squishy," says Jim Hall, director of industry analysis at 2953 Analytics in suburban Detroit. He says the hybrids are "in a cutesy-pie commercial that doesn't scream this is the product you need to buy."

For the Two Mode hybrid, GM is using a demonstration vehicle at dealerships for test drives. Customers then must order the vehicle. Butler says it's a way to gauge where to send inventory.

Hall says Americans don't like to have to order vehicles and wait but says it is a reasonable approach.

But Americans' love affair with hybrids might be waning, says J.D. Power and Associates analyst Jason Rothkop.

"We're seeing a softening in broader interest," Rothkop says. That's because of "the gap between the actual fuel economy and claimed fuel economy," he says.

That gap makes it difficult for automakers to maintain price premiums.

More green to buy green

The price for the mild hybrid system, such as that on a Malibu, is about $3,000 more, Hall says. The starting sticker price on a four-cylinder Aura is $20,695, compared with a Green Line at $24,290. Both prices include shipping.

A mild hybrid system cannot drive the vehicle on electric power only. The Two Mode, a full hybrid, is capable of going about 30 mph on electric power.

The Chevrolet Tahoe base model starts at $35,530, and the top-end four-wheel-drive Tahoe LT starts at $40,460. The hybrid starts at $50,490.

The GMC Yukon starts at $36,245, and the top-end all-wheel-drive Denali starts at $50,380. The hybrid starts at $50,945. All prices include shipping.

Because the hybrids also feature specialized equipment such as lightweight body panels and aerodynamic bumpers, it is difficult to isolate the premium for the hybrid powertrain system itself. Hall estimates that the Two Mode hybrid system alone adds about $5,000 in cost.

GM remains confident it will meet its hybrid sales targets.

"Even 8,000 to 12,000 vehicles over a full model year isn't a lot of vehicles when you consider how many Chevy dealers there are," Corbett says. "We just need to build awareness."

 

I have to say I've seen tons of marketing for them but not one person has asked me or talked to me about their hybrids.

Toyota/Lexus reasearh shows people that buy hybrids want to stand out and I don't think their hybrids do that.

In comparison, Lexus sells 1400 RX 400hs a month and its an older design

 

I think people will start paying attention to GM hybrids when they offer the Volt. The large SUV's are money makers for GM, but people are buying less and less of them now with high gas prices. I highly doubt people even care that its a hybrid. Some probably just notice the size and price and thats enough to convince them to look elsewhere. They should have put that two mode in the lighter vehicles first.

And the mild hybrids just arent worth it IMO.

Personally, I havent seen an ad spcifically for the two-mode hybrids yet.

 

GM's been making an aweful lot of noise and hype for a vehicle they plan on selling 10,000 units of. The Prius sells more in a month.

 

GM's foray into the hybrid market is too little too late, and too expensive. While Toyota has been successfully building viable full hybrid vehicles for 10 years, and just now, GM is marketing a new "green" line of cars and trucks?
Sounds like a desperate attempt at trying to catch up to the foreign auto makers. The Chevy Volt will not do well either, when people realize that charging their car from their household current is very likely to have a net effect of 0 on carbon emissions (since many power plants are coal fired, and more plug in cars mean more electricity being used, and more burned off coal into the atmosphere) they'll be popular for a short time, but they'll soon die off. GM has had several cars that would "save them" but they've all been amazing flops. The Aztec comes to mind.

 

But wouldn't the fact that Lexus sells so many RX400hs (which are essentially identical in looks to the RX330) support the notion that people who buy hybrids also do not want to stand out?

I honestly believe that for almost as many people that want to look flashy and stand out, there are just as many who want the same fuel efficiency and do not. GM's poor hybrid sales probably have more to do with the products themselves, instead of simply the exterior look of them.

I'm personally just about ready to get rid of my GS300 for a more fuel efficient vehicle, however I won't even bother considering the Prius simply because of the way that it looks. So it works both ways. But, if the Prius looked more like the Camry or even the Corolla for example, it would probably be first on my list.

 

So why not get a Camry Hybrid?

 

I'm seriously considering it and will probably end up getting one by the summer. While it does get great MPG, it still doesn't do quite as well as the Prius. I'm a single guy and I don't need much space, but in general I prefer sedans over coupes. A small compact fuel efficient sedan that handles well with some touches of luxury would be perfect for me. Unfortunately at the moment there is no car out yet that exactly fits what I'm looking for, but the Camry Hybrid is pretty close and will likely be my next car.

 

No the Camry doesn't get as good as the prius, but there really isn't much you can do about that. It has a bigger gasoline engine (2.4 vs. 1.5), weighs more, and is bigger. However the trade off for appearances and interior space is a pretty decent trade off

 

Loaded with all the options, it's a nice ride. I really like the Camry interior in general and although I'll miss the build quality and materials in my GS300, I'm willing to trade it for the Camry and get twice the gas mileage. I'm currently getting around 20 MPG in my GS whereas the Camry can get up into the 40's if driven the right way

 

its cause the GM hybrids dont offer that much of anything.

they say the tahoe hybrid gets 50% better fuel economy. but 50% of like 10 is 5 and that means it still only gets 15 lol.

so they dont offer that great of a fuel increase, they arent that much faster, are any more practical, just no reason to buy it.

at least toyota as the fuel economy to back their cars up, and lexus offers the luxury aspect.

 

Well GM used the 6.0L, which is plenty efficient in a lightweight Corvette, but not in a big SUV. They have a new 4.9L V8 to replace the 6.0L in the hybrids, but I still think that a direct injected version of the 3.6L would suffice when coupled to a hybrid system.

 

The 6.0 L Hybrid has less horsepower than the regular 6.0 L in the XL price about $9000 more lets see gas at $3.50 (for an argument) is about 2570 gallons now you get 8 mpg city 3 mpg highway better makes no sense. So what is the benefit. Source of my info http://www.gmc.com/yukon/index.jsp Maybe I should start comparing equipment/options etc.

 

but GM is the leader in hybrids and Volt is the best thing ever produced.


:-)

 

Hey, Lexus reported the reseach, not me . The RX is the standard in its class, so people buy it for other merits as well. Its amazing how well that SUV sells, over 100k a year every year!

I am with you though, I prefer a hybrid look like a regular car.