1969 Chevrolet Nova Ss L78 on 2040-cars

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Porsche and Buick earn top honors in J.D. Power Sales Satisfaction Index Study

Customer satisfaction with car buying has been at a low point over the past few years, as price increases, inventory shortages, and COVID restrictions have complicated every part of the process. There are signs of improvement, however, as J.D. Power’s 2023 U.S. Sales Satisfaction Index Study showed that customer satisfaction has improved slightly from a year ago. J.D. Power rates satisfaction on a 1,000-point scale, finding that it improved seven points to 793 from last year. Improving inventory levels and a slow leveling off of prices have contributed to that improvement, and fewer people are paying above MSRP for new cars. Some auto brands performed better than others with sales satisfaction. Porsche ranked highest among premium brands, followed by Alfa Romeo. Buick took the top spot among mass-market brands, with GMC, Chevrolet, and Mitsubishi behind. J.D. Power also handed out segment-level awards: Premium Cars: Porsche Premium SUV: Porsche Mass-Market Car: Chevrolet Mass-Market SUV/Minivan: GMC Mass-Market Truck: GMC Despite the increase in sales satisfaction, thereÂ’s still room for improvement to reach pre-pandemic levels. J.D. Power noted gaps in salesperson knowledge as an area of improvement. Buyers rated salespeople much better during a gas vehicle purchase than with EVs, citing their expertise as a challenge. Pricing remains a challenge despite an improvement since 2022, and satisfaction is still below pre-pandemic levels. Mass-market buyers reported a slight bump in satisfaction, while premium buyers felt that pricing was less fair than a year before. ItÂ’s an interesting contrast, showing that dealer pricing tactics can significantly impact satisfaction with the sales process. Fewer people may be paying more than MSRP, but several premium models still list with significant markups. Even more interesting is PorscheÂ’s top spot on the satisfaction list, as its cars often sell with huge upcharges, and itÂ’s exceedingly tricky even to get a build allocation for some models. Buick Chevrolet GMC Porsche Car Buying Ownership

GM workers in Oshawa walk out in protest of plant closure

TORONTO/MONTREAL – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday expressed his "deep disappointment" in General Motors' decision to close its Oshawa plant, a move Canadian officials only learned about on Sunday and which led workers to walk off the job on Monday. GM said the closure affects a total of 2,973 assembly line jobs. GM's total employment in Canada is 8,150 direct jobs. Workers in the Unifor trade union walked out of the Oshawa plant "in protest," ahead of a meeting with GM about the announcement, a union spokeswoman said. "I've moved my family twice for this company and they do this to me," a tearful worker told CBC TV as he left the plant. Currently, the Oshawa plant builds the Cadillac XTS and Chevy Impala sedans. Under Unifor's four-year contract signed in 2016, GM must give the union a year's notice before closing the plant. The automaker intends to close the plant in December, 2019. A 2015 study commissioned by Unifor, which represents GM employees, estimated that shutting the plant would eliminate 4,100 direct jobs and reduce Ontario's gross domestic product by C$1.1 billion. But Jerry Dias, president of Unifor, said the move amounts to a breach of the automaker's contract with its employees. "We have a collective agreement that says they're not closing any of our facilities ... so we will do anything by any means to make sure that they live up to their word," Dias said at a news conference. Dias said the contract between Unifor and the company forbids GM from closing any of its Canadian plants during the contract period, which ends in September 2020. "They are not closing our damn plant without one hell of a fight." Canadian officials promised to aid auto workers affected by the 2019 closure, part of a wider restructuring by the automaker that will cut production of slow-selling models and slash its North American workforce. "I spoke with GM (CEO) Mary Barra to express my deep disappointment in the closure," Trudeau tweeted on Monday. "We'll do everything we can to help the families affected by this news get back on their feet." GM workers have been part of the heart and soul of Oshawa for generations - and we'll do everything we can to help the families affected by this news get back on their feet. Yesterday, I spoke with @GM's Mary Barra to express my deep disappointment in the closure.

GM promises to add 20 EVs and fuel-cell cars to lineup, paid for by SUVs

DETROIT — General Motors outlined plans on Monday to add 20 new battery electric and fuel-cell vehicles to its global product lineup by 2023, financed by robust profits from sales of gasoline-fueled trucks and sport utility vehicles in the United States and China. "General Motors believes in an all-electric future," GM global product development chief Mark Reuss said on Monday during a briefing at the company's suburban Detroit technical center. Future generations of GM electric vehicles "will be profitable," Reuss said, but added it was not clear when GM could make all its new vehicle offerings zero-emission electric cars. Regulators in China and some European countries have floated proposals to ban internal combustion engines by 2030 or 2040. "We will continue to make sure our internal combustion engines will get more and more efficient," Reuss said. GM shares were up more than 4 percent in midday New York trading on positive comments from Rod Lache, auto analyst at Deutsche Bank. Automakers, including electric vehicle market leader Tesla, lose money on electric cars because battery costs are still higher than comparable internal combustion engines. The company offered sneak peeks of three EV prototypes: a Buick SUV, a sporty Cadillac wagon and a futuristic pod car wearing a Bolt badge. GM funds its forays into new technology using a river of cash generated by old-technology vehicles popular with its core customer base in the United States heartland. In comparison, Tesla has burned through an estimated $10 billion in cash and has yet to show a full year profit. GM earned more than 90 percent of its $12.5 billion in pretax profits last year in North America, amid robust demand for its lineup of large sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks. The company's profitable operations in China rely on consumer demand for an expanding lineup of gasoline powered SUVs. GM has previously announced plans to make some of its future electric vehicles capable of driving themselves in robot taxi fleets. The company offered sneak peeks of three electric vehicle prototypes: a Buick brand sport utility vehicle, a sporty Cadillac wagon and a futuristic pod car wearing a Bolt badge. GM collaborated with Korean battery maker LG Chem to build the Bolt battery system. Company officials did not say what companies would supply batteries for the larger fleet of vehicles promised by 2023. Fuel-cell vehicles will also play a role in GM's future, the company said.