Saw this on foxnews.com - the GM Employee discount program will end next week.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,163819,00.html

- jeff

I just wonder if sales will fall off so much that they will bring it back? Maybe they will just do it every summer to "blow out" inventory for the new model year. I think I heard that even Nissan is doing it now as well.

Note 2006 pricing implications:


GM to End Employee-Discount Program
For 2006, Car Maker Plans
Everyday-Low-Price Move;
Fewer Rebates, Less Haggling

General Motors Corp. said it plans to end its successful "employee discounts for everyone" promotion next week. The company also signaled that it will embark on a new pricing strategy for 2006 models that will attempt to focus on permanently lower sticker prices instead of big rebates.

"It is our intention to end the employee-discount program on August 1," GM spokesman Jeff Kuhlman said yesterday. After two months of strong sales, inventories of unsold GM vehicles are at such low levels that the company doesn't have enough vehicles in stock to continue the program.
It's unclear whether Ford Motor Co. and DaimlerChrysler AG will follow suit and end their own employee-discount offers, launched in July after GM's June sales surge.

For GM, ending the employee-discount program signals the start of a critical, and potentially risky, new phase of its effort to overhaul its North American marketing. GM lost $2.5 billion in its North American auto operations in the first half.

To reverse that loss, GM has to persuade consumers to pay more for its vehicles, and its strategy hinges on cutting base sticker prices for many models. GM also is expected to more aggressively tout improvements in vehicle quality, continuing a tactic that was part of the employee-discount program.

The new Cadillac DTS may be priced as much as $6,000 below the 2005 Cadillac DeVille model it replaces.

GM is attempting to extend no-haggle pricing -- a key element of its employee-discount promotion -- into its everyday selling strategy. This is a break from GM's previous approach of keeping sticker prices high and then piling on $4,000 or more per vehicle in incentives, on average.
One dealer familiar with the auto maker's 2006-model program said GM plans to lower prices on as many as 46 vehicles. For example, the dealer said the 2006 Cadillac DTS be priced as much as $6,000 below the sticker price of the 2005 Cadillac DeVille model it replaces, even though the newer model has undergone a major redesign. The 2005 DeVille's sticker prices range from $46,840 to $52,395.

Previous efforts by mass-market manufacturers such as GM to set prices and get them to stick have had mixed results. DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler Group has tried to reposition sticker prices in recent years and hasn't been able to give up rebates. GM's Saturn brand has had to abandon its fixed-price strategy.

Consumers will have to evaluate carefully whether GM's lower-priced cars also have fewer features. In the past, auto makers have compensated for sticker-price cuts by cutting back on standard equipment.

In part, GM is responding to the rising use of the Internet as a comparison-shopping tool. Dealers say consumers have been knocking GM's vehicles off their shopping lists because of the high sticker prices reported on popular shopping sites.

Mr. Kuhlman, the GM spokesman, confirmed that the auto maker will cut prices on many of its upcoming 2006 model-year vehicles. He said GM wasn't ready to announce which vehicles would be affected or what the new prices would be.

I have talked to a couple of people looking for a new Duramax, said there is not a 2005 in the state. They will probably end the promo because they cleared out all of the inventory to make room for 2006

OCDUNE

The manager of the dealership where I purchased mine in early june said then that the employee discount was part of an overall strategy towards no haggle pricing for GM in the future. It only makes sense you can't sell a Duramax for $34,000 and turn around and expect the market to jump up to $39,000 a month later. I would think it'll help the smaller dealers and hurt the large volume ones ie. Dave Smith.

Downside is a manager from the same dealership told me a week ago that the employee pricing really only generated truck and SUV sales, didn't do much of anything for their cars. GM will need to make their small and midsize cars far more attractive to get out of the hole.

The Big Three has trained the public to expect rebates and various pricing incentives. Only way they can undo this is to limit production and keep it less than the demand but that won't happen. Think they have created their own nightmare.

Think they have created their own nightmare. All the big three did,also killed your trade in value.My wifes 2003 trailblazer was worth $19,000 one month before the employee pricing,6 weeks after it started they were only going to give her $12,500 for it.

I guess the best bet for everyone is to buy a used 1 or 2 year old vehicle for 40% of the original price..........

This way a new $40K SUV can be bought for between $17-20K........

I wish I was in the market for a used vehicle right now...........probably have thousands of 2003's and 2004's to look at for below wholesale........

Good time to be looking at used cars, especially with the recent trade-ins.......

:cool:

Check out my post #8 here:
http://dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=39032

I guess it's to bad that all the poor people who bought trucks before the employee price are now owners of cheap trucksCensored . Trade in for the truck I paid 40000 for is 27500 4 months later! Talk about depreciation. The problem with cheap prices on new trucks is the devaluation of your current truck. Unless you are a first time buyer you are probably paying more difference because your trade is worthless. Looks like I'll have to put a couple million miles on this one before I can get out from under her:help:

After spending several years as a Finance Director for car dealerships, I have come to the conclusion that if you can see their lips move, then they are lying! Inventories too low, too high, too anything is just another reason for a big SALE. GM is just trying to squeze a little profit that the dealers are usually getting and shift it over to them. Mercedes Benz did it in 2002, and Toyota rope-i-doped the dealers with the Scion Brand pricing structure. Great for the Manufacturers, bad for the dealers. Cut the markup and raise the net without affecting the consumer price.