[sharoncr_17]

GM will find even harder days with the current product portfolio, worse dealer network and the non existent customer care.

Like they say, "Once bitten, twice shy". People like myself who have had a taste of chevy experience would definitely think twice before investing their moolah in the bow-tie. Given a choice I would rather spend some extra cash and opt for a Figo than a Chevy which drives better, feels better and has a relatively better brand image. The extra cylinder is definitely worth the premium paid.

[narayan]

I get a sense, GM is "ok" with these losses in India because in their aggregated global financials, this will help offset profits elsewhere. Anyways, for such marginal players operating in an regulated market like India where profit repatriation has its costs, this must be a sweet spot they might be ok to be in because the cost of turning profitable is just too high and not worth it UNLESS you get massive scale which is difficult in the Indian market with Maruti and Hyundai around.

[deehunk]

Originally Posted by dZired

General Motors is currently in a rut in the Indian market. The American automaker's Indian arm has recorded a loss of over Rs. 1,100 crore during 2015-16. Interestingly, the net worth of the Indian operations of General Motors is just Rs. 249 crore. As a result, the losses are over four times of the company's net worth in the country.

The Management will never be held responsible for slowly killing the company, but who is going to take care of the suppliers and employees working with a company like GM. This is where I feel there is a need for a regulation to say "STOP". These companies get land at subsidized rates, claim tax exemptions and later get the benefit of selling the land at highly appreciated rates. I have never seen any instance of banks recovering debts from Industries in India. I believe that the companies should never own the land, they should be given land on lease initially and taken back if a company fails to perform. This may make the management to be more accountable to the employees and not over invest on a business.

[Nav-i-gator]

They dig their own grave when they decided to launch the cheap chinese sail and enjoy in the guise of chevrolet brand, which killed the brand value almost overnight. At the time when ford, hyundai et al were doing global launches in India of their new models, GM sort of insulted Indian customers by treating us as third world poor country where even junk can be sold.

Alas, they had the brands, R&D muscle, money, iconic models, beautiful engines across power range (esp diesels), but not the brains and willingness to fight it out. Poor losers.

P.S.: I am a beat owner.

[bsdbsd]

If only they can revamp their portfolio, and launch Chevy Malibu as the flagship, they would go places. Malibu should be the global model with all bells and whistles. Its one of the most comfortable cars I have ever driven. Sad to see them at this state.

[vinit.merchant]

Thats like a person earning 10L a year (no other income or accumulated wealth) buying a luxury car worth 40L on loan with a 1 year tenure.
The only difference being, at least the person here will enjoy the car.

Any one remember this? They were targeting just a small () 5% market share not too far back i.e. May 2015.
Look where they have reached now.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...ml#post3699233

Even after burning so much money, all they have managed is probably a dip in their market share (used to be 1.6% when the news came out)

I think they should just shut shop and flee the Indian market. Come back later with a determined mindset and robust road map, if they are really serious about their Indian operations.

EDIT: Come to think of it, Sail sedan (which is more than 4m in length anyway) has been shod with their 1.2L petrol engine. Why not the 1.4L which they use on the Enjoy? Who decides such things?

[groom]

GM should do in India, what Ford did in Japan.
Exit.

Sooner the better, they could mop up decent amount through the sales of dealer and distribution networks to budding other companies who seem to get somewhere (and not nowhere).

The opportunity cost of being in this deadly competitive market with cheap cars with high economies of scales will lead GM nowhere even in the next ten years. With a strategy like GM's, it may be another twenty years too.

[Anuruddhs]

Other than cruze they have always launched products with out dated engine and not really had any product which could establish brand with a differentiating factor . Thye need to launch at least one product which can create hype for the brand other wise its near to become like fiat india

[GTO]

Originally Posted by groom

GM should do in India, what Ford did in Japan.
Exit.

At one time, GM & Tata had a lot in common. Full range of flop cars, a brand customers didn't want to touch with a barge pole, unmotivated dealerships (many closing down) and quality issues.

The difference is, Tata continues to work hard. Just look at the Tiago & Hexa. They don't stop trying.

GM, it appears, has given up on the market. I agree with groom - unless GM has a plan, it's better they just exit the Indian market.

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

Somehow, both American car makers are not dominating our market. Both Ford and GM have struggled in India.

I don't think Ford & GM can be compared. Ford continues to launch new products (or update existing ones) and is serious about their presence in India. It's a brand that is able to sell 500 copies of a 30 lakh SUV, and 4,000 - 5,000 EcoSports each month.

Originally Posted by Nav-i-gator

They dig their own grave when they decided to launch the cheap chinese sail and enjoy in the guise of chevrolet brand

The Chinese SAIC bought stake in GM India around the time that GM declared bankruptcy in the USA. Launching those cars here wasn't a GM decision as much as it was an SAIC one.

Originally Posted by bsdbsd

If only they can revamp their portfolio, and launch Chevy Malibu as the flagship

Among other things, the Malibu isn't produced in RHD. Hence, it cannot be sold in India.

Originally Posted by vinit.merchant

Thats like a person earning 10L a year (no other income or accumulated wealth) buying a luxury car worth 40L on loan with a 1 year tenure.

Hahaha! But at least the car will be worth something. I'd say it's akin to someone have a net worth of 10 lakhs, but spending 40 lakhs a year on shopping, eating out & holidays. Only hope = Papa (i.e. GM USA) will keep topping up my bank balance.

[bsdbsd]

Originally Posted by GTO

Among other things, the Malibu isn't produced in RHD. Hence, it cannot be sold in India.

GTO, just curious. Cant it be retooled for RHD? I am sure its a significant engg exercise but can such things prevent a launch of global models? What about EcoSport now being exported to US?

[bhaskaracs]

I wish I am out there consulting GM India. There is a lot of money to make on designing and executing large scale transformation/restructuring programs for them. Everything seems to have went wrong for GM India - when I say everything I refer to Marketing function (largely absent, except when putting out ads on price discounts), Sales (these are the guys who decide when to give a discount), Finance function (ahem... with the net worth erosion...), Supply chain (dealerships switching loyalties), Ageing product portfolio, Production (issues such as Halol plant uncertainty, several product recalls etc.) and After Sales service (I don't know much about this, but I 'safely' assume it should be poor given everything else is).

Consulting them is a mouth watering prospect.

And then the final recommendation could be just that there is no shame in just accepting that they cannot do well in India and exit and cut down losses including the ones they incurred writing me a cheque for consulting them.

[AutoNoob]

Originally Posted by deehunk

who is going to take care of the suppliers and employees working with a company like GM.

Originally Posted by vinit.merchant

I think they should just shut shop and flee the Indian market.

Originally Posted by groom

GM should do in India, what Ford did in Japan.
Exit.

As a Beat owner, I am a worried person. The way situation is going for GM, it might be difficult for us to source spares and services. Regulations say that every OEM must provide all the spares till 15 years from the date of sale, but does not specify the lead time for the same. Only conforting point for me is that atleast for next 3-4 years, the crunch for spares may not be so hard as the facelifted version also uses mostly common parts.

That said, Beat is a wonderful vehicle that has served well over past 6 years without any niggle of its own. It's sad to see such a situation.

[sunishsamuel]

I sometimes wonder why these companies fail to fix their problems. They have the manpower, can hire best of the guys from world's best colleges. I don't why product management is so weak in these companies.

What would it take to understand the needs of the market and launching a product that suits market preferences. What would it take to create a product that will sell ? E.g Innova, Brezza

Maybe GM just need their guys to do some solid market research and start launching products accordingly. Captiva seemed a good product but it was no match to the Fortuner in terms of the sales. Same with Tavera, though it sold for a while it became so boring now. They can launch Impala, Traverse and do not see a reason why they will not sell if priced rightly. Traverse is sold for $27800 so it will approx Rs. 20 Lakhs in india (of course the final cost could end up in the range of 25-30 Lakhs)

[The Brutailer]

How about they update FOUR cars in India?

1. A good hatchback (update the Beat! Too old)

2. A powerful sedan (update the Cruze! Too old)

3. Compact SUV (Mini Trailblazer anyone?)

4. Trailblazer (Market it more!!)

So, the main problem is that they aren't updating their portfolio at all! How hard is that? GM used to be what Volkswagen are now. Get serious GM! India is one of the biggest automotive market in the world.

[deehunk]

Originally Posted by sunishsamuel

I sometimes wonder why these companies fail to fix their problems. They have the manpower, can hire best of the guys from world's best colleges. I don't why product management is so weak in these companies.

From my 15 years’ experience of working in manufacturing industries, I have seen people coming from big brands and doing nothing, it is a myth that best of the guys come world's best colleges. Best may not always be tough, the more you get screwed in your first job the better it is in long term, this does not mean getting harassed at work place but working with 100% ownership from the early years. The offshore design teams often work with restrictions imposed either by Parent company or their immediate Head. Fake leaders avoid taking risks and prefer to grow within their capabilities. When a company closes, the fake leaders find another comfortable job. In one of my post about Renault I had written that Renault’s success with Kwid was due to a good team who had a stint with flopped car makers in India. GM India does not have the freedom to correct things and are tied down by their parent company.