Buick To Do Away With Trim Levels
Starting in the 2012 model year, Buick will do away with its “CX”, “CXL” and “CXS” trim levels, and replace them with the familiar option packages used by competitors such as Lexus and Hyundai.
“It isn’t befitting a premium brand. No other premium brand has those designations,” said Craig Bierley, Buick-GMC director of advertising and sales promotion in an interview with Automotive News. “It implies a hierarchy — that there’s a cheap one, a middle-level one and a really, really nice one.”
Bierley said that while certain features such as sunroofs, larger wheels or navigation systems might be standalone options, the packages would be more than adequate to meet consumer desires. “When you get the second package, you get everything that’s in the first package, plus the second package,” he told reporters after the event. “You can’t go in and layer on the stuff that’s in the third package on the first package. You have to walk up the ladder.”
Base model cars are expected to see an increase in content due to the re-structuring, but their prices will also rise. According to Bierley, this is an acceptable consequence, due to GM’s desire to position Buick as a premium brand.
[Source: Automotive News]
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