GM Will Shift Buick Regal Production To Oshawa

Last week, General Motors officially announced that the 2011 Buick Regal would be added to the Buick line up next Spring, a four cylinder model based on the Opel Insignia. Slotting below the Buick LaCrosse, the all new Regal will be built initially in Germany for export to the United States and Canada.

2011 Buick Regal

Weak Dollar

On Wednesday, GM announced that starting in the first quarter of 2011 North American production of the Buick Regal would commence, as the automaker will tap its Oshawa, Ontario facility in Canada to build the car. That quickly answers a concern raised soon after the Regal announcement – export costs and a weak US dollar would drive up the cost of the sedan.

“The new Regal gives Buick a modern performance sedan and its production here in Oshawa is terrific news for our employees, the CAW, dealers and suppliers,” says Arturo Elias, president, General Motors of Canada. “Combining Buick’s top position in the industry in terms of brand quality with the Oshawa Car Plant’s long-standing reputation for top quality assembly means customers’ highest expectations will be met with this midsize sport sedan.”

Expanding Production

Word that the Regal will be built in Oshawa is welcome news to the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) and its union as Oshawa currently builds the popular Chevy Camaro sport coupe there as well as the GMC Terrain and Chevy Equinox compact crossover models.

Beginning about the same time as when Regal production starts, GM will also launch production of the long awaited Chevy Camaro convertible.

When GM received Canadian and Ontario government financial assistance this past summer, one of the requirements that these entities made in exchange for loans was for GM to build five different models in Oshawa. The Buick Regal is the fourth model that will be built there with a fifth model to be named at a later date.

GM employs 9,000 people directly in Canada with tens of thousands of additional jobs from suppliers and area businesses also dependent on the automaker’s success.

Source: General Motors

Saturn Brand To Exit Canada

General Motors still hasn’t finalized the sale of its Saturn brand to the Penske Group, but before 2009 comes to an end, Saturn’s presence in Canada will end before the calendar flips over to 2010. According to Automotive News, which reported this news this past Monday, Canada is being dropped as a Saturn market because there isn’t enough viable business north of the border to justify the expense of maintaining a presence in that market.

Good-bye To Canada

Affected by the move will be 46 Saturn dealerships across Canada. Canadian customers will still be able to get their cars serviced, but that responsibility will be transferred to other GM makes, including Chevrolet. Customer service, parts and warranty service will remain in effect, but under other GM dealers.

The Penske Group signed a deal with GM in June, while the company was under bankruptcy protection, to purchase Saturn from GM. That deal is expected to conclude by the end of the third quarter which would be no later than September 30th. GM is currently paring back its eight US brands to four, selling Hummer to a Chinese company, finalizing a deal to sell Saab to a Scandinavian-led consortium while shutting down Pontiac.

The Penske Retail Network

Initially, GM will supply several models to the new Saturn company, but long term Penske will likely source additional cars from others manufacturers. Renault, working with Nissan, may send cars from its South Korean operation to the US to be sold through Saturn. In addition, reports have surfaced that Penske is in discussion with at least one Chinese automaker to sell its cars stateside. Finally, Peugeot may be interested in the Saturn retail network and could tap dealers to sell its cars as well.

Regardless, it appears that the Saturn retail network will eventually become a “Best Buy” type business selling a variety of models from a number of different brands through retail stores scattered across the United States. That would be a dramatic change for the business once known as “a different kind of car company” with quirky S-models built in the hills of Tennessee.

See Also — The Saturn Flextreme: Now That’s Unusual!