Buick-GMC dealers have their eye on luxury, EVs

Buick-GMC retailers expect their businesses to benefit from more electric vehicles and higher-end pickup trims this year, the chairman of the brands' U.S. dealer council says.

GMC began deliveries of the Hummer EV pickup late last year. The brand has more than 59,000 reservations for the pickup and the Hummer SUV, due out in 2023.

Bo Mandal, chairman of the Buick-GMC National Dealer Council, said he thinks the Hummer pickup is GM's most innovative nameplate to date. GM developed the Hummer in two years, instead of the three to four years most vehicle programs take.

"The fact that GM did it at warp speed gives us a lot of confidence as dealers. From concept to manufacturing and delivering, that was incredible," he said. "I do believe that it is going to prove that General Motors is capable of building an electric vehicle that is the ultimate luxury at the same time."

Even without the Hummers, GMC was effectively becoming a luxury brand, said Mandal, CEO of Mandal Automotive Group in Biloxi, Miss.

The 2022 Sierra pickup offers two new high-end trims: Denali Ultimate and AT4X. GMC aims to further capitalize on the popularity of GMC's Denali and AT4 subbrands, which make up about 45 percent of Sierra retail sales, and solidify GMC's claim to the premium pickup market, Duncan Aldred, global vice president of Buick and GMC, said last fall.

The Denali Ultimate starts at $80,395 including shipping, nearly $50,000 more than the low-level Sierra Pro trim and about $20,000 more than the standard Denali. The AT4X starts at $74,995, about $14,000 more than the standard AT4.

Mandal is confident that there is a market for those high-end trims.

GMC customers "want the best of the best," he said.

The brand will continue to offer vehicles at a variety of price points, "but from a luxury standpoint, GMC is continuing to push the envelope."

On the Buick side, dealers are starving for more inventory, Mandal said.

"That's been a more difficult [brand] in some cases because they're built overseas," he said. "Our outlook for Buick this year is great. I just know it's going to be an interesting segment as it moves into EV as well."

GM has said it's aiming to have a fully electric lineup by 2035. GM has revealed some EVs for GMC, Chevrolet and Cadillac, but it has been less specific about Buick. For now, dealers are satisfied with Buick's all-crossover gasoline-powered lineup.

"Buick was totally reinvented," Mandal said. "It still has the same name, but the evolution of what it's become has been really kind of unique and exciting, and it's now catering to a much younger buyer."

Super Cruise, GM's hands-free driver-assist feature, will be available on the 2022 Sierra and spread to 21 other nameplates through 2023, the automaker has said.

"We're talking about things that are in vehicles now that just five[to] 10 years ago I didn't even think were possible," Mandal said. "The luxury side of what we're doing is going to always be there, and we're always going to be reaching further and striving for a more perfect vehicle."