GM to stop making Rivieras in November -- Reuters
FLINT, Mich., Sept 16 (Reuters) - General Motors Corp.'s
Buick division said Wednesday it will stop making the
Riviera, first introduced more than 35 years ago when consumers
were lured by the full size sleek luxury two-door coupe.
Buick said it will cease production of the Buick Riviera at
GM's Orion assembly plant in Michigan on Nov. 25, 1998, several
months into the 1999 model year -- but held out the possibility
of bringing the name back someday.
Sales of Riviera, like those of most full-size coupes, have
continued to decline and it is time to turn attention to more
profitable models, Buick General Manager Robert Coletta said.
Riviera sales slumped from 21,029 in the 1996 model year to
16,419 in 1997. The first Buick Riviera was produced for the 1963
model year and 37,179 of the sleek two-door models were sold. By
1969, annual sales were close to 50,000. Since 1963, about
1,080,000 Rivieras have been sold.
Riviera's 1995 model at first brought increased sales (from
11,478 in 1992 to 25,536 in 1995) but never reached the historic
peak of 55,000 in 1984 and 1985. Some critics blamed the fact
that Riviera was a full-size coupe, which even in 1995 was a
declining segment of the market, Buick said.
"We're sorry to end production of Riviera, because it is
indeed a proud name in the Buick lineup," Coletta said. "But the
marketplace has spoken. Full-size luxury coupes represent a very
small percent of the market and the segment has been in decline
for a number of years," he said in a statement.
In July, Ron Zarrella, GM's top marketing executive, said GM
needs to reduce its car lines and put more effort into developing
truck products. GM has about 80 car and truck lines, down from
109 four years ago.
"We have nore cars than we need and not enough trucks. One of
the outcomes of this may be getting out of those cars faster,"
Zarrella, GM vice president for sales, marketing and service,
said at that time.
Buick plans to end production with a limited edition of 200
1990 Riviera Silver Arrow cars. The name was taken from a 1963
concept Riviera still owned by the Sloan Museum in Flint,
Michigan.
The 1963 Silver Arrow was created for William Mitchell,
then General Motors design chief, and had a lowered roof line and
lengthened hood.
Mitchell had the original idea for the 1963 Riviera. His
vision was inspired, he said, when he saw the sharp, elegant
lines of a Rolls-Royce softened by fog in front of the Claridge
Hotel in London.
Car and Driver magazine said the 1963 Riviera "stands alone
among American cars in providing a combination of luxury,
performance and general roadworthiness that approaches Bentley
Continental standards at less than half the price." The 1963
model was priced at about $4,300.
About 2,000 of the 1999 Rivieras will be made including the
last 200 as the collectible models. The 1999 Riviera is priced at
about $33,000. The price of collectible model was not available.
Shares of GM closed off 6 cents to $58.81 on the New York
Stock Exchange on turnover of more than two million shares.
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