BUICK LOSES BENGAL, MIGHT GET SUV
Ward's Dealer Business, Feb 1, 2002 12:00 PM

General Motors Corp. has decided not to make the Buick Bengal sports car but is considering building an SUV off the company's GMT360 architecture for the tri-shield marque, Ward's has learned.

Supplier and industry sources tell Ward's GM pulled the plug on the Bengal program. Sources indicate Bengal is a casualty of the product development shakeup underway at the auto maker since GM North America Chairman Bob Lutz and GM North America President Gary Cowger were named to their current jobs in November as replacements for Ron Zarrella, who left GM to become chief executive at Bausch & Lomb.

GM never confirmed plans for Bengal, which sources say was scheduled to go into production in 2003. Says a GM spokesman, “We never said we were doing that product.”

Ward's also learns production next year of the Cadillac XLR roadster has been delayed four to five months for “unspecified problems.” It was scheduled to begin assembly at the Bowling Green, KY, plant in the last quarter of 2002 and has been pushed into 2003.

The XLR debuted as a concept at the 1999 North American International Auto Show in Detroit and Bengal was unveiled at the 2001 show to rave reviews. It featured a front-wheel-drive configuration, a retractable tonneau, a supercharged 250-hp 3.4L V-6 engine and voice-activated controls.

Named for Buick endorsee and mega celebrity golfer Tiger Woods, the Bengal was to be the halo product for Buick to revitalize its stodgy image and keep the brand from going the way of Oldsmobile which is being phased out.

Some might see Bengal's demise as a prelude to Buick's death. But Mr. Lutz says no one at GM was working on brand elimination.

Buick's lineup will get a boost with the addition of a midsize SUV. Sources say consideration is being given to building a Buick model on a platform used for the Chevy TrailBlazer/GMC Envoy/Olds Bravada. However, sources say Buick's version would be an all-new model not a knock off of Bravada, which is being phased out with the rest of Olds' products.