Despite selling well, the Envision may not be in Buick’s lineup much longer
Last year, Buick sold a total of 42,000 units of its Envision model. By the end of the year, sales for the Envision made up 20 percent of Buick’s overall sales. Because of the Buick Envision’s sales success, it’s hard to imagine Buick dropping it from its lineup. However, if the U.S. government’s proposed tariffs on imported cars are put into effect, that could very well be the outcome for the SUV.
General Motors has reportedly applied for a tariff exemption for the Buick Envision, which is built in China and imported to the United States. The Trump administration’s proposed tariffs could range anywhere between 20 to 25 percent if they are enacted. That increase in cost could convince Buick to stop selling the Envision in the U.S. completely.
As much as the Envision was a sales success last year, its success hasn’t quite continued into 2018. Envision sales are currently down 25.7 percent year-over-year. Meanwhile, the Envision is more popular than ever in China. It simply wouldn’t make sense for Buick to move Envision production to the U.S. when the Chinese market is where it performs best. That’s not to say that Buick won’t be hurt by the absence of the SUV in the U.S. Right now, the Envision is part of Buick’s business plan to sell an extended lineup of crossovers and SUVs.
The Envision isn’t the only Buick model the tariffs could cause trouble for
The Envision wouldn’t be the only Buick heavily affected by the proposed tariffs. In fact, the Buick LaCrosse and the Buick Enclave are the only Buick models to be built in the U.S. The best-selling Buick Encore is based on the Opel Mokka’s platform and is manufactured in South Korea. Meanwhile, the Buick Cascada and Regal are both built in Europe. Buick has not announced plans to apply for tariff exemptions for these other Buick models. Still, if the exemption is successful for the Envision, that’s precisely what GM may end up doing.
News Source: Jalopnik
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