As buyers tend to move to crossovers and SUVs, Buick believes there is no need for a chic city car anymore to compete against the MINI and Fiat 500.
Speaking with AutomotiveNews, Duncan Aldred, the head of Buick, dismissed a B-segment car and said that he is “thrilled” with the brand’s current portfolio.
“I very much did feel when I came over that that could really help accelerate the Buick brand story. I don’t see that as much. Whether the market shifted or the fashion nature of those cars has changed, I don’t know. But I wouldn’t be looking for a small, B-segment car today“, he said.
The new statement follows a report from last year, in which Aldred expressed interest in seeing a Buick-badged version of the Opel/Vauxhall Adam.
Despite the supermini won’t be added to Buick’s lineup, the manufacturer’s chief believes that the Envision, Cascada and the 2017 LaCrosse, which will hit the market this summer, will help push the firm’s sales above last year’s total of 223,055 units.
Aldred continued to talk about Buick’s future portfolio and he didn’t rule out the possibility of a flagship vehicle, which might be inspired by the Avista Coupe or Avenir Sedan studies: “We’ll have three sedans, three crossovers and a halo. I think most brands would say, ‘Yeah, that’s a great portfolio’.“
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