GM to Maintain Marketing Push

If the economy picks up, General Motors Corp. may be able to dial down incentives toward the end of the year, says President and CEO Rick Wagoner.

But he justifies the return of 0% financing in July to drive vehicle sales in the face of current economic winds.

“In May, we backed off incentives and lost market share. We brought it back and it worked,” says Wagoner at the opening of an exclusive Hummer dealership, a prototype for future Hummer stores.

Wagoner defends incentives for their ability to “increase sales and market share, get dealers excited and haul people into showrooms.”

Paul Ballew, GM executive director-market and industry analysis, says expect more aggressive programs in the second half of 2002. He says programs in 2002 helped GM pick up 0.3 points of light vehicle market share vs. year-ago.

GM went back to 0% financing in part because it wanted to get an early start on clearing out old inventory, says Ballew.

The auto maker also is likely to put more marketing emphasis on its certified used cars and trucks.

But GM has no plans to follow DaimlerChrysler Corp.'s lead and extend new vehicle powertrain warranties to seven years/70,000 miles (112,651 km) — nor does Ford Motor Co.