GM plans lower sticker prices

DETROIT — General Motors Corp. said Tuesday it is lowering sticker prices on three-quarters of its U.S. vehicles, a move meant to wean buyers off incentives and take aim at competitors that have been sapping its market share.

“You can buy another product, this is a free country. But if you do you’re paying more than you need to,” GM Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner told reporters at the North American International Auto Show.

Mark LaNeve, vice president of sales and marketing for the world’s biggest automaker, said the program will lower the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, or MSRP, by as much as $2,500 on some vehicles, but the average decrease will be $1,300. The new prices will be in effect today.

“We want it to be crystal clear that with or without incentives you’re getting a great price,” LaNeve said.

GM is lowering prices on all 2006 and 2007 Chevrolet, Buick and GMC vehicles and most Pontiac vehicles starting Wednesday, LaNeve said. Saab, Saturn and Hummer will be excluded because GM feels they’re already priced appropriately.

In all, the deal covers 57 of GM’s 76 models. When the new pricing is combined with another price cut GM took on 2006 models last fall, a total of 66 vehicles — or 90 percent of GM’s U.S. volume — have been repriced.

LaNeve said GM believes it will make money despite the markdowns because it has new products coming to market and it will be spending less per vehicle on incentives, which have sometimes topped $4,000 per vehicle.

“Bottom line, we think this is the right thing to do for our business,” LaNeve said. GM’s U.S. sales dropped 5 percent in 2005, which contributed to a loss of nearly $4 billion in the first nine months of the year.

There is some danger GM could lower prices and vehicles still won’t sell. But Wagoner and LaNeve said they don’t expect that to happen.

“We’re going to have to be a little patient. We’re going to be talking about the great values that are out there every day, and we think that by focusing more on the products we’re going to get more people in the showrooms,” Wagoner said.