GM rolls out new Buick SUVs in China

CHICAGO - General Motors (GM) on Wednesday launched a series of Buick SUVs in China's southern city of Guangzhou, as part of its plan to solidify the brand's SUV lineup in the world's biggest car market.

The all-new Enclave and Enclave Avenir large SUVs, and 2020 Envision midsize SUV were among the fresh fleet of Buick SUVs.

With the new Encore small SUV and long-wheelbase Encore GX compact SUV that Buick already launched in July, the brand's growing portfolio in China now covers the small, compact and midsize to large SUV segments, said Molly Peck, executive director of Buick for SAIC-GM.

"With the arrival of the Enclave Avenir, we have also taken our SUV family to an even more premium level to keep up with the fast-changing market," she was quoted as saying in a press release.

Buick has sold over 10 million vehicles in China since 1998. However, amid an overall downtrend in China's car market since 2018, GM has also suffered a significant decline in sales.

In the third quarter of 2019, GM sales in China decreased 17.5 percent year-on-year, with Buick brand seeing a 20.6 percent fall.

In a bid to reverse the downturn, GM has planned to introduce some 20 new and refreshed models in China this year. Around two-thirds are arriving in the second half, with a sharpened focus on luxury vehicles and midsize or large SUVs.

Thirteen Buick models will be on display at Auto Guangzhou 2019, which begins on Nov 22, said the leading US automaker.