Companies that turned a corner
BETTER BRANDS: How some old names are making new inroads on the car market
The automotive industry is rapidly changing — evolving government regulations, burgeoning car segments and emerging markets are seeing some former wallflower car brands move to centre stage.
In this process, some manufacturers are enjoying a paradigm shift, as it were, in how they are perceived and received by new car buyers.
Pushing their way up sales charts closer to more established rivals, here are our top 10 automakers who are experiencing a new take on “business as usual.”
Aston Martin
For the first time in decades, once-stodgy Aston Martin is confidently looking toward its future instead of reflecting on its past. Whether it’s gaining global awareness via the James Bond movie franchise (see the DB10 in Spectre, the first Aston Martin to be built exclusively for the secret agent), announcing its firstever SUV (the electric DBX Concept) or making a return to the Formula One grid (via a partnership with the Force India team), the British supercar brand’s prospects for survival are looking brighter than ever.
GMC
Since its profits helped parent General Motors stay afloat during the U.S. automaker’s bankruptcy in 2009, the GMC brand has been a remarkable sales success story, riding the wave of consumer demand for crossovers, SUVs and trucks. Just last month, GMC sales were up 13 per cent, marking the brand’s 16th consecutive month of sales growth, pushing GM to the top spot in Canada. Better still, almost one in five GMC models are of the highly profitable Denali high-end models.
Honda
After a downturn that saw little-tono technical innovation and questionable product development (see the Insight and CR-Z hybrids and Crosstour), it looks like Japan’s Honda is back to its innovative ways. With no plans on giving up its “best-selling car in Canada” crown, Honda leads with its all-new generation 2016 Civic featuring thoroughly modern, direct-injected and turbocharged powertrains, with the return of the Civic hatchback and sporty Type R — plus, its Acura NSX supercar is a technological tour de force.
Hyundai
Today’s lineup of well-designed, technically innovative and valueladen mainstream Hyundai vehicles is burying the memories of its awful 1970s Pony economy car firmly in the past. South Korea’s marque (along with its Kia brand) is poised to move its loyal customers upmarket, taking on the more established luxury names, with the recently announced stand-alone Genesis brand. Starting this December, Hyundai will launch six new Genesis models by 2020, while also introducing a new alphanumeric naming system marrying the letter G with a number — 90, 80, 70, etc. — for each class.
Jeep
Once exclusive to U.S. army grunts, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ Jeep brand has become a global phenomenon. In 2014, more than one million Jeeps were sold worldwide — a record number and further proof of the brand’s successful strategy to introduce more appealing smaller models, like the recent compact Cherokee and Renegade, to attract buyers in international markets. As well, Jeep plans to nearly double its sales in five years, with new plants opening in China and Brazil.
McLaren
Not long ago, supercar buyers had only a few legitimate options to choose from, and most were primarily Italian, as in Ferrari, Lamborghini and Pagani. Since the introduction of its MP4-12C in 2011, Britain’s McLaren Automotive has elbowed its way into the rarefied supercar crowd. Today, there’s a full lineup of highly desirable McLarens, from its range-topping, limited production P1 plug-in hybrid (of which only 375 copies will be sold) to its justreleased, entry-level 570S model.
Jaguar Land Rover
Like former Ford luxury brands Aston Martin and Volvo, Jaguar and Land Rover looked like a pair of basket cases when the U.S. automaker sold the brands to India’s Tata conglomerate in 2008. But in that time, Jaguar Land Rover has seen billions of dollars of Tata money turn into new and fashionable vehicles: Land Rover Discovery Sport, Range Rover Evoque, Jaguar F-Pace SUV and XE compact sedan. Financial losses in 2009 were reversed by 2013, with JLR recording billion dollar-plus annual profits for the last three years.
Subaru
With year-to-year record growth, Subaru has become one of the biggest success stories in the auto industry, outflanking more established Japanese rivals. Thanks to a lineup of practical, all-wheel-drive vehicles that seem perfect for North American lifestyles, and with an extremely loyal customer base, Subaru continues to break monthly sales records. To keep up the momentum, Subaru unveiled two new concepts at this year’s Tokyo Motor Show, giving clues to the next generation Impreza and potential three-row crossover.
Tesla
The U.S. electric carmaker may lose thousands of dollars on each vehicle it sells, but no other automaker today is influencing the car industry as much as Tesla Motors. Starting with its Roadster in 2008 (the first production car to use lithiumion batteries and to have an electrical range greater than 320 kilometres) to today’s Model S sedan and Model X crossover, Tesla has forced industry stalwarts to come up with their own luxury electric cars (such as the Porsche Mission E and Audi e-tron at this year’s Frankfurt show). Next up is the Tesla 3, a $35,000 US electric rival to BMW’s 3 Series sedan.
Volvo
In the transition from being owned by Ford to its current Chinese parents at Geely Automotive, Volvo has been working on an all-new family of four-cylinder engines, dubbed Drive-E (a turbocharger and a supercharger allow the T6 engine to make 316 horsepower, while the T8 Twin engine plug-in hybrid makes 400 horsepower), and an equally new Scalable Product Architecture vehicle platform supporting nine models over three model lines: the 40-, 60-, and 90-series, each with a sedan (S), wagon (V) and crossover XC variant.
If the first of these “new” Volvos, the new XC90, is any indication,