GM Korea overwhelmed by surging orders for Traverse

The Traverse / Courtesy of GM Korea

By Nam Hyun-woo

GM Korea is apparently being overwhelmed by soaring orders for its new imported vehicles ― the Traverse SUV and the Colorado pickup truck ― as sales have far exceeded the company's expectations, according to industry officials Monday.

They said the vehicles' high popularity is a well-timed boost for the brand's deteriorating sales, but it may not be as favorable as it seems, given the time lag between orders and deliveries, and the recent strike by workers at GM plants in the United States.

Orders for the Traverse are estimated to have surpassed 1,200 since preorders of the large SUV began in early September. The Colorado pickup has also received more than 1,000 orders after its debut here in late August.

Initially, GM Korea anticipated that monthly orders for the Traverse would stand at between 500 and 600, and received around 2,000 vehicles at Pyeongtaek Port in Gyeonggi Province for the first round of deliveries to Korean customers from later this month, according to officials at a logistics firm. GM Korea refused to confirm the numbers.

They said the number of Traverses readied for delivery may not be enough if the current pace of monthly orders continues. This is because it takes at least two months for an import brand here to place an order with headquarters and have new cars ready for delivery.

“Even if GM Korea place orders now, it will likely take at least two months to get the cars, given the time for manufacturing vehicles with Korea-specific options, shipping them to Korea and pre-delivery inspections,” one of the officials said. “A delay in the delivery of Traverses seems to be inevitable, and the question is how the company can minimize the delay.”

As the number of orders soars, GM Korea is taking a cautious stance in promoting the sales boom, as it is wary of outstripping its capacity for delivery.

“GM Korea is cautious in dealing with the popularity of the Traverse and the Colorado, because there are limits to its speed and capacity in bringing in the imported vehicles,” an automobile firm official said.

“In terms of luxury brands, consumers do not withdraw their orders even though they have to wait for months for delivery. However, it is uncertain whether it will be the case for volume models like Chevrolet vehicles.”

GM Korea has been overwhelmed by soaring orders before.

In 2015, it released the Impala sedan as an import model and sold 6,913 that year. However, it failed to cope with soaring orders and saw customers withdrawing them.

Another concern in securing the import volume is the strike by the United Automobile Workers at General Motors.

Though the company has reportedly secured a significant volume of vehicles, fear is growing that it will likely affect the number heading to Korea, if the strike continues for a month.

“Though we cannot reveal the number of orders for the Traverse or the Colorado, it is true that customers are showing a favorable response to the two vehicles and the number of orders is bigger than our expectations,” a GM Korea official said.

“We are talking with headquarters to prevent any setbacks in importing the vehicles, and don't believe the strike in the U.S. will affect the volume heading to Korea.”

The Colorado / Courtesy of GM Korea