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General Motors this year is expected to discontinue two subcompact crossovers that were once among its top sellers: the Buick Encore and Chevrolet Trax.
GM will end production of both South Korea-built crossovers in August, said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions.
GM Authority reported the end of production earlier.
Both crossovers overlap with slightly larger siblings within the subcompact segment: the Buick Encore GX and the Chevy Trailblazer, which went on sale in 2020.
“Instead of updating the subcompact crossovers, GM went a step further and addressed the shortcomings of these popular models,” Fiorani said. “With their longer wheelbases, the Encore GX and Trailblazer sport more rear-seat room and more cargo space in a package that’s only a few inches longer.”
GM spokeswoman Kellie Van Maele did not directly confirm the end of Trax and Encore output.
Chevy will continue to sell five crossovers, and Buick will continue to sell four, she said.
“Beyond that, we cannot confirm future product plans at this time.”
U.S. sales of the Trax plunged 60 percent to 42,590 last year, while Trailblazer volume more than doubled to 90,161, according to the Automotive News Research & Data Center.
Encore deliveries in the U.S. fell 52 percent to 20,072, while Encore GX volume rose 59 percent to 71,247.
Sales of both the Trax and Encore peaked at more than 100,000 in 2019, when the Trax ranked second and the Encore third in the subcompact crossover segment, behind the top-selling Subaru Crosstrek.
The Trax and Encore went on sale in the U.S. in 2013 and ranked high in the segment for several years. The Trax remained in the top four until last year, when the Trailblazer became No. 3 and outsold the Trax by more than 47,000 vehicles.
The Encore was in the top four until 2020, when the Encore GX debuted. The Encore was Buick’s top-selling nameplate from 2015 to 2020, when the Encore GX outsold its predecessor by about 3,000. In 2021, the GX outpaced the Encore by more than 50,000 vehicles.
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