Achieving sustainability is a huge challenge, but it is also a great opportunity. And now is the time to seize this opportunity.

While the industry has faced big challenges before, it has never been more ready to meet them. Today’s automakers and suppliers have an extensive palette of technology options from which to create our future vehicles.

For example, in the powertrain arena, these options run the gamut from advanced engine and transmission technologies and alternate fuels, to hybridization, electrification, and to my favorite, fuel cells.

These new propulsion technologies, in turn, are driving the need for new and better electrical and electronic systems, controls, and connected vehicle technologies, which together will revolutionize how our vehicles operate, how we interact with them, and how they communicate with each other and the outside world.

Alongside these advances, a host of new lighter-weight and smart materials are changing the look and feel of our cars and trucks, making them more fuel-efficient and increasing their functionality.

Individually, these technologies promise to significantly increase industry growth.

But with their convergence, a new automotive DNA is emerging. A DNA that promises to be sustainable and better in all aspects than the internal combustion engine, petroleum, and predominantly mechanical controls genetics that have characterized automobiles for the past century.

This new DNA gives us the ability to completely reinvent the automobile making it more fun to drive, enhancing its value, and, importantly, changing it from a means to get from point A to point B to a node on a global network that connects the flow of transportation, information, and power.

The automobile’s transformation from a stand-alone, largely mechanical device to one that is electrical and connected will be every bit as momentous as the transition from horses to horsepower and will result in a vehicle that is fundamentally better by every measure — whether you are talking about performance, design, energy efficiency, or safety.

The point here is that vehicle owners won’t be faced with tradeoffs. In fact, they will get greater value at an affordable price.

These will be vehicles that excite and delight our customers and what will help this industry grow to meet the potential demand for more than one billion vehicles by 2020.

I said this during my keynote address at Convergence and want to repeat it. I would like to propose that we, GM and the entire industry, set an agenda for action to accelerate the convergence of technology and create and implement the new automotive DNA.

Now is the time to face the realities of our world. Now is the time to turn long term into near term. Now is the time to reinvent the automobile and transform our industry.

Posted by Editor at 2:15 PM
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Hitting the Road

Saab 9-7X

By Bob Lutz
GM Vice Chairman

I’m on the road this week, stopping in Phoenix for a media preview of our new fullsize pickups, the Chevy Silverado and the GMC Sierra. Obviously, these are hugely important vehicles in our product portfolio, and we believe they are the most refined, powerful, capable and efficient pickups on the market. We know exactly what it takes to win in this segment, and we intend to deliver.

But it’s not going to stop there.

Our new cars and trucks continue to be the centerpiece of GM’s turnaround plan, a turnaround that is really taking hold. Our newest models continue to sell nicely, including the new fullsize SUVs; we now have more than a 70 percent share of that segment. The large utility segment actually grew 6 percent in September, largely driven by sales of our Chevy Tahoe and Suburban and GMC Yukon and Yukon XL.

Other September highlights include a 45-percent growth spurt at Saab, driven by sales of the 9-3 and the 9-7X, and Cadillac sales that climbed by 22 percent. Hummer H3 sales were up 19 percent, helping the brand to enjoy a 10 percent retail hike versus a year ago.

And we will continue to be aggressive with our product assault, with frequent and wide-ranging launches. We’ll be in the traditional segments… we’ll be in emerging segments… high-volume, niche-market… you name it — we’ll be there.

Saturn Outlook

Soon we’ll be launching vehicles like the Saturn Outlook and GMC Acadia, to be followed by the Buick Enclave. Then we’ll have the heavy-duty pickups and our fullsize SUV hybrid models next year. And our passenger car lineup will include an all-new Chevy Malibu and Cadillac CTS, which we’ll unveil in early 2007, and I personally can’t wait to get them out there, because they are really going to turn some heads with their styling.

And we’ll have a lot more to come after that, as well. Our work is far from done.

But to tell you the truth, it’s not just that we’re doing a lot of new cars and trucks… it’s the way we’re doing them!

Our new product development organization is more nimble, more efficient and more creative than it’s ever been before. In short, we expect a faster global portfolio turnover with less cost, allowing us to maximize profit on a global basis. And we expect a reduction in our architecture count over time of 50 percent as we introduce more converged architectures replacing the regional architectures we have today.

The lessons we learned in the development of our new pickups, for example, and the efficiencies we gained, are indicative of the success of our new product development structure, and that’s what we’ll carry forward and apply to future programs. And by the way, the entire program was moved forward 13 weeks, which is a Herculean task in itself.

We are making great progress in truly leveraging our global engineering resources, and we’re just going to get better at it. That’s one of the chief benefits of our streamline global product development organization.

That’s what I continue to tell the naysayers who claim we don’t have the product to compete with the imports, and that’s what I’ll say here. Our product lineup will take a backseat to no one.

Posted by Editor at 10:45 AM
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Plenty to Cheer About

Jimmie Johnson

By Alba Colon
GM Racing Program Manager, NASCAR Nextel Cup Series

My adopted hometown baseball team, the Detroit Tigers, scored a big win on Saturday night. Unfortunately that wasn’t the case for Chevrolet at the Bank of America 500 this weekend. Even though it wasn’t a win, I’m very proud of the performance of the seven Monte Carlo SS race cars that represented Chevrolet in the top 10.

Last week I mentioned two drivers that we know dominate at Lowe’s Motor Speedway — Kasey Kahne and Jimmie Johnson. In case you didn’t catch the race, Kasey and Jimmie finished 1-2. It’s unfortunate we finished second but we knew Kasey would be very competitive as he has been at many of the mile-and-a-half tracks this year. I’m looking forward to Martinsville this weekend, a short track where Chevy has excelled. It’s only been one race but it would be great to get back to the winners circle again!

Even though our four-race win streak in the Chase has ended, the short-term and long-term picture look very good for Team Chevy, where we have a lot of things to be excited about right now. In the Chase, Jeff Burton has gained ground after increasing his lead in the points and putting more distance between a key Ford competitor. In preparation for next year, we had a successful Car of Tomorrow test session last week in Talladega and the new 2007 engine package for Chevrolet has been approved by NASCAR. Plus we have several talented drivers joining the Chevrolet lineup including some rising stars we will be bringing into the sport.

One success from this week was gaining some valuable points on our competitors, specifically Matt Kenseth. Last week Chevrolet had a narrow six-point advantage in the championship standings, but this week Jeff Burton has padded his lead to 45 points. Jeff continues to have consistent finishes week in and week out which is exactly what it’s going to take to win a championship for Team Chevy.

Kevin Harvick moved up one spot to third (despite dealing with broken gears in his transmission and a pit road speeding violation), pushing another Ford competitor, Mark Martin, back to fourth. I had an opportunity to talk to Kevin on Saturday after he clinched his second Busch Series drivers championship. He and the whole GM Goodwrench team were very upbeat on the momentum they are building. If Kevin wins the Nextel Cup and Busch Series championships this year, this could be the first and last driver we ever see in the history of NASCAR win dual drivers championships in the same season. What a truly amazing feat that could be.

We are also thrilled with some changes that are taking place with our teams that will add even more depth to Chevrolet. It was recently announced that Mark Martin and Regan Smith will join MB2 Motorsports and compete for Chevrolet. This veteran-rookie duo in the No. 01 U.S. Army Chevy will be a powerful combination and a great addition to our team. Ricky Carmichael will also pilot a Chevy in his MB2 debut next year. If you don’t know Ricky, he is the Jeff Gordon of motorcross. He’s the best of the best. The No. 96 Hall of Fame Racing team also added Brandon Thomas as the team’s new crew chief. Brandon is off to a great start with the team after a seventh-place finish this weekend, the best finish this season for driver Tony Raines. Our current Chevy stars, combined with these new drivers and crew members, provide a very bright future for Chevrolet in NASCAR.

Thanks for your continued interest in GM’s racing efforts and your comments. I appreciate your feedback.

Posted by Editor at 10:57 AM
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Letarte Discusses the Three Keys to Winning at Martinsville

Steve Letarte recently passed the one-year mark of taking over as crew chief for the No. 24 Chevy Monte Carlo SS team and driver Jeff Gordon. With a less-than-desired finish in Charlotte now in the rearview mirror, Gordon, Letarte and crew head to Martinsville where the team placed second in the spring race.

In this podcast, Letarte talks about the three keys to winning at Martinsville, how each of the Chase for the Championship race venues are "wild card" races, the importance of a solid qualifying run at Martinsville, plus a more personal perspective after one year leading the team.

Listen to the interview.

Posted by Editor at 10:23 AM
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OnStar and TTY

By Mark Loehr
Engineer, GM Powertrain

My job at GM is as an engineer with GM Powertrain, but as a person who is deaf, I had an interest in bringing the capabilities of OnStar to my community.

OnStar unveiled an in-vehicle device that will improve the ability of deaf, hard-of-hearing and speech-impaired subscribers to use most of OnStar’s safety, security and convenience services. The TTY compatible equipment will provide 24/7 access to TTY Advisors through the blue OnStar button and the red Emergency button, as well as access to OnStar’s Hands-Free Calling capability through the dial pad.

I got involved when I realized that OnStar was not fully accessible for people who are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired. We formed a sub-committee team within the GM Mobility committee, with members who are also deaf or hard of hearing.

Here’s how it works. Once TTY equipment is installed in a vehicle, OnStar services will be available based on the user’s subscription plan (excluding OnStar Turn-by-Turn Navigation and Virtual Advisor). Under the Directions & Connections subscription plan, driving directions and point-of-interest locations can be delivered via the TTY device.

This system leverages the combined capabilities of GM and OnStar to bring the benefits of OnStar to a larger segment of society.

I am proud to be a member of this team. We worked with a dedicated OnStar team on decisions regarding the product’s appearance, and marketing, as well as development of communication materials that would be effective with deaf, hard-of-hearing or speech-impaired drivers.

This dealer-installed option is available now on a wide range of 2007 GM models, including the Saturn Relay, Buick Terraza and Chevrolet Uplander. The option is available at little or no additional cost through the GM Mobility Reimbursement Program. To learn more about the program, take a look at some of these questions.

Posted by Editor at 3:21 PM
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Cadillac Comes to South Africa

Ed Welburn

By Ed Welburn
GM Vice President, Global Design

Well, GM has brought a great surprise to South Africa: Cadillacs!

After launching the South African production of Hummer H3s for export on Tuesday, we invited South Africa's press corps to what they expected would be a Hummer event in the Western Cape city of George. We put on a grand "Hummer" show, complete with jungle theme, a large wooden crate, and false stockade fences. Lots of Hummer displays, great music… and then all of a sudden the music switched, the displays dropped, the crate opened, and inside was... a Cadillac BLS ! As those stage-set fences came down, the crowd slowly began to see Cadillac SRX and STS.

The response was tremendous.

Starting early next year, three Cadillac models will be sold in South Africa — the BLS mid-size sedan best known in Europe, the SRX crossover SUV, and the STS full-size sedan. They'll be available to the sophisticated markets of Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, and other cities here.

We took the reporters for a drive in those Caddies, on the smooth, wide switchbacks of the roads over the stunning Outeniqua Mountains, and down into the desert. It's spring here, and the desert floor is bursting in color: intense reds, purples, oranges. All the colors I'd seen people wearing in Cape Town were right here, on the desert floor. Those colors make sense, now that I've seen them in nature.

I struck up some great relationships with South Africans, and they are very interested in branding. They want to know more about GM’s brands. They say Hummer and Cadillac are so distinct, and they appreciate the differences between Cadillac and other luxury brands. They want us to bring the XLR here.

This is a real car culture. People have a passion for cars. As this country begins to explode economically, the auto industry will explode with it. Now that I've seen it, I'm not surprised that South Africa is one of the fastest growing automobile markets in the world.

During my talks with South African journalists, I was amazed at how positive they are about GM and about American cars. They want more American cars here. They think the American design aesthetic — the Cadillacs and Hummers — are right for this market. They think the STS is a great design statement. They loved driving the BLS, they love its bold front end, its hard edges, its overall design.

The journalists also told me they feel that the H3 goes way beyond anything our competitors have here.

I'm leaving South Africa feeling pretty good.

Posted by Editor at 2:07 PM
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H3 Goes Global

By Ed Welburn
GM Vice President, Global Design

I’m writing from Port Elizabeth, the heartland of South Africa’s motor industry, where we’ve just launched production of the Hummer H3, to be exported around the world.

Until now, the H3 has only been available in North America. This launch will bring the H3 to Europe, Asia and Latin America before the end of 2006, and to South Africa and right-hand drive countries like Britain next year.

The launch itself was really creative. We held it right at the factory, at the Struandale Assembly Plant (which has been making Opels since 2004). There were singers and dancers performing. Though I couldn’t see them, because I was backstage getting ready to drive out in a vehicle, I could hear the voices singing with the incredible harmonies that I’ve heard here, day after day. And then when the factory workers saw the H3 working the obstacle course, they were amazed at the capability of their own creations.

This launch was more than the introduction of a new vehicle - it was a huge leap forward for General Motors South Africa. I think it’s significant that GM chose this plant in South Africa - it shows our commitment to the country and to the GM team here. The energy level here today was amazing! Everyone feels what it will do for this country.

I know the Hummer brand is “known around the world.” But I never expected what I found here. I was really thrown by how much the young people here know about the brand and its history. There is something about Hummer’s character that fits here. The people of South Africa like distinctive design - in automobiles, in fashion, in architecture. Hummer is distinctive design, and they value that. It’s the right time for this vehicle here.

Meeting the GM employees here, the factory workers, I could just feel the commitment, the excitement, the energy. They’re on a mission, for the brand and for the country. And this H3 project has made them part of the GM family in a way they hadn’t been before. They feel a connection to the rest of us through this project.

As for myself, I have to say it was pretty emotional to see a vehicle I’ve had some involvement with come into production in South Africa. To see that vehicle and brand finally go global makes me feel really good.

And as an American of African ancestry, it was a very special moment - one that will stay with me for the rest of my life.

Posted by Editor at 5:45 PM
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No Slowing Down for Chevy

Alba Colon

By Alba Colon
GM Racing program manager, NASCAR Nextel Cup Series

After winning the first four races in the Chase for the Championship, you might think our GM Racing team is ready for a breather, but that’s quite the contrary. Things are quickly speeding up as we prepare for the final six races of the season. Not only are we doing everything we can to position a Chevy driver to covet the Nextel Cup trophy, we’re also in the midst of several different test sessions and preparing for the Car of Tomorrow.

Brian Vickers

I was happy to see Brian Vickers win his first-ever Nextel Cup race in Talladega this weekend. Brian’s victory means Hendrick Motorsports becomes the only multi-car Nextel Cup team to have each of its full-time drivers score a win this season. We’re proud to be working with an organization like Hendrick Motorsports that has drivers capable of winning week in and week out.

Even with the Chevy win, the race on Sunday wasn’t what I’d call perfect. When you’re running at speeds of 190 mph, it’s going to be difficult to control everything that happens during the race. The last lap spins were an unfortunate situation for two of our Chase contenders, Junior and Jimmie. It’s important we learn from what happened during the race and move on to what we need to do for the next race.

The down side, but yet the beauty of the Chase, is that no one is going to win the championship until the last lap of the final race. But like I said in an earlier post, GM Racing has tried to provide our teams with everything they need; things like extra wind tunnel time or extra engine parts. We are doing absolutely everything we can to support our teams in the Chase, but it’s going to take a little bit of luck for our drivers in these upcoming events. As you can see from Sunday’s race, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a great example of having a solid car but falling victim to being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

It’s great to have won four straight races in the Chase, but the game is still on. We are only six points ahead of the second-place driver, Matt Kenseth, and only 185 points separate first through 10th place. The good news is this weekend we start visiting some tracks where Chevy teams have performed very well: Charlotte and Martinsville. Jimmie has been very good at Charlotte but we can’t take anything for granted. Kasey Kahne will be very competitive after dominating the last race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Hopefully we can use our success at those two tracks to capitalize on the momentum Team Chevy has going.

Even though it’s the middle of the Chase, our engineering team still has many other things in the works. This week we are hosting a GM Racing driver development test session at Nashville Superspeedway with 10 up-and-coming drivers. It’s extremely important that GM continues to develop young and high-potential drivers as these programs help groom our future racing all stars.

In addition to the activities in Nashville, on Monday we completed a Car of Tomorrow test in Talladega, and next week we travel to Homestead for the final NASCAR test of the season. We’re also working diligently on our engine package for 2007. Work sure isn’t going to slow down, but who can complain when you’re winning races and leading the points battle.

Thanks for checking in and stayed tuned for Car of Tomorrow updates in future postings.

Posted by Editor at 11:24 AM
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Looking Ahead to Bank of America 500

In this interview, Todd Berrier, crew chief for the No. 29 GM Goodwrench Monte Carlo SS, talks about the upcoming Bank of America 500 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Berrier discusses his team’s strategy and expectations for Saturday’s race as well as how the second event on the new track surface will affect racing this weekend.

Listen to the interview

Posted by Editor at 10:00 AM
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A Report From South Africa

Ed Welburn

By Ed Welburn
GM Vice President, Global Design

Africa. Just being here is so exciting. I’m here, for the first time, to launch a new production line of the H3, to be built in South Africa for export around the world. And I’m surrounded by beauty. In two days here I have been lucky enough to experience the architecture and the people of Cape Town and to see some wonderful artwork. The most amazing thing I’ve noticed since I’ve been here is the positive attitude of all the people — they seem so universally positive, about everything!

Today I spoke to students of design and engineering at Nelson Mandela University in the town of Port Elizabeth, on the coast some 500 miles from Cape Town. It’s a young university, but it already has impressive schools of design, engineering, architecture and other faculties. Design students are always interested in learning, but this group really seemed to want to understand more about design. I wanted to help give them a better understanding of my role at GM and of the role that design plays at GM across the globe.

I explained General Motors to them in a way we don’t normally — I just walked them through “a day in my life” at work. They saw me and the other designers starting at 6 a.m. in the Virtual Reality Room, moving into the studios for design reviews and status updates using the Buick Enclave and the Chevy Camaro Concept as examples. I also shared with them some of our global concept vehicles like the EFIJY and the AeroX. I think they were impressed, to say the least!

The students and faculty seemed engaged and anxious to hear about General Motors, about our products and about the design world globally. After my presentation to them, I got a lot of great questions, and had good one-on-one discussions with the students that created a lot of synergy. After the session, they took me on a tour of their department. It was terrific! Meeting them, as well as seeing the university and its engineering center, has had a tremendous impact on me.

I think the greatest impression I’ve had since I’ve been in Africa is of the colors. You might ask what I mean by that. The use of color and the combinations of colors here are fascinating. For example, I might see someone wearing six different colors of clothing, and I can zoom in on three of them and be amazed by the combination. Here in Port Elizabeth, colors on the exteriors of buildings look like colors that in North America we would use on the interior of a house. It is fascinating and it makes me wonder about what colors we might use in designing the interior and exterior of our automobiles.

Posted by Editor at 5:38 PM
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City of Lights Not So Bright

The WTCC Ultra Concept Car

By Bob Lutz
GM Vice Chairman

It’s always nice to attend a world-class international motor show in one of the world’s great cities, so last week’s Paris show was circled in red on a lot of calendars, including mine.

Perhaps I’ve just become jaded from so many years of so many shows, but for some reason, this year’s Paris show just didn’t seem up to its usual high standards, at least in terms of exciting vehicle introductions. There wasn’t any one brilliant concept car or show-stealing production vehicle introduction that leaped out at you. Or maybe I’m not too jaded because, in conversations with others at the show, I learned I wasn’t the only one feeling that way.

Not that the show was without its highlights. I must say, the new Ford Mondeo is quite impressive. It’s terrifically styled, and it’s a clear sign that Ford of Europe’s design team has its act together.

Opel Antara

We had a couple of introductions that clearly show GM Global Design has its act together, too. We had good response to the unveiling of the new Opel Antara, which I think looks just great. If you look closely enough, you’ll see a sneak peek of the next-generation Saturn Vue, which we’ll introduce next month in Los Angeles. GM had another debut, the Chevrolet WTCC concept, a look at what a World Touring Car Championship entry might be like. It also may offer a glimpse at what future GM global small cars may look like down the road…

On the whole, the show gave you a sense of where the industry is headed… namely toward smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles. And I’m not talking tiny, either — the Antara is a good example of a sizeable crossover with good fuel economy.

With worries about fuel prices in North America, the U.S. market is inching closer to where the European market has been for years — emphasis on those smaller, fuel-efficient vehicles. And they sacrifice nothing in terms of luxury and comfort with those vehicles, either. As I told The Wall Street Journal, people in Europe buy $30,000 VW Golfs.

I believe eventually the U.S. market will reach that point, if gas prices continue to be an issue. Or if the U.S. government ever does what I’ve always said it should do if it wants to drive people toward more fuel-efficient vehicles, and that’s raise the gas tax gradually every year until it approaches European levels.

That’s the only way to do it — you can’t legislate people’s vehicle choices through CAFE increases. As I’ve said before, that’s like trying to address the obesity problem in this country by forcing clothing manufacturers to sell smaller, tighter sizes. It just doesn’t work that way.

Posted by Lutz at 1:12 PM
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Chevy Crew Chief Discusses Talladega

In this interview, Chad Knaus, crew chief for the No. 48 Lowe's Monte Carlo SS, talks about the team's improvements with their restrictor plate program and reviews the challenges his team will face heading into Talladega this weekend for the fourth race in the Nextel Cup Chase for the Championship.

Listen to the interview

Posted by Editor at 9:59 AM
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GM Benefits by Racing

Alba Colon

By Alba Colon
GM Racing Program Manager, NASCAR Nextel Cup Series

Three Team Chevy wins in three races sure isn't a bad way to start the Chase for the Championship. It was great to see Tony on top again after winning the Banquet 400 on Sunday at Kansas Speedway. Not only was it Chevy's third victory in the Chase, it was also our 18th win this season. I'm disappointed that Tony is not able to defend his title this year, but the team is using these final 10 races to test for next year, and it's definitely paying off.

Since I started writing for this blog several weeks ago, I've enjoyed reading your comments from a wide spectrum of viewpoints. Some people have questioned the value of GM participating in NASCAR, so I wanted to share my perspective. As someone who is deeply involved in GM's racing efforts, I can tell you there are many great benefits to our participation in the sport.

As most of you know, racing is a fast-paced business with races taking place 38 out of 52 weekends a year. This schedule allows us to do immediate testing week in and week out, testing that would normally take months or years to complete on the production side of the company. When we gain valuable knowledge from our race vehicles in a very high-stress and fast-moving environment, we can use that data and share it with our engineering team that designs GM's production vehicles so they can use the findings to improve GM's cars and trucks on the road.

For example, when the 2006 Monte Carlo SS was created, the GM designers met with our race engineering team to seek our input on aerodynamics. Our racing and production teams work closely together to share information and practices so we can produce the best vehicles, both on the road and on the race track.

Racing is also the perfect training ground for engineers, where one advantage is forcing them to come up with creative ideas, and sometimes take those ideas and make decisions in a matter of minutes. The engineering experience gained at the race track is valuable for improving production vehicles and vice versa as well. A good example of this is Ron Sperry who has been working at GM for more than 40 years and currently manages the head manifolds for GM Racing's NASCAR group. Ron started out in the racing group and eventually transitioned to the production side for several years. There he was able to share his racing experience to help improve GM's production vehicles. He has since returned to racing to help us design heads and manifolds and has brought a different perspective to the team that has been extremely beneficial.

Racing has also proved to be a valuable advertising and marketing tool. Not only are we exposing our products to thousands of fans at the race, we are also reaching millions of viewers who tune in by TV. NASCAR has 75 million fans and is the second most watched sport behind the NFL. This TV exposure helps showcase our vehicles to millions of people. And our success in the U.S. helps communicate the reliability and dependability individuals can find in our production vehicles.

Our racing connection also allows us the opportunity to create unique incentives to introduce race fans to our products. In several cities this year we have offered a free Chevy Day experience with hot laps at a race track and driver autograph sessions to individuals that test drive a Chevy vehicle at their local dealer. The program has been extremely popular and has allowed us to increase customer traffic at dealerships while also providing race fans a fun experience at the race track. It's a win-win situation, especially considering that race fans are one of the most loyal consumer groups of our products.

Thanks again for checking out my blog posts and sharing your thoughts. I look forward to hearing more of your opinions throughout the rest of the Chase and during Team Chevy's quest for the 2006 Nextel Cup championship.

Posted by Editor at 9:41 AM
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The Hannity Debate

Editor's note: A recent GM promotion on Sean Hannity's radio program generated quite a bit of interest in the Internet community. While there has been an overwhelming positive response to this promotion, a few others have raised a concern. This is the response we posted on the web site that first raised the issue:

Okay, you have our attention!

Since the posting on your site about the Sean Hannity show, we have received hundreds of emails, phone calls, etc., with your opinions.

To clarify, we didn't hire Mr. Hannity as a spokesperson and he is not receiving compensation from GM for thispromotion. What we are doing is running a promotion on his show where Mr. Hannity is featuring three of
our newest products every week and listeners can register to win their choice of the three vehicles.

As the head of Sales and Marketing for GM, my job is not to create political controversy but preferably to create interest in our world-class lineup of vehicles. Looks like we are doing a bit of both with this promotion.

GM is the biggest advertiser in America and to tell our story we advertise across a tremendously wide array of media trying to connect with all Americans irrespective of ethnic, religious or political affiliations. We just want folks to experience our products.

We want to reach you on the shows you listen to. Below is my email address. Please let me know the shows where you would like to hear or see our advertising — perhaps even a similar promotion to the one
currently being run on Hannity. We may already be on many of the programs that you enjoy. If not, we will sure look at them. Also, if you are interested in hearing more about any of our new products or our business turnaround, we will be happy to address that as well.

I appreciate your views and I welcome your suggestions.

Mark LaNeve
GM Vice President Sales and Marketing
Phone number: (313) 665-1357
email address: laneve@gm.com

Posted by Editor at 3:01 PM
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