Re-invent the Automobile, Help Transform the Way We Live
By Larry Burns
GM Vice President, Research & Development
Amid growing concerns about the economy, our long-term energy security, driving cars that have less of an impact on our planet, and ever-expanding urban congestion, we all seem to be coming to the conclusion that the automobile as we know it — powered by a combustion engine — must eventually go the way of the horse and buggy. It is simply not sustainable.
Last Sunday at the North American International Auto Show, GM unveiled the Cadillac Converj Concept, which features our revolutionary Voltec electric propulsion system. While I am proud of this exciting step toward transforming the automobile, we still must look further ahead. We need to put this technology into widespread, high volume production. However, there are significant challenges. And that is why I make this plea: we must work together to overcome those challenges and make this technology a reality.
One major challenge we face is ensuring that U.S.-developed technologies are the industry standard when the demand for advanced technology vehicles reaches a commercial “tipping point.” The solution lies in sharing the public/private risks and rewards – possibly creating a partnership between the U.S. government, auto manufacturers and suppliers, the energy and infrastructure industries, and other key stakeholders focused on transforming the automobile.
The good news is that we do not need to invent anything for this to happen! We just need to act with a collective will to accelerate the use of the technologies we already have.
A new automotive technology partnership could help create these alternative-energy technologies as well as the next generation of high-efficiency vehicles. It could also set the framework for supply and demand in the early years of the market for these vehicles. Finally, the partnership could deliver a broad set of societal benefits, including enhanced energy security, sustainable mobility, increased competitiveness and significant economic and jobs growth.
I can’t help but be excited about this extraordinary opportunity to revolutionize the way we live in the United States. We must take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Most importantly – we must jump at the chance to lead what will be a global transformation by supporting the effort here at home.
For jobs, our economy, for technological advancement, for the environment, for national energy security and the way we live, this is the right thing to do.
For more information on this topic, take a look at the presentation I gave today at the Transportation Research Board in Washington, D.C. “Converging on Sustainability: The New DNA of the Automobile,” or read my remarks.
145 Comments
Leave a Reply
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)
Mr. Burns,
Here’s something that would be handy to pull behind your your electric cars. A small two-wheeled trailer carrying a generator. Long Ranger — hybrid trailer
For years, I’ve had a number of rather simple sounding ideas as to how we could make improvements to how Americans live and work in regards to transportation. I’ll use an actual example and counter it with reasons why the idea fails yet could be easily solved.
In my small Bay Area town outside of San Francisco is an electric car dealership. They sell cheaply made Chinese electric cars that have a top speed of 40MPH and can go maybe 60 miles on a charge. They sell for about $10,000. The idea of course is that for those who live and work in town, they might never need to drive a gas powered car again. But for the majority of the people who live there, its totally impractical because they commute to jobs that are sometimes far away. I myself commute over 50 miles each way. Thus spending $10,000 on a small electric car is impractical.
This presents what I think is the biggest problem in America: The way that we live and work. Simply put, we live in an age where many people seldom see their bosses or co-workers from behind cubicle walls and communicate via email or cellphones. Yet most Americans live crammed into urban hot spots. Of these, the urban areas with the most business tends to also be the most costly. This in turn creates a whole socioeconomic pyramid where those with the most money and wealth can afford to live in the choicest,safest, most centrally located sections of these cities. The other choices are either live in the ghettos or do like a huge number of Americans do: commute from the Suburbs.
That we basically now live in far-flung suburbs so we can work within proximity of a major city seems stupid given the tools we now have to easily telecommute and do the same work. In more recent years, suburbs have sprouted exurbs because the Suburbs have in many cases ( Like San Jose and Palo Alto out here in the Bay Area) have also become very expensive places, hence working and middle class families have to move even further away.
This latest financial fiasco was created by rising housing costs. Those costs came from the pressure of having to live near major metros. The simple solution is to remove that pressure by enabling people to work closer to home. There are many ways this can be accomplished. Many could simple telecommute. That or smaller satellite offices could be setup with all the necessary communications as in the central office. More focus could be placed on existent communication technology as well as to emphasize new forms in order to further streamline work and production.
By empowering the far-flung professional with the ability to work independent from the central office, this also gives them wide choices of where to live. With no barriers, families could live anywhere. If the office is in NYC but workers can work from anywhere else, a family could live in Arkansas, North Dakota, or Kansas if they so chose. This would also have a positive social benefit on several levels: Families would have more money to devote to college and retirement instead of paying for an expensive home. They would also have more time to devote to themselves since they wouldn’t be commuting as much if at all. Families could stay within the same areas as the rest of the families instead of branching out nationally to where jobs are. Social stresses would also be alleviated and the levels of disparity seen in major cities would dissipate.
Lastly, small neighborhood cars such as lower cost electrics and other alternative vehicles would be far more practical and less costly. It would be perfectly acceptable to have a 50-60 mile range electric car just to get groceries while the family could have a second car for longer trips.
I realize that this is a Utopian idea. But the way that Americans work is impractical. Otherwise we’re doomed to simply generate the same pattern over and over.
What garbage. You’re too late. You’re company is on taxpayer welfare. We really don’t care about what you have to say on this blog or anywhere else. You’re OUR employee now and you should be focused on the fastest, least costly bankruptcy and eventual sell-off of GM.
Maybe if this was ‘the spin’ a couple years ago things would be different. But instead, GM was too busy promoting Hummer as the next big thing and suing states like California who dared to demand higher fuel economy.
Shut it down…. GM is a dinosaur just like the combustion engine. To use your words, “It is simply not sustainable.”
I agree wholeheartedly, Mr. Burns. I only regret that it has taken this long for us to realize this and do something about it. Keep up the good work. And that Converj concept is absolutely stunning!
GM Statement Attributed To Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ed Whitacre
2010-03-25
In keeping with our commitments to the U.S. and Canadian and Ontario taxpayers, GM plans to make its second quarterly loan payment of approximately $1 billion to the U.S. Treasury and $192 million (USD) to Export Development Canada on March 31.
While we have more work to do, GM is building high-quality, award-winning vehicles, our direction is clear and our plan is working. Given the progress the company is making, GM has every confidence that the remainder of the loans will be paid in full by June 2010; five years ahead of schedule.
Educate yourself before crying strike out…GM lives healthy and provide products that go head to head…Take the challange and cry over the health care bill
I wish this had some specifics on what is meant by “U.S. developed technologies” and “the industry standard”. What technologies, and what should be standardized? Is he talking about battery voltage? Lithium ion vs. something else.
Mr Burns,
The Army just took delivery of 4,000 neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs) for use on their bases and posts. Was GM in the mix for this? Did you submit a bid in response to their RFP? Does GM even make an NEV? If not, why not? Your blog talks about transforming the way we live; wouldn’t a robust NEV program be one way you could work towards that goal?
Army goes electric with new Chrysler neighborhood electric vehicles
“The initiative is part of an effort to “create a culture of energy awareness throughout the entire Army,” said Paul Bollinger, the service’s deputy assistant secretary for energy and partnerships.”
“This latest financial fiasco was created by rising housing costs. Those costs came from the pressure of having to live near major metros.”
Pressure of having to live near metro areas? Sorry, but that is so wrong.
Housing prices shot up because of the speculation bubble and because finance companies loaned money to people who never should have been able to qualify for house loans in the first place. People wrongly assumed that the price of houses would continue going up forever, so borrowed more than they could afford on the theory that it didn’t matter since the value of their house would continue to shoot up.
People figured they could borrow on their houses to buy boats and SUVs, and if they ever needed the money they could flip their house for its speculation-fueled overpriced value and still come out ahead.
But the only thing driving up housing costs was speculation, and not intrinsic value. And then the bubble burst. Houses still have the same value they’ve always had, it’s just that it doesn’t take as many dollars now to trade for that value.
edvard this is why the libs want high gasoline prices so commuters have to move back into the dilapidated cities so they can be close to work. this is the only way these lib run cities can survive because as you pointed out most of the taxpayers have moved out to a safer place for their families. i am retired and live in the country but i have driven thu these cities and i know i would not want to live there either.
Larry,
You might be getting closer to the key to electric vehicles: STAY AWAY FROM ECONOMY! I know everyone sees electric cars through the economy prism, but that’s like the first diesel locomotives emulating steam locomotives. Using electric motors instead of internal combustion engines allows you to do so much more. Think of the immediate acceleration from an engine giving you 100% torque from standstill. You could make an electric car that outperforms a Ferrari, and it doesn’t even need to be a sports car!
Hollywood put GM on the map style-wise with the Escalade. Hollywood also wants to be seen doing “the right thing.” Translation: give them a killer ride that uses electricity. Which, oh by the way, blows the doors off the neighbor’s Ferrari, at least from the stoplight. The Hollywood image set doesn’t care about price, only image and “looking good (green).” Think electric Hummer that does 0-60 in 4 seconds. With electricity, I think you can do it. And look good. And get press. And be the new style leader. And make the Prius irrelevant in the discussion.
Think outside the box!
Hybrids are a sales gimmick.
There is more oil in the US and Canada in the tar sands and shale than there is in the MIddle East.
Global warming is a hoax. The sea level is not rising, We’re there every week.
No democracy has lasted more than 200 years anyway and this one is borrowing irresponsibly. Will America even be around?
Rome fell because of imports, it imported everything from labor to cheap goods, then it outsourced it military too and fell. American is fmaking the same mistakes.
The auto companies don’t get to use their corporate jets, but the bankers are flying high, stealing money from everyone.
America is manufacturing dollar bills and hamburgers and that won’t keep the lights on.
If you want to reinvent the battery ask the Chinese to drive them and pay for them, we don’t want the battery. Batteries burn out and cost too much to replace. We have too many batteries now.
The politicans in both parties are clueless and the mainstream Americans are going to have to tell them to get a reality check
The US can’t even afford to build new power plants, the nation is broke.
What you are saying is that the government should assist you in paying for the expense of your R&D and new product development. If you think about it, the government has always been helping the auto industry by building and maintaining roads. The oil companies have paid for the gas stations to fill your cars. Imagine how much you had to spend if you had to also build the roads where your cars are driven. Other companies, like a telephone company, do not enjoy such perks. In other words, the government does not pay for installing the telephone wires, satellite dishes, and communication lines between cities. The telephone company has to pay these expenses out of their own pocket. Of course, you can argue that a telephone company has recurring revenue from the subscribers. But in your case, customers have to come back and buy another car every couple of years. So, you also have some sort of recurring revenues.
My point is that you just need to manage the profit and loss of your company like any other company. You need to work smarter and harder. Like any other (good) company, you have to innovate and watch the global trends and competition. Good luck!
Charles:
Why do people like you wish your fellow American’s and their businesses to fail? How can we compete with people who pay their employees $5 per hour and then ship their vehicles here with unfair trade practices and minimal import tax while they keep our vehicles out? How can we compete with the foreign auto transplants here when they are GIVEN BILLIONS of DOLLARS of OUR tax money to build and maintain there facilities? How can we compete with companies that don’t pay their employees any health care or retirement? You know who picks up that deficit? You do in your taxes. How do you expect the market place to take care of itself when the US worker makes less? Who can then buy products? If our wages go down, you are next. Even if you don’t make as much as a US auto worker, if their wages decrease, it is a proven historical fact that yours will follow suit unless you are already making minimum wage. I would much rather pay a couple of dollars more for something so everyone can have good jobs with good pay and they are American jobs in American companies.
What happened to the economy was and is greed and lack of oversight. Do you know that the top 20% of society now has 90% of the money? Do you know that the top 1% of those people have 34% of that wealth? When the remaining 80% barely have enough money to get by, how can they consume products other that food and absolute necessities? The house of cards has collapsed and now the cards are on there way to falling of the table and onto the floor. WAKE UP PEOPLE!!!!!! We need to all stand up, pitch in, rebuild this country into the healthy, happy society it should be and can be.
I have a blog on my myspace page. My last entry was a piece I posted from an encyclopedia on The Great Depression. It is scary and eerily similar as to what is happening right now. I urge you to read it if you care about your country and your fellow Americans. Then, act. Do something about it.
http://www.myspace.com/illusionpainter
How about starting a small car company that builds fuel-efficient, stylish and safe cars that are affordable, combine it with a friendly environment that actually cares for the person who buys that car and treats them with respect? That would be a great direction for GM to go and I bet lots of people would go for it.
Oh wait, you already have a company like this, it’s called “Saturn” and you don’t even know what to do with it, you never did.
Alex, what GM is saying is that if a paradigm shift in the automobile is a necessity then some government support of establishment of new infrastructure may be required. Envision 5 auto companies developing 5 distinct standards for quick charging electrics and/or hybrids at service stations around teh country – or globe. Today you can drive a gasoline or diesel powered vehicle in every country where those two fuels are available. A car may not run according to factory spec on substandard 80 octane camel juice – but it will run. Arrive at a US or Canadian fuel stop today and you can fill your car wit husually three grades of gas from teh same nozzle – your choice. Even using diesel, you will not run out before coming accross a place to fill up. Will every power station need to have an umbilical for every type and style of hookup? Lest we forget hydrogen, what’s teh risk of dispensing hydrogen under pressure (or even LPG for that matter, from the same kiosk that is charged with enough amps to give an electric vehicle a 10 minute recharge?
Europe has embraced small car technology. Vehicles like the Chevy Spark (interesting name for a gasoline powered vehicle, by the way – sort of like a Ford Flex that does not run on E85) have a place here, but not running side by side or underneath 18 wheelers and far worse, Rocky Mountain Triples. If we wish to move to a small car society, where commuting could be hands free when our autonomous vehicles hook together via wireless interconnections and smart highways we need to either create new dedicated roadways for this or at the least move truck traffic to its own road system.
Blue Wing,
Perhaps I phrased that incorrectly, and I also agree that housing prices were generated largely by speculation. But housing prices-regardless of what caused them to rise- was what crashed the economy. The equation worked as such:
1: Tech boom implodes.
2: Investors seek “safe” investments- ie: Real Estate
3: Fed lowers interest rates, which spurs heightened demand for Real Estate.
4: Rates kept near zero for too long. Home prices rise beyond real wages.
5: Financial institutions introduce creative loan products, extending the exhausted purchasing power of buyers.
6: Future mortgage debt repackaged and sold as futures.
7: Purchasing power of home buyers exhausted and the deck of cards collapses.
Bottom line, the cause was high home prices helped along with reckless financial management on all fronts.
As far as putting pressure on home buyers whom must live near a major urban metro, I’ll use myself as an example. We live just outside of the Bay Area of SF. The cost of rent or buying a home anywhere near the job areas is prohibitive. The city didn’t do much to address building new housing. As a result, there are far-flung exurbs around the region. Many people commute upwards of 2-3 hours a day and get crammed onto the inadequate freeway system. To me this is ridiculous. Perhaps my views are different because I grew up in a rural area in Tennessee. But in comparison, the quality of life here is pretty terrible, that is unless you happen to be rich.
Thus for someone like myself who has lived in both country and city with no particular preference for either, having the ability to have a working environment where my life isn’t impacted by the competition and crushing cost of living would be advantageous. Hence the plan I mentioned above where we take advantage of modern connectivity, ditch the central office, and get back to centering life around working within communities of our own choosing and not in those that we’re forced to choose due to careers. Again- a pipe dream, but with some truths in it.
Kay,
Your statistics on the spread of wealth are interesting. Have you read GM’s viability plan? Did you notice that this plan calls for about a 25% reduction in the number of workers? That GM is shipping jobs to low-wage countries? That part of the plan is, with government help, to squeeze wages down in their domestic factories? The future you fear is the future towards which GM is driving.
And who will benefit from all these actions? The top-level execs get to keep their jobs and the current shareholders get to keep their investments.
Charles is not, as you say, wishing for GM to fail. Charles points out that GM has already failed. GM went unprofitable some years ago and has had unsustainably negative cash flow for years. They’d be in bankruptcy court except for the kindness of Congress and the President. The end result is business as usual and GM continues to stagger and lurch into the future.
GM needs the reorganization of a chapter 11. This would be more immediately painful and there are concerns that people won’t buy cars from a bankrupt company but GM’s already there and too few people are buying GM, anyway. Without chapter 11, wholesale reorganization (elimination of current management, excision of brands and dealers, for example), can’t happen quickly enough to give GM a shot at getting ahead in profitability.
Edvard ffrom Bay Area – there is an existing electric vehicle program in place where you live. They’re called Trolley Cars and are one of the more charming aspects of the San Francisco scenery. We, as a nation, killed this back in the 30’s when we started to convert to standalone automobiles and eventually spread out so far from one another that we now rely on them to get back and forth instead of living closer together and using trolley’s and or walking. To make matters worse, we have to import the fuel to make the whole mess run.
I spent some time in Germany and Austria and visited some of the major European cities, and guess what – THEY ALL HAVE MASS TRANSIT THAT WORKS! Japan has them too. But the US as a whole is lagging far behind. Electrification is the way to go, but on a broader scale which includes mass transit and light rail systems.
The trick for the Big 3 is to create high quality products and have the Unionized workforce build them. The quality aspect HAS to be designed into the products, otherwise the consumers will continue to find fault with the union guys assembling the stuff they have been hired to do. There’s a responsibility from all levels of these businesses to build quality products.
On the mass transit note – the auto industry missed the opportunity to nail Congress and the Senate by not asking for $1 trillion dollars to retrofit their idle manufacturing plants and begin building rail system components. The profits from the rail system could have been used by each automaker to fund the development of their individual car programs. Compamies like Lockheed, Boeing and others used their Military contracts in much the same way – the DoD ordered a systems, paid for it with tax dollars and the Aerospace Industry flourished. The Dept of Transportation could do the same thing with Mass Transit and the Auto Industry could have delivered! Think about the parallel skills needed to build a car and a rail system. Both have wheels, an engine, use fuel and move people form point A to point B. Auto Engineers and Auto Workers have those very same skills. Heck we even have the excess factories just waiting to be reactivated.
I read someplace where Jack Welch commented that the CEO of GM was in a position to make his mark in history a few years back (2001?) – that opportunity presented itself in December 2008. Rick Waggoner could have asked for the trillion bucks, gained an alternate income stream for GM and pitted the Green Democrats against the Oil Industry. Instead all three CEO’s were berated for doing their jobs – managing large companies which make complex products. The Cogressional committee doing the bashing have no clue what it takes to run a business – just look at their books and see.
JohnP: “Alex, what GM is saying is that if a paradigm shift in the automobile is a necessity then some government support of establishment of new infrastructure … [and discussion of standards...]”
JohnP, All your further discussion is really about standards and availability of interoperating components. The government probably doesn’t need to get into that business at all to help the auto industry. Look at PCs, without direction from a government, we have settled on certain standards that work pretty well (PC busses, memory configurations, file systems). These things can be worked out by industry. If GM wants to set the standards, it just has to do one thing… get there first with a good product.
The household electric standard is already in place. The fundamental infrastructure for electricity is already in place. Government doesn’t need to do much (although it could take steps to enhance security and reliability).
Big government money is only necessary to switch to an entirely new fuel supply, like H2, which is not only prohibitively expensive but also entirely unnecessary and technologically pointless (at least, with current technology). There’s no H2 sources, there are no H2 uses, there is no H2 distibution. There’s also no need. With electricity coming to all houses, new power sources and uses can be more readily distributed if converted to and from electricity as needed at the home level (for the consumer, this means batteries or ultracaps and for industry, the means electric power generation from these sources). The only real runner-up would be CH4, which is also very widely available but is somewhat hard to store portably.
“The trick for the Big 3 is to create high quality products and have the Unionized workforce build them.”
Excellent points Mkogrady.
At one time GM was even in the diesel-electric locomotive business ~ and they made quality products. Then they gave that up.
GM has idle production facilities, engineers, designers, and assembly workers under contract. There is no reason they should not be moving into building diesel-electric locomotives, hybrid electric buses, light rail cars for urban mass transit, neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs), and even wind farm components.
You’re right, Wagoner and the other CEOs missed a big opportunity when they were before Congress. They should have told Congress, “Give us the money, and we will do all of the above and transform transportation in the U.S.”
But for too long they have thought of themselves as “car companies” instead of as “transportation companies.”
I agree, Europe, Japan, and other countries have great public transit. But these countries are the size of a single US state in many instances. Building a public transit nationally would be prohibitive and impractical. At the very least, a high speed rail system should be considered for major metros, enabling those in the suburbs/exurbs to rapidly commute from one area to another, or to and from work.
Hybrids are not the way to go, the engineers should know it. There is greater potential in alternative fuels than with hybrids. During W.W. II rockets were powered with Hydrogen Peroxide, just like rockets are today, which have no emissions. Perhaps there is a way yet untested to create an enhanced internal combustion engine using high test hydrogen peroxide to boost fuel economy, lower or even elimate emissions, and increase horsepower. Peroxide seems to be a key to alternative fuels and improving the internal combustion technology.
Sugar cane and cellulostic ethanol are more important to the future. Lithium ion batteries are not consumer friendly, the infrastructure is too costly, and the U.S doesn’t even have the power plants in place to support such a massive use of batteries and won’t for decades to come. Hybrids are a very small part of the market and they’re really not exciting at all. Our electric golf cart is a bore to drive.
The people just don’t care about hybrids, they don’t care about the unrealistic calls for a ’small car’ society whatever that means. Marxist world views are against children and families, they seek to manipulate the general public which communists call the masses into mass transit like Soviet Russia. If the communists got their way, they’d try to tell people where they can go and what they can do for fun too. There way is not the American way and neither can it ever be.
Alex,
Go back and do some research. The telephone industry IS subsidized. They’ve gotten HUGE tax breaks with the direction they would reinvest and upgrade their systems. Instead, they took the money saved, and kept it. Now we are all paying for these upgrades in our monthly bills.
JohnP, I don’t understand why the government has to intervene if there is a paradigm change in an industry. Take the case of Kodak Company. The digital revolution made camera films obsolete. Kodak had to quickly change its business model to make money in digital age. I don’t think anyone expected that the government should intervene to help the company to deal with this transition.
As someone said, there is already standards in electrical networks. Otherwise, you could not use the same electric appliance across the country.
I still think the only reason the government had to help in the case of auto industry was because these companies were just too big. I still don’t see any market justification or need for this action.
Can anyone answer why the reinvention of the Buick LaCrosse resulted in a vehicle that weighs more (or at least as much as) the Pontiac G8? Totally redesigned and you could not find a way to reduce weight for better mpg but instead saddled it with 500# more than the vehicle it replaces. Way to go!
“During W.W. II rockets were powered with Hydrogen Peroxide, just like rockets are today, which have no emissions.”
True, the byproducts of using hydrogen peroxide as a propellant are steam and oxygen, but to make hydrogen peroxide involves dealing with some nasty stuff ~ and it isn’t a cheap or particularly energy efficient thing to do. First, you start with coal tar and acetone…
Unfortunately, as with so many things, there is no free lunch.
“Totally redesigned and you could not find a way to reduce weight for better mpg but instead saddled it with 500# more than the vehicle it replaces.”
Chief,
Don’t you think it’s probably for a heightened “ride quality experience?” Basic consumer physics when it comes to cars: weight = luxury?
They no doubt gave the car some mass so it has more of that luxurious, land barge, gliding-down-the-road quality so many American consumers have come to appreciate. Probably the same thinking that keeps them from selling the car to us with a manual transmission.
Mr Burns,
Where does ethanol fit in your vision for re-inventing the automobile? Did you see this news story from Albuquerque earlier this week? Albuquerque Police Abandon Use of E-85
The Albuquerque experience with their GM-supplied flex-fuel cars would seem to be a bad omen, wouldn’t you say?
ChiefPontiac
It’s called new federal regulations (ie crash standards) and Americans never ending appetite for electronic features. Dumb it down to cloth seats, no carpet -rubber mat, no AC, no airbags, no ABS, no radio, no electric windows, etc, and sure, it’ll weigh less.
Can anyone answer why the reinvention of the Buick LaCrosse resulted in a vehicle that weighs more (or at least as much as) the Pontiac G8? Totally redesigned and you could not find a way to reduce weight for better mpg but instead saddled it with 500# more than the vehicle it replaces. Way to go!
They haven’t sent any engineers to Mazda to find out how it’s done?
“…we still must look further ahead. We need to put this technology into widespread, high volume production. However, there are significant challenges. And that is why I make this plea: we must work together to overcome those challenges and make this technology a reality.”
“…The good news is that we do not need to invent anything for this to happen! We just need to act with a collective will to accelerate the use of the technologies we already have.”
Over the past few years, I have made a number of suggestions to move in the direction of new technologies and, more importantly, making better use of existing, off-the-shelf systems and components. I have been critical of what I see as an executive culture of resisting change, and finding excuses for the failure of the current business model (”the media/competitors/government/liberals/tree-huggers treat us unfairly”). For my efforts I’ve been slandered as a “GM basher.”
At long last, someone at the VP level seems to have a glimmer. Maybe there is yet hope for GM, the domestic car companies, and the 3 million jobs at stake.
Hi Larry! There is a new kind of cylinder deactivation tech called Dynamic Cylinder Deactivation(DCD). DCD is an electronic based cylinder deactivation solution. Controlled by electronic circuits and microcontroller, it deactivates all the cylinders inside the engine dynamically and in a balanced way. That is, all the cylinders inside the engine will be working in an intermittent mode, being activated and deactivated alternatively. The result would be a well balanced engine thermal condition under which engine performance could become the best, and also residual heat recovery by engine thermodynamic expansion during deactivation cycles.
Source: http://autoelectronics.com/mag/dynamic_cylinder_deactivation_residual_heatrecovery-1229/index1.html
I
Edwin,
I’m not exactly sure what you’re getting at, but hybrids aren’t as crazy and as filled with conspiracy as you are making them out to be. For one thing, hybrid technology has been around forever. If you think about it, submarines, ships, and locomotives have been using similar technologies for almost 100 years.
People are in fact very interested in Hybrids. The Prius is one of the best selling cars in California, which I know many of you folks in other states write off as a place where all the nuts live. But since there are close to 40 Million people living here- more than most of the Southeastern US, it pays to realize the change in consumer sentiment.
Lastly, the American way isn’t about remaining static. Its about change, the aggressive advancement in technology and the pursuit of making life better for all. We’re the country that brought modern transit, the freeway system, mass manufacturing, advanced technology, and the internet to the world. To suddenly pull back and claim that we cannot change because it isn’t the American way flies in the face of what it actually means to be American.
Hybrids are simply one more step in a never-ending shift in technology where one solution will never be THE solution, but rather one more step towards addressing our changing needs. Sure- there are literally tons of other things that we can burn or grow. But you can’t immediately jump from one system to another without a transition, and hybrids provide that.
GM’s responsibility to the public
Larry Burns, GM Vice President of Research & Development, wrote that “The solution lies in sharing the public/private risks and rewards – possibly creating a partnership between the U.S. government, auto manufacturers and suppliers, the energy and infrastructure industries, and other key stakeholders focused on transforming the automobile.” Perhaps GM should consider a new model for public-private partnerships
beyond the bailout.
As the Federal Government issues billions in bailout packages, local municipalities compete for manufacturing jobs with individual firms receiving customized tax packages. Large corporations such as GM have
armies of tax advisors, strategists, consultants and attorneys to their disposal. Smaller municipalities may not have these resources, but must pick up where a corporation leaves off. For example, the town of Vance, Alabama and associated local government agencies offered Mercedes–Benz 362 million USD in subsidizes to attract foreign direct investment into the town. The factory builds automobiles and thus increase the town’s share of Gross Domestic Product and the advanced technology that the company brings will increase productivity.
This is a common practice in the United States where cities and states compete for corporate investment. Part of the package came in the form of tax breaks against future earnings. Others, such as the construction of new roads, was an advance investment by the city. Thus the city made a trade off between building a road for the company verses building a school or hiring more police. The government justifies the expense because of expected future returns in tax revenues form the factory and employment for the local workers. This is also therefore an attempt by the government to shift the unemployment. General Motors is also accustomed to receiving generous government support, such as $200 million from Canada in March 2005 and
subsequent closing of multiple fatalities in Canada. What is the result of these subsidies? Do auto manufactures build a commitment to a community and stay in the long-term? Or do these corporations plan
to simply leave for the next best opportunity where another municipality will offer even better subsidizes?
Dennis Rondinelli and William Burpitt of the Kenan-Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill hold that incentives are not a primary factor for executives considering investing in North Carolina. In Do government incentives attract and retain international investment? A study of foreign-owned firms in North Carolina shows that “In an era of strong global competition, national, state, and local governments are vying to attract and retain investment by international firms by increasing the range and value of public
incentives for businesses to invest in their jurisdictions. A survey of executives in 118 internationally-owned firms in North Carolina reveals that they rank state incentives low in a list of factors that they believe attract foreign-owned companies and retain them in the state. Labor force, trans-transportation, quality of life, and overall business climate factors are consistently ranked highest by business executives, and state tax, finance, plant services, and marketing assistance are consistently ranked low. (Rondinelli and Burpitt, Policy Sciences, June 2000).
In a similar way, Dafna Schwartz, Joseph Pelzman, and Michael Keren at Ben Gurion University of the Negev, George Washington University, and Hebrew University of Jerusalem, respectively, show that incentives do
not contribute to long-term economic development in The
Ineffectiveness of Location Incentive Programs. “Many countries use location incentives programs to attract investment into a recipient country as a whole or to priority regions, with the goal of promoting growth….In both cases (Israel and Puerto Rico), the programs led to
increased employment in the short run but did not alter the
fundamental economic problems of these areas…. there is a governmental failure in their operation of location-related incentives programs and that these governments find it difficult to discontinue incentive programs once they have been introduced. Schwartz, Pelzman
and Keren, Economic Development Quarterly, Vol. 22, No. 2, 167-179 2008)
Mr. Burns, General Motors has asked for billions in special support from taxpayers. With respect to sharing the public-private risk, the history of auto manufactures such as GM, the risk is primarily on the
side of governments, with the sharing of benefits is primarily on the side of the manufacturers. What is your commitment to the public? To put the issue in perspective; what would the financial services
subsidiary of General Motors, GMAC, do to a customer who stopped making monthly payments with twenty thousand Dollars in debt? How
long would GMAC wait until reposing the auto? The customer may be given some time, but eventually the car would be repossessed. The US Government is not in the business of manufacturing automobiles. If GM
is unable to to find capital or debt on the free market, it should be liquidated. In a healthy free market, some companies fail, their useful parts are reorganized, and the sector consolidates or takes a new direction. Creditors and shareholders may loose money, but that
was a risk that they knowingly took upon lending and investing in the company. Let bad management pay its price. Perhaps other firms or entrepreneurs will be able to turn some of GM’s business lines towards profitability. Let he genius engineers and designers find quality companies to work for.
The auto manufactures may cry that the domino effect of a company such as GM closing down will spread to relating industries. Closing GM will lead to the closing of supporting businesses who are not able to adapt. Should the public support funding for a horse and buggy industry because firms producing accessories such as buggy wheels and decorations? The interlinking of supply chains within the industry and related relationships has significant knock-on effects. For some industries this domino effect is stronger, such as the finance sector. This domino effect is not evident in the auto industry, where consumers have been voting for other firms for years. Let Let GM rest in peace. Let Darwinism do its work.
Joseph Sherman
Anjan Chhetry
World Mediterranean MBA
Euromed-Marseille, France
Joseph and Anjan,
Well put. Thats the reality of it. GM does have a few products that are worthwhile. However they seem to STILL not be listening to customers.Or at least ignoring them rather then saying “We hear you and are doing something about it be patient”
GM Listen to your customers.
Quality and Value never go out of style.
Mr. Burns,
As Vice President of R&D, I hope you read this.
Has your department, or the company as a whole looked into Ethanol/biodeisel/”green” crude production from Algae? Early estimates say that one acre’s worth of an algae ‘farm’ can yeild nearly 20,000 gallons of fuel per year. And if applied to an area about 1/10th the size of New Mexico, the various fuels and oil from algae can replace 100% of the US’s oil consumption.
50% of the algae organism is made up of oils. Through processing, they can derive gasoline, Ethanol, Methanol, Biodeisel, and even ‘raw’ petroleum from Algae oils. Given the ‘green’ societal climate we live in today, Ethanol and biodesiel are the most probable fuel that will be used in vehicles.
As far as the benefits, algae essentially sucks the C02 out of the air to grow…so the C02 our cars would make by burning this derived fuel would be reused instead of sitting in the atmosphere contributing to whatever climate conditions environmentalists believe in today. That means it qualifies as carbon-neutral. The realistic benefit, though, is that it’s efficient to make (1/10th of New Mexico vs how many oil fields?), and completely independant of global fuel supply, which is enormously good for the country.
General Motors would need only to commit to converting their fleets to E85 or biodesiel. If you partnered with a couple of the existing algae-fuel companies similar to how you partnered with Coskata or Mascoma, this would be tremendously good PR for GM, as well as jump-starting the technology and getting it out into the public eye.
Now, that’s not to say that I don’t believe you shouldn’t continue your work on electric cars. No, I believe there is a place for both technologies, because lets face it…you think there’s a place in the near-future for electric-drive heavy-duty trucks or ZR1-like performance vehicles? But please — consider this message and its contents. My email is attached, and I’d be more than happy to expand on the beneifits and draw backs of Algae-based fuels if you want to discuss it more in depth.
Thank you.
-Joe
GM is NOT a horse and buggy industry!
It is a very well established industry that manufactures quality products; unfortunately during a very deep recession. It needs help and I for one say give it to them. Far too much is at stake.
Even “hallowed” Toyota is having a rough time now.
Joseph and Adnan,
Your darwinsim theory would be applicable if the financial sector hadn’t dealt the automotive sector the equivalent of getting hit by a metorite wiping out the entire population. So far; there is no such thing (for the last 6 months or so and for some time in the future) there is no “free market” for capital and debt. Banks are hoarding bailout money and have not adjusted their paralyzed lending practices to allow the economy to move forward. These companies will “adapt” by moving 1/3 of the economy of North America to the other side of the planet forever.
Nate,
Over the last 3-4 years GM has launched one award-winning/world-class product after another.. It’s clearly a company that has been dealt an unforseen blow while in the midst of a dramatic change of direction.
Joe’s comment about algae and alternative fuels clearly shows that hybrids and batteries are not the way to go. Algae pulls CO2 out of the air and can be farmed on land. Further, there is more shale and tar sands in the US and Canada than there is oil in the Middle East. High temperature fuel cell method can reduce the extracting oil from shale to $10 per barrel, the method doesn’t require a water source and is environmentally safe. There is plenty of fuel. There is a 50 cent tax per gallon on imported ethanol that should be removed too.
Oxygenated fuels significantly reduce emissions. Hydrogen peroxide technology has not been fully explored either. Hydrogen peroxide might be used to supplement the oxygenation of fuels or be used as a fuel for the internal combustion engine. Already there are ways to substantially reduce the cost of production of Hydrogen Peroxide:
http://www.azom.com/news.asp?newsID=2066
Oxygenated fuels also make sense as they would improve ignition, which can be a major factor in raising fuel efficiency.
If someone wants to buy a hybrid they have a choice, but hybrids are not the answer to American’s long term needs.
America doesn’t need conflicting government mandates like CAFE/Emissions.
Marxism is not the American way and neither can it be. Why not let’s have government do its job and reinvent the failed banking system federal reserve, and the credit rating agencies so we won’t have recessions like this again. The same credit rating agencies that slapped AAA on mortgage backed securites that almost brought the house down while they downgraded the real producers in economy, the manufacturers.
The goverment has run up the cost of health care by having a ridiculous standard of care. CT scans are believed to cause cancer and cost thousands of dollars for each scan. They are also running up the price of your vehicle in America.
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/causes/radiation-risks-pediatric-CT
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/CancerPreventionAndTreatment/Story?id=3927117&page=1
A recovery needs Manufacturing first, and Wall Street second, and government last.
China is pushing to develop Alternative Fuels, one includes a modified internatl combustion engine using hydrogen peroxide:
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-10/17/content_383067.htm
Let’s hear the GM engineers talk about this technology.
Once again peroxide was used to power rockets in WW II, just as it is today.
Every young auto show attendant remembers the rumor that GM has a car that can run on ‘water’.
Is it true?
Stop misleading the public with hybrids and batteries. Show us what you really have in the vault.
David,
Some of GM’s products are award winning. But not all. Additionally I see no reason to discontinue the input into the forum to make sure their future products are award winning.
I still think GM has a way to go. And I certainly don’t blame their situation on the economy. GM should have been operating with a cash reserve. Yet for the past few years they have been losing money. This was before the down turn in the economy. OR at the very start of it.
Look for another excuse as to why GM is doing bad. I still say they lost touch with their customers.
“Look for another excuse as to why GM is doing bad. I still say they lost touch with their customers.”
Sounds like a lot of comments about the same problem……..
GM was to arrogant to listen to it’s customers…. you lost market share all the way down to bankruptcy.
Where will you go from here……. What comes after bankruptcy?
Has there been an awakening at GM ? or will GM slowly fade away?
The French stated: “Let GM rest in peace”
It’s a good thing GM wasn’t “resting in peace” when they converted their factories into making military supplies during WWII. Those supplies are what give the French their freedom today. It wasn’t the financial industry then and it won’t be the financial industry the next time that helps us maintain our freedom.
Teaching economics is not an exact science. That’s why economists have been so wrong lately.
Engineering IS an exact science. GM is what kept America moving after our 911 and not letting us slip into a recession.
How about the winerys in France rest in peace?! We produce our own wine here in Michigan and through out the USA that’s is much better quality.
Get out of your University and try on the real world.
CZ
Cynthia Zube,
Much of what you say is about as accurate as economics today.
GM needs some changes. Its obvious to anyone despite their great past. The past is in the past. Leave it rest there. GM today couldn’t easily tackle the role of doing much more then producing land vehicles in another World War. But I’ll bet we could do what needed to be done in this country GM or no GM.
It seems that the post 911 success GM supposedly helped with has had good long term effects… Take a look around and realize things are changing. So too must GM… otherwise the French are right let them rest in peace. Those that can’t change will get replaced.
Edwin,
Do some more research on hydrogen peroxide. It is quite costly to make and dangerous from what I know. I doubt it would be a great fuel right now. But feel free to present evidence to the contrary.
Edwin,
Oxygenated fuels are an issue too. They contain less energy content per weight. Therefore fuel mileage would go down… and typically they cost more… of course last I checked ethanol is an oxygenated fuel.
No there is no single answer yet but there eventually will be a host of solutions. Let the free market battle ground begin.
Larry, it is this type of anti-competitive thinking that got us into this mess. That you and other auto makers sought protection from the market by lobbying government is not going to be helped by hiding behind some government initiative which is nothing more than collusion. It sells in times like this because people are scared about jobs. But, it will fail. You need to compete. Let the government create rules for the market that incents investment in the US as a separate issue.
Hi Mr. Burns. What strategy, what plan, could make GM #1 again in America? What vision could we develop to design outstanding GM cars, and reopen plants all across North America? It’s not too late, on the contrary, I think now is the perfect time.
“Joe’s comment about algae and alternative fuels clearly shows that hybrids and batteries are not the way to go.”
Edwin, show me a car running on Algae right now. Get my point? The fact is that Hybrids are on the road right now and have been for 10 years- primarily from Toyota. I drive an “old” Prius made in 2002. over 7 years later, it still runs just fine and hasn’t given me any problems. Additionally, it delivers 50MPG freeway, which consumes the majority of my commute. Thus I’m using 50% less than the typical family sedan. That’s extremely significant. Might I mention again that this is proven technology on the road now? So what’s your argument? That hybrids aren’t the total answer? I agree. No technology will ever be THE solution. The solution is never-ending and in that perspective, hybrids do precisely what they were intended to do: Reduce fuel consumption.
Nate,
Not so fast. It was and is the economy. The facts are indisputable.
Corporate debt in the U.S rose 34 percent following 9/11/01 attacks, with 50 percent of U.S companies receiving a junk bond rating from the not-so-bright credit ratings agencies who had slapped a AAA rating on the mortgage backed securities that are now at the center of the economy crisis.
In the 1990s, the American auto companies reported strong profits when the US was not in a period of war-recession-war-recession. Ford had set records for profit rankings in 1999. The American auto companies also gained market share in the 1990s.
The auto companies still out performed the U.S general market following 9/11/01 while many other companies including airlines lined up at the bankruptcy court.
Let’s recall there were record corporate bankruptcies of around $260 billion in 2001.
A record 1 in 73 household filed for bankruptcy in 2003.
The U.S savings rate fell to a 75 year low, the lowest since the Great Depression.
High corporate debt levels precipiated by 9/11 have caused the undervaluaton of U.S equities.
In September of 2005, experts like Sir John Templeton and Warren Buffett warned that a housing crash could occur. In 2005, the late Sir John Templeton warned that a realesate crash was “imminent.”
http://www.sirjohntempleton.org/articles_details.asp?a=19
Yes, it is the economy, the facts are indisputable. Thankless politiciians cannot hide from this in either party. Congress should have addressed it in 2005 or earlier. When the U.S balanced its budget in the 1990s, America prospered, when the U.S. busted the budget, the U.S went into a recession.
GM’s keep America rolling campaign after 9/11/01 kept America afloat during dire economic times.
The foreign competiton receives aid from their governments even in good years. Their employee benefits are paid by the goverments throughout their parts network which they ship to the U.S and off load in tranplants built with tax breaks from the U.S federal and state gov’t to boot. Foreign goverments manipulate currencies to gain market advantages in the U.S in violation of IMF Accords.
“…we do not need to invent anything for this to happen! We just need to act with a collective will to accelerate the use of the technologies we already have.”
Sure, we can remap engine control chips to limit acceleration (without sacrificing towing or hauling capabilities).
Improve aerodynamics.
Use “taller” final gearing, and 6 or 7 speed transmissions, both manual and automatic.
Use higher-pressure tires to lower rolling resistance.
I don’t think the internal combustion engine is finished, just yet:
Make more CNG/E85/gasoline FlexFuel vehicles; make Miller cycle engines and small-block intercooled turbodiesel engines available for all cars and the lightest trucks.
As an optional alternative to those expensive rebates, offer a 3-year bumper-to-bumper warranty on all new GM vehicles, a 10-year, 120,000 mile warranty on all major vehicle components, and free oil changes for 100,000 miles.
To our friends from Euromed-Marseille, France;
Thank you for chipping into this blog. It is good to hear outside views. One thing that bothers me about all schools of business is the emphasis on being profitable. When overachieving in this area, we consume the consumer. As any informed business person could deduce, if there is no consumer, there is no business, yet we see a pattern in all facets of business and government to cut hours, wages and jobs in pursuit of profitability.
Where this is going; the buggy company and its suppliers employ folks who buy homes, clothing, dishes, appliances, food, tools and toys. When they stop buying, these industries lose, and their employees stop buying. The domino affect does not stop with auto parts suppliers. Restaurants, air ports, hotels, shopping malls, office suppliers, appliance companies, real-estate, fitness clubs, barbers, butchers, tourism, schools and governments all feel the pain. Unemployment grows rapidly across the area and tax revenues fall. Today, there are many evidential cases of this in the US. It is global because Americans have chosen to buy globally (perhaps not the best choice in hind sight). How best can this kind of economy play in the next industrial revolution?
A viable economy requires consumers with buying power which translates into good paying jobs. In this kind of economy consumers must support each other. The stock market has no positive impact on this, and is a significant party to job loss. Take care of jobs, and the economy will take care of itself. The factor in economic decline is the frenzy for profit, at both the business level and the consumer level. Economic stability is necessary for growth, but growth is not necessary if we have stability. Growth somewhere will always result in decline somewhere else, as everything has to have an antonym to exist. So let’s ask ourselves in light of all this loss, where is the gain? Where exactly did all the money go…Mars, Venus? Did our relentless quest for the best deal really pay off?
Edvard,
I can show you a few MILLION vehicles capable of running off of Algae-based fuels. Flex-fuel vehicles, and even conventional, gasoline vehicles can do it.
All I presented was a fuel SOURCE. You can make ethanol, biodeisel, or regular olf gasoline from pond-scum, and pour it into any vehicle you see driving down the road. The problem is, algae is still much unknown to the public, and a very young technology. But it IS an alternative — and I wanted to know what GM thinks about it. I, personally, don’t believe the automobile is the primary issue, I think it’s the fuel.
Nate:
You have repeated the drive by media talking points too well. Surprised you don’t seem to know about the hydroxy gas topic which may in fact significantly improve fuel econony and reduce emissions at the same time for full size vehicles well beyond what any gas/electric hybrid can do. Hydroxy gas could be here today, and it may be a far more powerful method than any hybrid battery powered vehicle.
The internet is a buzz with hydrogen injection, hydrogen fuel enhancement, and hydroxy gas.
Do your research
—————————————————————-
GM engineers need to address the topic of hydroxy gas and hydrogen fuel enhancements for us. Is the drive-by media covering up this important issue?
More to come. Stay tuned.
“I can show you a few MILLION vehicles capable of running off of Algae-based fuels.”
Truth be told, all fossil fuel gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles are already running on algae-based fuels. What fossils did you think petroleum comes from?
Petroleum was formed from dead algae and phyto-planktons that have been subjected to millions of years of heat and pressure. Contrary to what you said, algae-based fuel is a very old technology.
It’s nice to know what you have coming. But you still need to move what you have. Where are the 100,000 mile five thru seven years bumper to bumper warrentys like hyundai and the free routine maintence for cadillac like BMW? This will go a long way in rebuilding your reputation which you so dearly need. Deserved or not lots of people have a negative outlook about GM products. Lets face it the only way you are going to get some people to look at your products is to offer them something extra ordinary. You need to send out surveys to non GM owners and ask them why they did not buy a GM product. There will be GM haters who will give bogus reasons but there will be those who will give legitimate reasons. You need to correct the real problems to make yourself more appeling to the non GM buyers. The more rival conquest you can make will also go a long way in improving your image not to mention your bottom line.
Felix,
GM isn’t really that interested in it. Else they would have already changed.
Edwin,
Hydroxy fuels are unlikely. But please be aware there is a difference between Hydroxy fuels and Peroxide fuels. What is traditionally used to propel space craft is hydrogen peroxide in high concentrations and some fuel. Hydrogen peroxide is the same stuff you buy at the store except at the store it is either 2% or 8% (can’t remember without looking at the bottle).
Any way the big problem with hydrogen fuel additives is that there has to be REAL proof they work. I’ve read about the hydrogen from your battery and fuel. Many people apparently don’t have much of an engineering background that hop on that band wagon. I have yet to see any efficiency studies that prove that hydrogen injection works. The ones I have seen were crude and somewhat unscientific trying to support claims that using my battery to make hydrogen will increase my fuel efficiency. Of course the laws of thermodynamics say that there are quite a few losses. From the articles I’ve read most people aren’t familiar with entropy and losses and think its the magic answer when it isn’t. Unfortunately there’s no free lunch…. just moldy bread.
What doesn’t make any sense to me about GM is why they got rid of their minivan offering. I look around me and everyone is having more kids than ever. SUVs and crossovers are nice, but they are horrible if you are trying to get small children in carseats. The minivan is a God send to all of us with small children. We had a Chevy Venture for 9 years and loved it. The only problem we had was with our power side door. Nobody could ever figure out why it wouldn’t work. We took it to 3 dealers in the Richmond, VA area. Finally we just took the motor out and just opened manually. That was actually no big deal to us. I loved the car. I was ready for a new van and I was left with Toyota and Honda. I know everyone says they are great cars, but they have hardly any great bells and whistles and they are about $10,000 or more expensive than their American counterparts. I wanted a new Chevy, but all you guys had was the Highlander which was not only ugly looking, but horrible for getting small children in the backseat. We have 4 boys and I needed to be able to get them in their carseats without breaking my back. Luckily Chrysler came out with the Town and Country which was a souped up version of the old Loney Toons Venture we loved so much. We went with the Town and Country. Not only is it easy to get into, loaded with entertainment for kids and reliable not to mention $10,000 less than the Odessy and Sienna.
I hope you guys will think about a huge market you left out int the cold when you did away with the minivan. People are still having kids and need the convenience of a minivan. The Honda and Toyota versions are reliable, but offer no bells and whistles to entertain the kiddies. You need to offer something with an amazing entertainment options, great safety features for less than $30K and you will take over the minivan lead from foreign car makers. People want to by American more than ever right now, but you guys just seem to take so long to deliver what we want. That includes energy efficient and electric cars.
Where is GM’s neighborhood electric vehicle (NEV) such as the Peapod Chrysler is about to put into production? Peapod Mobility
NEVs are not all that sophisticated and you could have a design team put together the plans for one fairly fast. You also have production capability (Janesville, WI and Moraine, OH) sitting idle ~ each with a pool of skilled workers ~ that could rapidly tool up to start building NEVs.
Are you deliberately ignoring the NEV market?
GM Executives,
I have heard nay a word of an easy resolution to your mid-term problems. To me, it would be easy for you guys to continue to plan on producing “Green” vehicles. Quit dragging out the gas vehicle’s extinction, it’s dying. If you don’t come to realize that, the American people will do it for you and quit buying your product….and you’ll be extinct too!
It would make sense to do the following:
Invest in natural gas extraction. Setup a system where revenue can be generated converting vehicles to run on CNG…municipalities do it…so should you. This in turn would provide for jobs in the natural gas industry, provide a revenue streams at local dealerships to convert cars and trucks to natural gas and also provide you with an ever greater “green” vehicle….given the reduction in emissions of greenhouse gases.
You and the government kill two birds with one stone….but that’d be too easy wouldn’t it. I am a Chevy truck guy, the CNG potential has been here for YEARS and DECADES and why have you all done nothing? You do not care about green vehicles or sustainability, just an immediate flow of cash. Make changes! This is a real change, if you want a passionate spokesman on this change, give me a call. This would be a better proposition than your failed and poorly written loan request to the federal government. At least it has an actual plan of action and a great sense of financial sustainability and profitability.
Best,
A Chevy Fan!!
J.Rosado
jeffreyrosado@gmail.com
What a lot of people need is a simple vehicle.
Not everyone wants all the modern technological innovations incorporated in a commuter or around-town vehicle. A lot of the features on modern automobiles is mainly for sales people to pitch.
I would like an inexpensive, durable vehicle that is easy to service by the average person and easy to repair by the average back yard mechanic. A basic vehicle~~
Forget conventional “green” unless you offer a solar powered automobile or one with sails. Build 5 million electric cars and you have to build more nuclear power plants, which aren’t green and electric cost would soar.
Turbocharged four cylinder cars could greatly improve mileage but in the meantime cheaper fuel cells should be developed to power electric cars.
There are a lot of ideas for simplicity and servicability which may not impress the designers or salesmen but they may for the consumer.
Edgar Gilliam
Manufacturing/Product Engineer (retired)
I want to change the subject. GM and other car makers, think back and remember when you were successful, what is it you are doing different now. This economy is so bad it will take many years to
get back to a point of feeling secure. I don’t have a car note right now and my car is doing fine for now but what happens when I have to purchase another vehicle? GM, along with other car makers have put so many extra, extravagant, “extras” on their vehicles that I wouldn’t be able to afford their products. You forced fed the public into buying these money hogs in recent years so much that now you have priced yourself out of the business.
I have read the markup price for various vehicles and therefore I know you prefer to sell a suv because of the spread of profit everyone makes on it, from the manufactor to the dealer. And you only make a few hundred on a small car with few extras so only a few are kept on the dealers lot for sale. A lower income person goes to look for a car and there are no choices within their range, a salesman tries to push sell a car they don’t need and can’t afford. Now look what a jam you are in.
GM will have to adopt to the new reality, many people are broke, you will have to help wean the customers into purchasing new cars by fulfilling the needs of the purchaser and putting a little
money in your pocket at the same time. Way back in the dark ages dealers had a selection of cars on their lots to suit many types of purchasers. You could buy a low range Belair with no extras but good transportation or a middle range model with a few extras all the way up to an Impala with everything plush and shiny for status and pride. Sorry now the Impala is just another car with no pazazz.
You have got to get into the trenches with everybody else and offer something of value for everyone, not just the rich and status seekers. Many people in the next year will need good reliable transportation to jobs that don’t pay much, will you be able to accomodate these potential customers. You’ll only make a few hundred per car but what are your choices now? Wouldn’t you like to be selling thousands of cars at a smaller profit per car than what your doing now?
At the same time add color to your line up. All vehicles are so drab now with all of the whites and browns. I remember the dazzling pastel yellows, candy apple red, brillants blues and even orange in those old dark ages days. In recent years I needed to buy a vehicle, only a Chevy would do but there was no color selection, I thought “boy! have we regressed” after watching the car lots for four months I spotted an S-10 from about two blocks, bright red, sitting alone, just arrived, and I knew I was going to buy it before I got on the lot. The salesman tried to get me to but another one with a super cab but it was a drab kinda green color that I would not be able to look at for years to come.
He was disappointed because his commision would be smaller but the super cab wasn’t red.
I of course bought the red S10 because it excited my eyes and mind is the only way to describe it.
I don’t know if you understand what I’m trying to say and it may hit upon deaf ears, and the American auto industry may be dinosuars that can’t adapt to this new world. You’ll have to morph into something you are not today and that means paying more attention to your potential customers instead of the stock holders. You’ve been worshipping the golden egg instead of taking care of the GOOSE.
Did the Goverment really say they wanted electric cars? The Goverment does not want electric cars, it will cost Billions in GAS TAX revenue, What the Goverment really wants is Foren companies in the USA, why? Because as Americans we have rights, Having Foren companies in the USA the goverment can control their actions in any way they want and in ways they cant control American companies.
I cant understand why so many Americans want the USA to give up production of everything to Foren companies. A GNP of $0.00 is not good for America.
Build it, build it better than the other guys, time for them to follow and GM to lead again, were Americans, if were going to do electric cars, do them better than the other guys, our cars should go further, run cooler, go faster and look better. It’s time for Toyota to see some taillights weather our cars are Gas, electric, or some future product we have not thought of.
Dear Larry Burns
GM Vice President, Research & Development,
For a company such as GM with one century experience, I think you need to re-invent the concept of car, at global age. For Instance Kit-Car. In my mind, it is as a kit for several countries where they need cars but they don’t make them. Some part of the car might produced in theses places, another in others places, the design still in USA. It is not normal that all pieces are produced in places and other places they just and only pay for a car without any participation, any job done at their places. Concept of a kit-car based on several criteria and features might be defined.
Hope this will help, and GM will stil keep on leading forward new technologies and new concepts of car
With all my best wishes
A Saadallah
Dear GM:
A first step: cut the separate entities such as Chevy, Cadillac, Pontiac and the like. Just go with GM. The GM insignia is enough, just the way it is.
You can have the different sub-groups under GM:
GM, Volt
GM, Escalade
etc…
Look at the “simplicity” model.
-Wright Moore
I have been a GM driver for 40 years having owned two or three at a time. I just bought a 2008 Impala and think it is the prettiest car I have ever owned. I plan to buy more in the future.
But GM has failed to deliver on gas mileage, My mother’s 1980 Oldsmobile got 31 mpg on the higway and my Impala after almost 30 years advanced electronics still only gets 31 mpg.
Enough I hope someone reads this as it seems that GM doesn’t understand what the public needs or wants in the way of car audio or sound. I have a Microsft Zune that I plug into to the Aux port on my radio, I also have a portable DVD player that I connect the Zune to so that my grandchildren can watch their movies and I can select from a large selection on my Zune quickly without fumbling
for a CD or DVD. Wake up Sony and other media moguls CD and DVD are dead. MP3 and WMA players with flash and harddrives are taking over media storage. GM needs to buy Zune and put it incorporate into Delco Radios, and put montiors into headrests so that passengers can be entertained. If GM is smart you will add music and video downloading in OnStar.
Gm should also incorporate data services like stock tracking and email into Onstar providing a full range of on the go data services that could also be incorporated with GPS already installed. I don’t dislike Onstar services but just sometimes I relate better if I can see turn by turn locations on a map.
I had intended on purchasing a Soltice but have put it off because of the lousy gas mileage.
I have four GM cars, two mid 80’s and the others 07 and 08. I am a GM dieheart, but when I tried to present my ideal to GM on how to make a car that do not need fuel of any kind . and never needs a recharge. my ideal got put in the box, rapped in duck tape , then stored in the ice box on nowhere street. I am disappointed in GM, They can not open their big ears to little man who buys their big cars.
Just a thought about the immediate future. Has there been any thought given to the idea of transforming one division (Pontiac?) into an entirely separate division devoted to the development and production of eco-friendly vehicles. Instead of “spinning off” hybrids under the Chevrolet, Cadillac, or Buick names, all hybrid and other vehicles would be known under the name “Pontiac” (or another name chosen.) This would allow GM to bring together the best of thinking from each of the existing divisions, without competition, to expedite the demand for these vehicles. Plants currently involved in the production of Pontiacs could be permanently retrofitted to manufacture these new designs of vehicles without interrupting the continuing production of standard vehicles. The costs related to the research and development required to produce such 21st century vehicles would be consolidated, avoiding duplication.
I’m not in the automotive production business, but I’m simply trying to help out in the kind of thinking that may make a difference in the future of General Motors. I am a Buick owner, however.
Modern Physics allows for ElectroMagnetism to sustain potential energy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRiz9_K4G84
Better on get on the BALL Automotive Industry.
BioDiesel too.
Peace – From your Future Engineering Team. Hate to replace the ones who created it all.
Proposals for GM recovery: a new GM DNA:
1) Ask US goverment to grant a fast tax reimburse for american cars buyers to restart sales now.
2) Face global competitors: Make global products and comercilize them gobally. Actually succeeding cars like AUDI, MERCEDES, TOYOTA, HONDA,VW, have something in common: they are global, they have the same nameplate model , quality and service worldwide. GM products doesn`t
Worlwide domestic cars are over: american cars, japaneese cars, eurpean cars are all over, today all manufacturers are oriented to global cars.
GM should stop doing the same car with different nameplates, (brand salad) and different quality standards, on each market. loosing its other times prestige, GM products should be the same worldwide: the best world class vechicle.
Everybody wants to drive a world class car, with global quality standard, globally engeneered.
I own in Argentina the top range GM car: an Opel Astra modifyed (deformed) by GM Brazil called chevrolet vectra, it is noisy, poor performance, fuel consumer, with chronic engieneering and quality problems, its second hand value is lower than a similar Fiat, each time I renew my car I have to spend more with chevrolet than other brands. A second hand honda civic worths almost the same as a new one, because buyers of new honda must pay the complete value of the car and wait up to one year to have it at home, while GM dealers are plenty of cars for sale. I would like to drive an Opel Astra or Insignia, exactly as the german made one.
Why does Brazil spends efforts to transform the the opel in a lower quality car under the name of chevrolet instead investing these efforts on manufacturing exactly the original opel at world quality standars for latin america, USA and other markets ?
There are no more GM commercial vehicles, trucks and buses available in latin america, while VW is getting this market with their new products.
GM global leader products to be:
a) Chevrolet: To be known as hi tech Low price, to beat japaneese made cars. they should include all “gadgets” available on modern cell phones: Phone, Camera for rear vision and night vision, Anti theft camera, GPS, Anti theft gps with mailserver to report to email or cell phone, entertaiment video and music on rear seats, connectivty: WI-FI, BLUETOOTH, software for comunication and data downlad of vehicle logg at home.
b) Opel the brand to beat audi and bmw, to be sold worldwide (USA included), under its original well known german quality brand,
c) Cadillac with new world class global ADN (instead of old domestic ADN) to beat BMW and Mercedes cars and SUVs domestically and world wide throug investing and stocking dealers.
d) GMC: new tough trucks and powertrain for buses, to beat Mack, VW, Volvo Mercedes to be sold globally.
e) others. like new utilitary electric vehicles, with low mileage cost for courrier, delivery, etc. (instead an EV-1 trying to compete with sport cars)
It is good to reinvent cars, but it is important to make actual ones at world quality and performance standards.
About me: I have all GM products at home, at my company, as well as some frinds that shares my enthusiasm on GM cars. Besides I invested over 200.000 u$ on GM stocks and bonds, I hope the best for GM.
Thank you.
“I own in Argentina the top range GM car: an Opel Astra modifyed (deformed) by GM Brazil called chevrolet vectra, it is noisy, poor performance, fuel consumer, with chronic engieneering and quality problems, its second hand value is lower than a similar Fiat, each time I renew my car I have to spend more with chevrolet than other brands.”
Quality and Value….. Quality and Value………. the missing ingredient
GM are you listening?
Also. Musn’t be ignorant to the fact, of the over payed labour. Unions, have made it difficult to secure their jobs 80 Years from now. Automotive industry, will be of equal to fast food chains. (Mcdonaldization theory) Dropping labour costs by as much as 20%-30%, and accepting this is the one of the many different approaches you must accept. That or GET ON THE BALL AMERICAN AUTOMOTIVE!
Peace – From your future Automotive Engineering Teams.
The proposed restructuring of GM seems to be following a failed philsophy promoting large vehicles. (shuffiling deck chairs on the Titanic)
let me suggest a proposal to government that CAFE standard and government regulation affect GM only and not its divisions.
Stop multiple rebrandings of the same vehicle type across divisions. have one division handle a vehicle type. i propose that caddiliac handle luxury vehicles, Chevrolet have economy vehicles, pontiac handle performance vehicles, GMC handle all trucks and vans. suggest we keep saturn but look at sale of buick. keep hummer for stability purposes but realize that they should handle government sales of all GM vehicles. eliminate Hummer models that are basically a GMC vehicle with a different exterior package unles the government has an intrest.
Have all sales & distribution provide sales and support for all major divisions. ie. should be able to have caddiliac work done at Chervrolet distributor. buy a chevrolet at a pontiac dealer. basically have GM as the car company is essential to prevent having models created just to comply for CAFE standards.
we have a failed concept of not providing hybrid cars for small vehicles and imports have gained the market share. suggest we have small vehicle hybrid capability in all divisions within a year. if we cannot do that with traditional design suggest we look a hybrid kit for front wheel drive vehicles. this would boost mpg up by 10MPG and would affect rear wheel add-on components only. this would be foot pedal sensors attached to accelerator and brake pedals and CAN bus transmission to the Hybrid package controller. a small hybrid type battery (50-100 volts). a design for hybrid technology to be implemented in 5 years will not reward customer loyalty. customer loyalty will be lost if they desire an economical vehicle which is sold elsewhere.
in summary the current restructing affects divisions and their sale. i propose we focus primarily at eliminating duplicate car types across divisions. in effect we have a similar vehicle rebranded across divisions currently. the certification cost is expensive. GMC should handle vans and trucks,
caddiliac should handle luxury cars. pontiac handle perfromance cars,etc. some models such as chevrolet corvette and saturn sky will have to be merged or rethought.
recent models from Saturn have larger vehicles and seems to have strayed from original concept which is what i perceive Is what GM has lost market share in.
bio fuels not practical until greater energy conversion efficiency is established. Applaud earlier work on VOLT and EV1 but for the reorg think we need to look at hybrid vehicles for immediate sales. VOLT car needs optional package that can extend range for a minimum of 200 miles also need to look at commuter recharge at work location and method of incorporating this.
Geely from China is coming (like it or not) and will be very low cost. perhaps with long term agreement we can rebrand them for GM sales. our involvement would be help in DOT standards and our benefit would be sales of the lowest cost vehicle on the usa market..
if you have different ideas that is fine, but will the government accept them?
the clock is ticking and the government has rejected the current plan.
regards,
Charlie
“we have a failed concept of not providing hybrid cars for small vehicles and imports have gained the market share. suggest we have small vehicle hybrid capability in all divisions within a year. ”
Where are the hybrid small vehicles from GM ?
Where are the small flex fuel vehicles from GM ?
Mr. Burns,
Please read the letter I sent to your CEO earlier this year. Your corporate office called me a few weeks ago and we talked for a while about electric vehicles. If you can’t find a copy of the letter, please let me know and I’ll send you a copy.
Who wants electric cars? We all should. Our children and grandchildren NEED to be free from dependence on foreign oil, have clean air to breathe, and ample amounts of clean water to drink. There is enough oil reserves to keep big oil in business for generations to come, and they won’t give up the fight to get the gas burners off the road until they’ve bled every $ they can from the American consumer. GM, Ford, and Toyota had good electric cars 10 years ago, before they were destroyed. IF you had the guts and smarts back then to continue developing EVs, you wouldn’t be in the mess you’re in today. IF you want to do something right this time, make it possible to convert our existing GM vehicles to EVs. With quality solutions, and warranties from GM, at an affordable price.
People buy Hondas knowing they will last for 20 to 30 years. So, I can convert my wife’s Honda to EV, and have a car that she can drive inexpensively for a long time. Or I could convert my GM Z71 to EV and it might last for 10 years, but at least it’s not polluting the air. So, building quality at an affordable price is part of the equation you need to embrace. IF you do it right, GM will be around for a long time. IF you don’t get it right, we’ll come visit you in the museums.
100 years ago, there were plenty of nay-sayers about the gasoline powered automobiles. People liked riding their horses and covered wagons. Today, the Lone Ranger would drive a F150 or Silverado, and Tonto would have drive a Jeep. Things change, and so goes life.
BTW, I am not against unions. They served their purpose. But, with the unemployment and underemployment rates today, if your union workers made less $ you wouldn’t need to have layoffs AND you could hire more employees at a pay-rate similar to Honda and Toyota, AND make a big dent in the unemployment and underemployment rates. AND at the same time, be converting your existing vehicles to all electric. … Just think, people might even think of GM as heroes for leading the way… instead of over-paid street-corner beggars looking for a handout.
I drive a 2001 Silverado Z71. My wife and daughters drive Hondas, because I know they’ll have dependable transportation wherever they go. This Z71 is the last vehicle I will buy, so I will convert it to an electric vehicle… with or without you.
Remember this if nothing else: Henry Kissinger defined a leader as someone who will take you, your country, or your organization someplace you have never been before.
Thank you, and have a great day! (and remember to lead from the front, not the rear)
Robert Moore
Oklahoma City
In light of the White House decision to withold further bailout funds unless there is sufficient evidence of a heavily committed change from the old fuel-guzzling philosophy, short term results (60 days) appears to be the necessary condition for the future of GM as a trusted American transportation corporation. I understand that Hybrid Technologies, a small innovative firm has developed techniques for converting internal combustion autos to either total electric, or dual operational hybrids efficiently. The firm can be either bought or can be hired to train GM technologists to perform the required conversions on a significantly large number of the GM stock.
This conversion action on a significant portion of the finished product, with a written committment to include the innovative technology as a GM product to be sold to GM vehicle owners at a reasonable price, may serve to convince the White House that GM is worth saving, not just because of the millions of employees affected, but because they have committed to the long term with a worthwhile more sustainable product development.
GM needs to present its reinvention of itself as the ” engineofchange”
A good start at regaining the pick up tuck market and overall sales would be producing a pick up with a smaller diesel engine that produce good fuel economy with low end torque a V6 possibly . On the car side offer the Malibu and Impala in all wheel drive as an option. I think on the subcompact area you have a good start just need to show reliability.
I have been driving GM vehicle for a long time, at present I have a 94 Suburban with 370000 Kms on it and have had very few problems. I plan on remaining a GM vehicle owner.
Good Luck.
The Converj concept is amazing, but like every other good idea GM has ever come up with, I’m sure it won’t be built. Even if it is built it will probably be a bastardized version that looks nothing like the concept car. The Volt was originally an exciting car with nice lines and design that would make it cool to drive a green vehicle. What we ended up with was a cheap Prius ripoff that will just be a toy for rich people and driven by nerds. I hate the end design for the Volt. The only exciting car GM makes right now is the Corvette, Pontiac G8, CTSV and maybe the Malibu.
Everything else is a boring car that loks like everything that was made in the 90s (see Impala, Cobalt and Aveo) with no features. Onstar alone won’t save you. I drive rental cars all the time and I hate when I get a GM vehicle. I had an LTZ Impala today and I hated it. I also test drive cars fairly often to see what is new. Your cars need more features like Bluetooth, Smartphone and iPod integration, keyless ignitions and access, rear sunshades, conversation mirrors, HID headlights, HD radio, 7 and 8 speed transmissions (is it just me, or couldn’t an 8 speed transmission run at lower RPMs at highway speeds and reduce fuel consumption?), cooled seats, rain sensing wipers, diesel options, household power outlets, LED lit dashboards that put less strain on alternators, electronic parking brakes, headlights that turn with the steering wheel, included scheduled maintenance, paddle shifters, radio controls on steering wheel, lane change blinkers on all cars, high beam assistant, auto up and down on all windows, etc etc etc.
Compare the features on a Volkswagen or BMW to that of a Chevy or even Cadillac. The foreign brands leave GM in the dust. Some of the higher end cars have some of these features, but they come with a hefty price. A nice CTS will cost you over $50K. That money will go a lot further on a BMW, Audi or a VW. Your websites are a joke too. Look at the BMW website for ideas. Why can’t I find a video displaying the Corvette’s capabilities on your website? The Corvette website is wimpy. The Hyundai Genesis Coupe website blows the doors off the Corvette webstie.
I’m sure you guys will screw up the Converj. I’m also not holding my breath for the CTS coupe or the Camaro. My wife and I are waiting for both cars, but if we have to wait too long, we will probably end up going with a different manufacturer. Get off your butts and make some cool, exciting cars again. Stop killing all of the cool concept cars!!!!
What purpose does it serve to show concept hybrids & EV’s that you will never produce. You have failed the public trust, lied about the Volt’s capabilities, lied about alot of things, frankly I am ashamed to own a GM vehicle.
You say that people werent buying hybrids? That is because you were selling them SUV’s & Pickups based on an overbloated marketing metric. The american public does not have time for you to figure out how to waste more tax payer dollars. Discontinue building all vehicles and focus on economical solutions. I used to have a 1984 VW GTI in the mid nineties that got almost 40mpg. Why cant you build a car that does that today? Don’t tell me it’s too hard, we all know that’s a load of crap. Stop wasting our time & money, either go chapter11 or do what we tell you to do and build the right car the right way, right now.
I am a retired Engineer. Someone decided they no longer needed my forty plus years of experience (lessons learned) in the auto industry. That same leadership is why we are in trouble.
Long term a hybrid or alternate energy car is a must. Until then what is wrong fitting the entire GM product line with a corporate V8 / V6 or 4cyl. engine and driveline. The Corvette, Pontiac G8, CTSV and maybe the Malibu would be the exception for those that feel a need for speed. Drop the onboard navigation, video and upscale sound system (special order only). Bench seats are best for a family sedan and less expensive. Cars with manual transmissions use less fuel if operated correctly. Lower the C/G on the SUV. This would give a new look to the product. Remember the Station wagon? They did not tip over and no one ever complained about ground clearance. I guess my point is GM could cut costs and get back in the race. After forty years driving GM cars I had to put in my two cents. GM V8 engines are the best weather it”s in a Chevy , Pontiac etc.
I would like to have a Chevrolet HHR with a 4 cylinder 5 speed automatic diesel hybrid to get the good diesel mileage on the highway and good city mileage of a hybrid. I also wanted the HHR to have a roof rack to carry items too large to fit inside, for me a 17′ canoe or extra luggage carrier for a long trip. I would also like the warranty period to be as long as the payment period.
” Warranty period to last as long as the payments.”
Interesting comment. A quality vehicle should last long beyond the payments.
I guess customers do not like the planned obsolesce idea.
If you want to help lead the way for America…you have to give the people what they want and what they need. 30 to 60 miles per gallon is not going to cut it any more. We need to combine technologies. Hybrid technology with Hydrogen technology, electric technology with battery / chemical technology. I mean, come-on, 30…40…50 mpg…that’s a joke? There are cars sold in the USA that drive 250 miles on a single charge. Why can’t we build a turbine that runs on hydrogen, which spools a genterator that charges batteries, which powers pancake style / desgin electric motors located in the wheels of vehicles??????? Intergrate the batteries into the firewall or floorpan of the vehicle or both to save space. The technology is here.
gm you already have the technology.It will save gm and the automotive industry in america.Bringback the technology of the EV1.You know with the new lithium ion batteries you can go almost 300 miles on a charge,and be fully electric too boot.The time is now.
All of you seem pretty intelligent. You all are fun to read. Hydrogen peroxide? better yet “pond scum”and my personal favorite The non recyclable battery. Keep it simple, Keep it in America why is it so hard for you “geniuses” out there not to see CNG? You all want to talk “green” GM needs CNG, America needs CNG. Whats stopping GM from CNG here at home (Big OIL) same thing that won’t allow the combustion motor to die, but GM can build CNG cars in ASIA and EUROPE. Obama needs to see Green, then show him and the Saudi King he bowwed to that we don’t need either of them. Compressed natural gas vehicles are as inevitable as “death and Taxes” so whats taking so long?
GM, you need to get rid of the Unions & high executive salaries & all the benefits for all the GM employees ASAP! It would also be nice a benefit for you to build more cars & trucks here in America & not in Canada & Mexico!
You need to cancel all models except for Chevrolet & Cadillac, as you have to many competing lines!
I owne 4 of your Cars & Trucks & love them all!
concerned consumer!
Ron, April 1st comments are right on!. GM shot themselves in the foot just wanting to make and sell
those large albatross, gas sucking, higher profit per each, mini tanks to a gullible public. With this mentality, of course the foriegn cars whipped their stuborn tail and now they are crying. And I don’t think they even understand what went wrong!
If they would put some dependable, small, stylish cars out, they wouldn’t be able to make them fast enough. Leave off the electric windows, Onstar, put bench seats back in them, leave off the dvd players and entertainment sytstems, they’ve crammed all that “extra” stuff down our throats to the point we can’t afford their product. Their best customers were their former employees, they’re gone forever now.
In recent years I’ve been to my local dealerships shopping for a vehicle but they never have the low end models on their lots. It’s their way of forcing you to buy more expensive models against your will, I drove away in my paid for car to wait another year. GM to this day is still promoting those same tanks and status symbols, except this time they are doing it on MY DOLLAR!
At least they could put out some pretty colors for a change and not charge extra for it!
The problem with GM always goes back to your designs. They’re just so plain and vanilla. I would never by any of your products except for Saturn, your highest rated cars, and yet the brand you plan to abandon. What type of strategic vision is that? Rework the dealer network, as I’m sure the Saturn dealers would rather have competition than lose their investment, or wait, have to sell Chevys. Just like Motorola who’s designs lagged the market until they came out with the Razor, GM and especially Chevrolet has the worst designs on the market outside of Russia and their business downturn is the result, along with the bad labor deals, and executive theft from shareholders through unjustified compensation plans.
“GM, you need to get rid of the Unions & high executive salaries…”
Yes, get rid of all the reasons for anyone to work there. Fire all those overpaid engineers and designers, too.
“& all the benefits for all the GM employees ASAP!”
Good point. Illegal aliens need jobs, and they don’t care about benefits, as long as they can get free medical care at the nearest ER.
“It would also be nice a benefit for you to build more cars & trucks here in America & not in Canada & Mexico!”
Absolutely. Better to pay the ones that are already here.
Your business doesn’t sell anything to union workers or corporate executives, right?
“I owne (sic) 4 of your Cars & Trucks & love them all!”
Bradley,
Sounds as though you must have a pretty good paying job if you can own four GM cars and trucks. Please tell us what you do? Are you in a business that actually makes something from raw materials as GM does, or are you one of those financial whizzes that manipulates other people’s money for profit?
Why shouldn’t the engineers and workers at GM (people who actually make a product) have high enough salaries that they can afford to buy one or two of the cars and trucks they make with their hands and minds?
gm has 2 concept cars they made protypes in the 70 they were on display at the toronto expo. they can be match up with amotorcycle air cooled motor .or other gm conceptthose futurastic cars could put us in the 21 st century.
When are you at GM going to start talking to people who have proto-types of engines that run on electricity,water etc? Why dont YOU talk to inventors and advance some of their ideas instead of insisting on the same ol’ same ol’? You at GM REFUSE to do anything new that is YOUR PROBLEM and there ARE TONS of ideas for engines that work YET never get build(which I know of several!) because you insist on YOUR LAME ideas that are old and worn out! You have been given literally billions of dollars and I know for a FACT some of those designs that NEVER get advanced in any way ever WOULD work; yet because YOU people have a monolopy on the industry those ideas ARE NEVER considered by any of you people EVER. For THAT reason your company is going under. I suggest that you send a team of engineers over to the Dept. of Commerce to the Office of Patent and Trademark and do a search and consider some of the ideas that you refuse for decades to consider BUT that would be a smart thing for your company to do and I highly doubt your company ever will.
As an engineer for some 45 years, having to keep current in technology has been a daily battle. That’s all we’re talking about with GM. They’ve done it. So have I. No problem.
But, for some reason, many all of a sudden are “instant MBA’s” or worse, an “instant engineers/designers.”
Frankly, I’m sick to death of the comments that begin: “Just kill off GM;” or “Let GM die as it deserves.” Because taxpayer funds are involved, it does not give license.
The majority of core GM products, Cadillac, GMC, Pontiac, Chevrolet, and Buick are top quality products. My oldest vehicle, a 1991 Pontiac Sunbird V6/5 speed has 220,000 miles on it and it frequently is found way ahead of so-called Japanese sports cars from stoplight to stoplight; AND it gets 37.5MPG at 70MPH, 28.5MPG city. When it had to suffer annual smog tests, it never expelled more than 1/4th the legal limits. I know of not one other car, GM or not, that can claim this performance. Keep in mind that I bought this car for $10,246.85 in 1990.
The key to GM is NEVER to buy the bottom of the line vehicle. Spend what you would have in a Japanese car, and you’ll have unmeasured value.
GM’s greatest flaws, however, will be their undoing should they decide to ignore them: they are top heavy with extremely expensive labor, and their advertising is just plain boring.
With the Corvette, you have possibly the greatest bang-for-the-buck sports car on earth. Zero to 60 MPH in under 4 seconds. It even avoids the gas guzzler tax, something that NO other world class sports car can do.
Yet, GM’s advertising — throughout all brands, nationwide ad’s and local ad’s — just says: “Here they are. Come buy them.” Presumption plenty. No sale. No salesmanship. No effort. No creativity. No incentive. Again: NO SALE. Even the “OnStar” advertisement is bland as bone soup. If you need more examples, GM, you have my e-mail address. [That'll never happen.]
Fix the stranglehold certain labor entities have on GM (not found, for example in Toyota); rethink the advertising strategies COMPLETELY. Then and only then will GM have a ghost of a chance. Put another way: do what Corvette did about two decades ago to polish its product line and philosophy, and all will be well in GM.
Don’t forget about new technology, but recognize it isn’t ready. Somebody tell me what to do with the huge Li batteries that CANNOT currently be recycled. Show me that alcohol production produces less pollution than petroleum production AND use. Replace the membrane in the hydrogen fuel cell with something that lasts more than a year. Finally, show me that our electric grid can handle a 100% conversion to voltage vehicles. Until then, until these issues become moot, show me why we are not exploiting our own domestic earth-based resources.
Further, show me why less densely populated areas of the USA must be punished with unreasonable regulations because more densely populated areas use polluting energy sources excessively. Finally, show me why GM dealing with the Fed’s is a good idea.
Trick questions, all. You can’t. Pseudo MBA’s… Pseudo engineers — PROVE ME WRONG!
Well here is my two cents:
Luxury cars are heavy for ride quality, you should drive a civic down a bumpy road and feel what that is like. Algae takes in CO2 and creates O2, it can also be converted into ethanol to be run in vehicles. Hybrid technology is a temporary bridge until a better technology comes along such as 100+ miles per charge or the ability to cheaply and cleanly produce ethanol or hydrogen fuels.
GM produces large SUV’s because that is what you people want. Have you driven on a busy highway recently? A majority of all the vehicles I see in the Chicago metro area are midsize and fullsize SUVs. Gas prices shot up relatively quickly and then fell just as fast, you can’t expect a large corporation to be able to change its entire vehicle lineup overnight.
Toyota/ Lexus, Honda/ Acura, make plain, no personality, underpowered, uncomfortable rattleboxes. The people that believe foreign cars are better are living in the past. GM has always produced great cars but from the late seventies until the early nineties they sold a whole lot of garbage mixed in with the good stuff. But at the same time the foreign cars were only a little better(reliability wise). But look around and you will see more old GM cars on the road than old Toyotas. Recently everything that GM manufactures is above and beyond anything that toyota/ lexus or honda/ acura is capable of producing. How many of you have driven a new CTS or Malibu or G6?
Also, anybody that wishes for GM, Ford, or Chrysler to shut down needs to leave the country right now. This is the last of the great American industry, and industry is what built this country and is what we need to rebuild it. These are American jobs that you are wishing to move overseas. Every time you buy a foreign car, even if it is built here, all the profit goes overseas.
And finally, GM wants to sell Hummer, Pontiac, Saturn, and let Saab go bankrupt. Why not get rid of GMC to save Saturn? If you want a truck all you have to do is buy a Chevy. This is a move i will never understand. Pontiac G6 is a great car and I hope you re-tag it as a Chevy. And to save Saturn all you have to do is go back to its’ roots, bring back dent free plastic panels and smaller fuel efficient vehicles. Most people that I know love them because even with all the road salt and 12+ years of driving there isn’t even a spec of rust. I really hope GM, Ford, and Chrysler pull out of this okay because recently i went from being a die hard Chevy fan to just wanting people to buy American. Our industry needs to be strong if we are going to attempt to sustain our current way of life.
A previous blogger had some great ideas about restructuring and the survival of brands. How ’bout this:
Cadillac – Luxury Brand
Chevrolet – All American Brand
PONTIAC – Performance Brand
Saturn – Environmentally Friendly Brand
All GM needs is these 4 brands to operate more lean and get back on track. Buick is an antiquated brand and for whatever reason management has chosen to continue production under this nameplate, it needs to go. And no one ever asks, “Why is Buick still around?” WHY IS BUICK STILL AROUND!? Cadillac covers the luxury market and can also make good progress in innovation. As previously stated, GMC truck and Hummer can go because Chevy truck covers what’s left of the SUV market. Add other SUV’s as needed to the remaining brands.
The selections of Cadillac and Chevrolet are not in dispute – I think everyone agrees that they are the only 2 brands that have continued to be successful for GM. But, Saturn is a missed opportunity. Saturn is the only forward thinking brand manufactured by GM and you want to get rid of it? This is a perfect example of GM management being out-of-touch with the consumer and the nation. Why not make Saturn an all hybrid brand? Make every Saturn a hybrid and let it be the litmus test for environmental friendliness. No Brainer. And who’s idea was it to shut down Pontiac, but not Buick? Performance, Performance, Performance. I still want that. Don’t just re-think at Saturn, re-think Buick and Pontiac too.
It’s hard to believe with all of the years of business experience at GM, no one thought of these things and management is still making bad decisions. My family has been buying GM vehicles since the ‘60. I have yet to buy one because, quite truthfully, there are much better options on the market. I agree that there are some good cars at GM, but, the garbage has taken over. Get back to a few quality vehicles and maybe I will buy one. Scale back on the duplicates under different nameplates from brand to brand. That worked in 1970, not today. I don’t want to consider a Ford, but, they are making good decisions. I like good business decisions.
Take this under advisement. If you need someone to help you get back on track with some sound business judgment, responsive to today’s consumers, send me an email – I’m poachable.
Electric is the only way to go, you need no more proof then last years gas scare, people just simply stopped buying gas, stopped driving everywhere, stopped flying.
Right now you should even cease production of any kind of gas powered vehicle. Hybrids might sell for a bit longer but you guys should be hte first to offer a mass produced electric car out there.
While people complain about hte difference in speed and HP, well most corvette users rarely need hte 600hp and street racing is becoming dangerous as is. And what we need right now is a substitute a solution, we can all cope with a bit less under the hood as long as its teh same on hte outside. Thou some things would need to change to the slower speeds, less Hp, less torque, means cars will require less security, and can be made with lighter weight components that retain an appealing physical appearance, and a tad bit smaller. The good old days of excess are gone, its time to shape up and cut down to basics.
You should offer your new electric cars to customers in exchange for there old gas powered ones, and figure out something to do with them (recycle them? heck what do I know). Of course they would get the electric car at a substantially lower price, meaning youd guys have to go on for a while on just enough money to run, but hye tough times call for extreme solutions. ANd lending a hand to the people goes a long way creating loyal long time customers.
And think about hte environment, dont force our government to make hte wrong decision of drilling our beaches, instead show the government that you guys are not just gonna keep running, but also provide what the world needs, transportation that runs on a renewable and sustainable energy.
Also you dont need to do this alone, right now the major american companys should band together to do what you gusy want set the standard of electric cars worldwide in america, dontt hink as individuals but as americans, Im sure that all of your reasearch together can bring something more viable, and with the workforce youd guys have you could mass produce anything right away. (AND youd be back in control)
dont have the money or the power to make the change, but maybe some of the things written here will get someone elses brain thinking.
Consider the possibility of marketing a new vehicle, a full-size sedan, that combines all the best qualities of all the GM products divisions, under the GMC mark. Refine all those qualities and make it really fuel efficent, aiming the use of alternative fuels, while keeping the MSRP below $30,000. A good name for such a vehicle would be CELESTIA by GMC.
Consider the possibility of marketing a new vehicle, a full-size sedan, that combines all the best qualities of all the GM products divisions, under the GMC mark. Refine all those qualities and make it really fuel efficent, aiming at the use of alternative fuels, hybides, etc., while keeping the MSRP below $30,000. A good name for such a vehicle would be CELESTIA by GMC.
I think it would be best for all the auto indusrty to get back to basics. Cadilac should focus on luxury cars, Not overpriced Tahoes with a different grill. Chevy and GMC trucks are identical except for the grill and badging, You killed of olds and now pontiac, because of poor sales, but when you have 5 different name plates and every car is the same except for the badging there is no wow factor . I hope that this down turn will end and every thing gets back to somewhat normal conditions, but i also hope that the auto industy learns that “this is what we are building take or leave it” does not cut it any more
Mr Burns:
The automobile based on the IC engine IS sustainable, but not with the worn out engineerng based on Thermodynamics. I have technology to increase engine efficiency that does not require throwing the baby out with the bath-water.
Auto engines and their inefficiencies are based on 1890s technology. No amount of computer, fuel injection etc will solve these problems, they were all done by the 1940s.
The problem is thermodynamic inefficiency of the closed combustion process. There is a way around it. Eliminate second law thermodynamics, and efficiency increases. Ive done it.
Detroit cannot survive a total retooling to bring in ‘new technology’
Lets chat.
The best way we fix economy is look too future that natural gas. by building natural gas care and truck with a touch of hybrid tech give our children a chance for energy independence this will sent up infrastructure or hydrogen cars this is where we need to write our Congressman or Congresswoman demand action! now! email me so tell me know that some body is read this.some time i feel like i am pissing into the wind
tommydip@gmail.com
please consider importing the little chevy toronado truck from Mexico – - –
and please build the cobalt in a small pick up truck and a small station wagon, plus the coupe and the little sedan…….
The chevy volt will be way over-priced! Tesla is almost ready to start production of a PURE ELECTRIC car, a four door sedan for about the same price (with gov. rebate program) as a Volt. What would you buy? Also sinking Pontiac Division is pure nonsense! More Pontiacs are sold than Buicks in the good old USA than Buicks. Pontiac has a larger selection of affordable cars G3, G5, G6, G8, and Vibe compared to Buicks 2 overpriced Stodgymobiles (Lacrosse/Lucerne), it was bad enough when Olds was killed off too soon. If GM thinks customers will switch to other brands they are right,
probably Fords and Dodges are my guess
GM engineer Geoff Kristoph asks to be proven wrong on his assertions that electric car technology is not here yet. Nissan not only has electric cars ready for mass markets in several countries, it also plans to separately lease rather than sell its Nissan designed L-ion batteries because it sees profit in recycleing those batteries. The Nissan cars will have a pure battery range of at least 100 miles, and will 80% recharge in as little as a half hour using commercial recharge stations the company is planning(with the help of BetterPlace in several countries including several regions in the USA). Of course the electric car can also be recharged with 110 volt household current overnight, when the power companies have enough excess supply to power many millions of electric cars according to studies.
English engineers have a 25kg electric car motor that will produce 500kN. A couple of those directly driving the rear wheels of an electric sports car would easily smoke a Vett. Four motors, one driving each wheel, would provide 2000kN power, with a total motor weight of 100kg, and no need for a transmission or diff. 2000kN could even provide most of the braking power in regenerative mode.
The problem with GM is bad management, bad design, and no vision for the future. They killed their electric car, and have been reactionary in fighting CAFE, and in making HUMMER their most recent division. The new Camero is so badly designed that visibility is impaired. Australian prototype engineers begged to have the roof line raised, but to no avail. Visibility certainly is a very big safety issue, and should be given priority in any design.
The big problem with labor costs is health care in the USA. GM should have fought for National Health single payer, rather than fighting against CAFE standards. My guess is GM management is republican, because only republicans could be so stupid, reactionary, and generally harmful to the public interest. But with 20 million dollar severence packages, why should they care about workers,communities, and environments destroyed
There IS an infastructure for hydrogen NOW. It is more plentiful than all the gas stations combined. Anyone having NATURAL GAS hook-up has access to as much hydrogen as they need.
HONDA has been made a CONVERTER (THEY SELL IN JAPAN). People fill up at home. They also sell FUEL CELLS for HOME USE. This saves over 50% to heat and light the home. You could sell your neighbors hydrogen.
Buy Honda before they buy us. The tooling is made; The converter is ready for production. Since the entire stock of GM is worthLESS THAN $1 BILLION. Will we buy HONDA or will Honda buy us.
Hopefully we will finally see the light and get our COLLECTIVE HEADS out of the sand – with our hearts, appologize to the world for slowing the worlds progress.
As we have been saying in this blog, set up by GM nothing in the technology is new, nothing in the manufacturing processes needs to be invented; all the high volume machines are there and idle waiting to be used. Fuel cell have been used by NASA since the beginning of the space program; fuel cell technology has been known and documented in the 1800’s.
Micheal Moore are you listening – lets get together 51% of GM stock and remove the dogma and teach us at GM character and integrity.
thanks for listening – send your GM stock pledges to me
Jimmy J. Barrows – pitcrew79@yahoo.com
“Anyone having NATURAL GAS hook-up has access to as much hydrogen as they need.”
Jimmy,
The industrial process for extracting hydrogen from the methane in natural gas (CH4) involves high-pressure steam and a high energy input.
Are you saying that I could somehow have a small steam methane reformer in my garage or basement that could separate the hydrogen from CH4, and that I wouldn’t have to worry about blowing up my house, or the expense from the high energy bills of heating water to make high-pressure steam?
If I did have such a small methane steam reformer in my basement, what would I do with the released carbon? What would I do with the sulfur compounds that tend to form during steam reforming from the small amounts of sulfur that are often in natural gas?
Yes, GM needs to reinvent itself on two fronts.
1) In products and business model.
2) In the consumer’s mind.
On the second front consider the slogan “engine of change.”
Not only does this encapsulate what the Chevy Volt represents, but it should be the slogan that drives perception of the new GM.
I can’t understand, how GM , can manufacture FlexFuel cars in Brazil, that run on 75 percent ethanol,
and did not have the vision to restructure itself here in America. The Brazilians have freed themselves from Oil dependency. GM, had the time , since the Oil crisis of the mid seventies, to
reshape themselves. Is filing for bankruptcy really necessary?.Now.?Can somthing else be done
to save GM.
Does GM think that it might be time to listen to their customers? I could not find a website where customers and potential customers could be heard.
I grew up in a family that was 100% loyal to American made cars, partially out of patriotism. I drove my first Toyota (a Tercel) in 1989 and then bought a Honda Accord in 1991. Japan understands what the customer wants. They have proceeded to crush GM because GM does not want to compete with them.
I now drive a Lexus LS430. It is reliable, smooth and quite. The Lexus dealerships are second to none. My other choices are BMW and Acura.
Congrats on the 2010 Camero! I visited the local dealership and there was not a single one to look at.
GM —-Are you listening?
You ignored customer complaints for way tooooo lllllloooonnnnngggggg .
Listen and respond to the criticism. Quality concerns are real.
Consumer reports said half your cars rate below average.
That is unacceptable……. Fix it. Fix it now.
Do not be arrogant….. listen to your customers… fix the problems……
Quality and Value sell……
no one feels cheated when they leave a Walmart……. Quality and Value
GM is a sub standard product. I have owned a truck and a coupe both GM, total garbage. I’ll continue to drive the Toyota Camry, I have an 2003 and 2009, I cant say enough of the quality and reliability!!!!!!!!!!
GM are you listening?
Bankruptcy has given you another chance. Listen to your customers.
Do not be arrogant. That is what drove you into bankruptcy.
I own two GM cars and I think they have perfomed as well or better than the japanese cars, both Hondas, I have owned. I think that GM will be able to compete in the global market if it is able to go forward and build cars that people want to buy. GM knows how to do this it must become more competitive. With all the government regulations and union requirements that remains to be seen. The market will sort that out eventually. I personally will not be buying any cars from government owned and operated entities. That is not the way we do things here in the United States. I hope for and look forward to the return of independently owned GM and its newfound ability to compete in the world marketplace. Best of luck in gaining your freedom.
We are afraid to build nuclear power plants because we can’t dispose of the waste. Yet if we all drive electric/hybrid cars, what are we going to do with all of the batteries when they go bad? We can’t simply toss them in a landfill, that would be environmentally unfriendly.
One problem I see that it is near impossible to get near management from a retail customer. The next problem I see is that there is no positive, can do attitude yet on the air for this historic company. If we are to be Americans of old, we need to be new. We don’t wait for someone to bail us out. We use our brains, hands and resources to put us back on the map and regain our American pride. We don’t need any more excuses. Action speaks! Commitment is respected. Sweat is rewarded. Integrity is admired. Innovation leads to a new future. There is so much Americans have to offer. We need someone on top to listen and take hold of the talent and resources waiting on the sidelines. We as Americans can’t give up the fight. GM is to big of a loss. Not that they don’t deserve it because they didn’t pay attention and see all the signs along the way. This turn around is what this country needs to take control of the helm and steer this country back to making a respectable living for the thousands of people willing and able to pick up where spoiled people left off. We can do more than push buttons and complain. Trust and believe!
I suggest you Expand the Proverbial pie instead if trying to cut up the present small car pie , for you to compete in the already stiff competition in the small car market is not going to get you out of bancruptcy any time soon . you dont have the technology that is currently out there or the market presence . What does America have that the other countries dont ? The materials technology and nano materials technology i incorporated all the advanced technologies to My car
So i suggest you my invention the Car Boat Plane a new three in one vehicle that is inexpensive costing arround 20,. 000 $ your selling price as compared with other car planes costing 200 ,000$
my vehicle is best for travelling long distances in safety and could withstand floods and Tsunami the safest place on earth second to the U.S presidents Limo .
take your autos and put them…..
why is it that gm is censoring the pubilc’s comments? forget the 37K camero that we nearly bought right before you filed for chapter 11….never again will we purchase another gm vehicle! by the way…the 86 vette’ in my garage is now for sale…what do you think it’s worth??
Hmmm. — unhappy former customer….. GM are you listening?
GM needs to develop a web site where customers can comment on each model of GM vehicles.
If you want to know what customers like and dislike that would be the way to do it.
You might also want to ask for comments / comparison with the competition vehicles.
What do customers like about your vehicle and what do they like about the competition?
Have people compare your vehicle with the best in class….. then go out and make your vehicle the best in class.
GM needs to rapidly explore the possibilitiesfor personal transportation. Has to make many mistakes hoping to hit a new wave in one of its experiments. It would be nice to plan for a few sure things but that is pie in the sky dreaming. Got to take big chances. Here are some crazy ideas. I use transporter for an undefined vehicle.
1. A folding transporter that takes little space when closed.
2. An inflatable transporter.
3. An electric transporter where the batteries are on a shopping cart. Wheel them to your apartment for charging.
4. A transporter that never needs maintenance. Hate the trip every 6 months to the dealer. They won’t like this.
In conclusion, start with an electric car that needs no maintenance and I can wheel the batteries to my apartment to charge them. People might buy it.
There have been no explosions in homes in Japan with converters of natural gas to hydrogen; nor have there been many explosions around the world with natural gas; how about gasoline?
Anyone wishing to extract hydrogen for extremely low cost only needs solar panes and water. Storage is easy. if you use grey water you will remove the grey and thus clean the water. How do they do it in space?
My point is, scaring people away from using other systems is a tactic GM uses. So is belittling us; or other companies. A great example of this is the commercial belittling Honda because GM can’t compete with their lawn mowers. Honda has so many products GM at one time could have been acompetitor; fuel-cells that work; Jet engines; jet planes (to be made in America).
The commercials lately show no humility or remorse for what they did to there loyal customers by not changing their culture and their loyalty. Without loyalty to the customer you cannot satisfy your investors because your customers will dwindle. They will grieve the loss but move-on none-the-less.
UNITED Technology has a fuel cell it used to brag could fuel one hundred homes. I tried to buy one for my neighborhood. We have almost one hundred homes in our neighborhood and it has underground utilities. $1,000,000 for the unit and $250,000 to hook it up. Vey little maintenance. Hydrogen would be supplied by natural gas. Sounds easy and is greatly inexpensive for all.
United Technologies laughed and could not think of anything to say except the utilitie company would not allow it. Isn’t there laws saying we can sell energy the the utilities?; this just directly and more safe for the community. We will have power during a major storm and no terrorists can shut down 100,000 neighborhoods power with an attack of a major power plant.
thank you all for listennig
The offer is still open Mr.micheal Moore.
GM, please keep the G8 alive! (make it the new Impala please!) Put that 304 hp 3.6L V-6 like the one you have in the base Camaro into a Solstice and market it as a new Chevy Chevelle or Laguna for the masses, trust me it will fly off the lots! I own some GM stock, so now that the sale to a new GM has been given the green light, are we safe to bet on future earnings? 1 more request dont let cadillac make the new XTS flagship be a FWD layout, it will hurt the image of a division going toe to toe with the Germans and Japanese high zoot sedans.
Larry,
Think about it for a minute. It is not the internal combustion engine that is unsustainable. It is the city of over 1 million that is unsustainable. People are packed into little apartments like sardines in a can. Pollution is measured in concentrations of parts per million or now billion. Increasing population density is a formula for increased pollution. The car is the one transportation form that has the ability to drastically decrease population density. Any public transportation concentrates many people in one location, it is unsustainable.
Trying to leapfrog Toyota and Ford by producing $40 K Voltec platfrom cars is not a good idea. GM needs to offer an intermediate step between the mild hybrid Malibu and the gas-electric Volt. First build a dual hybrid car with the technology from the Saturn Vue program, and price it to compete with the $28K Fusion hybrid. Then in a few years when you can reduce the manufacturing costs sell a Volt for $30K.
The one problem I have had with GM designs over the last 15 or so years is the trend to Euro everything. I waited and waited for the release of the new Malibu years ago and was disappointed. It was not true to the Malibu name and history. To European in exterior design!!! I like some of the engineering of European cars but not the wrappings. I was expecting something of a nod to the 60’s designs of the Chevelle Malibu. A classic American car and one of GM’s best sellers for years. The GTO was not true to the name badge either. Here is my suggestion to you do you want to create a stir in the auto world? Take a Look at the 66-67 Chevelles remake it smaller lighter and rear wheel drive. Give us the options of a strait 4 or 5 cyl like in Colorado truck or a V6 Vortec. Engineer it to be easy to work on and upgrade with say turbochargers!!! I would buy one if done right. Take some ques from designs of the past and re-engineer them. American Cars for designed for the tastes of American people. To find proof of this point look at sales of Mustang, Challenger, and to some extent Charger. With today’s technology you can build some Muscle with Mileage(there’s a slogan for you) Well Have a good one and keep trying but listen to some of the average every day Joe for a change. Our opinions should matter because we decide whether or not to buy your cars. I only speak as one voice who has talked to many a classic Chevelle owner and base my comments on their input.
Bob Lutz, the 77 year old creator of the Cadillac Escalade is now in charge of all new product design at GM… ARE YOU KIDDING ME?
Nothing could say more clearly that GM is unable to rise beyond its entrenched problems than this. How could the Board allow this?
GM needs not an old-timer associated with muscle cars but some new blood and new thinking.
GM needs some new blood and some new ideas.
Think APPLE in your TECHNOLOGY design. Why not partner with APPLE to do something for your vehicles?
Think Toyota and Lexus for QUALITY and RELAIBILITY. Every new model from Toyota and Lexus is
an improvement from the last. Think continuous improvement.
Think Hyundai / Kia for turn around of image. They went from being a joke to taking market share.
At the same time GM’s market share continues to decline.
Think electric, hybrid, CNG, and Hydrogen. Nissan is moving fast to put electric vehicles into production.
GM needs to commit to the future of fuels.
All new vehicles need to be flex, electric, CNG or hydrogen.
i have owned gm for over 20years. some good some junk. but i still stick by gm. i bought a 09 malibu & a09 camry to see which falls apart first, and which holds its value better. that said i would like to give you my ideal of what may help gm. take the saturn sky, rename it under chevie, price it around $25,000 colorer it pearlwhite, white on white ,silver ,black put in the 182 hp 4 and i think you would have a winner. chris c
GM
Please produce the car that the American population wants and desires. Do this by doing the amount of research necessary to find out what we want. Don’t let management build what they want, don’t let the government dictate what we want.. Certainly we have shown through the years we do not take well to small underpowered cars.
It is obvious that we want more comfortable cars that, in the long run, will be safer when colliding with the larger cars (or trucks). We want cars that are comfortable to drive and comfortable to sit in. We want cars that we do not have to double up to get into.
The older we get the more comfortable car we want. We don’t want bounced when we are driving on our decaying roads – comfort, reliability, safety are the keys.
For every 10 miles per gallon savings, and driving 15,000 miles per year the money saved in gas is only $350 to $375. per year. Most of us spend an additional $30 per month for unnecessary things or just wasteful items. I certainly am willing to pay $30 (savings in gas) for a more comfortable ride. When you think of it a $20,000 car vs a 40,000 car over a 10 year life span is just an additional $160 or so per month in cost – not counting a trade in value. So a $40,000 car is a little less than $200 per month more costly, in terms of cost of the car, than a $20,000 car.
Give us the cars we want and don’t dictate to us what you or the Government thinks we want or in the case of the Government telling us what we want.
The new Government Motors is about one thing and one thing only. That is the paying back the UAW for their vote last November! The UAW gave back nothing, while G.M. stock holders and bond holders were sacrificed, not to mention Pontiac and Saturn owners. Why would you sell a small car company you already own?
Many loyal G.M. buyers have been turned off after learning of the benefits they paid for, that they themselves could only dream about! Paying men full wages for loafing around was not taken lightly by those that work hard for a living. You never saw a worker wearing a cap with G.M. on it. The automobile buyer paid the wages not UAW. The car buyer has wised up and the imports look better every day.
Yes, there are some very bitter feeling toward the new G.M. from former loyal buyers after the facts were learned of the old company.
It’s amazing how many people feel UAW workers are overpaid. In all my decades at GM, before retiring, I trained hundreds of hourly employees. Far more quit after one day, than stayed, and some didn’t even make it to their first break or lunch period. Assembly line production is hard, monotonous, and tiring work. If people who feel they get paid to much, why don’t they work there? Perhaps they are some of the hundreds that I tried to train who left as mentioned above. It’s easy to point fingers, when you have absolutely no first hand knowledge of what working in an auto factory is really like. Unless, of course you do, and you were one of the quitters. If you were, you have no right to complain.
As for the UAW not giving up anything? As a retiree, I know for a FACT, I lost 8% of my pension income checks, to start with. Along with dental care, vision care, many medical procedures that are no longer covered, etc. Increases in ER care, triple the cost of prescription drugs. Along with loss of Medicare Part B coverage, (which saved GM millions of dollars annually, when you went on Medicare, as it highly lessens Blue Cross coverage expenses). That’s a little example of what was given up; and that just scratches the surface. Active workers are now hired at 50% less than current workers. Anyone out there care to work for 50% less than they get now?
ALL UAW members are tax payers. If you put all the GM workers together over the many decades of UAW workers income taxes since GM began business. The amount of income taxes paid by GM workers would dwarf the amount of the money the government loaned to GM in restructuring, yes, LOANED. At a rate, BTW, of 9% interest per year payback. I’d love to get 9% on my money today! Who wouldn’t in this economy? GM recently paid almost 200 million dollars in interest on the government loans, just this year alone. And it’s only July.
It’s actually a very sad time for the United States, I feel, when there are “Americans” who feel Americans should work at third world pay scales so they can take advantage of what they make for sale. In this so-called “world economy”, the United States has come down as a world leading economy, so that third world countries can move up. Sad indeed, and even more sad that some “Americans” think that is just fine. Remember one thing though, sooner-or-later, it will be everyone else’s turn. No matter what you do for a living, no matter what your skill, or profession. You will have to lower to an income to that of other countries. If you don’t, they will come here and take your income from you. And, more than likely, our government will help them. As they have the auto manufacturers that moved here from overseas. To make matters worse, auto manufacturers here get tax breaks in this country, for taxes they pay to foreign countries for the plants they have there? Hard to believe, but it’s true.
GM Retiree,
While I agree with you that GM’s workers are taking some criticism and abuse they do not deserve, your argument about GM’s and GM’s worker’s years of taxes justifying vs GM’s loan is specious. The company I work for and I also pay taxes. For their years of taxes, GM and its workers received the same benefits that I and the company I work for received. If GM’s government “loan” is “fair,” then a “loan” to us is “fair,” too, no?
I hope that somebody on top reads this stuff. I know that Pontiac is being sold or shut down so here’s a plan. No matter what any body says GM should spin off the G8 and make it into a Chevelle. Also the G6 needs to find a new home. Maybe some minor body alterations and you can call it the Bel-air. Who knows, but these two cars are worth saving. I can’t stand that you decided to keep GMC and shut down Pontiac when Chevy already makes everything that GMC does, and if gas prices hit five bucks a gallon and stays there you probably won’t be selling many trucks anyway. So, here’s one more idea. A limited edition Trans AM camaro. Just a body kit and a shaker hood with the screamin’ eagle and T-tops.
It has been said that Bob Lutz is waiting for someone to sit across from him at his desk and help him with fuel efficiency designs. Can this be true? How does one get a meeting with Mr. Lutz? As an inventor, I find it difficult to break through the barrier of the “not invented here” syndrome. Lawyers are afraid to let any new ideas come out for sake of litigation. If GM or any other auto mfgr wants help or new technology, they must get over the secrecy and allow for “outside” ideas. If the ideas prove worthwhile, don’t try and cheat your way around it, just pay a fair compensation!
I will be looking forward to hearing from Mr. Lutz or Mr. Henderson soon!
Hi all, Lets fully understand what GM is actually doing here and what the consumers should be doing in response to their actions.
Firstly, the government loan is cheap in comparison to the loss of income tax generated and spin off economic cost. That is a reality. GM also know this as does the government
However, GM has quietly used this opportunity to ship US job off shore and by off shore I mean Mexico. They have closed many higher quality facilities to move the work to Sailo Mexico where they have lower wage rates ($2.75 per hour), lower health and environmental standard and employee rights. Bear in mind the cost to assembly a truck is less than $1050.00 in the US plant, (Paontiac 21 hour per truck, Oshawa 19.2 Hour per truck) so their saving after shipping costs etc are about $750.00 per unit. as Sailo production rates are (27.8 Hour per truck).
As such, I would highly recommend we continue to buy America made products and stop buying from off shore manufactures As such, buy Toyota and Nissan or a Ford, All US Made trucks, don;t support these other American owned off shore manufactures. They reduced ten’s of thousands of workers job and used this opportunity to manipulate to manufacturing process.
Look at Europe from the 1970, don;t let this happen to the US. We the US workers made GM what is was, Globalization, has brought it to its knees. Understand the process, before its too late
All new vehicles should be flex, electric, hybrid, CNG or hydrogen.
GM needs to commit 100% to future fuels.
Going 100% flex for all gasoline powered vehicles would be a start.
When the price of oil goes back up to $147 / barrel it will be nice to have a choice at the pump.
Energy security and national security are tied together.
DETROIT (Dow Jones)– FPL Group Inc. (FPL) and Duke Energy Corp. (DUK) will replace their combined fleet of 10,000 cars and trucks with electric-powered vehicles starting next year.
The two utilities expect to spend about $600 million to convert their vehicles by 2020, the companies said in a joint statement Thursday. The announcement was made at the Clinton Global Initiative’s fifth annual meeting in New York.
“We really feel it is time for our industry to put our money where our mouth is,” said Christopher Bennett, FPL’s executive vice president and chief strategy, policy and business process improvement officer. “We are ready to start purchasing when we see vehicles that are available and fit our needs.”
FPL, based in Juno Beach, Fla., and Duke, based in Charlotte, N.C., decided to team together in order to create a “critical mass” of demand, Bennett said.
The pledge to buy alternative powered vehicles, the biggest commercial commitment to date, comes when auto makers need assurance that consumers will buy these new vehicles. General Motors Co. (GM) will introduce its electric car, the Volt, late next year.
Other companies, such as French car maker Renault SA (RNO.FR) and Japanese alliance partner Nissan Motor Co. (7201.TO) are also working to introduce electric vehicles. Renault is planning to make at least 100,000 electric cars by 2016.
Estimates on the potential market share size of the electric and plug-in vehicles vary widely. Renault’s Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn, who spoke with journalists at the Frankfurt Auto Show last week, said electric vehicles will account for 10% of the global market or 60 million cars by 2020.
2009 Infiniti Confirms that High Performance EV is in the Works
INFINITI CONFIRMS PLAN FOR A ZERO EMISSIONS VEHICLE
FRANKLIN, Tenn. (Oct. 20, 2009) – Mr. Carlos Ghosn, President and CEO, Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., announced at the 41st Tokyo Motor Show that Infiniti plans to introduce an electric vehicle – one that will be true to the Infiniti brand’s promise of “Inspired Performance.”
Mr. Ghosn stated that a concept is being developed for a stylish, compact, high performance four-seat luxury Infiniti with zero emissions.
With the addition of a high-performance V6 diesel to Infiniti’s Western Europe line in 2010, and the Infiniti M Hybrid, which will be available in the U.S. in the spring of 2011, Infiniti will soon offer an almost unrivalled choice of powertrains compared with other luxury brands.
Infiniti
Tokyo, Japan
http://www.infiniti.com/
Toyota Motor Corp. has unveiled a more expensive and bigger hybrid-only model than its hit Prius, underlining the Japanese automaker’s ambitions to make green technology more widespread.
What is GM building to compete with Toyota’s future products. Something to think about.
Toyota’s market share has been increasing for 20 years. GM’s market share has been decreasing for 20 years. hhhmmmmmmmm
Maybe this Green technology thing has legs.
Where are GM’s hybrid small and medium size vehicles?
Are you going to give this market to the Japanese and Korean manufacturers?
Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn believes the public may get charged up by the switch to electric power, if the new battery cars are affordable and fun to drive. He is moving forward with production models.
The competition is moving fast. GM are you ready for the competition from Nissan and Toyota?
Where are GM’s small and mid size electric, hybrid or flex fuel cars?
I’m a college student and I commute a 45 min. drive to campus. I wish GM would manufacture a car designed for students in mind. It would include:
- Affordable (Buying/Insurance Factors)
- Fuel-efficient/ Renewable fuel
- Include latest technology
- Cool design
I know a lot of students my age can’t afford a brand new car and we mostly seek out a used car (between the $5,000). But, something in the $10,000+ range would be at least a start to buying a reliable car and would attract many, rather then go for Toyota.
Above all factors I rather would buy American and help a fellow citizen, then buy foreign.
Toyota just announced an investment in Tesla electrics. The cars will be built at the old NUMMI plant.
Nissan announced that production of the LEAF Electric is sold out for 2010.
Fisker Karma will be building electric vehicles in Finland at the same plant the Think electric is produced.
Israel is moving to support electric vehicles and reduce it’s dependence on oil.
After the spill baby spill in the gulf we should all be thinking about reducing our need for oil.
If PEAK OIL theory is true and demand exceeds supply in the next few years the price of oil will have a significant impact on the family budget and the American economy.
Will GM be ready with the fuel efficient cars of the future? The last time oil prices went to $147/barrel and pump prices were $4.00 people were parking the pickups and SUV’s and were tripping over each other looking for high mileage vehicles. Will GM have anything to sell them or will GM showrooms be empty like the last time?
GM needs to improve the fuel economy of every vehicle in it’s fleet. Hyundai offers the most fuel efficient vehicle fleet and is growing market share. Can GM survive a spike in oil prices and the resulting shift in consumer preference?