Webchat: Fritz Henderson on GM’s Commitment to Customers, Cars and Culture
Please join us Friday, October 9 from 2:30 – 3:30 p.m. for a live webchat with GM CEO Fritz Henderson. Fritz is happy to take your questions and comments about New GM and our commitment to customers, cars and culture! - GM Blogs
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Fritz here in so cal, orange county there is a Chevy dealer right down the street from a Cadillac dealer and the lack of new line up and misinformation is astownding at the Cadillac dealer the say there is no station wagon or someone else says maybe by winter or one saleperson called it a murango! please stop the maddness and inform these guys. this does not happen at lexus.
When Magna owns General Motors Europe will you still want them to make the Chevy Volt for Europe. Why not just supply it direct from the US?
Blue, that’s the unfortunate side to (generalized) car sales forces, they tend to know very little or even care about the actual product they are shilling and are in it for the bling they can hang on their right wrist that gets in the way shaking hands so you notice who is top sales dog this month. Watch Patricia Heaton in the new show “Middle” and that stereotypical snake oil guy stealing her deals really exists. I have respect for the ones I deal with that take time to know their product – but truth be told the average webophile can take home more factual car knowledge in one session with me than the average sales jockey absorbs and retains in a year. It’s almost as if sales people are restricted from home internet access.
Rob: Magna isn’t buying GME, only majority interest in Opel/Vauxhall. Brent Dewar spelled out (correct me if I read it wrong) that Chevy still has European intent on its plate – which means Volts sold everywhere will carry bowties.
Fritz: couple questions I hope you will coment on;
1. Why the restrictions on the entry of Opel as a part of Magna into the NA market? Is GM that afraid of cars so good you only managed to bring us one version nearly intact? (Astra) If the Opel lineup is so smashing (and it is) then wouldn’t we have gobbled them up (which I believe we would have)
2. Three words: convertibles, convertibles, convertibles. With the loss of Pontiac, Saturn and Saab you are today down to only one (Corvette) soon to be joined by Camaro – but is that it? Let the Malibu come in a retractable to maybe recoup some of that development costs ( I assume the stamping dies have not yet been dumped in Lake Michigan). At the upper end the CTS coupe begs to have its top chopped. And look at the success of the droptop versions of mini and smart. Use a can opener on Spark before it arrives, please. Don’t forget Fiat/Chrusler may be closer than ever to bringing the Hornet to fruition (which I firmly believe shows Lutz dna) – at least someone still has Miata in their sights.
Dear Mr.Fritz Henderson,
Would GM be interested in an active mechatronic vehicle seat for driver and front passenger that is proven to be 50 safer -onset all major car crash modes – than any other seat on the current marketplace?
Mr. Henderson,
I again wish to thank you for the time you spent with us here in Orlando. As a member of Law Enforcement, your concerns are heart felt.
You and your team are the REAL DEAL. On a personal note My Camaro is the talk of Orlando it host a VIP autograph. I have some pics of the event and would like to send them to you if possible.
Thanks so much
Sgt. Dennis Landefeld OCSO
I was reading USA Today Money section, TEST Drive auto review of the Buick LaCross from Friday 10/9/09.
LaCross has made some progress but to compare it to Lexus is a stretch.
Comments from the review go a long way to show the quality and value gaps still left to fix.
“there”s the still-not-correct gm hydra-matic transmission……. shifted poorly…….imprecise enough for even a moderate driver to object”
Seats “look great, and bottom cushions are fine, but the backs are lumpy……it’s not as if there aren’t good seats to copy; most Volvos and Porches, some Acuras, VWs and Audis”
Trunk Hinges “they are crude gooseneck style that swipes trunk space”
Overall “Attractive, classy but too many mishandled details”
Building an also ran is not what GM needs. Attention to detail has been a long running complaint.
Quality —- Attention to detail —— I think there is still some room to improve.
You need to read all the reviews for all your products and look at what criticism is valid and go fix it. Do not wait for the next reinvention of the model to fix it. Do it now. Every vehicle with a poorly shifting transmission or uncomfortable seats is a running testament to poor quality.
If consumer reports or the insurance institute, or motor week or some other publication has some negative comments you need to take that criticism to heart and try to fix whatever the complaint is.
For too long GM has dismissed criticism and continues to loose market share.
The bottom line is — if you are not gaining market share then you have not got it right.
It is always interesting to hear directly from the CEO. Thanks, Mr. Henderson, for making yourself available for a chat!
Opel is restricted in several markets because Opel products are sold under other GM brands. E.g. the Astra, Corsa and Meriva are sold as Chevrolets in the Americas, the Insignia is sold as a Buick in China and soon in North America. When Buick in particular has it’s own distinct products (and combined Chinese and North American sales far exceed Opel already), Opel will have greater freedom to export to other markets.
One correction Fritz, last year’s CAFE proposal was on a curve, but that only applies to 2011 models. The new proposal for 2012 to 2016 is a straight line between the maximum and minimum requirements. There is a sizable built-in advantage to switching to rwd platforms with inherently longer wheelbases, in fact it’s the only way to ensure you don’t have to meet a corporate standard far higher than the required industry minimum.
Mr. Henderson,
Just wanted to back up your comment regarding the resale values of GM cars. I have a 2006 Solstice, # 4182 off the line. It has over 74,000 miles on it and was just appraised with a resale value of $11,750.00. Needless to say, I was very pleased. I love my car. There were some who tried to tell me not to buy a first year model, but they were very wrong. The car is four years old and when I’m out and about, people still stop and tell me it’s a great looking car.
GM complains about the world’s perception of its products and services. Have you considered it might not be the entire world who has the wrong perception? Maybe it’s time to take a really objective look at how you stack up against your competition. There has to be a reason consumers are very loyal to your competitors.
Please listem to me veeeeery carefully. Nothing else matters if reliability and durability is not at the top. Propaganda and empty claims of reliability won’t matter if you don’t really have a dependable product and responsive service.
I’m entirely loyal to Jeep and the only reason I would consider Chevy or GMC pickups is because Jeep doesn’t offer trucks. I will consider buying GM pickups if you prove yours are better than Fords within the next couple of years. If I do buy Fords and they do a halfway decent job of product and serivce, I will become loyal to them and you will have blown your chances forever – not just on my ranch but on my relative’s ranches and farms. The only reason I’m waiting a couple of years is because of the way Ford refused to stand behind the spark plug problems in their V8s and V10s. Presently, neither you nor Ford is worthy of consideration.
Quality and Value…..
There is a reason why Hyundai’s market share is increasing and GM’s is decreasing.
THere is a reason why Toyota and Lexus have reputations for Quality.
Build Quality vehicle’s at a Value driven price and market share will return.
IRT: Enclave, GMC Acadia, Chevrolet Traverse (to start):
I, and/or my late parents, have owned almost entirely GM products since 1968; with many of these vehicles having been custom ordered as well. Having said that, these are my thoughts concerning these initial vehicles and some suggested design considerations for various models (from the most easily implemented moving towards the more involved) beginning with the Enclave, Acadia and Traverse.
Basic Item:
1. ALL “performance” and/or “high-grade” and/or towing vehicles should include (or have optionally available) an instrument cluster which incorporates at least a tachometer, speedometer, fuel, volt, oil pressure, and temperature guages – PERIOD. For heavy-duty trucks and towing vehicles and performance cars, additional instrumention should be optionally available to include transmission fluid temperature and a number of other items. Many of these items could be made available within a DIC display on a shared time basis specified by the driver (or in a manner similar to the new Camaro SS). I’m tired of the “economy car” dashboards which have now become the norm. On performance and tow vehicles, it’s inexcusable…. Customers will gladly pay for these additional guages/displays…….
All Saturn Sky’s, Pontiac Soltice’s, G8 GXP’s, Chevrolet SS’s, and others, etc, should have had a complete guage package available without fail……
Buick Enclave/GMC Acadia/Chevrolet Traverse:
1.Make an engine oil cooler available as part of the towing packages (included or optional).
2.Take existing 3.6 liter engine out to its full 4.0 liter design capacity (for about 310-320 hp).
3.Make 4.0 liter engine optionally available (as part of “expanded” towing package) and also use in the Acadia Denali and any future Buick Super versions as their base engine.
4.Make MagnaRide suspension optional in Acadia Denali and any future Buick Super editions.
5.Make BAS-plus hybrid system optionally available as soon as possible with all engines.
6.Update 4.3 liter “XV8” (to about 325-350 hp) and make available (with BAS-plus optional).
7.Make “two-mode” hybrid system optionally available as soon as possible.
8.Future small displacement twin-turbo diesel engine?
Buick Enclave/GMC Acadia/Chevrolet Traverse:
1.Make an engine oil cooler available as part of the towing packages (included or optional).
Gman,
That GMC Acadia is supposed to be “professional grade.” An engine oil cooler should be standard equipment on a vehicle for professionals. Wouldn’t you agree?
How many cars do you think will be sold next year
what did you think the # would be for the next years sals?
why do GM cars develop problems in the second and third year of the model run that were not there during the first year ? it seems that GM tries to cut the cost of parts in the car as the years go along and they start to have parts failures. cars should be improved not made less reliable as they go thru the model run
GM — you need to listen to your customers……..for too long you have ignored their complaints and market share declined. Listen to your customers and try to fix whatever the complaint is.
You have been loosing market share for 30 years. You just came out of bankruptcy.
You can not continue to loose market share and customers and survive. The clock is ticking.
How many more vehicle launches (chances) are you going to get?
Build the best…… Quality and Value will sell and bring back customers.
If your vehicle is not taking market share in it’s class .. find out what is wrong and fix it. Do not wait for the next model make over.
Just saying you have quality vehicles does not make it so. When you are taking market share from the leaders in the class the Quality and Value of the product will speak for itself.
I would like to see GM succeed but I am not sure it can be done with the old blood running thru it’s veins. You need some new blood and some new ideas.
Why not try to get some talent from APPLE to help with technology. (joint product development?)
Why not try to get some talent from Toyota to figure out this quality and reliability thing.
Why not get some talent from Hyundai to see how they turned around a company that was a joke a few years ago into a company taking market share now.
Why not look at how Ford stayed out of bankruptcy and is producing some interesting Green vehicles. (think eco boost)
Why not look at how Toyota and Lexus are using hybrid technology to actually improve milage of their vehicles and not just a cosmetic boost for their trucks.
Why not look at Nissan and see why they are moving fast with electric vehicles in your home market.
Why did GM do so poorly in the cash for clunkers sales?
Fritz,
“Commitment to Customers”? Please. You’ve abandoned your customers. It’s bad enough that the Pontiac and Saturn brands were tossed under the bus, but to then focus on Buick in their place was unbelieveable. Spare me the “Buick’s big in China” talk….fine, then sell them in China. In the US, Buick is a sign of retirement and old age, and the new Buicks aren’t any different. I’ve seen the new LaCrosse on the road; it is an amorphous blob like any other generic Asian transporter. What sets it apart? Probably it’s “old man” suspension setup and handling. As a loyal Pontiac customer, I’m not ready for assisted living yet. Where’s the excitement that’s affordable? You have one car, the Camaro, and it’s a huge compromise betweeen excellent body styling and impractical cabin/interior. Oh wait, there’s also the Cobalt SS, but it’s on the way out, isn’t it? What will you have that can compete with a WRX, RX-8, Mazdaspeed3, BMW3series, or GTI, for examples? Not much. How about the Taurus SHO? Nope. Pontiac’s may not have been perfect, but there were signs of life (G8, Solstice), and driving one didn’t age you 30 years. Whatever Buick’s glorious heritage may have been was long since killed off in the last 30 years. Save for the Regal GN / GNX, Buick says “old”. Maybe Buick can be the next Lexus, but if you’d bother to look, Lexus says “old”, too. At lest Lexus has the IS/IS-F….Buick just has the Lucerne and a brand new Lacrosse that’ll be as DOA as the last one. I really want GM to thrive. I have four GM cars in my driveway. But I don’t see it happening anymore, and nothing in your lineup will allow me to contribute anymore to GM’s sucess. See you in “another showroom”.
Fritz,
Just read Susan Docherty’s reasoning for killing Pontiac (that it was not profitable for years) – have you ever given thought to maybe GM killed Pontiac with crap product? When Pontiac was profitable, it didn’t have an ugly SUV (Aztek), a mini-van (Transport/Montana), wattered down rebadged economy cars (everything from Sunfire to Sunbird, G3, and G5 were all complete busts and not real Pontiacs), and uninspiring sedans (G6, last couple generations of the Grand Prix weren’t great either). It is GM’s fault, not market conditions or customer base. Pontiac would be VERY profitable if the right product mix was there. It has to be unique and sporty, even Bonnevilles were sporty.
But for the last 15-20 years GM continued to ruin and water the brand down instead of infusing it with great stuff. Don’t blame anyone but yourselves, and don’t blame anyone who will never buy GM again BECAUSE you’ve destroyed Pontiac. Forget Chevy, Buick, Cadillac, and GMC – unless you plan on resurrecting the G8 as a Chevy (which I guess isn’t going to happen now)
You’ve made your bed now sleep in it. Pontiac is dead, and so is GM to me now.