Some? I mean, c'mon Mr. Phelan. As a Detroit Free Press columnist, if you're going to proclaim a design renaissance at GM, why go half way? Why just trot out the Buick Enclave, Saturn Aura, Chevy Malibu and Silverado, draped though they are in various advertiser ingratiating COTY awards? What of the Pontiac G6? Saturn Sky? Chevrolet HHR? The General has 51 models spread over eight brands. Or are these four examples a sign of things to come. Apparently so… "The reason the new 'vehicles happened is that GM now has a hyperefficient, product-focused vehicle development program,' said Jim Hall, managing director of 2953 Analytics of Birmingham. GM's vehicle-development system today can stand alongside Toyota and BMW as the best in the industry." While one wonders just how efficient a development system has to be to qualify as "hyperefficient," Phelan identifies the three major changes ensuring that his Big Four aren't flukes. First, "A single executive is responsible for each family of vehicles, usually keeping the job for 10 years." Second, "Each of GM's global engineering centers now concentrates on the kind of vehicles it does best." And third, "The goal for each new vehicle is to be the best in its class, rather than simply hoping to be competitive." Phelan ends his paean to The General by elevating CEO Rick Wagoner, design chief Ed Wellburn and Car Czar Bob Lutz to sainthood. Clearly, the hometown scribe knows how to put the sick in sycophancy.
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Detroit needs to stop patting itself on the back and learn a little humility. Just because they came out with a few good products doesn’t mean they can just sit in wonder and proclaim, “Man, we really kick ass!”
Does the Freep think they are helping? Isn’t this like giving beer to an alcoholic? Does it sell more papers?
I actually like the HHR, especially the windowless panel truck version.
Landcrusher-Exactly! Co-dependancy rules the day.
Even if we pretend that all of their design issues are solved there is still the matter of reliability.
Frankly, I think 78.3528% of the public is “design blind”. As evidence I cite the rise of Toyota and the fact that GM survived the last two decades.
But they are more likely to notice when the vehicle actually craps out on them (BARF strikes again).
Until they deal with reliability problems by a more substantial method than having Bob the Magnificent declare that they are as good as anyone they will continue to bleed retail sales.
Merry Christmas,
Bunter
Has GM taken a second look at their policy of literately squeezing the life out of their supply base in an effort to drive costs down? If not then these much vaunted vehicles will be full of parts made by companies in survival mode where the temptation is to make them in the cheapest way and with the cheapest materials possible. When their owners have them for a couple of years, will they start to self destruct? There is no doubt that the fit and finish of GM’s newer vehicles is right there with the best of them. They look great when factory fresh but are they made from garbage parts? Unless that has changed we can expect horror stories about vehicle reliability in the not too distant future. Then these COTY award winners will be yet more ‘also rans’ from GM. If GM put the energy they employ to beat up on their supply base on costs into ensuring that the car really is a quality vehicle they would be hard to beat. Somehow I don’t think any of that has changed. Will it be a case of:
“Chev Malibu, Oh yeah great car”
“Nice to drive”
“Decent performer”
“Only thing is, Brakes don’t last peeing time and every time I get them serviced I have to get new rotors”
“And another thing, the water pump blew out before 90K!”
“Oh and the alternator quit at 40K and the AC compressor died after 2 summers”
“Then the wheel bearings, the alignment, the BCM
started giving me grief”
You get the picture, a scenario that countless GM owners have faced on a single GM vehicle.
An accord killer indeed, we’ll see!
“Bob’s gotten the organization to pay attention to the right stuff, but it’s still not institutionalized beyond Lutz driving it,” he said. “GM must build a process where making the best vehicle is the No. 1 concern.”
^ That’s a scary part.
“The VLE system was intended to do that, but some VLEs have held the position for less than 10 years. VLE should be seen as the pinnacle of a career within GM, Hall said. “They must be the advocate for the customer and the conscience of what the vehicle needs to be.”
^ Call them what you want, but if they are political hacks instead of talented individuals, the cars will still suck.
“VLE should be a person’s last job, the one they aspire to and retire from.”
^No, no, no. Give them tenure, even if they stink? You have to be able to fire them if they underperform.
Not being familiar with Detroit (only had to pass through it once), is the entire newspaper completely whipped, or is it just this columnist who has his lips firmly planted to the big 2.8’s buns?
Is there an objective newspaper in that town? I actually see this as a fairly large issue (more than just “Oh, I should ignore the auto reviews in the Detroit Free Press”). It’s a slipperly slope…what other “news” does GM control?
I agree with coupdetat. Detroit NEED to learn some humility. I’ve been REALLY trying to defend detroit and play Devil’s Avocodo, but when they start with the “We kick ass” attitude, it just turns me off their cars.
Also, when something goes wrong for detroit, what are you more likely to hear?
1. “Yep! It’s our fault. We didn’t plan it properly. We’re going back to the drawing board and improve it.”
or
2. “It’s (insert person they’re competing against)’s fault! They’ve got weak currency/better customer perception/cheaper labour delete as applicable. We’ve done nothing wrong!”
Detroit are the automotive equivalent of Sir Alex Ferguson. There for the credit and blame someone else when they mess up.
Also, incidentally, call me cynical, but when a journal called “The Detroit Free Press” is reporting on how good a car is which comes from a maker based in Detroit, I wonder how impartial they’ll be…….?
I agree oboylepr, we won’t know if GM has really changed for another 5 years. Every single person who has ever sworn off another new GM product bought them all new and shiney. THey’re great brand new but screwing over your suppliers ultimately means you screw over your customer.
KatiePuckrik: I’ve been REALLY trying to defend detroit and play Devil’s Avocado.
Nice turn of phrase. Still, thankless job, Devil’s Avocado.
The last straw for myself and the DFP happened a couple of years back, when Honda launched the current Odyssey around the same time the Ford Freestar was coming onto the market.
DFP was doom-n-gloom about the Odyssey, while the Freestar (in retrospect a terribly lame attempt at a minivan) could do no wrong.
Flash forward to now. Go and read their “reviews” of the 2008 Honda Accord and 2008 Ford Focus. Despite only mentioning the Focus for perhaps 1/4 of the article and writing volumes about how revolutionary (gimmicky?) SYNC is, there’s not a negative sentiment in the Focus review. Run through the Accord’s review, however, and you’d think it was manufactured by mid-90s GM (“hard plastic,” “questionable styling,” etc.). The point is Phelan lives in the Big 2.8’s pockets, the DFP should stick to weather/crime reports, and life in the real world goes on.
ummm, don’t mean to hurt anyone’s feelings, but just to clarify, Katie and Johnster, avocado is a fruit. I think you mean Abogado del Diablo, devil’s advocate or devil’s lawyer.
On the topic, I don’t care if GM survives, I don’t like them now (when I live in my home country) neither did I like them as a kid living in the States. Though sadly, the whole time we were there my father bought ugly Chevy station wagons. Guess that’s why I’ve been turned off the brand!!
Maybe the FREEP should change its name to the “Detroit Indentured Press.”
Just to clarify, I MEANT to say Devil’s Avocado as a pun on Devil’s Advocate!
Sadly, I’ve just come across slightly retarded…..so no change there, then! :O)
And we still plan to sell and service our cars through our terrible dealer system, which we have no intention of changing even though THEY are what people actually experience with a GM car.