Volt prototype enthusiast Mark Phelan of the Detroit Free Press took his stab at the old “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help” chestnut today. “Is the U.S. government’s rescue plan for General Motors a business strategy or social engineering?” he pondered, perturbed.
“The question arises daily. Seemingly knowledgeable people declare that the government will force GM out of the profitable and important business of selling trucks and family vehicles, allowing it to build only small cars, hybrids and electric vehicles.”
Profitable and important. Family. Only. Ad copy.
“The government is not going to prevent GM from making every type of vehicle it can sell profitably,” a source close to the task force whispers to Phelan. Like what? Good thing we have an automotive journalist on hand. Phelan?
“GM is developing a range of vehicles and technologies to increase fuel efficiency. Many, including cars like the Chevrolet Cruze and Spark, high-efficiency small engines and the Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric car, were locked into GM’s product plans years before the economic crisis that led to government involvement.”
The final turn of phrase is so monumentally euphemistic, if GM isn’t paying Phelan they should be. Seriously. Meanwhile, never mind the bollocks, here’s the 2011 Camaro Convertible! And don’t call it a comeback. According to GM spokesfolks, by way of Automotive News [sub], “The convertible was never canceled. It was retimed. It will be the first quarter of 2011 for the start of production.” Let’s just hope that this is definitive proof that the government is not embarking on “social engineering.”
Hey, I wouldn’t mind driving a new Camaro convertible. There’s just one thing…
Who will purchase the cars of Government Motors?
Liberals typically shy away from domestic brands.
Conservatives will be unhappy about the govt control.
As the guy on CNBC said, expect the “mother of all incentives” to move the iron.
The loudest people do not always account for the majority. While I am personally very excited for more clean and efficient options, I still want EXCITEMENT. Glad the Camaro convertible is still on.
If they knew this was the thanks they were going to get, the government might’ve stayed out of this whole thing and let Chrysler and GM go under. Would’ve been okay by me.
this kind of uncertainty is just no good.
a while back there was reasonable ‘unrest’ when the Camaro and Challenger convertibles were cancelled in the same week.
Now the Camaro convertible is back!
This kind of on again, off again car from an on again, off again manufacturer must be doubly confusing for the buyer.
I kinda wonder what Camaro buyers are thinking? Or any GM buyer right now?
Despite having at least 3 cars that were at or near the top of my shopping list for next year, GM is no longer on the list ever since the government began dictating management, effectively nationalizing the company, and bullying ‘disobedient’ stakeholders. I will never by choice support the detached, bloated, self-serving pig of a federal government we have to endure these days.
Camaro convertible with a Volt powertrain. Hybrids for everyone!
I just read about the new diesel engine GM developed entirely in house for the 2010 pickups. This is a great product. I look forward to seeing one, and maybe buying one next year.
# segfault :
May 26th, 2009 at 7:07 pm
Camaro convertible with a Volt powertrain. Hybrids for everyone!
If it had anything like the power that even low-end Camaro buyers would expect/demand, that would truly be the Deus Volt.
As the guy on CNBC said, expect the “mother of all incentives” to move the iron.
As the owner of a rusty, 12 year old car, I am very excited for the possibilities.
A hybrid Camaro is possible, using GM’s dual mode hybrid system. Other than figuring out where to put the battery, it’s pretty much a bolt in affair, using the same dual mode transmission from the Tahoe/Escalade hybrid. With a V6 and cylinder deactivation a hybrid Camaro might be able to get 30mpg overall.
I want the Pelosi! I want the Pelosi!
NOT!
If the government wanted me to drive a Camaro… why not?
“I want the Pelosi! I want the Pelosi! ”
– THAT rusty old ride ?
And Schreiber- the V-6 Camaro already gets 29mpg highway, so my estimate of its mileage would be higher than 30. That’s a good suggestion.
Matt51- never buy in the first production year. Remember the Oldsmobile diesel ?
I thought not.
TonyJZX: I’m sure all the people that put down a deposit on a new Camaro will be offered first chance at the convertible, y’know, once they satisfy the early price-gouging demand, so, they’ll get their car in say… 2013?
Segfault: Double the vapor, double the fun! Why not make it a Volt-Hybrid-Camarino-vertible?
The Camaro (and the CTS-V if there ever is another one) is the thin thread of respect I have left for GM. If it continues on the road to government-led-pussification-for-“the greater good” I may find myself in my first ever BMW. Last I heard, they still have the balls to laugh at CAFE, pay the penalty fees, and continue making cars people want. I’d much rather pay the extra cash and be mistaken for a snob than support a business that neuters itself to appease a minority that normally shuns domestics anyway.
With the current bailout bucks going to 2/3 of the domestics, I’m looking at Ford more & more as a possible domestic option — this coming from the happy/proud owner of a 3-speed auto neon.
Also: Is mazda still owned/part domestic?
No Gov. Motors vehicle for me, no Chrysler either. Ford truck or large SUV, OK. Maybe a 5 door hatch, if AWD, if I could get the old lady to go along with it. Have three Fords now (and a Toyota Matrix AWD XR) and would like to see them survive.
I blame this all on the Buffalo Subway (hereinafter BS) system.
Years ago I remember reading a complaint the BS was so expensive to the federal government that it would have been cheaper to buy every rider on the BS a new car.
It would seem that this mocking complaint was taken as a suggestion.
And Schreiber- the V-6 Camaro already gets 29mpg highway, so my estimate of its mileage would be higher than 30. That’s a good suggestion.
I was being conservative. I knew that the V6 got in the high 20s on the highway so I figured with the 25% bump in fuel economy the dual mode system delivers, that would yield better than 30mpg overall, including city driving, since hybrids get most of their mpg improvement in city driving.
Scarey, I am old enough to remember the Olds diesel. I think this time GM has hit a home run. They clearly have a technological win here, my guess their engine is 200-300 lbs lighter than the competition (new engines from Ford and Cummins for Dodge), and more compact. Will directly replace the Chevy small block, so will eventually fit in many applications.