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Bob Lutz is, apparently. So is Jack Baruth. But will the “V-Series Challenge” prove anything? Not so much. Nobody will be surprised when a CTS-V sets the fastest lap time of the event (at the hands of GM’s test-driver John Heinricy), or if Lutz’s god-knows-how-many practice laps brings his lap time lower than his challengers’. As we’ve said before, GM has set the terms of a battle it is nearly incapable of losing… but what of the war? Who cares what your top-of-the-line sedan is (even if it’s amazing, which TTAC readily admits it is) when your point of entry is the Aveo? Oh, and how much profit does the CTS-V make? Still, we can’t say no to a few hot laps on someone else’s dime. Do you know what a membership to Monticello costs?
39 Comments on “Who’s Ready For Some Publicity Stunt?...”
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I’m going to bid $1, Drew.
The regular membership, if memory serves, is $100k plus $7k a year in dues. The deck is stacked even more than you mention. Want to know why they are doing it at Monticello? One of the reasons might be the fleet of GM cars that Monticello has, including several CTS-V’s. The local instructors are very familiar with that car as well as how to get it around that track quickly.
Thats right its about $125k and a $7k maintenance fee. A good friends father was interested until he saw the price. NJMP less expensive.
Why the shot at the Aveo, a car which has nothing to do with this event? Do people not care about a Lexus LS because of the Toyota Yaris? No one care about a Nissan GTR because of a Versa? Ridiculous.
I wonder how much of that membership fee goes toward insurance.
BTW, there’s a historical first. An official General Motors website is linking to The Truth About Cars.
http://cadillac.gmblogs.com/2009/10/23/meet-the-v-series-challengers-%E2%80%93-preliminary-list/
The CTS-V is a halo car and this stunt can only attract a few pistonheads’ attention. Why not a ‘reasonably priced car’ shootout, eg. in a Cobalt or Malibu? Now that would be a test of GM’s confidence in their products.
I’m interested to see how this resonates beyond car blogs and buff books. I think it’s a great publicity stunt but I’m not sure how much publicity GM will be able to generate beyond car guys.
How about a race between GM’s best selling sedan and the competition’s best selling sedans?
Twotone
Stock-piling excuses for losing – not a bad idea
p00ch:
A shootout against the Cobalt wouldn’t be much of a fight. The Cobalt SS is simply faster than anything that is even remotely close in price.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%C3%BCrburgring_lap_times
I think the Malibu might be an interesting choice, but there aren’t real competitors that are very track oriented. Camry, Accord, and Fusion aren’t bought because of their time around a track.
‘Publicity’ is Lutz’s job. I don’t have a problem with this.
I’m impressed that some 70 year old dude can find his way around a track when most of his contemporaries are circling the grocery store looking for that plum parking spot.
Maybe Lutz can’t save GM by himself, but that doesn’t make him a piece of shit.
What would racing an Impala vs. a Civic prove? Or a Camry? If they decided to do that, you would be laughing at this poor excuse for a publicity stunt.
He could put dimples on his CTS to lower resistance and increase fuel economy:
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/10/22/mythbusters-golf-ball-like-dimpling-mpg/
Steven02 :
October 23rd, 2009 at 4:29 pm
Why the shot at the Aveo, a car which has nothing to do with this event? Do people not care about a Lexus LS because of the Toyota Yaris? No one care about a Nissan GTR because of a Versa? Ridiculous.
The point in bringing up the Aveo is that, while Maximum Bob and company are orchestrating their three-ring circus, GM’s bread-and-butter continues to take a beating. The Malibu is the only bright spot in Chevy’s car lineup; the Cruze is still nothing more than an unproven promise, the Aveo is, well, the Aveo, the fleet-astic Impala is a bloated, mediocre pig, and every installment of Volt Birth Watch makes that project look ever more like a boondoggle. Meanwhile, the oft-trumpeted renaissance of Cadillac hinges on just one car, the CTS. Short of the new SRX, there’s nothing else on that plate that looks appealing. GMC is utterly irrelevant, and Buick can’t seem to find a reason to exist either. We all know the CTS-V is an excellent automobile, so yet another luxo-sedan comparo is little more than redundant indulgence.
“How about a race between GM’s best selling sedan and the competition’s best selling sedans?”
That would be a nice idea. Maybe Accord V6 or Camry V6 vs. Impala SS? Bit of a mismatch though.
As an Impala SS owner from the land of straight lines (Oklahoma City) I can attest the SS will annihilate the Camry and Accord V6s. Can’t vouch for a track though.
@Bridge2far, reclusive_in_nature:
GM doesn’t make the Impala SS for 2010, so I don’t see what showing one off will prove other than that GM is stupid for killing the LS4.
I seriously hope someone shows up to this in a Lancer Evo MR. That is all.
Steven02:
That’s precisely the point: the Cobalt SS is a formidable contender and safe bet for GM, but it also happens to be within reach for most buyers unlike the CTS-V.
Most Camry/Accord/Malibu buyers may not care much about track performance, but this could be a selling point for a number of shoppers. A lot of guys I know (under 40) like to ‘justify’ their purchase of a bland family car by pointing out its handling traits. A ‘Bu outhandling a Camry or an Accord would be a major coup for GM.
“GMC is utterly irrelevant, and Buick can’t seem to find a reason to exist either.”
GMC Terrain and Acadia, Sierra Denali irrelevant? And Buick LaCrosse and Enclave? Perhaps you might re consider my ill informed friend…
A ‘Bu outhandling a Camry or an Accord would be a major coup for GM.…
Out-handling a Camry could be accomplished by a K car with a swaybar upgrade…All joking aside, nobody seems to care that the Camry is a softie. I am surprised that Toyota doesn’t offer a serious suspension upgrade package. Development would cost next to nothing and Toyota would eliminate one area where they really do come up short.
Bridge2far :
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:45 pm
GMC Terrain and Acadia, Sierra Denali irrelevant? And Buick LaCrosse and Enclave? Perhaps you might re consider my ill informed friend…
I will grant that the Lambda twins taken together have moved a respectable number of units, especially compared to the belly-flop Traverse. The Terrain is an unproven commodity we can only guess on at this point by looking at the Equinox. Sales of the Silverado/Sierra have been in freefall since last year, and FY2009 is not going to be any better. Sales figures aside, I am referring to overall brand strategy. What is the point of having a truck/ute-only brand in today’s market? The Lambdas, as others have already noted numerous times, represent GM raising the white flag in the minivan market after the atrocious U-bodies were annihilated by the Odyssey/Sienna/Caravan/T&C.
Buick’s sales have been laughable. As with the Terrain, it remains to be seen how the new LaCrosse will help reverse the trend. As it stands, the Lucerne has sold better. So unless the LaCrosse helps the division pull a rabbit out of a hat, I don’t see much justification for its continued existence.
Ronnie Schreiber :
October 23rd, 2009 at 4:58 pm
I’m interested to see how this resonates beyond car blogs and buff books. I think it’s a great publicity stunt but I’m not sure how much publicity GM will be able to generate beyond car guys.
A while back, GM took a cobalt to a “time attack” where basically all of the entrants were Japanese cars. The Cobalt was the fastest car, even though it was partially tube framed and reportedly cost around $100,000 to build and went up against cars from little tuner garages or privateers. They also ran numerous practice laps, etc.
They caused a lot of ruckus with import guys, but I don’t think they stole any Civic SI, 350Z or S2000 sales. It seemed to make Cobalt fans want a Cobalt SS more, though.
GM doesn’t make the Impala SS for 2010, so I don’t see what showing one off will prove other than that GM is stupid for killing the LS4.
Here’s hoping the Caprice (yeah I know it’s just going to be police car, but I can dream) becomes the new Impala SS. Squeezing that LS4 in a Cruze or the upcoming Regal (turbo it and call it a Grand National!) wouldn’t be a bad idea either.
There is nothing for anyone to prove or feel ashamed of themselves about. Its an interesting event and that is it. GM (its engineers) can build a great car. So can everybody else. Which is great.
Speed is not everything though. I’ve not driven a CTS-V in GT5 nor real life. I’m sure how I like it. I think I like the M5, S6, and RS4 a bit though. Which I’m grateful about. I like the old CTS-V also. I celebrate that, the Panamera, and life. Thank you all, and I want us all to enjoy this hopefully friendly, exciting, and cool event. God bless.
I think it’s a great publicity stunt but I’m not sure how much publicity GM will be able to generate beyond car guys.
You’re right to wonder—because no one outside this circle cares—and it’s a pretty adroit commentary on how badly out-of-sync GM’s marketing (and it’s Marketing Maven) is with regards to what most buyers care about.
This kind of shtick might have worked back when Bob Lutz didn’t have grey hair. It doesn’t work now. If he (Lutz) was any good at marketing, he’d know that this is, at best, ten minutes of YouTube fluffery and doesn’t matter a damn to Camry (and such) intenders.
Let’s call it Corvette Syndrome: GM seems to think of itself as a sexy, boutique carmaker, hanging huge amounts of self-worth on cars that aren’t mass-market. Toyota, meanwhile, sees the Prius (and before that, the Camry and Corolla) as it’s halo.
Every single launch event, press release or auto-show is a publicity stunt so I fail to see what the fuss about with this one. It seems much better value that a motor show as it’s cheap and is generating a lot of press.
And, unlike tedious launches and shows, this marketing stunt has the possibility of actually being entertaining as it pits Max Bob’s giant ego against the equally out sized ego of the motoring press.
This of course begs the question:
What the hell is Jack going to be driving?
“Buick’s sales have been laughable.
Well let’s take a look at Enclave sales ytd vs its’ competition.
Enclave- over 31,000 units
Mercedes M Class- 17,000
Audi Q5 & Q7 combined- 14,000
BMW X5- 18,600
Acura MDX- 20,000
Laughable? I don’t think so…
Hope Lutz will be wearing adult-diapers under his suit.
Bridge2far :
“Buick’s sales have been laughable
Laughable? I don’t think so
Good point, but you do have to include the Lexus RX which is the leader in the segment. But Buick is definitely a major player in this market,and the Enclave drivers are not the stereotype “geezers”. Hopefully the new LaCrosse will be just as successful.
@ Niedermeyer:
As we’ve said before, GM has set the terms of a battle it is nearly incapable of losing… but what of the war? Who cares what your top-of-the-line sedan is (even if it’s amazing, which TTAC readily admits it is) when your point of entry is the Aveo?
Yeah, the Aveo is a POS, but in fairness…besides the Honda Fit, I’d argue just about any of the Aveo’s competitors – Yaris, Versa, Accent, and on and on – are only marginally better.
So, is it fair to trash, say, the Nissan GT-R because the Versa is a penalty box?
The CTS-V is a no-shit awesome car, and the base CTS is great too. Let’s evaluate them on their own merits.
p00ch :
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:17 pm
Most Camry/Accord/Malibu buyers may not care much about track performance, but this could be a selling point for a number of shoppers. A lot of guys I know (under 40) like to ‘justify’ their purchase of a bland family car by pointing out its handling traits. A ‘Bu outhandling a Camry or an Accord would be a major coup for GM.
Having driven all three, I’d say the Malibu’s handling is on a par with the Camry’s, but both lag behind the Accord in this regard.
Where the Malibu will have an advantage, though, is in terms of styling and feature content.
The problem with this publicity stunt is not the stunt itself. Car makers have been comparing their models to their competitors forever; it’s nothing new. I have a feeling that if/when Lutz and the CTS-V win, he will use the occasion to boast: “See! GM makes world beating cars!” Well, they make A world beating car.
@Jordan:
This is what I am bringing, it’s my car:
http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i15/viergang/s5vir/LMS_5373.jpg
With any luck, Jalopnik will honor their promise to share the Jag.
Via Nocturna :
The point in bringing up the Aveo is that, while Maximum Bob and company are orchestrating their three-ring circus, GM’s bread-and-butter continues to take a beating. The Malibu is the only bright spot in Chevy’s car lineup; the Cruze is still nothing more than an unproven promise, the Aveo is, well, the Aveo, the fleet-astic Impala is a bloated, mediocre pig, and every installment of Volt Birth Watch makes that project look ever more like a boondoggle. Meanwhile, the oft-trumpeted renaissance of Cadillac hinges on just one car, the CTS. Short of the new SRX, there’s nothing else on that plate that looks appealing. GMC is utterly irrelevant, and Buick can’t seem to find a reason to exist either. We all know the CTS-V is an excellent automobile, so yet another luxo-sedan comparo is little more than redundant indulgence.
You completely miss the point. Apparently, GM can’t have some publicity for Caddy b/c of a lack luster Aveo.
If you really want to dog the Aveo, go ahead. The Yaris is almost as bad. The only good car in that space is the Fit. Much better than anything else in the class. The rest (including the Aveo, Yaris, Versa, and Accent) are bottom feeders. I am not sure what one good car in this segment means. But apparently, it means anytime GM does something right with a car, someone has to talk about the Aveo.
As for the Impala, I don’t see why people dog it so much. Is it a great road carver, no. It is a inexpensive large car that gets you from point a to point be with decent mileage with an enormous trunk? Absolutely. I have rented a few and drove one on a long trip. The car isn’t great. But it isn’t bad either. But compare it to the Avalon… how are the sales for that car doing? Don’t get me wrong, I think the Impala has room for improvement. All cars do, but it isn’t as bad as people make it out to be.
Jack, aren’t the rules for Sedan’s only?
WOW, those of you indicating that the Yaris is only marginally better than the Aveo have either never driven one of the cars, or weren’t paying close-enough attention in either one.
Or are you going J.D. Powers on us, and projecting a 40-minute rental experience into a full-fledged opinion of the car? Should we talk about which is going to last longer? Or how critical reliability is for the segment of the population that is looking at the market’s cheapest cars?
What do you think your opinion would be of the company who made it, after owning each of them for, say, five years? “Gosh, this may be the minimum of transporation but at least it runs,” or “gosh, I wish I didn’t have to enter my car through the rear passenger door.”
Not to get too far off topic, but I recently (last week) spent a day driving a base level Accent sedan (so it wasn’t the $9,970 model, but it was close) and I it really isn’t any better than the Aveo I drove a couple years ago. The dealer installed radio was poorly installed and rattled over bumps, the engine would hang at high RPMs, as if the thing had a huge flywheel (despite being an automatic), when doing things like accelerating to highway speeds. The door chime was a nostalgic touch, reminding me of the Nissan pickup my neighbor had when I was a kid in the 80’s.
When Hyundai announced the $9,970 stripped hatchback special, I thought it was an intriguing deal; upgrade the suspension, wheels and tires, install a stereo (I’m sure the speakers are in the doors) and you would have a modern version of the original Mini. You know, cheap and underpowered but fun. After driving the rental I’m not so sure.
@JuniorMint
So I have taken it that you have owned both of them for 5 years as you suggest? Or at least you have been significant seat time in both?
I am sorry, I can’t deal with the Yaris having all of the guages in the center. I am sorry that it feels much smaller than the Fit. I am sorry that the fit is more versatile. Don’t get me wrong, I am in no way saying that the Aveo is a good car or one that I want to own, because I simply don’t. The Yaris, I have been in as well and don’t car to own it either. Both cars suck. Period.
The Fit is a much better automobile than both of them, combined. It is far and away the class leader in the US.
But this is all nothing to what the original comments about the Aveo started. Why is it even mentioned in the article? Yes, we all know the Aveo sucks. Apparently, anytime GM does something right, no one here can admit that. They must bring up the Aveo. I guess anytime Toyota does something right, it would be appropriate to bring up the problems with the floor mats?