GM 'car czar' Lutz says it's the design, stupid
When Bob Lutz became GM's car czar last year, he kept telling workers that they couldn't keep doing things the same way if they wanted different results. Seems obvious, and that philosophy is considered one of the litmus tests for being sane. Although there's still a long way to go, and GM might slip to the #2 spot in global production before it gets sorted, it seems the message is getting through. The 2005 bankruptcy fears are gradually fading, mainly because of CEO Rick Wagoner's budget-slashing, but also due to the Lutz cheerleading that has seen good product pushed to quicker release. The new Silverado/Sierra, for instance got into showrooms a full 3 months ahead of projections and, more importantly, hit before Toyota's much-hyped Tundra.
Most analysts will tell you it's Lutz who will ultimately get GM back to form. And the reason Lutz is so important is that he recognizes that good product is the only way out. He's telling everybody who will listen that better design, higher quality interiors, and quicker concept-to-sales floor development times are what GM needs.
Follow the jump for the rest of the story.
[Source: Automotive News, sub req]
"GM has such a reputational deficit to overcome that it has to be very good for a few years before people actually get it," Lutz said in a recent interview. "When I came back to GM, the Japanese and Germans were way ahead of us in quality," he said. "And that gave everyone a bad impression, especially import owners.
"They would rent a GM car at the airport, drive it and it would be OK, but everything they looked at was gray and depressing and inexpensive looking. And they thought, 'Now I know why I'll never buy an American car, particularly not one from GM.' So we had to fix that."
And we've seen the results ourselves with cars like the Saturn Aura (and upcoming Chevy Malibu), which took the best of what GM had available globally and brought it to the States with little change. GM will now let Europe handle mid size car design and let US facilities focus on pickups and SUVs, which makes a lot of sense. Fewer platforms developed to take advantage of local knowledge and specialties.
With the pickups out already, the new Chevrolet Malibu next year, the crossovers like the GMC Acadia, Saturn Outlook and Buick Enclave, plus the Saturn Vue, Aura and Astra, along with the upcoming Cadillac CTS, it should be a good 2007 for GM.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Jeremy Clarkson is an Idiot 12:04AM (12/28/2006)
I coulda told you that. GM has the advantage of its full-size pickups not being hideous like the new Tundra--just boring.
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Robin Ohman 1:43AM (12/28/2006)
Having just recently driven a new Solstice to purchase as weekend runabout (and deciding to wait a little longer for an S2000 instead), I would have to say that Bob is going to kick some more ass to get his message through. These days you shouldn't have to sacrifice function for form and plastic doesn't have to look or feel that cheap. I also have to say that based on 35 years of experience, I am more than a little wary of GM reliability.
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required 9:34PM (12/27/2006)
Bob Putz is full of crap. I rented a Saturn at Avis a month ago and it was still a piece of junk. the interior felt flimsy and nowhere near the Japanese ones (not to mention European cars).. He can say its the design but as long as GM puts out POS malibus, saturns, cobalts, etc. they'll never regain the top.
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$0.02 5:03PM (12/27/2006)
GM deserves credit for launching far better vehicles: Tahoe, Silverado, Impala, the new Saturns, etc. They do need to work on their smalls cars as rebadged Daewoos aren't competing with the likes of Nissan, Toyotas/Scions and Hondas.
I drive a big SUV for my business as I have to and want to. There's no reason to be a hater because someone wants to pay more for gas than you do. If I wanna buy a less fuel efficient vehicle than you do then the consequences are that I have to buy more gas. Key word: 'buy'. I purchase it!!!
Go move to HatingEurope if you want to stone people because they drive an SUV.
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laserwizard 9:56PM (12/27/2006)
Let's cut the crap here....
Here is Lutz's achievements in four years:
1. Removed plastic from the sides of Pontiacs
2. Badge engineered the G5, CSV, Torrent, Acadia, and Outlook.
3. STOLE a design form DCX to build the Me Too Cruiser.
4. Allowed the mishmash heap of dung known as the Buick LaCrosse to emerge stillborn looking like no Buick ever.
5. Oversaw design for GM during its single greatest marketshare loss in its history.
6. Has virtually destroyed brand identity at GM through tepid designs.
7. Crows that Solstice (sic) and Sky production is sold out even when production capacity is the only thing starving the models from contributing to profitability of GM - demand is nothing compared to days when GM sold double that in Camaros and Firebirds in a year.
8. Allowed half-baked remakes of GM full-sized trucks and sport utility vehicles without advertising their strengths (perhaps because there weren't any).
9. Insulted the press when the press was accurate in condemning the pathetic pace of change at GM under Wagoner and Putz.
10. Still has no Camaro or Firebird to sell to the public.
In the world of business, what Lutz has done should have earned him termination. A man with so little in positive contributions should be pushed off the tallest floor of GM headquarters and allowed to remain spread on the concrete as a reminder to every GM employee what happens when you accept mediocrity.
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BOB 6:57PM (12/27/2006)
#1 -- BETTER THAT THERE IS ___SOMEONE__ OUT THERE TRYING TO MAKE GM DO AND LOOK BETTER. LUTZ IS NOT ALWAYS RIGHT, AND OVERHYPES SMALL IMPROVEMENTS, BUT BETTER A CHEERLEADER THAN THE MORTICIANS THAT PRECEEDED HIM.
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Mother's little Helper 4:23PM (12/27/2006)
It was Lutz who brought Chrysler back from the brink in the early 1990's, now that he is gone Chrysler is folding like a cheap suit. He is without a doubt one of the best at product development ever in the auto industry, GM is so lucky to have him, and he will bring them back. You will see, in the future GM's designs will surpass everyone in the industry. Remember Lutz first offering was the Solitice, and the best is yet to come. The new Caddie CTS will be the most striking automobile in it's class and one of the best designs on the road.
Toyota may very well take over first place, but it won't last. The General is on the move and the rest will be history. Enjoy your party Toyota for the bell is about to toll, the sleeping giant has awaken.
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Sue Esponte 10:15PM (12/27/2006)
Steve, your comments make no sense. You don't have to like Bob Lutz or think he's a genius to know that many of the folks running GM don't have a clue how to run a successful car company...and that Bob Lutz has nothing to do with GM's current failures.
Do you think government SHOULD play a role in designing cars for GM? Would you want them having a hand in determining their route back to profitability? Do you think the government has a clue about how to run a car company? I'm assuming/hoping that you know the answer to all of the above is "NO!" So, what does your comment even mean?
The GTO isn't evidence that Lutz is a disaster, its evidence that the car was poorly marketed for US buyers. The car itself was an amazing machine. The problem is that it didn't look like anything special. And, for $37K people wanted hood vents and snazzy styling that screamed "look at me, I'm driving a GTO." They wanted the GTO to be more stylistically. Ironically, Bob Lutz seems to know this better than you suggest. GM simply wasn't willing to spend cash retooling the Monaro's body to meet the public's wants in time to release the car.
Regardless, if you believe the guys at GM are so "smart", why are they about to cede the #1 automaker spot to Toyota? Why do their US bound products pail in comparison to the products they sell in other markets? Why do they pail in comparison with cars built by other manufacturers. Why have they avoided and completely ignored the benefits of a global product initiative until recently? Why do they continue to relentlessly badge engineer products (see: 9-2x and 9-7x).
People loathed the idea of foreign companies building their cars on our shores. If doing so has proven anything, its shown us that the problem isn't the American worker since US-built Hondas, Mercedes, BMWs, Toyotas, etc. meet or exceed the quality of cars built in the company's homelands.
The problem with GM is the pathetic management of its past, and its archaic development and manufacturing structure. GM is too old, too big, and too set in its ways to allow 1 or 2 good seeds to change things. Wagoner and Lutz might as well be hippies in a room full of conservatives. The fact that Wagoner gets votes of confidence from the board is almost shocking. The problem with GM is simply the process by which they build cars, the fact that they've built cars for committees rather than buyers for years, that they've rested on the laurels of the past far too long (assuming that people would continue to "Buy American" just because), and the antiquated (and expensive) grip that the union workforce has over benefits, pensions, etc. You can blame Lutz all you want but the more people like him and others who "think different" that are infused into GM's corporate structure, the more we're likely to see change from GM.
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kyle 4:46PM (12/27/2006)
wow number 2 that was awesome and 100 percent true
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jamie 4:52PM (12/27/2006)
Couldn't think of two better men to run a major international automobile manufacturing company
Rick Wagoner on the finance side
and
Bob Lutz on the car guy side.
Things are looking pretty rosey for GM indeed!
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Greg 4:52PM (12/27/2006)
Wednesday - 12/27/06 - 10am
My neighbor's brand new Impala was taken away on the back of a flatbed this morning after it failed to start with a jump by the same truck.
Who knows what was wrong with it, but it sure had nothing to do with style.
You know what I say about my last Chevy which happened to be a '96 Monte?
Answer: It was my last Chevy!
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Fabulo 5:11PM (12/27/2006)
Just give me a call when
1. The average resale value of their car is not one of the worst of the industry.
2. When they actually turn a profit on the cars they sell.
Autoblog => AOL. Not a good combo for critical thinking me thinks.
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RUKiddingMe 9:40PM (12/27/2006)
#1:
Lutz hasn't had a hand in any of the GM's best selling autos? You can't be that uninformed of what Lutz has done at GM, unless of course you haven't been privy to:
The Solstice
The Sky
The Lucerne
The Cobalt
The Aura
The G6
The current Malibu
The current Impala
The upcoming Camaro and Malibu
The revamping of Saturn as GM's North American Opel Brand
The corporate mandate to improve GM interiors across all car lines
The Cadillac V-Series
The upcoming CTS productline extension
The GTO, by the way, although not the greatest vehicle on the road, did sell to expectations and brought non-Pontiac customers into their showrooms. It was also succesful enough to warrant GM's utilization of its' Holden brand for the upcoming Impala and Grand Prix.
I guess all of this must have slipped under your radar.
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dave 8:14PM (12/27/2006)
***There's no reason to be a hater because someone wants to pay more for gas than you do. If I wanna buy a less fuel efficient vehicle than you do then the consequences are that I have to buy more gas. Key word: 'buy'. I purchase it!!!***
Oh, christ, when will you morons realize it's not the expense of the gas that "haters" (what are you, 15?) criticize about SUVs. Do you know what it takes to get the gas that you can afford? You should go to Iraq and fight for it yourself, you ignorant $hit. No one cares if you're too stupid to hold on to your money--it's the damage you're causing to the air we all breathe and the environment in which we all must live. Yes, all of us, inlcuding you and what I'm sure are your just-as-ignorant pals will have to live with the consequences, as will the future generations unfortunate enough to spring from your loins.
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joe 5:24PM (12/27/2006)
Don't forget reliability.
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artie43 5:33PM (12/27/2006)
WEll I hope GM will be lucky enough to stay at #2. With Reckless Rick and Maximum BOb calling the shots it is still up in the air. Let's see how these two [man] handle the fearless UAW this next year. I would bet the UAW will pin both of them in the corner. Calling GM's turnaround a success is just way to early. When Chrysler and or Ford hit the wall, they will end up with much better costs in Chapter 11. So what will RR and MB do then? More excuses as to why they can't get'her done. RR and MB are scared to death of the UAW and will surely cave in with the slightest threat of a strike. NO backbone!! Just give in and sacrifice the stockholders' equity. No skin off their backs.
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bgdc 2:53PM (12/29/2006)
Uh, no it's the drive and the illusion of quality, stupid.
The design = worthless. Does it fell sure? Good roadfeel? Feedback? Tight chassis? Interior materials feel good?
I buy my cars based on how they drive and feel from the INSIDE.
Style over substance = solstice with a shoddy drivetrain, crap engine, horrible interior, bad top, zero trunk space.
Substance over style = Miata with a great engine, slick tranny, perfect drop top, unspectacular interior and decent trunk.
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mike 6:08PM (12/27/2006)
#5 ROSY??????????????????????
Am i crazy or was GM sliding deeper and deeper into the hole under WAGONER AND LUTZ.
Yeah, everyone in here says the new Aura is a hit........but will it be so hot and profitable next year or year after when new 500,Malibu, Impala, ACCORD and other heavy weights enter the game with completely new looks.
Also, it's not the looks that made GM a joke for past 30+ years, it's quality.
Also Autoblog says well GM has the new Acadia, Enclave, Outlook..................It's all the same car. Will GM ever learn from Uplander, Montana debacle?
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Tom 9:46PM (12/27/2006)
This is wear I lose the last remaining bits of respect I have for Lutz. His words of wisdom for GM are so incredibly mundane. Any guy off the street, when ask how to fix GM, would have given the same advice as Lutz says he gave to GM.
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Richard Warren 5:44AM (12/28/2006)
"When they actually turn a profit on the cars they sell."
They actually do, get a clue.
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