Autoblog

The same group of protestors who took the stage with Rick Wagoner yesterday have returned on the second day of the 2006 LA Auto Show. This time, instead of confronting the head honchos of the Big 6 automakers directly, they've set up shop outside and staged a "Greenwash Car Wash". The protestors from Global Exchage, Rainforest Action Network, Ruckus Society and Code Pink are clad in bikinis and board shorts while washing down a HUMMER H2 in green sudsy water. There's also a green MC on hand interviewing people in the crowd, which numbered in the single digits while we were outside observing the event. We're sure they'd like us to report all their facts and figures about how the Big 6 automakers are contributing to global warming and should be doing something about it, but you've heard it all before. Truth be told, this is actually the greenest auto show we can remember. New hybrid models are everywhere, a plug-in hybrid was finally announced, and alt-fuel vehicles line the curb outside for jounalists to test. Well, now we can add a sopping wet HUMMER H2 to the list of green cars at the LA Auto Show.

You can find more pics of the protest after the jump.

The 2006 L.A. Auto Show had only been officially open to the press for an hour before all hell broke loose at the show's keynote speech given by General Motors CEO, Rick Wagoner. Despite GM's laundry list of green related announcements and reveals this morning, two protestors from Global Exchange stormed the stage during his speech and demanded he sign a big cardboard contract that said the following:

I (RICK WAGONER) CEO of General Motors hereby pledge to make GM the most efficient automotive company in the industry by 2010.

According to Chris Paukert at Winding Road, Wagoner's response was that his speech commited General Motors to that very thing. Other reports say that after the initial stun of seeing people on stage who weren't supposed to be there, Wagoner was smooth and handled the hiccup with grace.

The video above shows the one of the protestors, Mike Hudema, having a healthy debate with Don Fuller from MAWG who also contributes to Kelley Blue Book. Hudema started the discussion by claiming that GM should not have "killed the electric car" because there was a demand for it. Fuller disagrees... repeatedly, over and over again.

[Source: Winding Road]