Autoblog

Ed Peper, the General Manager of GM's Chevy division, has had a very good North American International Auto Show. It began with the unveiling of the Camaro Convertible concept at the automaker's celeb-studded kickoff event. It continued with a pair of awards for the new Silverado pickup truck and the reveal of the Volt concept, an exciting "green" vehicle concept that commanded everyone's attention. Finally, on the last day of the press preview, he introduced the completely-new 2008 Chevy Malibu, a stylish family sedan that is going to make waves when it's released later this year.

Through all of that Ed found time to sit down with us to talk about all the above and Chevrolet in general -- where it is now, and where it's headed. He's an engaging and enthusiastic ambassador for his brand, and he answered everything we threw his way, giving us insight into:

• The feasibility of seeing a Volt-like production car
• What kinds of powerrtrains we can expect for the Camaro
• How closely the production Camaro's appearance mirrors the concept's
• How Chevy will use the SS brand going forward
• When we should (or, more importantly, shouldn't) expect to see the next Impala
• Thoughts on the potential impact of the new Toyota Tundra in a segment that Chevy and the other domestics dominate

It begins below and continues after the jump. Enjoy.

Ed Peper - Division General Manager, Chevrolet
North American International Auto Show
January 8, 2007

Autoblog: Ed, thanks for being with us. Obviously, you're having a good show. Talk to us about yesterday (Sunday, 1/7) and the night before and how that worked out for the Chevrolet brand.

Ed Peper: We are really excited to start the show with the GM style event on Saturday night and it was just a great collection of designs and stars and music kind of all put together. And for the final vehicle to come down that runway and be the Camaro convertible concept in Hugger Orange with (gunmetal) blue stripes -- it was just an incredible moment to come down that runway to a standing ovation. It was just great.