Auto veteran leads GM's comeback

[doh]

http://money.cnn.com/2008/01/01/news...ce=yahoo_quote

DETROIT (AP) -- Before Bob Lutz joined General Motors Corp. as vice chairman of product development in 2001, the left brain, by most accounts, was dominating the right when it came to making cars.

The rational left-brained engineers and planners would develop the chassis, engine and transmission, and marketing would have its say. Only then would the more creative right-brained designers be called in to fit a skin on the outside - so late in the process that the result was usually a mediocre car that turned customers away.

But recently, the right brain has been in from the start, thanks in large part to Lutz, and the results are beginning to show in the marketplace with the latest generation of GM (GM, Fortune 500) cars, trucks and crossovers like the Saturn Aura and redesigned Chevy Malibu. They're getting great reviews and starting to catch on with consumers.

"It was an overly rational approach to the business," Lutz said of the old GM. "The feeling was, if we give them a nice car with lots of features, and we make it very roomy and very reliable and very functional, people will realize what a good, rational purchase this is and we will get great sales. And then it didn't happen," he said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.

The black art of auto pricing
Lutz, a former Marine captain and aviator, has been in the auto business since 1963 and has held executive positions with GM, Ford Motor Co., (F, Fortune 500) Chrysler Corp. and BMW AG. Industry analysts credit his product instincts with much of Chrysler's success in the 1990s when it cranked out creative hits with the right mix of exterior styling, performance and classy interiors.

When GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner recruited him away from his post as chairman and chief executive of battery maker Exide Technologies, Lutz said he found a company hamstrung by hundreds of rules that limited design.

"The system here was really focused on stuff like that, where they'd ruin a design to get an inch more rear headroom or something," Lutz said. "The rational, functional elements were always emphasized over the aesthetic."

[ChevroletTough]

Automotive man of the Decade, he gets my vote!

[give_it_all_]

Every time I see something like this about how important Lutz was to GM, I wonder what shape GM would be like today if he had not joined. And what would the cars look like?

[sigma]

Originally Posted by give_it_all_

Every time I see something like this about how important Lutz was to GM, I wonder what shape GM would be like today if he had not joined. And what would the cars look like?

What shape would GM be in today? I believe GM would be next to dead. Before Lutz came around GM was releasing cars like the Ion, the Century, the 00-05 Impala (remember how that was supposed to send the Japanese back across the ocean?), the 98-05 STS and DTS. There would have been no compelling cars, no halo cars (save the Corvette), and most assuredly no major steps to improve quality and construction on the interior of the cars.

Remember how they "deliberately" made the 04 Malibu so ugly because people "wanted" a homely midsize car? That's an example of the old GM. An example of the new GM? The 2008 Malibu. Need I say more?

Without Bob Lutz, I'm convinced that GM today would greatly resemble the Chrysler of today; nearly irrelevant in almost all product categories, bleeding money, and damn near close to bankruptcy.

[69Firebird400]

Originally Posted by sigma

What shape would GM be in today? I believe GM would be next to dead. Before Lutz came around GM was releasing cars like the Ion, the Century, the 00-05 Impala (remember how that was supposed to send the Japanese back across the ocean?), the 98-05 STS and DTS. There would have been no compelling cars, no halo cars (save the Corvette), and most assuredly no major steps to improve quality and construction on the interior of the cars.

Remember how they "deliberately" made the 04 Malibu so ugly because people "wanted" a homely midsize car? That's an example of the old GM. An example of the new GM? The 2008 Malibu. Need I say more?

Without Bob Lutz, I'm convinced that GM today would greatly resemble the Chrysler of today; nearly irrelevant in almost all product categories, bleeding money, and damn near close to bankruptcy.

+1.

I couldn't have said it any better myself, Sigma. GM would be a very different company, and the product mix would quite frankly be depressing today were it not for his influence. I only hope that he is putting as much energy into succession planning behind the scenes as he has into the products for the past couple of years so that when he retires, they won't revert to their old ways.

[ByTheLake]

I've asked the same question on several occasions ... where is the Lutz replacement that GM is grooming? GM can't wait until Bob retires. It has to develop a passionate team under Lutz that is filled with big egos and a passion for making great products. We should already be seeing his successor doing occasional product introductions in his place. Who's the next Lutz?

[Stéphane Dumas]

Originally Posted by 69Firebird400

+1.

I couldn't have said it any better myself, Sigma. GM would be a very different company, and the product mix would quite frankly be depressing today were it not for his influence. I only hope that he is putting as much energy into succession planning behind the scenes as he has into the products for the past couple of years so that when he retires, they won't revert to their old ways.

+1 also if Lutz hadn't come, GM would had been a takeover target as it almost happen in 2006 when "Captain Kirk" Kerkorian" approached Ghosn... as for the old ways, to be more precise, it's the old ways during Roger B. Smith's tenure then I don't want to see back. I hope GM will find a guy who share the same level of passion as Bob Lutz.

[69Firebird400]

Originally Posted by ByTheLake

I've asked the same question on several occasions ... where is the Lutz replacement that GM is grooming? GM can't wait until Bob retires. It has to develop a passionate team under Lutz that is filled with big egos and a passion for making great products. We should already be seeing his successor doing occasional product introductions in his place. Who's the next Lutz?

How about Ed Welburn?

You're right; they need to have the replacement out there now or at least soon to build some of the external credibility that Mr. Lutz has. The problem with putting a new guy out there is that Lutz has been doing this for over 40 years, and people listen to what he says, because he knows what he's talking about. Would an Ed Welburn, talented as he is, carry that same clout and ability to shake up GM bureaucracy?

[Rick_VT]

No GM would have meant no Holden either and no Zeta without Lutz Holden would not have had the money to do VE or the Zeta platform, guess its lucky Holden remembered how to do a good V8 sedan to interest people like Lutz

[Evo69]

Hey what can I say? Lutz IS THE MAN and im a certified Lutzist.