Will the Big Guns Pull the Trigger?

[Buickman]

Originally Posted by steinravnik

What GM needs is someone who can figure out how to make products that connect with the public. Look at Apple and their success with Ipods. GM needs cars that are as desirable as an Ipod. GM cars should be regarded as hip, modern, efficient, and stylish. These are not words that come to mind when I think of Cobalt, Astra, or anything GM produces. GM is a company run by a bunch of geezers and is about as hip as your grandfather.

hey, my grandfather used to say "look at the hips on her...they're real".

[tgunnd39]

Originally Posted by Ming

So now you have to be an expert in industry and business and all possible candidates out there to be justified in critcizing Mr. Wagoner. Wow, Nice Guy Rick really is teflon...!

Before even waiting for rozz' answer, you had your own. "There is no one to replace him with". I've heard of company loyalty before, but that's taking it to a new level.

Loyalty to GM does not mean putting tape over your mouth when there have been serious management missteps and the company is on the financial brink.

Actually, though, rather than Rick, I'll shock everyone and say replace Bob Lutz. Or have him defer to a much younger, tech-crazed modern car geek who loves small 4-cylinder powered cars when it comes to that growing part of GM's portfolio. Because Bob's off-the-cuff remarks show he has no clue, or just doesn't want to see car culture move in a direction that he's unfamiliar with (or that he thinks won't be profitable enough). "The customer doesn't know what they want - until we send them a flyer for a shiny new 8-passenger $40,000 crossover" - that kind of garbage.

Seems to me that Rick has done a decent - if not stellar - job of managing the money where he can with all of GM's many challenges, such as the UAW (I'm sure Buickman could correct me there), given what GM has on lots to sell to customers. He's not the "product czar", and product focus is behind much of GM's woes. Bob should have been "styling czar" because that's where his strength has been.

Bob Lutz' apparent disdain for small cars at news conferences is behind some of their market missteps, I'm sure of it (well, as sure as an armchair quarterback behind his keyboard can be ). Let Lutz continue to manage the big cars and big horsepower that he apparently loves so much, or 1960's roadster-alikes such as the Solstice. Let him live in GM's past where gas was cheap and SUV profits were huge, and give him a protégé who is eager (not foot-dragging with a fake smile) to attack GM's future beyond a limited number of $40,000 Volts.

Ming,

Have to say I agree with you on this, with one caveat: GM has some excellent vehicles that can coexist very nicely with some precision engineered 4 cyl. cars; cars that GM can and needs to build.

Other than that, I find myself echoing your sentiments for the most part.

[Buickman]

Originally Posted by Ming

So now you have to be an expert in industry and business and all possible candidates out there to be justified in critcizing Mr. Wagoner. Wow, Nice Guy Rick really is teflon...!

Before even waiting for rozz' answer, you had your own. "There is no one to replace him with". I've heard of company loyalty before, but that's taking it to a new level.

Loyalty to GM does not mean putting tape over your mouth when there have been serious management missteps and the company is on the financial brink.

Actually, though, rather than Rick, I'll shock everyone and say replace Bob Lutz. Or have him defer to a much younger, tech-crazed modern car geek who loves small 4-cylinder powered cars when it comes to that growing part of GM's portfolio. Because Bob's off-the-cuff remarks show he has no clue, or just doesn't want to see car culture move in a direction that he's unfamiliar with (or that he thinks won't be profitable enough). "The customer doesn't know what they want - until we send them a flyer for a shiny new 8-passenger $40,000 crossover" - that kind of garbage.

Seems to me that Rick has done a decent - if not stellar - job of managing the money where he can with all of GM's many challenges, such as the UAW (I'm sure Buickman could correct me there), given what GM has on lots to sell to customers. He's not the "product czar", and product focus is behind much of GM's woes. Bob should have been "styling czar" because that's where his strength has been.

Bob Lutz' apparent disdain for small cars at news conferences is behind some of their market missteps, I'm sure of it (well, as sure as an armchair quarterback behind his keyboard can be ). Let Lutz continue to manage the big cars and big horsepower that he apparently loves so much, or 1960's roadster-alikes such as the Solstice. Let him live in GM's past where gas was cheap and SUV profits were huge, and give him a protégé who is eager (not foot-dragging with a fake smile) to attack GM's future beyond a limited number of $40,000 Volts.

he's killed our business and abused our stock value. now he's guilty of MURDER INCORPORATED. see other post.

new name...Red Blood Rick.

[Buickman]

Originally Posted by fp115

This makes more sense than the Red Ink Rick crap around here.

Good Post

agreed...Red Ink Rick is crap. (and a MURDERER) see other post.

[mike's 01ws6]

Originally Posted by KingElvis

Toyota never has these discussions because in japan they don't belong to The Church of the MAGIC CEO.

The groom people from within and promote within to continue the Toyota way of long term, constant improvement.

In the US we have this mythology about 'outsider' individuals boldly taking the reigns and turning things around.

Then these bold individuals discover the absolute minimum amount of time they can make a "u turn" with product is like four years.

Then they find out that automobiles are the most complicated consumer durables... period.

When you're in the auto business you're also in the computer business, the upholstery business, the HVAC business. You've got a dizzying network of supply chains, logistics and supplier issues.

Then you have regulation...then you have overseas competition that's getting subsidized heavily and/or benefiting from the manipulation of currency.

I totally respect Buickman's beef with Rick, but I must also acknowledge that bringing in somebody from Wal Mart or - even worse - the Wall Street vampires - wouldn't be a good idea, because the auto business is really, really, really, really, really complicated and, especially if you think the clock is ticking on GM, there's no time for on-the-job training.

Very Good Post!!!

[mike's 01ws6]

Originally Posted by nota

Saw this smug comment below when surfing just now. So what the hell I'll put it up, to nobody's amusement

http://www.japanautoauctions.com/blog/?p=10

There same thing was floating around my plant a few years ago, except it was about GM and not Ford.

[Ming]

Originally Posted by tgunnd39

Ming,

Have to say I agree with you on this, with one caveat: GM has some excellent vehicles that can coexist very nicely with some precision engineered 4 cyl. cars; cars that GM can and needs to build.

Other than that, I find myself echoing your sentiments for the most part.

Whenever you see my posts bemoaning the lack of focus on small cars, don't take it to mean that I don't think SUVs and Trucks (or the Corvette) are important to GM. I do.

That's why I think GM still needs someone like Bob Lutz, but also needs someone who is truly enthusiastic about cars like the MINI, Fiat 500, and familiar with best-selling Kei and A-class cars like the WagonR.

Someone who doesn't shoot them down or brush them off as irrelevant until gas hits $8, and even then will only grudgingly agree to introduce one model, and an SUV-styled retromobile at that.

Excuse me, 56K modem users, for those who haven't seen it or haven't read my posts on it before, this is a 660cc engine car I'd love to own - best-selling vehicle in a class that is around 50% of the car market in Japan. Inexpensive, very fuel efficient, turbocharged, and utilitarian:







Some Silverado guys might laugh at it, but I had a lot of fun in one in Japan, and I regret the attitude from guys like Lutz that scoff at cars like these, even one class larger (Matiz/Beat).

[63GrandSport001]

I think that both Rick and Lutz should step down and allow the right people for the jobs to take their places.

[jcgable]

Originally Posted by Ming

Actually, though, rather than Rick, I'll shock everyone and say replace Bob Lutz. Or have him defer to a much younger, tech-crazed modern car geek who loves small 4-cylinder powered cars when it comes to that growing part of GM's portfolio.

Give him a protégé who is eager (not foot-dragging with a fake smile) to attack GM's future beyond a limited number of $40,000 Volts.

I'm sorry, you called? :-D

[BuickBoy]

Originally Posted by ronald mcretard

How about Bill Gates... maybe he's already tired of philanthropizing...

Then you would have a car that takes 5 minutes to start (boot up), would periodically hang up for what ever reason and would have to be restarted (re boot), would take several minutres to turn off, and with every new model would require a bigger engine to run (more PC hardware) and get worse mileage than the model before it 8^)).

I think what GM needs is a person who gets the basics of business, quality, brand management, products consumers want, etc. GM used to be king of the hill on brand management but now every new car gets a new name. Get someone from P&G or J&J. As a consumer, I can relate to Tide or Band Aid or Kleenex or Xerox or any of the other brands that are part of everyday life. As a car nut I can better relate to Malibu vs. Celebrity, Nova versus Cobalt-Cavalier-Cruz or whatever the next name is for the next small car.....

You say Accord or Camry or Civic or Corolla or Pilot or 4Runner or Rav4 and people have instant brand recognition. And every new model is an improvement on the old model - not a new name!!! Most companies fight tooth and nail for brands but GM dumps them like yesterday's trash. Fire your marketing and brand management people and hire people who get it.

While I'm at it, after 30+ years of trying why can GM build a rock star of a small car? Did you really have to create Saturn to try and do that? How come Honda and Toyota can bring cars like the Fit and Yaris BEFORE they are needed for an energy crisis and GM plays catch-up and can;t promise anything until 3 AFTER they are needed?

Sure is getting hard to be a GM buff these days.

[BuickBoy]

Put a bowtie on the grill versus an S and you have and instant Chevy.

[tripowergto]

Originally Posted by Ming

Whenever you see my posts bemoaning the lack of focus on small cars, don't take it to mean that I don't think SUVs and Trucks (or the Corvette) are important to GM. I do.

That's why I think GM still needs someone like Bob Lutz, but also needs someone who is truly enthusiastic about cars like the MINI, Fiat 500, and familiar with best-selling Kei and A-class cars like the WagonR.

Someone who doesn't shoot them down or brush them off as irrelevant until gas hits $8, and even then will only grudgingly agree to introduce one model, and an SUV-styled retromobile at that.

Excuse me, 56K modem users, for those who haven't seen it or haven't read my posts on it before, this is a 660cc engine car I'd love to own - best-selling vehicle in a class that is around 50% of the car market in Japan. Inexpensive, very fuel efficient, turbocharged, and utilitarian:







Some Silverado guys might laugh at it, but I had a lot of fun in one in Japan, and I regret the attitude from guys like Lutz that scoff at cars like these, even one class larger (Matiz/Beat).

Cool, they could bring it to the US and name it the Rick WagonR.

[Buickman]

Originally Posted by tripowergto

Cool, they could bring it to the US and name it the Rick WagonR.

good idea, should only be available in RED.

meanwhile back on topic, thinking of sending Return to Greatness to the twenty largest institutional shareholders. let's see if we can get the Big Guns to Pull the Trigger.

also, look for more publicity in the next few weeks. this man is on a mission, but now it's not about knocking RIR, it's about the merits of RTG. many of you have been helpful with advice, any further suggestions are more than welcome.

[NfamousZ24]

Originally Posted by nota

Saw this smug comment below when surfing just now. So what the hell I'll put it up, to nobody's amusement

http://www.japanautoauctions.com/blog/?p=10

That is so TRUE!!!

My dad was telling me in the '80s in the Body Shop we had Line Supervisors, 1 Cordinator per shift and a Body Shop Superintendent.

Now we have Line Supervisors, 2 Cordinators a shift, a Shift Superintendent, and a Body Area Manager. That isn't including the GMS Manager, ISO Manager, Reliability Manager.

It's funny we will have a breakdown where 2 Skill Trades will be working to fix the problem with about 6 members of Managment watchiing.

[Buickman]

Originally Posted by NfamousZ24

That is so TRUE!!!

My dad was telling me in the '80s in the Body Shop we had Line Supervisors, 1 Cordinator per shift and a Body Shop Superintendent.

Now we have Line Supervisors, 2 Cordinators a shift, a Shift Superintendent, and a Body Area Manager. That isn't including the GMS Manager, ISO Manager, Reliability Manager.

It's funny we will have a breakdown where 2 Skill Trades will be working to fix the problem with about 6 members of Managment watchiing.

gives the impression that production management is wasteful, just as is marketing. didn't think that was the case given our quality and efficiency ratings.