Lutz Says No More Pickups or SUV's!

[C/K Man]

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll...83/1148/AUTO01

I think this is a typical Lutz exaggeration. If not, Chapter 7 here we come! See you at the Toyota dealership.

[jkennedy293]

On the Cruze, the turbo will allow for a quick start, but once it hits highway cruising speed, the turbo will stay off and the small displacement engine will sip fuel all the way to Chicago and back, averaging around 45 mpg.

WTF?

[fp115]

Originally Posted by jkennedy293

WTF?

Why do you need turbo when you are cruising?

[zabolots]

Originally Posted by jkennedy293

WTF?

I imagine what he's referring to is that if the engine is just cruising at low RPMs the turbo won't build boost, thereby reducing the air going into the cylinder which reduces the amount of fuel that must be injected for a good burn.

[Hitman1970]

I do not think it is a big shock that Lutz if referring to not sinking limited R&D dollars into a segment of vehicles that will be severely reduced sales levels (back to levels involving people who actually need them). The only thing I hope GM does is get six speed transmissions across the board in all BOF Trucks/ SUVs. It is not like people who do buy trucks in the future will not want the best possible fuel economy as well.

[likearock00]

So what happens to all those customers that actually need a full size vehicle? Guess this is good news for the other guys!! I think I'll cry if they treat the Silverado like they did the Trailblazer.

[zete]

All he seems to be saying is they will let the GMT900s stay as is for a while. If sales drop off a cliff and stay that way why spend billions on a new platform? Tweaks may be all that is justified, which is cheaper than an entirely new platform.

He does make sense that it's all about fuel economy. I figure most North Americans would prefer a larger car with great mileage than a small car with so-so mileage. For example, a Cruze with 45mpg vs. the Smart that gets 40mpg would be a no brainer for most folks.

I also wonder how many folks would truly buy a Beat over a Cruze if they get the same or nearly the same mileage. There's one thing to get a smaller car if it's more fuel efficient, it's another if it's fun to drive, but if both are the same what's the ultimate point?

That said, GM should have the Beat here, even in limited numbers, to test the water. If built light enough and with a smaller engine than the Cruze you'd expect 50+mpg highway out of it, which would be impressive.

[fp115]

Originally Posted by likearock00

So what happens to all those customers that actually need a full size vehicle? Guess this is good news for the other guys!! I think I'll cry if they treat the Silverado like they did the Trailblazer.

Work related trucks will still be within the company, they will simply not place the focus on customer trucks rather.

[mbukukanyau]

I still want that Tahoe

[FenwickHockey65]

OHHH NOES! THE SKY IS FALLING!!!!!11!



All he's saying is that the GMT-900s will stick around for a while. They're not killing off trucks, people will still be able to buy them, they'll just cut production to meet demand so we don't have 50 Silverados rotting away in the sun on a dealer lot. Nowhere does he say that the Silverado or Yukon is dead.

[Michael_S]

Originally Posted by likearock00

So what happens to all those customers that actually need a full size vehicle? Guess this is good news for the other guys!! I think I'll cry if they treat the Silverado like they did the Trailblazer.

Work trucks need ruggedness and reliability, and power. The GMT900s have that, and they'll still have it in 10 years.

The bulk of recent large SUV and pickup sales has been luxury. People aren't buying regular cab work trim Silverado 1500s for $22,000, they were buying Silverado Crew Cab LTZs for $45,000 and using it as a daily commuter. There's nothing wrong with that, but a slower economy, less home equity available for car purchases, and $4 gas are cutting the demand for that kind of thing way down. The same goes for the Tahoe, Yukon, and Suburban. Previously, lots of small families would buy them fully loaded and use them to tow a boat, camper, or horse trailer around. That market is shrinking too.

GM has to spend its money where the profits are. If more Americans are buying sedans and wagons, then it makes sense to spend money there instead of updating a line of luxury trucks that far fewer people are buying. The current GM fullsize pickups don't need any additional competence to stay competitive as work vehicles.

[calgaryhhr]

Like other GM products the trucks should be fine the way they are because they still have some time before they "come into their own" and these trucks are probably "no where near the end of their life-cycle."

[Sal Collaziano]

This sounds like good news to me.. Hopefully the progress will be seen sooner than later..

[ronald mcretard]

Originally Posted by zete

All he seems to be saying is they will let the GMT900s stay as is for a while. If sales drop off a cliff and stay that way why spend billions on a new platform? Tweaks may be all that is justified, which is cheaper than an entirely new platform.

He does make sense that it's all about fuel economy. I figure most North Americans would prefer a larger car with great mileage than a small car with so-so mileage. For example, a Cruze with 45mpg vs. the Smart that gets 40mpg would be a no brainer for most folks.

I also wonder how many folks would truly buy a Beat over a Cruze if they get the same or nearly the same mileage. There's one thing to get a smaller car if it's more fuel efficient, it's another if it's fun to drive, but if both are the same what's the ultimate point?

That said, GM should have the Beat here, even in limited numbers, to test the water. If built light enough and with a smaller engine than the Cruze you'd expect 50+mpg highway out of it, which would be impressive.

I agree, especially because the Cruze and Beat will probably be fairly close in price. However, given the conflicting reports in the past few days I am still not convinced that they are planning to have the Cruze here soon (I hope they are).

Hey, they could probably even put a BAS or BAS+ system in the Cruze without pushing it over 18 or 19 grand. That would probably push it into the 30's for city mileage.

[newdude]

I think that it is good to slow down the GMT-900's. The most they should do, for however long they are around is change very little about them and, as much as diesel is, should still launch that 4.5 diesel. But, if they slow development on the big trucks, they better focus on the small ones, like a new colorado/canyon to be competitive with the japanese small trucks.