GM Shakeups Continue: Nesbitt Ousted At Cadillac, Lutz "Actively Considering" Retirement

by Edward Niedermeyer

Published: March 2nd, 2010

gm shakeups continue nesbitt ousted at cadillac lutz actively considering

Motor Trend reports that former PT Cruiser stylist Brian Nesbitt has been relieved of his duties as the head of Cadillac, ending GM’s post-bankruptcy experiment of putting a stylist in charge of an entire division. But MT figures that Nesbitt’s ouster isn’t as simple as a failure to perform; according to their sources, the firing was political.

The shakeup has major implications for Bob Lutz’s future at GM. He hired Nesbitt away from Chrysler earlier last decade and made sure there was a place for the PT Cruiser designer at post-bankruptcy GM. Nesbitt’s departure would indicate Lutz’s role as one of three GM vice chairmen has diminished to almost nothing… Clearly, [recently-promoted sales boss and President of North American ops Mark Reuss] is putting his own team together, and it doesn’t include Nesbitt, who was posed as the aesthetic face of the Cadillac luxury division.

Meanwhile, at the Geneva Auto Salon, Bob Lutz confirmed that he is probably on the way out. Reuters spoke with Maximum Bob in Geneva, and asked him about the “R-word.” Lutz replied:The reason I am giving it active consideration this time is because I honestly feel I can look back with satisfaction and say the team I was privileged to lead in product development has actually achieved more than what I would have hoped forThat, or his word is no longer regarded with awestruck reverence around the RenCen, and the Man of Maximum is finding himself on the outside looking in. More evidence for this can be found in the apparent decision to put the Volt-based Cadillac Converj (which Lutz has actively championed) into development hell. According to Lutz:

As we took a look at our available capital and engineering resources, we decided that therer were things that were more urgent than doing a Cadillac version of the Voltec architecture. We had originally had a time slot for the Converj and that has been put on hold

Does something about Lutz’s use of the first-person plural seem a bit odd? It’s one easy way to conceal the fact that MaxBob and Ed “Rattler” Whitacre are at odds on a number of fronts. Would Mr Lutz like to comment on this rift?

Ed Whitacre is not interested in organizational stability, Ed Whitacre is interested in results. If it takes a certain amount of upheaval to get the right people in the positions than that is what he is going to do.

If that doesn’t suggest that Lutz is on his way out, what would? It looks like Docherty, Nesbitt and Lutz are on the decline, while Reuss and Steve Girsky are exercising ever more control as Ed Whitacre’s hatchet men. GM will be making an announcement about its latest shakeup sometime this week, and we’ll update you with the latest on this palace intrigue as it plays out.

#BobLutz #BryanNesbitt #Cadillac #EdWhitacre #Executives #GM #MarkReuss

Edward Niedermeyer

More by Edward Niedermeyer

Comments

Join the conversation

3 of 23 comments

Robert.Walter on Mar 02, 2010

Maybe all this "active retirement" talk is a ploy to justify a pay and benefits increase ... (look what Lutz's statements did for Whitacre's P&B package ... but he can't sell that saussage twice, can he?)

Like Reply
Jimboy on Mar 02, 2010

The problem with most of you people on here is that you simply cannot bear the fact that someone has the nerve to stick his head above the weeds, or an ounce of individuality. You soma-tized arse lickers would rather someone be dead than refuse to follow the mediocrity worshipping crowd that you all aspire to. One of the biggest problems with the auto industry for the past 30 years has been the Wagner's, Eaton's, Nardelli's, Press's, Schremp's, and LaSorda's, a bunch of lifers in grey suits who couldn't recognize an original thought or idea if it slapped them in the face, which is why they are ALL GONE! Like him or not, Mr. Lutz has contributed more to the auto industry than any 10 other recent executives, and I sincerely hope he will continue to do so.

Like Reply
- Jkross22 on Mar 03, 2010
  
  Yes, early in his career, but since his days at Chrysler some 15 years ago, he hasn't had one winner. Sure, he's improved some of the cars, but he's been part of the problem instead of the solution. BTW, you could say the same thing design-wise about Bangle, but that's not a compliment either.
  
  Like

Recent Comments

Safeblonde MSRP and dealer markup are two different things. That price is a fiction.
Del Varner Does anyone have a means to bypass the automobile data collection?
Kjhkjlhkjhkljh kljhjkhjklhkjh two cam sensors p0024, a cam solenoid, 2 out of pocket TSB trans flushes for the pos chevy transmission 8l45 under recall lawsuit , Tsb 18-NA-355, 2 temperature sensors and a ##ing wireing harness because the dealer after the 2nd visit said the could not find out why the odb2 port and usb ports kept blowing fuses.This 2018 truck is my last domestic vehicle, the last good domestic i had was a 1969 straight 6 chevy nova with a Offenhauserintake and a 4 barrel. Only buying toyota going forward.
3-On-The-Tree I have a 2009 C6 Corvette LS3 and the only major repair that I have done on it was replace the radiator. Besides usual plugs, wires oil etc. And yes those tires are expensive as well.
28-Cars-Later We had a red 2003 with less than 100 miles in late 2004/5ish and kept it till the end AFAIK. I do recall being told we had about $28,000 in at the time (about $43,6 in 2023 Clown World Bux). I don't ever recall anyone retail even looking at it, and it lived in the showroom/garage."It's an automatic that just had the linkage repaired and upgraded"This really doesn't bode well. Maybe there's a upgrade I'm simply not aware of so one could tune the 3rd Gen LM4 for higher power but messing with it isn't making me smile because now I know its no longer factory or somehow it broke and with such low miles I'm equally concerned.