The CAFE law is an American invention to lower fuel consumption without raising taxes. We don’t want taxes in America, do we?

Europeans have high fuel taxes and also high and progressive license fees (heavy cars are taxed far higher) and it works very well: Europeans drive small vehicles and take the bus or bicycle far more often than we do. Europeans also do without amenities such as automatic transmissions and airconditioning, not to mention cargo space and towing ability. We wouldn’t like that in America, would we?

The CAFE law is much to the advantage of GM: GM’s average selling price is far higher in the US than in Europe.
So, Lutz advocating fuel taxes over CAFE sounds… disingenuous (I wouldn’t dare to call it stupid).

The only problem with CAFE is that the standards haven’t been raised much over time. A plan to gradually and slowly raise the CAFE standard to, say, 40 MPG in 2020, would be very beneficial to America and give GM lots of time to adapt. Get on board, Lutz!

(Ironically, despite their small cars, Europeans are far ahead in the sports department and generally drive a lot faster than Americans. How about driving in the right lane in stead of the left lane except to pass, America?)

Thanks. Amid all the flame wars around the web, a little courtesy is appreciated.

I enjoy your posts, you always come with game!

Too late, they already called it the Malibu Maxx. ;)

Steven T:

While it is useful to assess the specifics of Lutz’s actions, I think that a larger question needs to be asked: Can a 74-year-old person – any person — save GM?

Most large corporations have mandatory retirement rules for a very good reason: It takes adaptability, stamina and mental acuity for an executive to be effective in today’s tumultuous world. Those qualities are harder to come by as old age sets in. A lot of people function very well well into old age. Brian Barru, the progenitor of all of the O'Briens, who lived around the 8th century AD died in battle at age 74. Nobel prize winners Tom Schelling (econ, 2005) and Robert Solow (econ, can't remember the year), in their early 80s, could probably run circles around a lot of people half their age.

Whether you think he's a blessing to the country, or a curse, Ted Kennedy is one of the most effective people on Capitol Hill. He's the same age as Lutz, give or take a year. Jimmy Carter is also remarkably active and productive in his early 80s. Harold Laufman, a noted MD, designed the "hospital" tents for the first Gulf War when he was probably in his upper 70s. And as for flexibility in old age, I think Nixon's ability to remake himself into an elder statesman was rather impressive (he died in '94 at 84). So, yes, if anyone can save such a bloated beaurocracy as GM, there are probably 74-plus year olds among them.

And we all know how well THAT worked out. NOT.

See for yourself.

http://www.thecarconnection.com/Auto_News/Commentary/Flint_Hit_Em_Where_They_Aint.S192.A11378.html

So, DCX has said they’re bringing back the “Hornet” name.

When can we expect a PACER? Maybe that should go back to Ford from whence it came anyhow (1958-1959 Edsel Pacer preceded the 1975-1980 AMC Pacer).

How about a Chevrolet GREMLIN? They could saw-off a Malibu, I suppose…

Whether Lutz is still up to the job at 74 is a legitimate question. This is particularly important given the weird cult of the personality that surrounds him. Did you see the sycophantic Automotive News piece on him the other day?

I don’t question that Lutz has some good qualities, e.g., he has displayed decent taste in his styling decisions. But, as Farago demonstrates, Lutz also embodies some pretty reactionary – and inaccurate – thinking.

Lutz’s continued dominance at GM suggests that the current regime has circled the wagons and is afraid to let in the fresh ideas that could save the company. I flatly refuse to believe that GM’s management bench is so thin that no one could step into the role of car czar right now and immediately begin to outperform Lutz.

What’s that little man doing behind the curtain?

How about Ron Paul for President? Alan Keyes for VP? Judge Roy Moore for Speaker of the House? All under a Constitution-Libertarian Party banner (the two parties would need to agree to put aside their differences and merge).

Robert, you sly dog!

Edit: I just read the caption; it WAS intentional. Nice!

The Neon was a better car than people think it was. Once you gave it its mandatory head gasket replacement, it could hold its own in the durability derby. 1st-gen Neons are still an everyday sight here in the Detroit area, but I’ll admit this may be the only place where Neons greatly outnumber Civics. The 2nd generation was vastly improved, but the damage was done.

Ironically, the Neon’s most notable style feature, the round headlights, were not at the instigation of Lutz but, as the story goes, was one of the last decisions at Chrysler made by his then-boss, Lee Iacocca. Supposedly, the original Neon styling concept drawings had more normal, rectangular shaped headlights. When shown to Iacocca, it was he who insisted that it get the round headlights.

As to the fellow who commented that a small car doesn’t ‘need’ electric rear windows, the point was that if a small car was equipped with electric windows (whether necessary or not), all of the windows should be powered. The Neon was the only small car in its class that, when so equipped, the rear windows were manually rolled down.

And as far as the 3-speed automatic in the Neon goes, IIRC, the excuse that Chrysler gave for not having a 4-speed automatic in the Neon was that the limited room in the transmission tunnel would cause a 4-speed automatic to overheat. A somewhat odd rationale, considering that all of the Neon’s competitors managed to get a 4-speed automatic into their transmission tunnels without causing the transmission to overheat.

We currently own a 06 Nissan Altima, which is certainly not a small car. It has a peppy 2.5l 4-cylynder 175 HP engine and averages 28 MPG in 90% local (non Highway) driving. This midsize car achives nearly the same economy as my 94 Sentra with a tiny 1.6l engine.

Lutz, you are an idiot. Now have your lackies design a decent hybrid system for the Silverado and dry your tears.

It truly is too bad most Americans are so ignorant of the princicples and freedom that this country was originally founded on.

Most large corporations have mandatory retirement rules for a very good reason: It takes adaptability, stamina and mental acuity for an executive to be effective in today’s tumultuous world. Those qualities are harder to come by as old age sets in.

Lutz’s rant regarding CAFE once again raises the question of whether he is still up to the job of GM vice chairman and “car czar.” And because Lutz is so visible, his shakiness undercuts the credibility of GM’s entire management team.

By continuing to give Lutz so much power and visibility, is GM admitting that its executive succession system has collapsed?

That’s the polite way of putting it. Perhaps the more blunt question is whether GM suffers from such an advanced case of “fatal conservatism” that it refuses to give younger talent a crack at saving the company.

I suspect that what is going on behind closed doors is a battle between the generations. Lutz likes to present himself as a reformer, but in important respects he is very much the embodiment of GM’s old guard.

Why is the old guard clinging so tightly to power when it has displayed so little success in turning GM around?

Well now, isnt that what people are doing? People are buying what THEY want to buy, not what the the big 2.5 want people TO buy.

I beg to differ. The Neon was a very dorky looking car until very late in its short life. “Hi.”

I will say this for it though: It at least had a little tiny bit of charm–dorky charm, but charm nonetheless. Also, it was at least coherent in its dorkiness. That is, the front and the back looked like they belonged to the same car. The Caliber is ugly, and looks as if assembled from pieces plucked randomly from the styling bin.

“With the sales of the new GMT900 platform SUV’s still strong, GM is looking ahead to assure that future inventory doesn’t overrun demand as it has in the recent past. The company announced today that it will be reducing production in three plants that produce the GMC Yukon, Cadillac Escalade, and Chevrolet Tahoe from 56.5 vehicles per hour to a nice even 50. The plants will remain closed for the first half of January, extending the normal 1-week holiday shutdown to three, and then resume production at the reduced rate.

GM expects some staffing adjustments to occur, but has not yet determined how the slow down will affect employees at each assembly plant, which are located in Janesville, WI, Arlington, TX, and Silao, Mexico.

[Source: Automotive News]”

By my calculation, that means an hourly production cut of 11.5%, and extending the shutdown by two weeks means an effective production cut of 3.8% on top of the hourly slowdown.

or maybe GM doesn’t tell you what they tell Automotive News…

href=”http://www.dieselnet.com/standards/us/fe.php”>

In short, NHTSA maintains CAFE figures that aren’t necessarily (read: are not) related to EPA mileage estimates. As such, new EPA mileage numbers will not lead to increased fuel economy.

If anyone who reads this post is paid to find ways to trim the federal budget, this may be a good place to start.

…How about that…I’ve gone from optimist to cynic in only two posts…