I remember a FarSide cartoon, where the chairman of a hotdog company saying to his board of directors “I believe that this company is being mis-managed.” In the background there is a picture of a hot dog 90 degrees perpendicular to the bun…

In GM’s case, no one is noticing the picture.

Corvair
Vega
Fiero
X – Car (Citation, et. al.)
GMRE (GM rotary engine) powered Monza.
Dustbuster minivans

Given that kind of track record, sign me up for one of of those shiny new $40,000 Volts. Does it come standard with 100 ft. of extension cord so I can recharge it in my driveway? Didn’t think so.

Note that I threw “whatever” in there as well. :p Again, it’s not trying to be another Alfa Romeo Brera or Ford GT styling blitz, it just needs to be an acceptable face on a slippery shape in order to compete with the Insight and the Prius, both of which look rather similar to this in many respects already. The fake-looking grilles are probably there primarily to give the Volt Chevrolet’s “corporate face” as well as avoiding that whole “we don’t need no stinkin’ grill” design theme that many American cars had during the Nineties.

Personally, I’m expecting those fake grilles to be swapped out for something approaching real grilles between this “production” model and the showroom car; after all, the range extender engine, electric motors, and batteries will all require a robust cooling system, which at least necessitates a radiator.

I felt something similar about the Volt, your words certanly resonated as well as provided insight. I did not know it was a Cobalt platform though. Thats like a home project or something. Although it took a while for a reason, but I wont be to naive. The Volt idea seems interesting. I’m glad the nation is embracing such ideas. Although I do think its a bit of a mistake to ignore the Prius and Civic and Aveo like vehicles for the Volt. America can rely safety on foreign oil, just not at its current rate/percentage. Its funny that I do not see Americans kindly asking each other to let go of gas gusling ways so much. Its more like SUV owners are evil, and Prius owners are angels or asian loving devils. gsss.

Had they kept their mouth shut at GM, done the traditional closed door development and threatened everyone involved with death if they let any information out, there is the slightest chance that Toyota, Honda and everyone else now in the hybrid game would have become complacent. The volt could have burst on to the scene and blindsided everyone. Instead, the enemy has a copy of your battle plan a full 2 years before the invasion, you are as good as dead.

I used to live in Japan. Believe me, they could care less about the Volt, it never was a threat in their minds. Toyota is convinced hybrids are the wave of the future. Other manufacturers are pinning their hopes on small diesels. I don’t know which will turn out to be best but I wouldn’t bet against Toyota on this.

And the phony grill helps the Volt look clean and crisp?

I agree with your editorial Mr. Niedermeyer except I didn’t like the original clunker either. GM is acting like American Motors when they were so poor they cut off the rear of the Hornet to make the Gremlin and called it a small car.

GM may be making a great breakthough in auto technology and they are afraid we are too stupid to accept this so they hide their breakthrough in a boring box with a PHONY grill.

Unless of course this is all a ruse, and the Volt DOES look like the concept (or better), gets 80 miles to a charge and is going to cost $35,000.

Yeah, I don’t think so either.

Apparently both, or did you miss the constantly diminishing range estimates for the Volt? but at least it’s going to look cutting edge when it comes out right…right?

Ya right. I love saying I told you so.

Also, it ignores financing. It assumes the cars were bought for cash or there was 0% financing for both vehicles. I realize this was probably done for the sake of simplicity, because people would argue endlessly over the “the average down payment” and such, but the fact that some things are difficult to compute doesn’t make them go away. For most car buyers, financing happens; and any interest rate imposed will tend to hurt the vehicle with the higher initial cost.

Remember: never compare costs; always compare opportunity costs.

Money that should have been spent on making the Cobalt platform EV/hybrid compatible, rather than the upgraded Cavalier stamping that it is.

As for The Big Lie postulated here, I highly doubt that it would be a leading reason for people to not buy the Volt. The Insight and the Prius are going with a very similar shape for their top hybrid models, so the Volt only needs to look that little bit more striking/clean/crisp/whatever than the other two. The only two major things I see posing a major threat to the sales of this car are the price and the badge.

“I thought the reason to have a high beltline was for exterior styling. So why have a high belt, then add a bunch of black paint to unconvincingly fake a low belt?”

There is a styling aspect to a hight beltline, but you notice all cars in the past five to ten years have gone to higher beltlines. The reason I belive is side-impact safety; a higher beltline puts more metal between you and a high-bumper SUV.

I thought the reason to have a high beltline was for exterior styling. So why have a high belt, then add a bunch of black paint to unconvincingly fake a low belt?

There is a styling aspect to a hight beltline, but you notice all cars in the past five to ten years have gone to higher beltlines. The reason I belive is side-impact safety; a higher beltline puts more metal between you and a high-bumper SUV.

Did someone kill your puppy? It was a concept. It was supposed to be an exaggeration. Frankly, I thought the concept was unattractive and looked too much like the Saturn Sky. The elongated proportions didn’t seem to lend themselves to practicality or visibility.

The production version sacrifices drama for the sake of packaging, and I think GM did a bang-up job. Not everyone is a simmering vat of testosterone; I’ll bet the female focus groups loved it, and it’s a hell of a lot more attractive than a Prius.

My problem isn’t the styling, it’s the price. This car will be dead in the water if it’s listed above $35K. Really, it should be below $30K, though Lutz’s comments seem to imply that it wouldn’t be profitable in that range. It remains to be seen just how inelastic hybrid demand really is. For GM’s sake, I hope it’s not just a fad.

if that doesn’t work, GM is done like Thanksgiving Turkey cooked by my mother-in-law at 6:00am. Fucking dead…

who wants gravy? Toyota is giving the gravy, because its all gravy on their side.

We also need something reasonably priced.

It helps me to put the scenario on a scale of 1-10, with 1 being supreme happiness and 10 being extreme rage. If I had been quoted $300 and the price came to an even $300, I’d probably be at a 5. If the price was $250, I’d probably be at a 4.5 – relieved but not obscenely happy. If the price turned to $350, I would be closer to a 6/6.5, much further from the middle than 4.5!

Of course, the above numbers are by no means set or perfect, as every person is different, but the general trend should hold up. People hate having their expectations not met!

Hope that helps; I had a really tough time explaining that!

I originally wrote that thinking of the old 2/10 rule: If you make a customer happy, he will tell two people about his good experience. But if you make a customer mad, he will tell ten!

You’re mad because a non-production concept is being ‘mainstreamed’ on its way to production. You’re mad because it shares a platform. And you’re mad that this is going on on a vehicle whose entire point is about its engineering and execution.

Before you type up a rebuttal, think: If you had to compromise the concept’s design OR the drivetrain on THIS project, which would you pick? Neither would be ideal, but if the styling “turning out to be a lie” pales in comparison to if the entire drivetrain turns out to be a lie (essentially useless and little real world benefit.) We don’t really know about the later, but we do know that the former just appears to be an evolution on existing automobile design. A fairly attractive front end but nothing too radical.

Styling novelty is awesome for initial hype, but NOT for long-term success. See the Chrysler 300, Ford Thunderbird, or Chrysler Crossfire. And unlike the previous 3 cars, the Volt’s entire purpose is to change the landscape of consumption. Case in point- do you think anybody would buy a Prius if it was just another gasoline car? Don’t think so. By the time the Volt turns around the Prius won’t even have any distinction left- I wouldn’t be surprised if the novelty goes the way of Altezza lights.

It would have been great if GM had either A) not shown such a far-from-production concept or B) not deviated so much, but you seriously cannot tell me you expected the Volt to go into production without some serious alterations. The Chrysler of last decade might have spoiled us when it comes to designing production-ready concepts, but just look at the damn Volt concept- nothing close to production. And you’re surprised now?

Frankly, Paul, you overlook the most important part: the buying public is worried about the styling of the Volt- they’re worried about the engineering. We all know Detroit can hit the styling ball out of the park, but we *don’t* need another Prowler- we need something functional and groundbreaking at the basic level. THAT is what is going to kill the Volt.

I read this six times and I still don’t get it. If somebody saves you $50 by brilliant purchasing and talented application, you’re not happy? Why?

On that list of yours, nothing looks nearly as much like the Sixteen or the Volt Concept as those two look like each other.

Viper.
Coord.
Auburn boat tailed Speedster.
Solstice.
Prowler.
Vette of the 80’s.

Need I go on?

Couldn’t been more obscure with a description if
“4 wheels and a seat.”

Just agreeing that there are alot of mainstream styling ques here as well. Not that extreme or duplicitous.