How A Frequent TTAC Commenter Nearly Became CEO Of General Motors

Derek Kreindler
by Derek Kreindler

Selim Bingol, GM’s PR bigshot, may not “negotiate with terrorists”, but he nearly wound up working for a terrorist sympathizer who was active on terrorist message boards: Bingol’s former client Ed Whitacre recommended the man as GM’s next leader.

Automotive News reports that Whitacre originally wanted Mark Reuss, son of a former GM exec, to become CEO. In the end, GM got Dan Akerson. So how to explain the TTAC connection?

First, a preface. TTAC is committed to providing a positive experience for the commenters, provided they adhere to the commenting policy. Furthermore, we know that plenty of our readers work in sensitive positions within the industry, and their anonimity is extremely important. However, Reuss ended up outing himself.

Reuss’ s often snarky comments fit TTAC well. Likewise, Reuss would be a perfect fit for the top job at GM. After all, what’s good for North America should be just great for GM. A youthful, knowledgeable, quick-witted Reuss definitely trumps an Akerson, who, according to Whitacre, was openly contemptuous of GM and their products – a charge commonly leveled at TTAC. Imagine that, a TTAC reader occupying the executive suite at General Motors. One can only snicker at the idea of a Manchurian Candidate or sleeper cell planted deep within GM to help undermine the evil labor unions, hard-touch plastics and Voltec R&D programs.

As the son of a former auto executive myself, I know what it’s like to visit Dad at the office and be awestruck by the magnitude and complexity of what goes into putting cool cars on the road – and the desire to fill Dad’s shoes one day, working in the greatest industry on the planet. Just remember Mark, we are not an evil monolith dedicated to bringing down the RenCen, even if your PR guru thinks so.

Reuss is young, and a frequent TTAC commenter can still be CEO. By endorsing him, we may have diminished his odds under the current regime, but there is always hope for a new one.

Care to comment, nadude?

Derek Kreindler
Derek Kreindler

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  • Buickman Buickman on Jan 24, 2013

    he hired Ebonic, that alone should tell you there is no ability to judge talent. he has lost market share steadily, and made zero change to the ridiculous marketing. this is what drives the car business and Reuss does not get it. he should be reassigned back to Australia and take Batey with him. furthermore, any high level GM executive with family members attached to NASCAR should be forbidden from approving any race car expenditures. hear me Mark, and don't bother sending your goony zone reps after dealers I'm associated with. you won't like the results bro.

  • Sunridge place Sunridge place on Jan 25, 2013

    From the sites search function, it looks like Reuss has posted a half-dozen times or so...hardly a 'frequent' commenter. The funniest was here... http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2011/06/chevy-beats-the-gas-prices-blues-in-india-with-lpg-ev-city-car/ Watching Ed backpeddle and apologizing for 'framing the topic in a confusing manner' was amusing.

  • CanadaCraig You can just imagine how quickly the tires are going to wear out on a 5,800 lbs AWD 2024 Dodge Charger.
  • Luke42 I tried FSD for a month in December 2022 on my Model Y and wasn’t impressed.The building-blocks were amazing but sum of the all of those amazing parts was about as useful as Honda Sensing in terms of reducing the driver’s workload.I have a list of fixes I need to see in Autopilot before I blow another $200 renting FSD. But I will try it for free for a month.I would love it if FSD v12 lived up to the hype and my mind were changed. But I have no reason to believe I might be wrong at this point, based on the reviews I’ve read so far. [shrug]. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it once I get to test it.
  • FormerFF We bought three new and one used car last year, so we won't be visiting any showrooms this year unless a meteor hits one of them. Sorry to hear that Mini has terminated the manual transmission, a Mini could be a fun car to drive with a stick.It appears that 2025 is going to see a significant decrease in the number of models that can be had with a stick. The used car we bought is a Mk 7 GTI with a six speed manual, and my younger daughter and I are enjoying it quite a lot. We'll be hanging on to it for many years.
  • Oberkanone Where is the value here? Magna is assembling the vehicles. The IP is not novel. Just buy the IP at bankruptcy stage for next to nothing.
  • Jalop1991 what, no Turbo trim?
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