GM Death Watch 171: Focus!

Last Thursday, GM asked the California Air Resources Board (CARB) for "extra credit." Despite the fact that Chevy's gas-electric plug-in hybrid isn't in production, the General's generals wanted the rules modified so the Volt could more fully satisfy the Golden State's Zero Emissions Vehicle requirements. Done. And then, today, GM announced it will build 1000 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles for the same purpose. Only it wants someone else (i.e. taxpayers) to fund 40 hydrogen refueling stations. Once again, GM's reveals its core weakness: ADD.

According to the American Psychiatric Association, people with Attention Deficiency Disorder (ADD) demonstrate "a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity, as well as forgetfulness, poor impulse control or impulsivity, and distractibility." As the Brits would say, they "run around like a blue ass fly." GM's CARB strategy is a perfect case in point. It's not ONE strategy: plug-in hybrids. It's TWO: plug-in hybrids AND hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Of course, if THAT doesn't work, it'll be something else. Just pay the fines? Build an EV-only Volt? Who knows? Not GM. And don't ask, ‘cause they're very, very busy.

You don't have to read many installments of this series to know that GM is all over the show with everything all the time. To wit: GM Car Czar Maximum Bob Lutz infamously dismissed hybrids as a fad. Not long thereafter, GM rushed to produce not one, but two different gas – electric systems ("mild" belt-assist and dual-mode), both on their own and in partnership with other automakers. Cars get the former, SUVs the latter. (For now.) And then GM launched a "moon shot" mission to create an entirely new type of hybrid using unproven technology. But wait! There's more!

At the same time, GM is developing and unleashing hydrogen fuel cell test vehicles, and talking-up the technology– to the point of "unveiling" a hydrogen fuel cell concept Caddy without a powertrain. Yes, "all" GM needs to make hydrogen-powered, zero-emissions (at least at the tailpipe) cars work is $160m of California taxpayers' money for the filling stations. What's that's just $10 per resident or "two Starbucks coffees!" Meanwhile, passenger diesels are not on GM's menu. Until, of course, they are. And then…

Stop! While my Honda minivan was in service, I drove a base (as in cloth seats) Accord. I was amazed by the sedan's four-cylinder engine. It was smooth and reasonably powerful. The five-speed transmission did its thing without fuss. Does GM have an engine to match this? No.

Last year, Honda sold 392,231 Accords. Some 71 percent were four-cylinder models. Even without considering the Ohio-built sedan's German style, American-sized comfort or brand-faithful reliability (discounting excessively darty steering), there's no wonder the four-banger Accord is a popular car in these fuel-conscious times; it delivered well over 20 miles per gallon (EPA 21/31).

GM's Ecotec (Emissions Control Optimization TEChnology) engine is GM's "house" four. It's found in 12 American products, from the Chevy Cobalt to the Satrun Vue. It's not a bad unit. In some installations, GM's engine gets slightly better mileage than the [supersized] Accord. And the Ecotec is more-or-less bullet-proof. But it's no world-beater in terms of refinement, power or efficiency. So what if…

GM took all the billions of dollars it's plowed into hybrids and used them to develop a smooth, more powerful and a more efficient four-cylinder engine? What if they kicked Honda's ass? Don't get me wrong: I have no doubt GM is working on improving its gas-powered four-cylinder engines. They're working on everything else; why not that as well?

As an ADD sufferer, GM singularly fails to understand that the only way you can create a world-beating anything is to NOT do other stuff. Hybrids? Fine. Go for it. Fuel cells? Uh, OK. But not all of it. Because no matter how many engineering divisions or worldwide resources you have; "throw it against the wall and see what sticks" is the worst of all possible development strategies. Or, more simply put, just because GM CAN do something doesn't mean they SHOULD.

GM should have spent its money developing what it had. They should have refined and improved their mainstream Chevrolets, Buicks and Caddies– rather than "investing" in new brands (Saturn, Saab, Hummer), new vehicle genres (SSR?), new models (dozens) and new technology (complicated powertrains). But it didn't. The mess you see today is the result.

So the only remaining question is this: is there enough time left for GM to stop messing around, focus its energies, strengthen its brands, recapture lost momentum and stay in business? Judging from the torrent of news coming from RenCen these days, I don't think we'll ever find out. Unfortunately, it seems clear that only bankruptcy will provide the Ritalin that General Motors needs.