Remember when Bob Lutz used to grab all the headlines with his colorful and controversial comments?
Bob Lutz is retired from GM now, but it looks like CEO Dan Akerson is willing to walk in his shoes.
Akerson was in Washington DC Friday where he gave a speech to the Economic Club. He was also scheduled to have a meeting with US government officials to discuss executive pay caps on companies that took bailouts.
He is particularly concerned that such caps may prevent the company from hiring and retaining top executive talent.
“We have to be competitive. We have to be able to attract and retain great people,” said Akerson. “We’ve been able to retain them but we’re starting to lose them and I think that’s an issue for our owners to recognize.”
Though the government’s ownership in GM was significant reduced by the recent IPO, it still is a 33% owner.
Akerson also believes GM is well positioned for profit and expansion in international markets in 2011, and is humbled by the bankruptcy process. “We survived a near-death experience and we deeply appreciate the support we got from the American people,” Akerson said.
The most controversial statement he made though took the unusual tact of a direct insult to a competing automaker.
“We commonly refer to the geek-mobile as the Prius,” he said. “I wouldn’t be caught dead in a Prius.”
Of the Volt he said, “this actually looks good.”
Source (AP)
+20
Dec 10th, 2010 (1:57 pm)Nice effort Mr. Akerson, but there will only ever be ONE Maximum Bob!
-7
Dec 10th, 2010 (1:57 pm)What will consumers think after seeing the displays in Volt and hearing about the smart-phone abilities?
+28
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:01 pm)Well, until the Volts ship, he won’t be caught in one of those either.
join thE REVolution
+2
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:03 pm)Of the Volt he said, “this actually looks good.”
Lame. That is all he can say? Has he even driven one?
+15
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:03 pm)I would not be caught dead or alive in any car not made in the USA.
+50
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:04 pm)Screw him. I love my Prius. Can’t wait till my Volt comes in. It’s all good. There’s room for all. For some, the Prius is the best answer, for others, the Leaf, and for others like me, the Volt. No need to slam the Prius, with is THE car that pushed GM to create the Volt.
+27
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:06 pm)The Prius isn’t such a bad car, but I prefer an American car instead of supporting Toyota. They have taken plenty of American money and jobs, and should scale back. They had their good time as the leading hybrid vendor, thanks to the past government’s lack of local support and the killing of the emissions mandate. So the Feds and old GM were to blame.
Now we have a new version of both, and we should support the local manufacturers as before. Ford and Chrysler are latecomers, but their EVs and hybrids will arrive by 2012 and we should buy them because GM cannot and should not be the only local manufacturer. We need local competition to improve the market, and we know that GM hasn’t ramped up the Volt production in sufficient quantities. Tesla is the first to take the lead with an American EV, and newer American manufacturers wil join Tesla and the Big Three soon.
There is a market for all hybrids and EVs, but not for the imports anymore.
Raymond
+21
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:08 pm)The Prius has been around a while now. And many are happy in ownership. A coworker and I have been talking ‘new cars’ for a couple of weeks. He decided against the Soul and the Cruze and will be buying a Prius for his daughter.
The 2011 Volt offers triple digit mpg AND fun-to-drive torque. Recent news articles mention that it may be time for the super green Prius to pass the torch to the next generation of green transportation.
Although I wouldn’t consider owning a Prius. Seeing the thousands of Prius taxi cabs on the streets is encouraging. And a beneficial event toward the worldwide effort to reduce dependence on oil.
=D-Volt
+3
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:08 pm)May the best car win!
+15
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:12 pm)Dan Ackerson: “We commonly refer to the geek-mobile as the Prius,” he said. “I wouldn’t be caught dead in a Prius. Of the Volt he said, “this actually looks good.”
Re-read and think about his comments. To me, it’s clear he’s simply talking about the styling of both cars, and I think most people here would agree with him. I certainly do!
+28
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:13 pm)This juvenile rock throwing demeans both Akerson and GM. Even Eric and John do better than this.
Certainly I wouldn’t buy a Prius at this point — I don’t think anyone who is informed would — the Prius is a distant second to the Volt in the competition to be the best hybrid. However, it is the most reliable car on the road and it does get 50 MPG, so saying that you wouldn’t be caught dead on one misses the reasons why people want to buy it.
+10
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:13 pm)I wouldn’t be caught dead in a Prius either, so what? This is an opinion I share with a lot of people, but many more wouldn’t be caught dead in a GM vehicle. And the numbers show that the Prius is the most popular hybrid. I liked Bob Lutz and his comments because they seemed real..this comment just looks like jealousy the way he made it.
Dan Akerson needs to focus on turning people’s opinions about GM positive and leave the negative comments to people upset with Toyota’s recent issues. My wife loves her corolla because it is her first car, but she will not buy another toyota because she has had the stalling problem in her car and had the ECM replaced twice. If Akerson spent time improving GM’s image, maybe her next car will be a Volt(She’s worried about GM quality).
+9
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:18 pm)The Volt is extremely attractive to geeks. The two groups which will buy the Volt are geeks and environmentalists. (The Volt costs way too much for the Frugalites). Why he would insult half his potential customers base is beyond me. Maybe he just felt that since Lutz had insulted the other half by calling AGW “a crock” he needed to complete the job?
+10
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:18 pm)+1!
+1!
+1!
+1!
+1!
+1!
/well said.
+18
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:19 pm)Geeze people. Some of you are taking this out of context. He’s pointing out that the Prius is ugly. Haven’t you ever used the expression “I wouldn’t be caught dead in that…”? I sure have. Just an expression. ‘Nuff said.
+19
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:21 pm)honoreitiscom,
Amen! I’ve been driving my Prius for over 6 years – that’s 6 years of getting 50MPG. If when the Volt and/or Leaf ever start getting delivered, I’ll get one fo those too. Dumping on Prius is just stupid and immature.
+9
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:31 pm)Nice sentiment, but misplaced. Our own beloved General Motors assembles many vehicles in Mexico, Canada, Australia and elsewhere. If even GM intends you to purchase cars made outside of the USA then why shouldn’t you?
And what about Hondas, Toyotas, and Mercedes assembled in the USA? Are you willing to buy those and not a Chevrolet made in Mexico? Such sentiments are out of touch with the realities of the 21st Century Economy.
I understand loyalty to the US economy but such blind loyalty is why for decades cars made in the US were crap. It wasn’t until they were threatened with extinction that the quality slowly came back. And almost too late to save the American Car industry.
For the record I own two Chevrolets and neither of them were built in the USA.
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:43 pm)The only thing wrong with the Prius is its jelly bean shape. For what it is intended to do, the design is quite good. I never got one because I don’t believe in the start-stop cycle of the ICE. The ER concept of the Volt is surely the way to go considering our existing technologies and support infrastructure.
As far as Akerson’s comments? It may seem crass, but those words are magic to the UAW!! It could mean trouble in any future GM-Toyota development projects.
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:46 pm)john1701a,
Nerd-Vehicle
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:53 pm)Yeah i did…….WHEN I WAS DRUNK!
/hmmmm……that was just at lunch today…….lol
+11
Dec 10th, 2010 (2:59 pm)I think the engineers did a great job in making the Volt. However, the marketing around it was not so good and with Dan Akerson it doesn’t seem to get any better. Tell us what a great car the Volt is instead of insulting a competitor.
Dec 10th, 2010 (3:03 pm)Dang man, it’s starting to sound like the Jerry Brown & Meg Whitman CA campaign mud flinging!!!
Don’t it???
+5
Dec 10th, 2010 (3:11 pm)You know, if you walked into the homes of the folk that say they’ll only buy American, you’ll prolly find most of their products in their home is imported goods. Or American brand products made offshore/outsourced…..lol
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (3:36 pm)same here…married her in fact…
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (3:54 pm)“We commonly refer to the geek-mobile as the Prius,” he said. “I wouldn’t be caught dead in a Prius.”
My kids call it the “freak-mobile”. Oh, and my son drives a Honda Civic Hybrid.
NPNS!
-6
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:04 pm)“We commonly refer to the geek-mobile as the Prius,” he said. “I wouldn’t be caught dead in a Prius.”
The Prius sucks! it is so slow I hate the way some people drive them holding up traffic.
I am not a fast driver but come on “drive like an adult” (I stold that from someone on here)
The Volt drives as good any regular sporty 4 door v6 better then many.
The Prius should have a hole in the floor sow you can push to get going with your foot.
-1
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:10 pm)The funny part about it is that they (well only GM at this point) are flinging mud for less than 000.01% of all vehicle sales! (Decimal is probably off, so I gave ya a few extra zeroes to play with.)
I don’t see any motivation at all for anybody (normal people, not us) to buy a Prius or Volt over a Camaro or Mustang or 318i or Lexus or any other normal car. Less power and higher price don’t seem like great reasons to go hybrid or alt-fuel.
Yeah, there’s conservation and getting-off-foreign-oil and green-cred and such, but, normal people don’t know about these issues and frankly don’t care. For 99% of car buyers it’s the money. I’m not saying frugality, it’s all about ‘how much car can I get for this payment?’.
It’s going to take either a huge (and long) uphill battle, or, a large motivated move into another way of doing things. Nothing will happen without leadership and a national energy policy.
“W” drives a huge Ford pickup. Obama drove a red Chrysler 300C (Hemi V-8) before office. Other influential people drive high-end foreign iron or Escalades. Every single ad on TV is about power, dust clouds and noise (other than a few Volt ads). Any mention of economy is preceded by statements of how much horsepower the engine has. GMC’s ad is about their 400+hp engine being the biggest.
Well, ya get the picture. Hybrids don’t sell and fighting over who sells them is pretty funny.
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:15 pm)By the way the
Come to think of it the Prius is a “Runaway success” so maybe the hole the floor could be needed to help stop. ;>)
Personaly I will never be caught in a Toyota. I will not take one when I rent a car ever again.
They allways have a lot of Toys left at the rental pick up, other people must feel the same.
The way they tried to blame the drivers for their problem. I don’t understand why anyone would ever buy a Toyota, ever. But that’s just me.
-17
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:17 pm)(click to show comment)
+2
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:20 pm)I think Dan Akerson’s comments were a bit unwise and unnecessary. Maybe he thought he was just talking to a few choice friends (you know, kind of like “some people clinging to guns and religion”). Nevertheless, there was no benefit to gained and plenty of blow back.
That being said, you wouldn’t expect the CEO of a major automobile company to say they admired or wanted to ride in a car made by a competitor, would you?
+2
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:20 pm)Agreed. Grammatically, it makes no sense if he is comparing the two cars per se. I believe he is trying to say that both the volt and prius are geek-cars but the volt looks better (why wouldn’t he?). As a recent prius buyer, I agree the volt looks better because I prefer a more aggressive look; however, the prius design is a benchmark that even Honda copied.
Look at some of the folks around here: engineers, nasa employees, computer, etc. The prius forums have a similar makeup. Several prius and other hybrids owners showed up at the demo day I attended in San Antonio. These vehicles attract techno-geeks.
+3
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:26 pm)Hey, what’s wrong with a nerd?
My Volt is gonna be RED, though.
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:28 pm)He probably wouldn’t, but he might in a Leaf or a Tesla.
+7
Dec 10th, 2010 (4:52 pm)The funny thing is that its not like the Volt is that stunning of a car to look at: It looks about the same as a Honda Civic. Secondly, making a statement against the Prius especially given that GM’s fortunes has only recently begun to turn seems shortsighted. One should practice humility in a situation like this. The Prius has been around since 1997. 14 years longer than the Volt. 5 years ago GM didn’t give a damned about hybrids. If anything GM should be thanking Toyota and Honda for that matter for making them get off their rears and start designing better cars.
Its amazing. In the 90′s we had a Chevy Corsica as our student driver car in High School. What a un-inspiring, POS. The interior and frankly the rest of the car was AWFUL. Meanwhile Toyotas and Hondas were light years ahead of them. But now GM and Ford are building some of the best cars in the biz. Cars that people like me would actually buy and if given the choice would buy over a Toyota or Honda. Why? Because of competition and if Toyota and Honda had not given them the sound whipping they got in the 90′s and 2000′s they would still be making junk. The difference between the cars GM makes now versus 10 years ago is like night and day. I never thought I would ever consider a GM product. They used to make absolutely nothing I found at all appealing. Now quite the opposite is true and given that they’re an American company makes it all that much better. I’m actually starting to see a lot of newer GM cars in the parking lot at work. They must be doing something right.
My prius is 10 years old. It does what its supposed to do- get me back and forth to work reliably, safely, and efficiently. I can’t really ask for more then that. Of course I’d love a Volt too.
+6
Dec 10th, 2010 (5:17 pm)That is ironic. I think of the Volt as the new ‘geek mobile’ and think of it as an honor not as an insult. Yes, on a Prius you can monitor your gas usage and hypermile, but on a Volt you can monitor your electric usage too and try to use zero gas as the ultimate prize. In short you have all of the geekyness of the Prius plus more.
+9
Dec 10th, 2010 (5:19 pm)IQ130,
I went to a ride and drive this past weekend 1250 miles from their Michigan home a fairly large number of GM employees, mostly engineers did the finest job of marketing I have seen. As a visitor to this dealership in Pembroke Pines Florida (not a roll out State) I was met by GM employees and made to feel like I was royalty. These GM employees answered every question I had and others I didn’t think of. I was still receiving email and telephone calls from these dedicated employees yesterday. I feel they are truly dedicated to making my Volt experience the best car buying experience I have had in my life. I cannot say enough good things about meeting these dedicated and enthusiastic people. Did I mention dedicated?
Take Care, TED
-7
Dec 10th, 2010 (5:20 pm)Only the Feds think that executive pay caps are going to have a positive effect on the ability of a company to compete. The amount of money for executives is pocket change compared to the outlandish salaries paid for the UAW. Of course, the UAW and fellow unions forked over nearly
$50 milllion to help elect their salary and job protector, our brainless chief executive, who, by the way, spends millions of tax dollars to give his fat and equally brainless wife a plane ride for her birthday and allows her an entourage of relatives and other useless types – to the tune of nearly
$2 million bucks yearly, with $100,000 plus salaries for many of the 21 “assistents” she requires – to do her nails, hair, foot massages. It would be funny , if someone else were paying the bills for this nonsense.
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (5:27 pm)GM CEO Dan Akerson shooting off his mouth like he is a kid in a schoolyard shouting match makes me wonder about his judgement and ability to run a huge corporation. Evidently he hasn’t heard what I learned from my first days in business: customers are more impressed by how good your product is than by how poor your competitor’s is.
A suggestion for his next ad: “Why go elsewhere and be gypped worse?”
Concerning his argument that GM’s owners (US taxpayers) who have invested billions to save the lucrative jobs of many GM executives who have demonstrated their past incompetence: this is instead of repaying part of their debt. He has his nerve. I am sure he is not thinking of the hard-working lower managers. He wants to pay employees like the chief financial officer multi-millions to insure their absolute loyalty so they cooperate in agreeing to anything he pleases. I’d like to see how many higher-rank GM executives he can point to who have quit because they feel a million a year is inadequate for them in these times.
+7
Dec 10th, 2010 (5:28 pm)Ackerson just appeared on NPR’s “All Things Considered” and apparently does own a Volt, mentioning using 2 gallons so far to drive 500 miles.
http://www.npr.org/2010/12/10/131969606/gm-accelerates-toward-chinese-business-plug-ins
+2
Dec 10th, 2010 (5:55 pm)That is good to hear!
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:04 pm)Ted in Fort Myers,
Ted, I sent you a PM. Evidently not only did they impress you, but you impressed them also.
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:14 pm)Some people prefer to get there with style, speed, style, handling, style, street cred, style, comfort, and style.
Believe it or not, Prius is a fairly low-sales car even after 14 years on the market. All hybrids are in the realm of a rounding error for overall sales in the US.
+13
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:24 pm)This news will upset some Prius drivers.
+8
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:33 pm)Capt, that just shows how bad things are: most of the items you want aren’t even made here in the states anymore. Now we have a reason to buy American when it comes to owning a vehicle.
Go Volt!
Happy trails to you ’til we meet again.
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:36 pm)I’d sure be upset, Mark! EMTs apparently had to cut the windshield out to rescue the occupant(s), which means the 2 doors on the driver’s side were jammed shut. This looks like a neighborhood street, and the top is undamaged, so I’d guess the car’s speed was not high enough to cause a full rollover —only a low-speed “tiltover” on its side. If that distorted the unibody so badly the accessible couldn’t be doors opened, I’d NEVER want to drive or ride in this car!
/So this wreck is evidence enough for me to agree literally with Ackerson, “I’d wouldn’t be caught dead in a Prius”!
.
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:46 pm)Correction, last line of post #45: “accessible doors couldn’t be opened….
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:49 pm)I was about to step out to get the kids from school when I happened to switch to C-Span to catch a couple minutes of that Socialist Representative’s filibuster rant – but was pleasantly surprised to see Akerson speaking in D.C. in front of the Washington Economic Club re: the CHEVY VOLT! I DVR’d it and have just been watching the whole thing.
The host asked Akerson, ” I understand you drove over in a Volt today – so just between us, what was it like?” …Akerson answered,
” ECSTACY! ”
PUMP OUT THE VOLTS!,
James
* He also said he has driven the Volt 500 miles – and said his wife could attest that they used 1.2 gallons of gas. — On the downside, he said he drove Volt over there so that some of the people could take him out on $25 dollar rides…( they chuckled ), so they could see the car – but he said he “regularly drives an SUV”.
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:56 pm)May I suggest that the EMT may have decided to move the occupant(s) through the front window to decrease the possibility of injury. I hope that the plug in model will have a lower center of gravity.
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (6:57 pm)I personally could never bash Prius since I bought one 3 year ago and since it has taught me and my wife to drive more efficiently ( …for efficiency ) and safer using the multi efficiency screens and real-time info. I have to say the car has taught me to drive my other vehicles more efficiently as well, and I thought I was a good driver! To date – a Prius was the best one could get to get of foreign oil short of a $120,000 two seat Tesla, a home-made EV or a bicycle.
That said, I’m happy to hear Akerson’s bravado. I’m glad he’s talking smack, I want to see Volts on every corner, and subsequent Voltec models abounding. Toyota doesn’t have anything close to Volt in the foreseeable future – and GM took the right path IMHO and not the one Ford and Nissan did – licensing Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive for Escape and Altima and following, rather than leading the way to the clean – patriotic future of motoring. Ask Motor Trend who compared the plug in Prius they had on staff for three months testing, with the Volt they had for a week – and they showed Volt blew the plug Prius off the road.
GM can REALLY talk smack when Volt is outselling Prius in the marketplace, and they’re available everywhere.
PUMP OUT THE VOLTS ! ( in all 50 states ),
James
+5
Dec 10th, 2010 (7:28 pm)So, you have a large number of people who bought a Prius (or more than one in many cases) who are likely buyers of a Volt in the future and you leave your public statements open for the interpretation that you think they made a bad decision? Not smart to insult potential customers.
+5
Dec 10th, 2010 (8:06 pm)I must admit that I find the Prius well styled for what it is. It looks modern and unique and given that, it stands out among cars of its size.
That said, I wouldn’t buy one. For me, the smugness many of its owners display cancels out whatever nerdiness it might have. In fact, I wouldn’t buy any car with a foreign nameplate. The domestic car companies need our support, they have fought back from near-extinction and have become world-class competitive and therefore they can count on support from me.
What Ackerson said of the Prius couldn’t have been said one year ago – he would have been written off as a lunatic foaming at the mouth. Now with Toyota having lost its mojo things are different – more and more people understand and even agree with Ackerson’s sentiment.
Dec 10th, 2010 (8:23 pm)Translation – “I’d rather we send money to terrorists than drive a car we consider geekish”.
Around here we call such people “traitors”.
+6
Dec 10th, 2010 (8:24 pm)I’m the guy that would like to see a moritorium on all technical/styling/marketing slams on all electric related cars. These cars all contribute to my objectives even though my first, second, and last choice is going to be the Caldoodlevolt Volt.
My objectives make me totally neutral in any market place battles. I don’t care who puts OPEC out of business and drives the Sheik of Araby back to his jackasses.
BIG BTRY
honoreitiscom: Screw him. I love my Prius. Can’t wait till my Volt comes in. It’s all good. There’s room for all. For some, the Prius is the best answer, for others, the Leaf, and for others like me, the Volt. No need to slam the Prius, with is THE car that pushed GM to create the Volt. (Quote) (Reply)
+2
Dec 10th, 2010 (8:27 pm)Kinda dopey thing for him to say. Makes people immediately think that he views the Prius as a direct competitor/threat to the Volt. It’s not, it’s just old news and should be allowed to die away quietly.
Note to Prius fanboi nitwits: I actually like the car itself and if Toy was man enough to release a PHEV with at least 20 miles AER I’d seriously consider it. Sad they DROPPED THE BALL BIGTIME on that one.
Dec 10th, 2010 (8:33 pm)And with ‘sticking accelerators’ or ‘failing brakes’, wouldn’t they all be considered to be about the same as a hearse? (hee-hee)
Great photoshop job above!
+2
Dec 10th, 2010 (8:56 pm)The EV1 begat the Prius begat the Volt.
+4
Dec 10th, 2010 (9:35 pm)I suggest you look at the photo again. To anyone wanting to remove an injured occupant they would obviously not be able to open the passenger side door. Trying to remove an injured person through the drivers side door would be difficult and if the person had possible spinal injury, this would be a bad choice. Removing the front windshield to remove the occupant(s) makes perfect sense, and this would be done with any vehicle.
Why do we need to “find” flaws with the Prius. It has been and continues to be a well engineered vehicle. Other Hybrids are always compared to it, which indicates just how well this little machine was designed.
Is it ugly? Seems a shallow topic, compared to what it means to lessen our dependency on oil.
\rant off…shields down…steady as she goes Cap’n.
+4
Dec 10th, 2010 (9:41 pm)I feel like a Prius lover today (I am not).
“The Prius mid-size gas-electric hybrid posted February sales of 7,968 units, up 10.2 percent over the year-ago month.”
http://priuschat.com/news/prius-sales-up-in-spite-recall
Nearly 100,000 Prius’/year is not something to sneeze at. It is just one car, but replacing 100,000 less fuel efficient cars/year is something to be glad about, at least I am.
Dec 10th, 2010 (10:45 pm)C-SPAN is replaying Akerson’s speech right now. He’s surprisingly inarticulate from time to time, and his sense of humor is kind of lumpy. Maybe just his delivery.
+1
Dec 10th, 2010 (10:55 pm)On the C-SPAN tape, now he’s doing a Q&A with the moderator; he just made the Prius remark. He’s a lot better spoken off the cuff than he was delivering his pre-written speech.
+3
Dec 10th, 2010 (11:20 pm)I agree with you to a point. Quotes like Akerson’s can oft be taken out of context in media – in fact, in today’s web-age – it’s a given.
On the practical side, though – we Americans are free-thinkers, at least most of us. I’m a Prius owner, as you know, but I wasn’t put off or insulted by Akerson’s comments. Why? For one, I don’t really have a thin skin. People on here have tossed insults my way and I still like them – and I feel a kinship with many as lots of us will eventually own our own Volt’s and be kind of a clan – like the first one’s who really “got it”, although, like a family, we don’t always agree. What a GM CEO says* in a burst of corporate zeal won’t effect the car I buy – I’ll leave that to the merits of the machine. Most of us feel it’s the engineers at GM who are the heros here, and the corporate heads in Detroit are the ones who usually muck things up.
I like my Prius because it’s the best option we have at the moment. I’m used to family and friends mocking me about my Prius. Sorry boys, but the “egg shape” and cab-forward design of the Prius allows it to be not only roomy and practical, but the most aero mass produced car sold in North America. Look up aerodynamics or go to ecomodder.com to read up and learn that the teardrop or water drop is the most aero shape on Earth. Most people who’ve never owned a Prius or never rode in one don’t realize the genius of it – they feel it’s a small car – yet they’ve not realized it’s about a cu. ft. smaller than a large mid-sized Camry inside. They’ve accomplished this by pushing the wheels out to the four corners without any overhang to speak of. Even Volt has short overhang in the rear, but quite a lot in front – This may well be because they did need all that room for the mechanicals, yet Prius has front-drive-front engine and electric motors with a low overhang nose. Prius has good weight distribution without the 400 lb. lithium pack rear-biased and in the center. These are things to think about, and are called “packaging” by the auto industry. The Prius was a vital stepping stone – and I’m certain Toyota, while slow to rise and meet Volt, will indeed catch up if GM isn’t on the move with Voltec. Toyota is probably the only car company on the planet in this economy that can afford the whopping R&D costs developing a revolutionary or evolutionary hybrid require.
Sure, call us geeks or nerds – those who appreciate good engineering and breakthrough technology. Sure, label the Prius a failure even though it’s approaching 3 million sold. We like Volt because while sporty looking, it does retain those old familiar front grille aspects we think of when we think automobile. while incorporating Prius-style aerodynamic thinking. We admire how Volt melded higher tech than Prius into a package that doesn’t require the penalties Prius did.
In the end form follows function. We all have some level of human vanity in us. How a car looks is baked into our DNA to a point. To me, I bought my Prius because the way it slips through the air made sense to me – look at nature, how fish and birds have evolved and the best designs have survived. If say, the look of a falcon or shark is appealing esthetically while in turn making it tops against it’s competitors – just think of the “ugly” animals, thousands upon thousands who’ve excelled yet look hideous to the human eye. Their form performs the job that’s kept them around.
To me, the 2010 gen 3 Prius is ugly. I liked my 2nd gen – yet detest the one’s with the tiny wheels – mine looks better with 17s, yet that was vanity for me since the smaller wheeled Prii get better mpg.. The gen 3 Prius has a lower .CD than mine and gets 5 more mpg. For that, and only for that – I was going to upgrade until it became apparent Volt may actually fly. So I’ll buy a Volt but never diss the car that got us here.
PUMP OUT THE VOLTS!
* GM CEOs come and go these days like the seasons, so take what Akerson says with two grains o’ salt. Remember, he also said at the meeting today that his main car is an SUV.
Dec 10th, 2010 (11:59 pm)If only Akerson finished the statement with a little more bravado like…”and we’re gonna kick Toyota’s butt around the world with the best darned cars you want to save gas with!”
Then maybe I’ll actually believe that GM finally has a leader that understands frugal cars and why we buy them.
I’d love to see the Volt engineers be let loose on any vehicle that they want. A clean sheet of paper and a common goal. Get them outside the GM box and all the nonsense that goes with it. The Volt is a prime example of what an unfettered group of engineers can do. What they’ve done with the Volt is amazing and fuels Akersons’ boast more than the anti Prius stuff.
Toyota should be commended for actually having the Prius to be spurned by the head of North America’s largest automobile manufacturer.
+2
Dec 11th, 2010 (2:44 am)I’ve heard a lot more “insults” about American cars over the years.. didn’t seem to hurt people from buying Japanese cars.
In my case I wouldn’t be caught dead in any Japanese car because of the Japanese trade policies of effectively keeping out all American cars out of their market with huge tariffs while coming to America and sucking billions each year out of the American market. Millions of Americans have lost their jobs due to UNFAIR TRADE.
+8
Dec 11th, 2010 (3:14 am)The point is that the Japanese build cars in the US and PAY NO US TAXES! and we give them $7500 for each electric car they sell in the US.. While they put huge tariffs on anything we try to sell in Japan including cars and trucks.
There are NO American factories in JAPAN and the VOLT will have a $20,000 tariff put on it in JAPAN…
At least in Mexico and Canada you can buy American products.
The quality of Japanese vehicles like the Toyota trucks that have frames rusting out after just 6 years are a lot worse than any American car of the 70′s yet the biased anti American media says nothing about that. And the fact that Toyota recalled more cars and trucks than they sold doesn’t seem to get much press… had this been GM it would be a different story.
+5
Dec 11th, 2010 (8:09 am)Given what this countrys economy has been through its surprising how many people are still favorable toward foreign car purchases. Some of us can’t seem to connect the dots.
There are some excellent choices for domestic cars today–in all sizes and classes–and the Volt is as good as they get.
+6
Dec 11th, 2010 (8:55 am)jscott1…Nice sentiment, but misplaced. Our own beloved General Motors assembles many vehicles in Mexico, Canada, Australia and elsewhere. If even GM intends you to purchase cars made outside of the USA then why shouldn’t you?
jscott1,
Because GM is a US Corporation and Toyota is not. The Japanese are ruthless business competitors who will put our industries out of business if and when they can. There is more to a car company than where they put the manufacturing plant. The Japanese use us like third world labor to build their cars. They import all of the manufacturing equipment and expertise. We benefit the same way from these Toyo plants that Mexico benefits from a GM plant (and you see where Mexico is).
Our leaders, as a whole, showed us that they think it is valuable to have US car makers. They bailed them out at great expense to the Nation. If GM and Ford go away, that will be a sad day for the US. It does matter what we buy.
Oil will eventually be gone no matter what we drive. The world will suck it all down. I think it is more important to make sure we have strong US corporations even after the oil is gone.
I for one will not be caught dead in any Toyota.
PS, I think the CEOs comment was unnecessary. Everyone can see that the Volt is a more exciting vehicle than the Prius.
-3
Dec 11th, 2010 (9:15 am)How do we get people like big “Dan Akerson”? I watched his performance on TV where he made this remark about the Prieus. It appears like we have another mouth for GM that is not so much American as he is a world pumper upper.
His bull crap about China being such a sweet deal for GM. I guess that ought to be worth a big bonus! If GM can’t survive right here in our country and do well, why in the hell do we have to rely on China to keep our pockets full.
It doesn’t even sound like he is that hyped on the Volt even though, he said he was driving one. He was more enthuised about a new soft top chevy coming out soon. Well, I guess we deserve what we get and I am sure that he is the man of the hour and if you don’t believe so, ask him.
He will tell you money is not important to him so, I guess he will not be taking home no BIG Bonuses??????? It all sounds good.
+4
Dec 11th, 2010 (9:18 am)As a current Prius owner, and also one w/ the Volt at the top of my list as my next purchase, I think this guy is really just shooting himself in the foot. I would be willing to guess that prius owners make up a large percentage of people willing to move up to the Volt.
What kind of an idiot tries to offend his own customers.
+1
Dec 11th, 2010 (9:26 am)I think this concept has never been better stated. While not 100% analagous, it is close enough to compare Japanese owned American plants with American owned Mexican plants to effective get the point across.
For all those justifying their foreign car purchases with the fact that US automakers have international operations too, this should bring some clarity to you. It is a different thing purchasing from a foreign manufacturer than purchasing from a domestic one regardless of fabrication origin. Addditionaly, when it comes to autos, there are still many domestically produced options from domestic manuacturers. The further you elect to send your dollars from you, the less likely they will return to you.
Dec 11th, 2010 (9:33 am)Though I don’t think I would have said that, he is entitled to his own opinion and there is nothing wrong with a little stab here and there for competition. The import markets make fun of American cars all the time in their commercials.
The Prius is a good car, but it’s ugly, noisy inside, and is the true stereotype of a compact car. I’m glad that the Volt was designed to not only be very efficient, but very luxurious as well. I think GM can brag a little for what they have produced. Perhaps tone it back a little.
+1
Dec 11th, 2010 (9:46 am)Thank Christ we live in a free country and are able to speak our mind. How many times have we heard to Bob Lutz blurt out similar thoughts? George Bush Sr. had his broccoli comment. “I just don’t like broccoli”. The press was on him for a week. “Sir, just what do you mean? You don’t eat broccoli?”.
We have seen reckless comments bring down multi-million dollar per year careers in just 2 or 3 days. Don’t wish to list them here.
Some of the best posts at gm volt dot com are centered around statements Bob Lutz made during early development of the Volt. His torquey voice and pink tie adding to the delivery. There is a difference between being negative or stubborn. And being opinionated. A little hot sauce is fine.
NPNS
Dec 11th, 2010 (9:55 am)Only one problem – no supply of Volts, plenty of the Prius. He needs to be quiet for another year.
Dec 11th, 2010 (10:05 am)14million in US. 73million worldwide. 100k is a small number.
Prii are not replacing less efficient cars. They are replacing older Prii. With such a specific-looking car, new customers are difficult to obtain.
I like the Prius design. The style, not so much. Obviously, I’m not alone in this assessment.
Dec 11th, 2010 (10:12 am)Twenty years ago there was no way I’d be caught dead owning a Japanese car. Loved my 78′ Firebird Formula 400 4 barrel and American muscle. After repeatedly putting excessive amounts of gasoline in the tanks of this and other less efficient American-made products, I would have bought a Toyota Prius in 2006. Problem was there wasn’t any available (because a bunch of intelligent folks who don’t like spending money on gasoline had already bought them). Couldn’t get a new 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid either. Did see a 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid and replaced my 1999 Chevy Cavalier. The result? MPG normally in excess of 40 and sometimes even 50 (versus 30).
GM disappointed me when they came out with the Cobalt and it got the same MPG the Cavalier did. No improvement whatsoever. I test drove a Honda Insight (1) in winter and wasn’t impressed with the 37 mpg displayed. Had I known what I know now I would have bought it and saved even more money (and gas).
The 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid is similar to the 2003 in MPG. Honda hasn’t come out with anything more efficient. The 2010 Prius is more efficient, but not a quantum leap. The Volt is a quantum leap, just a matter of determining if it’s feasible (for myself) to do $41,000 + taxes, etc. less tax credit. The 2011 CR-Z, Fusion, and other hybrids and electrics are worthy of consideration. Not to mention the variable known as W-I-F-E.
Also have a 1990 IROC-Z. 24 mpg from the 305 is better than 18 or less from the 400. New Camaro 350 has twice the horsepower but 1 mpg improvement. V6 has nearly 100 more horsepower and 5 mpg improvement (better if mpg is a concern, compared to the 305).
Decisions, decisions. Thank you GM for giving us a viable option for reducing gasoline consumption (and time spent in the cold pumping it, money needed to buy it, etc.). Thank you Toyota for your help getting GM to build it (and Lyle, etc.).
Note: #2 on the list for a Volt at a local Chevy dealership, just in case…
+1
Dec 11th, 2010 (10:29 am)Hilarious, the guy leading a company that had to be bailed-out by the government because they went broke from making gas-guzzlers is making fun of a car that has sold over two million units worldwide and made Toyota billions of dollars. That’s like someone from the Detriot Lions trying to make fun of the New England Patriots. It’s so ridiculous, it’s just laughable to the point of being pathetically cute.
-5
Dec 11th, 2010 (10:49 am)Over a million people in the US alone disagree with Akerson and were willing to spend cold, hard cash to enjoy a Prius.
Malibu, Vue, Aura hybrids – all DOA. GMT900 SUVs – all DOA. Volt – sells, maybe, with $7500 in life support from the Feds. Sure, GM’s a “winner” with the Volt.
And, of course, the final absurdity is that the Volt ended up with what is basicallya Prius drivetrain. El Lutzbo’s “electric car” IS partly mechanical… change the software and it IS a Prius, just with worse Cd.
Dec 11th, 2010 (10:56 am)And the Aztec was GM’s shining moment?
Dec 11th, 2010 (11:24 am)pjkPA,
It doesn’t make any difference if he has justification, as George says, it’s stupid to risk offending your own potential customers. Just talk about how great the Volt is and leave it at that.
+1
Dec 11th, 2010 (11:50 am)#16
Amen. +1 And these guys want raises?
Dec 11th, 2010 (12:22 pm)Hi Mr. Akerson,
I posted several suggestions on the Dec 9th thread of WopOnTour, (at post #171 at the end).
If not already previously patented, consider these a contribution for those several “critical mission” components and systems.
You see, as I teach live repair order (L1) diagnostics which must always instantly “get to any critically damaging potential faults” firstly, I had wanted to contribute these ideas for quite some time. If not already incorporated, I think you will find these suggestions useful.
I completely agree with you on the Prius commentary, from the technical studies I’ve done with them when their processing had been not “sequestered”. (Very interesting findings you may like to hear about). Please feel welcome to call my published cell phone number. It is on my current flier kindly hosted at the State of Texas Department of Public Safety, Emissions Training Seminars, “Genisys Waveform training by Dan Petit”.
(I still don’t use email, as too much gets past filers every day. This old-fashioned method of cell phone is far more efficient anyway, as I can completely control my business and my business days’ time. (My contractors have my complete capacities at all times, part of which I would really like to offer to GM.))
+1
Dec 11th, 2010 (2:06 pm)Basically a Prius drive train? You are a liar or you are an imbecile. Yes, the ICE can, under very specific and infrequent circumstances send mechanical energy to the wheels. If you had more than 2 brain cells to rub together, you’d understand why. But as the saying goes “you can’t fix stupid”.
Higher CD? Now you are just a plain retard, or again a bald faced liar. Volt CD=.28. 2010 Prius CD=.30.
So which is it, liar or retard?
-1
Dec 11th, 2010 (3:47 pm)First of all I drive Honda’s and I wouldn’t be caught dead driving any GM cars–screw him and all the money that lame company took from the taxpayers.
Again screw him
JK
+2
Dec 11th, 2010 (4:56 pm)Mr Akerson, I’m not sure if I fall into the nerd or geek category. I have owned mostly gm products all my life. I have owned my fair share of gas guzzlers that were produced by GM. After seeing the effects of oil addiction to our country’s economy and especially the loss of life to keep oil flowing from the person gulf, I had a change of heart in what I would drive. So, in 2008 I spoke with my local GM dealer about purchasing the flex fuel Volt. My thought was electricity is produced domestically as well as ethanol and I would burn very little imported oil. Our agreement is I am to be able to purchase the first flex fuel volt he receives. I am unsure of when that will be now that GM decided against the flex fuel Volt for gen 1. So, the same year, I placed an order for a 2010 prius which we received in august of 09 and are very pleased with it. I am still looking forward to receiving my volt. GM may be surprised to learn the driver for many is not what it looks like, but what propels it and how efficiently it does so.
+1
Dec 11th, 2010 (5:42 pm)You also have to remember he is a GM employee, (and their CEO). Most at GM would not be caught dead in a non-GM car. I dont know if they would even let you in the plant (j/k but you would catch hell). IIRC they make non-GM cars park out in the middle of nowhere. I think Dan was basically speaking the truth. I don’t see why he can’t speak his honest opinion. I doubt Toyotas CEO would ever consider driving a GM vehicle. He would probably chuckle at the idea.
Dec 12th, 2010 (8:21 am)I personally think he should drive a Pruis and all other non GM vehicles! Then he can drive the GM vehicles and compare them. I think this will lead GM to build even better vehicles.
Dec 12th, 2010 (8:30 am)How about all the money GM paid back to the taxpayers, and all the jobs both at GM and the hundreds of supplier companies that were saved? Oh, you are a 15 year old who has no concept of heady facts like this? Never mind then.
Dec 12th, 2010 (9:29 am)I have a lot of respect for the Japanese. They don’t buy cars from the US, Europe, or South Korea. Some people say that’s because the Japanese government uses protective tariffs against foreign automakers. That may be true but I believe the Japanese people are more loyal and patriotic than the average American.
Dec 12th, 2010 (1:33 pm)Starcast,
Please proofread your comments before posting them. My eyes cannot take the abuse!
+1
Dec 12th, 2010 (6:53 pm)Prius is nice. Volt, if it ever comes on market and prove itself worthy, would be nice too.
Toyota build their cars and trucks in the USA.
Their stock is traded in the USA also.
They are American, just like our ancestors came from elsewhere and became American.
The Hyundai is the only automaker I would not buy at this time.
Yes, they built a factory here in the USA, but the company itself is supported by S.Korean government. Their stock is not traded in the USA neither.
…and the way they design, the way they pronounce “Hyundai” just like Honda, unlike how they say it in Korea…. I just won’t go Hyundai for my life.
+1
Dec 12th, 2010 (7:05 pm)pjkPA,
Japanese don’t impose tariff on American Cars.
They have better choices of import cars.
American auto companies are trying to sell US made cars with LEFT SIDE STEERING where it should be Right side in Japanese market.
During the Bush senior administration, CEOs of GM, Dodge Chrysler, and Ford came along with President Bush: CEOs of the Big 3 had a meeting with 8-9 Japanese Automaker CEOs.
What was surprising to Japanese were three things: 1. President brought the CEOs of private enterprises along with his political visit 2. American CEOs demanded to buy American Cars and had no right-hand steering vehicles to offer 3. Failing Company CEO (Iacoca?) was receiving WAY more $$$ than all those Japanese CEOs combined.
Nonetheless, German cars are doing great and selling a lot in Japanese market, although Japanese market is shrinking. Why not American cars? quality for one thing. poor market research for another. Doubtful it is due to “unfair” trade.
If you want to know what is unfair, GM, a government funded and rescued company trying to sell anything in foreign market.
Think of Korean Hyundai: they are supported by Korean government and their stocks are not traded in the USA. Toyota, Honda, all those Jap company stocks are traded here in the USA.
For what know, GM and Dodge should have went down and dissolved when they got money from the government. That is very non-American of them.
-2
Dec 13th, 2010 (1:50 am)FIRE THIS DUMB FUCK AKERSON!
Jan 7th, 2011 (3:14 pm)that’s a great post man very good job