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About this blog category: Subset of topics on DrivingEnthusiast.net that pertain to Bob Lutz.
The more you look at this thing, the worse it gets. You can't see out of it, odd and pointless lumps cover up parts of the windows. You can't sit in it, the terrible ergonomics and flat seats ruin the experience. You don't want to drive it, the engine and especially the transmission are lousy. And you can't drive it at night, the lousy headlamps shake along with the hood they're mounted in.
What were they thinking?
Let's not forget that Bob Lutz - the alleged marketing and product genius - had many many many flops. Did a couple of successful cars like the CTS make up for the money that was wasted putting the flops into production (or bringing them into the country)? Debatable...
Tools & Links for GM - Bob Lutz post number # 2793
There is a good article on MSNBC http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31146562/ about the Chevrolet Volt and how conflicted GM is about building it. While they are 100% committed to doing so, they continue to worry about its acceptance in the marketplace and about the financial viability of building an all-new product which will not and cannot be profitable - yet. Only a very small portion of the car buying public will consider a Volt and this will not cover costs, much less any profit. And the Federal Government “green” subsidiary of $7500 per car (tax refund after the initial purchase price of approx. $40,000) does not tilt the equation. Lutz points out that the car needs to be $15-20,000 less to work - but those prices will come down as the technology gets better and production rises.
As an aside, Lutz also points out that they have been concerned that the Camaro is the wrong car at the wrong time - certainly the liberals at the Obama administration think so. It's a highly visible car right now, it's on the covers of all the magazines (indeed, a "pony car" war is taking place in their pages), and as MSNBC points out GM has provided a display model front and center at the Detroit airport for everyone to see. GM might have been smarter to keep a low profile.
In our humble opinion, the Camaro is the wrong car at the wrong time. We like some aspects of the car, but it's too big and too heavy for a car a driving enthusiast can enjoy and actually use. Let’s face it - it's gigantic, a full-size car. It's also the only platform that GM had to build a Camaro on, just like the Challenger was built on the only available platform (and is even larger). But at least GM spent the money to develop an up-to-date suspension, 6-speed transmissions across the board, and gearing that provides good acceleration combined with low highway revs. But the worse part about the Camaro, Challenger, and even the so-slightly-smaller Mustang is that by building them on such large platforms, the automakers might have sealed their fate. There is no money anywhere for a smaller rear wheel drive platform, and none of these three cars can be shrunk any further on the current platform because of architectural constraints inherent in those platforms. In other words, there is no long-term future for these platforms and there is nothing in the pipeline to build a replacement on. GM canceled a small rear wheel drive platform a few years ago that would be been ideal, and Ford did the same earlier in the decade when a whole raft of future products were canceled just because Little Billy Ford attempted to sweep under the carpet the long range planning Jacques Nasser had in place. Plans that included a little brother to the DEW platform, the size of a BMW 3-series rather than the 5-series-sized Lincoln LS. Nasser was right, and Little Billy's knee-jerk reaction to being bettered left the company devoid of product plans for many years (plans which, BTW, also included the European Fords coming to North America much earlier then when they'll finally arrive).
When it comes to the long term future of the Mustang, what we want to see is a car the same size as the Fox-body Mustangs. With a hatchback body and engines ranging from a 4-cylinder thru a twin-turbo V-6 at the top. No V-8 - and yes you saw that right. The upcoming Coyote V-8 is not going to match the emissions, fuel economy, or the acceleration of a proper EcoBoost V-6 engine. Instead, it will have extra weight (all over the nose, in a car with a weight balance problem to begin with), it will have slower acceleration, and (for those of you who like to thumb your nose at society) it will have far less modification potential. In a car about 170 inches long, with the practicality of a hatch and a weight of about 3200 pounds, we'd have something sustainable. Unfortunately, though, there isn't a dime in the budget to create such a platform.
Getting back to the point, the technology will improve over time and the entire electric experience will become more mainstream. The types of developments we'll see in the next year or two will only serve to accelerate the rise of fully-electric cars. A current example is the phenomenal sales of the Hybrid Fusion - a powertrain in just its second generation (and, we should point out that GM has nothing in their product line that nears the sophistication of a Ford-style hybrid: GM's hybrid technology is laughable).
The entire hybrid marketplace is still in its infancy but is growing quickly. Nissan has just entered the market with a hybrid Altima, and is reportedly developing a dedicated Prius-type car (believing like Toyota that you have to look the part to be a follower of the religion). Chrysler has made progress in electric development - but on a shoestring budget (at least until the rest of the lawsuits are thrown out by Monday and the Fiat partnership is finalized). GM has other uses for the Volt powertrain as well, most notable a stunning Cadillac that attempts to the Lutzian angst about product “sexiness and desirability”.
The next step is so-called “plug-in” hybrids. Ford has been running fleets of Escapes in this configuration for the last couple of years. It’s apparently in their production plans (although the upcoming replacement for the Escape is probably dictating the timeframe), and there is also a hybrid or fully electric Focus coming at some point after it enters North American production.
But what about cars for the driving enthusiast? Boxy 4-doors, even with appealing technologies, aren't for us. But don't rule out this type of powerplant - it has fabulous potential for enthusiasts and could be very appealing with a little more development. Look at how the Tesla performs: its first generation technology (built on a shoestring budget) has created supercar-like acceleration and has preserved most of the dynamic handling attributes of the Lotus platform it's based on. Its engine produces maximum torque at 1 RPM thru 14,000 RPM: 276 lb/ft of torque and it's available to use as the driver sees fit. As is the 248 HP. And this from a 1st generation powerplant with "version 1.5" software. Incredible results from battery technology that is already out-dated.
A hybrid for driving enthusiasts would marry a larger-sized 4 or a small 6 cylinder engine with hybrid electronics to produce a car that could run solely on battery power for slow-to-medium speeds, or a coupling of gas engine with an electric motor to produce the full torque and horsepower combined output from of both engines. That is what Honda does with its hybrids already: Honda-type hybrids use small electric motors as a supplement to the gas engine. Thus making the total combined output of both available for acceleration. GM and BMW do this in large trucks and large cars respectively, in a simpler way with an electric motor in parallel to the transmission. Infiniti is about to offer such a system, debuting in the 2011 M-series cars, already demonstrated to the press in the G-series cars, and talked about for a future Nissan Z as well (all three cars sharing the same chassis makes this easy). Toyota has shown a Z-sized concept offering the combination of a gasoline V-6 with an electric motor acting as a supplement, producing over 400 horsepower combined (an earlier generation of this engine is already offered in a Lexus hybrid).
As far as a hybrid or all-electric sports car, there is a lot of development work to be done. Honda will introduce a 2-seat front wheel drive car next year that has some of the makings of a sports car – at least in Honda’s mind. Front-wheel drive does not yield a “sports car” in our humble opinion. We see it as more of a commuting car.
The Tesla is indeed a pure sports car and a side benefit of the all-electric powertrain is supercar-like acceleration: 0-60 in under 4 seconds (and more coming soon with an update to the software). However, as demonstrated in the current issue of Evo (the European enthusiast magazine), multiple laps will overheat the battery packs. Tesla has addressed this issue (which would presumably never come up in street driving) and has said that some sort of cooling improvement would be needed to make the Tesla into a track car. Driving Enthusiasts won’t accept issues that would prohibit us from using the car on the track (never mind how we’re supposed to get the car to the track in the first place). The Tesla (and everything else at the moment) has primitive batteries with limited range and power and this same issue is holding back both hybrids and pure-electrics.
The technologies involved and envisioned by the manufacturers is a very large and complex topic and to explain the many and varied technologies on the market today is outside the scope of this post. However, to help relate it and as background for the MSNBC article, we’ve prepared a chart showing today’s landscape as well as a couple of products coming in the next few years. Which of these technologies are temporary stepping stones, which become predominate, or (more likely) which are used for different types of vehicles in various stages of the evolution – all will be determined by market and political forces. While enthusiasts will probably have the option of a hybrid sports coupe in the form of a 370Z in 3-4 years, don’t look for an all-electric Z until the end of the decade, at least.
Tools & Links for GM - Bob Lutz post number # 2681
No sooner did we post about the current Solstice and Sky when word comes from GM Inside News that the next generation cars have been cancelled. Follow the link in the title of this post to the original article.
As we wrote our post last week... one thing bothered us. The fact that we rarely saw a Solstice or Sky on the dealer lot, much less a new ones on the street. Could their terrible ergonomics and lousy truck-based transmission have caught up with them? And what are the ramifications of yet another Lutz failure?
Tools & Links for GM - Bob Lutz post number # 2500
General Motors product development engineers have been busy finalizing details of the upcoming 5th-gen Camaro, and the Camaro5.com forum has an inside story on the focus group that was held by GM in their product development center last weekend. Several lucky very fortunate forum members were invited to attend and were treated to a unique - but confidential - show.
"Maximum" Bob Lutz even did a fly-by in his personal jet plane!
What is a focus group? It's a formal meeting (usually with a non-disclosure agreement in place) held by a vendor to brings together groups of existing and/or potential owners to show them future products and to methodically solicit reaction/feedback to specific items. In this example, the attendees were asked a long list of questions pertaining to specific parts. One exampel was about the feel of certain controls (sound, click, travel, tactile sensation, etc). At this late point with pilot production coming up in December, only minor changes can be made - for example the feel of the wiper controls could be changed, but it's very unlikely (given the cost of major last minute changes and the fact that production agreements are probably already in place and pre-production samples are being used) that the wiper stalk itself could be changed or relocated.
Follow these links to the discussion threads on the Camaro5.com forum:
One thing that has become clear from the focus group attendees is that a phenomenal GM DOHC V-6 engine will be standard. As with the Mustang, the V-6 will account for the majority of sales and "getting it right" is absolutely crucial to sales success. Apparently, GM has gotten it right: attendees were allowed to drive a V-6 Camaro and came back very impressed.
And if you can believe internet chatter about the 2010 Mustang (a simple restyling on the same platform), Ford will stick with ye olde 4 liter SOHC V-6 engine, an engine whose basic architecture dates back to the early sixties! The current Mustang is IMHO a lousy drive in V-6 form... and it's hard to believe that Ford could get at least 260 HP out of this old truck engine to effectively compete with the Camaro. Even Chryslers 3.5 liter SOHC V-6, an engine that will be replaced in approx. 2 years with a clean-sheet design, makes 250 HP in the 2009 Challenger. It's not that Ford can't produce a competitive engine... but their future direct-injected naturally-aspirated 3.5 or 3.7 liter DOHC V-6 engine will be limited Lincoln for the time being.
Score: GM!
Tools & Links for GM - Bob Lutz post number # 2396
I was recently on a business trip in two different cities and the roll of the rental car dice gave me an opportunity to drive two small SUVs: a 2006 Ford Escape and a 2007 Chevy Equinox. Both AWD and V-6 powered.
Summary: the Equinox is an absolute piece of junk.
First some background. I don't always specify what car I want; I usually just request a class (size) of car. My favorite rental car company, Hertz, isn't all Fords these days - you'll find just about everything under the sun, with notable exceptions including Ferraris and Acuras. You know why you won't find a Ferrari at Hertz. And you won't find an Acura because Acura doesn't want to hurt their image and lower the value (both residual and perceived) of their cars. So that leaves Chevys, Toyotas, Fords of course, the occasional Nissan and Infiniti, and Hyundai (which isn't at all as bad as you might assume). I can't remember ever seeing a Chrysler product at Hertz but I have seen Mercedes. My next Hertz rental will be specified as a 2007 G35, and on my prior trip I had a Lincoln Town Car. Hertz customer service is fairly consistent and reliable.
My first visit was to Raleigh, where Hertz gave me a Ford Escape. I've written about these before - they are a little dated but are still competent. Escapes (and their clones from Mercury and Mazda) make a fair amount of wind noise, the steering wheel is in the wrong position relative to the driver, the power steering is overly assisted, and the engine is no longer competitive (the competition having gone to the 3.5 liter range) in the current market. Still, it works and it's reasonably compact and quick enough to get out of its own way. You can also easily see out of the Escape in all directions. Controls are familiar Mazda, and are logically arrayed. Seats are adequate for long durations. The Escape was designed by Mazda and rides on a chassis loosely borrowed from a previous-gen Mazda 626. The engine is Ford's own 200 HP 3 liter DOHC V-6, NVH-tuned by Mazda, and throttle response is immediate.
My next stop was Washington DC and Hertz gave me a Chevy Equinox. I groaned at first but decided to take it - this presented an opportunity to compare and contrast 2 major competitors. And what a contrast: the Equinox is much bigger and taller than the Escape. But these two vehicles do compete in the market - they are each the logical step down in from a Trailblazer and an Explorer respectively. I'll add that an Explorer is probabaly 100 times better than the terrible TrailBlazer - I've driven each dozens of times.
The Equinox makes a really terrible first (and last) impression - this truck has a tremendously ugly grill and headlights. You'll also notice how tall the Equinox is, and you'll confirm that as soon as you get into the drivers seat where you're seated way down deep inside this truck. The view out the front is clipped and the view out the sides and back is poor. The front bucket seats are flat and offer very little support; power adjustment is provided but yields very little up/down travel and strangely warps the thigh support when you use it.
Ergonomic problems abound, and some are so bad that the net safety environment is almost dangerous:
The A pillars are *enormous*. The view out the front of the truck is one of the worst I've ever seen.
All the gauges go clockwise, except the temperature gauge. One quick glance at the temp guage makes you think something is very wrong.
The power window buttons are on the center console (which is half-way up the dash - econobox style). It is confusing to try to reach for them while driving.
The display on the radio is very reflective, even in moderate light. This makes it useless during the day and too bright at night. The buttons are tiny and are very tough to find while concentrating on traffic. They appear to have been styled rather than logically designed and arranged.
When you lower the rear side windows, the airflow thru the car becomes painful to your ears and sounds like a helicopter is flying over the truck.
The rear and side windows are so high off the ground that small cars can easily be lost 45 degrees to the rear. This is a problem in all trucks, but particularly so in this one.
The dashboard leaves the lower 2 inches of windshield exposed, including the metal edging. The dash looks like it is missing it's padded cover - it consists entirely of hard plastic pieces.
The side mirrors have clipped corners, cutting off some of the most important view to the sides. Given the poor view out the windows, this is another critical - and dangerous - design flaw.
The windshield wipers are all but worthless - in light rain there isn't any speed or setting that doesn't result in a dry and loud scrape across the window. The Equinox is equipped with very cheap wiper blades, and does not have infinitely variable wiper speed settings.
Front brakes are disc, but the rear uses drums. Pedal feel is soft and there is a delay in initial braking.
The engine is an oddity - a whopping 3.4 liters but only 185 HP thanks to ancient pushrod "technology". There is a noticeable throttle lag that makes using the power in city traffic very clumsy. By contrast the Escape has no lag so it can easily be driven in cut-and-thrust mode in city driving. Unfortunately I needed to cut across about 10 miles of DC in rush hour traffic, so this cut-ann-thrust ability was important. And, despite the AWD, there is noticeable torque steer.
This lack of cut-and-thrust ability makes the Equinox overall the worst vehicle I've ever driven in DC traffic. It certainly won't lead traffic, nor will it keep up with traffic.
So where was famed product czar Bob Lutz in the design of this hunk of junk? It appears that Lutz was absent, and that GM slid back to its old habits of cheap interiors and terrible ergonomics. All of the right technical bits are standard or optional on this vehicle, but none of them work well together. This is so typical for GM.
The bottom line is a vehicle that competes against several major domestic and import competitors, but doesn't do a single thing well and doesn't have a single factor to recommend it.
Tools & Links for GM - Bob Lutz post number # 2021
GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz discusses the design of the 2007 Saturn Sky Red Line in a walk-around at the New York International Auto show. Podcast feedView the video (56 MB)
Source: GM FastLane Blog
Tools & Links for GM - Bob Lutz post number # 1432
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The more you look at this thing, the worse it gets. You can't see out of it, odd and pointless lumps cover up parts of the windows. You can't sit in it, the terrible ergonomics and flat seats ruin the experience. You don't want to drive it, the engine and especially the transmission are lousy. And you can't drive it at night, the lousy headlamps shake along with the hood they're mounted in. 
I was recently on a business trip in two different cities and the roll of the rental car dice gave me an opportunity to drive two small SUVs: a 2006 Ford Escape and a 2007 Chevy Equinox. Both AWD and V-6 powered. 
The engine is an oddity - a whopping 3.4 liters but only 185 HP thanks to ancient pushrod "technology". There is a noticeable throttle lag that makes using the power in city traffic very clumsy. By contrast the Escape has no lag so it can easily be driven in cut-and-thrust mode in city driving. Unfortunately I needed to cut across about 10 miles of DC in rush hour traffic, so this cut-ann-thrust ability was important. And, despite the AWD, there is noticeable torque steer. 
This lack of cut-and-thrust ability makes the Equinox overall the worst vehicle I've ever driven in DC traffic. It certainly won't lead traffic, nor will it keep up with traffic. 
