Setting the Record Straight
Call it the Empire Strikes Back, or just good business sense, but in either case there comes a time when you simply have to clear the air and rebalance the discussion. The launch of GMfactsandfiction.com is just such a moment. It is a website dedicated to confronting the misconceptions and misrepresentations that are happening around General Motors and its present challenges. This is not an attempt to spin past the truth or to minimize the magnitude of the challenges we face; rather, it’s an effort to keep the discussion from spinning off-track at the hands of certain voices and opportunists who benefit by distorting or over-hyping GM's situation.
We’ve been discussing the misconceptions behind the North American situation on Driving Conversations for the past few weeks as part of the effort to rebalance the discussion happening around GM in Europe. I’d encourage you to visit the site and to submit questions and/or myths for consideration and response. While I’m sure many will continue to challenge and disagree with our positions on the current state of affairs, that’s okay- it’s part of a healthy and robust dialogue. But what we cannot do is allow half-truths and misrepresentations to take on the illusion of facts at the expense of our reputation. I’m looking forward to your comments and questions as part of this emerging dialogue!
Chris Preuss
Vice President of Communications
GM Europe
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- Posted in Business |
- Comments (6)
Comments (6)
A. Woodruffe said:
Hi Chris,
I never seem to understand what the general public and media has against GM. I often feel that it doesn't matter what GM do with their cars these days they just can't seem to shake some of the negativity that surrounded the company about 15-20 years ago. Even Pro-GM followers with shout out re-badge without any consideration as to what a re-badge is. VW churn out 14 vehicles from a Skoda Octavia to an Audi TT from their GOLF architecture and are praised. GM launch 6 uniquely engineered models from their Theta architecture and the media are all too quick to tell you that is just a Suzuki Grand Vitara. I've seen a couple of online sites call the up coming Saab 9-4x and Cadillac SRX a Saturn Vue in drag. I know, and you know too that this is absolutely wrong and these 2 new vehicles will be built from a brand new architecture.
For every person I can find that says GM build good cars, I seem to find another ten that still think they are unreliable, that they rust after a couple of years or the handling is rubbish, yet they won't go test drive some of the best built vehicles on the market today. I don't want to over exaggerate as for an example the BMW 118i offers better performance with lower emission to the OPEL Astra 1.8i, However you will have to part with a lot more money for the pleasure. With an All new Astra just a couple of years away with a new turbo charged direct injected engine, I have no doubt that OPEL with surpass what BMW can offer with their 1-Series.
Communicating that message properly without having the media write-off GM's future products in a whim or having Blogs like 'The Truth about Cars' writing another 'GM death watch' post, is without doubt GM will have a far better place for people to go, where they will get the facts and can make their own judgements.
So without trying to sound condescending, good on GM for launching the GMfactsandfiction.com site.
Best regards
Anthony.
p.s. How's the cycling going?
Chris Preuss said:
Great post, Anthony! And my cycling is going great, thanks for asking! This is such a complex issue to pull apart...some of the scorn is understandable, some of it is not. I think the only option for GM is to continue to simply execute great products consistently and that we stay very open and up front about engaging the critics. Given the objective performance of the past, it's understandable why people are so skeptical, even angry. We need to earn our way back in....it's going to take a lot of time.
Best,
Chris
Robert Johnson said:
The mere fact that our U.S. automobile industry does not produce a product to last at least 5 years without some major expense to the owner for unnecessary repairs is ridiculous.
The mechanical and/or power train parts our industry use when producing our vehicles appear to have only a 6 month life span before some type of replacement is required. (Major or minor).
I stopped purchasing American made vehicles since 1987 due to this premise. (I purchased Toyota automobiles...Lexus, Celica, Camry, and Highlander)
I find foreign automobiles...especially Toyota brands to be much more cost-efficient, reliable, and nearly maintenance free other than oil changes, etc.
Until I can find a product from GM or Ford made vehicles to be compatible to the foreign market, I can not waste my money or time and energy to enter back into the U.S. automaker industry.
I am about to purchase two(2) automobiles in 2010 and hope to at least contribute to the U.S. market once again if their products improve.
Jean-Charles Jacquemin said:
Robert,
Back in 2000 I bought against my principles (that were, I think, similar to yours) an Opel Astra break because the perceived cost was better than the competition and at that time I was financially unable to reasonably buy a BMW or a Mercedes, or ...
Well sometimes in your life you may be lucky because this Astra and the next one plus the Corsa my household is using are perfect and economical cars.
I never dream anymore of a BMW or a Mercedes or ... they leave me completely indifferent because the Opel cars I had and have currently PLUS the service I get from my Opel dealer are simply perfect.
My next car (around 2010 also) will still be an Opel provided it has a plug, because I will never buy any ICE-only oil dependent cars in the future.
Regards
JC
Scott Michelin said:
Great Post Robert Johnson.
The publicity barrage by GM on sites like gmfactsand fiction.com is simply ridiculous. GM can say everything they want and spin as much as they can but here are my points:
1. Unions and Retirees have just about ruined the company. To get paid more than $42 per hour on the assembly line and then expect non union Americans to finance a recovery? Give me a break.
2. Quality: This is my favorite spin, GM leads on "initial quality" Who cares about initial quality, talk to me after 2 years and then resurvey. I think Honda and Toyota win hands down and running away. Initial quality is like measuring how good a furnace system is based on how it heated your home the first few time you used it.
3. Bailouts and Bankruptcy: Let them go bankrupt, yes, it will affect tons of jobs, but thats called the free market economy. Perhaps GM should try that for awhile instead of paying double what they should for labor. Airlines have gone bankrupt, and guess what? They came out of it stronger.
G Burkhart said:
Remember WWll auto co`s helped war effort switching over to military`s needs
Maybe our friends in washington forgot