I *heart* Bob Lutz

It was just a few years ago when the industry was biting its nails over whether or not General Motors would make it ... if it it would stop all of its assembly lines, and end an era for one of the Big Three.

That was before Bob Lutz, GM's vice chair, waved a magic wand (well, though it seems that way it was really a long, hard road of paring down the company, consolidating, creating individual images for each of GM's brands and turning the ship around).

Last year GM unveiled the Chevy Volt -- the front-page story from the Detroit show -- and this year it created another flurry of excitement with a plug-in hybrid Saturn Vue, and one of the best kept secrets of the show, the unveiling of the (hot!) Cadillac CTS coupe.

Yesterday a small group of Canadian journalists met with Mr. Lutz, and as always, most of us could have sat there for hours listening. Why? He's real. He'll answer any question (a rarity in this business), there's never a "no comment" from Lutz. He's genuine. He wants GM to succeed (he's in his 70s AND he's rich -- he's reportedly got two fighter jets that he's converted into personal aircraft, flying is a passion ... he really doesn't have to work). He uses both sides of his brain. He's a business person first and foremost, but he understands that good designs (the new Malibu and Cadillac CTS are both sold out -- yes, a U.S. automaker really does have a waiting list) sell vehicles.

Now, if we could just clone Mr. Lutz and send him over to Ford ... and to Chrysler ...

Wanted: North American "fit" models for Chinese automaker

While most of the journalists at today's Changfeng press conference didn't really understand Li Jianxin, the company's chairperson, during his presentation (his English was so broken Wheels columnist Lorraine Sommerfeld thought he was repeatedly announcing free lobster if you made it through to the end). But now it's clear the Chinese automaker doesn't understand its intended North American audience either. 

A friend was milling about the display this afternoon, checking out the Liebao CS7 (see photo) when he was approached by a Changfeng representative. "Can you get in the car?" asked the rep, again in broken English.

He then explained that he was the vehicle's designer and that he hadn't considered "big people" (think linebacker) when designing his cars.

He invited the 6-foot-3 guy to sit in each of Changfeng's cars and SUVs, snapping enough photos to fill a 1-gig memory card. "Maybe I could make the seat wider," he said. "If I moved the pillar back 100 mm, would you fit?"

If Chinese automakers really want to break into the North American auto market next year -- that was the suggestion at last year's show -- they better hire North American fit models to make sure "big guys" can fit into their vehicles. 

Another really cute Chinese car

Darn computer battery ran out at the show, so I'm a bit late getting these new pics to you.
This one is "A Piece of Cloud".
Wish I took a shot of the "Detroit Fish", billed as an amphibious vehicle. If prohibition were still here, this thing might be shuttling booze across the Detroit River, just outside the door.
And I don't know if this is big enough for you to read, but the little sign shown here indicates in its own special way that these vehicles are not quite ready for public roads in North America, but that perhaps President Bush should buy one for his ranch in Texas.

More on Chinese car names

Our blogmeister just told me how to attach photos to these blogs. I can only seem to upload one at a time, so here's a photo of "The Book of Songs".
One Chinese car name I forgot - a company called "BYD", standing for "Build Your Dreams". Or, as the public relations woman for the company said, "Bring Your Dollars".
And our real editor Mark Richardson is now telling me about a marketing slogan for the Liebao CS6 - "Gene of Being Wild". 

it's not just pretty women...

Someone has already noted the return - in full force - of models to this year's Detroit show. And, indeed, most of them are beautiful women.

Lexus, however, chose to buck this trend, posting a guy beside its mid-engined, 500-hp LF-A roadster. He looked pretty lonely.

Bring it Home

As you might imagine, there is great competition to get, and keep, the journalists attention. There can be a midway kind of feel to it at times - and with the unmistakeable aroma of popcorn wafting around, it's not far off.

Lexus is brilliant - massages for those of us toting around bags that get heavier with each press kit, and Toyota wisely traps you in the middle of their display with an expert shoeshine. Internet connections, lip balm, imported beer, chili, lattes, singers; it all sounds very alluring, but by the time you've walked about 10k in two days, you pretty much just want water and a chair.

Conferences have unveiled a few new things, but the fact remains that it is getting tougher and tougher to have surprises anymore. Lots of info is leaked, but I'm still more than thrilled to get to see, and touch, vehicles I've only heard about.

Funny, though. In the midst of all these sexy, sexy cars, I can't seem to find the minivan section.

Instant Karma's gonna getcha...

One of the buzz-iest cars at the show is the Fisker Karma, a plug-in hybrid luxury Grand Touring four-door four-seater expected to go into production in the fall of 2009, with a price around $80,000 US.

That is - or should be - $80,000 CDN too, but don't bet on it.
The electric motor will shove the car from rest to 100 km/h in six seconds, and a top end around 200 km/h. Range on the lithium ion battery will be about 80 km on an overnight charge from household current. Go beyond that and a four cylinder gasoline engine kicks in to top up the battery.
The so-called Q-Drive propulsion hardware comes from Quantum Technology. According to Vic Doolan, former president of BMW Canada and now a board member of Fisker, it was developed in part with the US Department of Defence for military vehicles which can be dropped behind enemy lines. "A vehicle with this technology runs silent," he noted.
Ultimate stealth.
Fisker is perhaps best-known to Wheels readers from the gorgeous blue Mercedes-Benz SL-based Tramonto which was the hit of the Wheels booth at last year's Toronto Show.

(In the photo, that' s designer and company president Henrik Fisker standing behind the Karma.)

Eating my way around the show

"Where the heck are the smoothies?" I yelled at the closest Mini representative I could find (who happened to be the brand's Canadian marketing guy, Marc Belcourt). If there's one thing I've been able to count on every year at Detroit, it's been the Mini smoothies. But no more.

The second-most asked question at Detroit is, "what's new?" The first is, "who's got food?"

I found smoothies eventually. Nissan had them, in banana and strawberry, but they gave editor Richardson more than they gave me. Acura had the best coffee, with a barista that could whip up a Starbucks-quality latte in just a couple of seconds (kudos for the chocolate-covered pretzels, as well). There was refreshing lemonade at Mitsubishi and Saab was serving snacks in the middle of the morning.

For the first time in many years, I found myself upstairs at the Michelin media lounge for lunch. The environment - a giant conference room - wasn't the best, but the wraps were tasty and the cookies seemed freshly-baked. The quiet (compared to the noisy show floor) was a boon as I tried to juggle food in one hand and a blog-posting BlackBerry in the other.

What's in a name?

One of the challenges of blogging is trying to keep up with what your colleagues are doing. Wireless connectivity is marginal here in Cobo Hall, the drafty old barn where this show takes place, so we can't always see what has already been posted.
So if someone else has already written about some of the great names on some of the new Chinese cars here, I apologize.
We used to make fun of the Japanese car names. El Cute Tomato. Minica Parsley Green. Isuzu Flat Low (to distinguish itself from the Isuzu Just Low).
But how about "The Book of Songs"? "A Piece of Cloud"?
As long as it isn't Edsel.
(Kids, ask your grandparents.)

The King is not dead...

Auto shows kill for influence. Every one of them wants the best previews, the most important debuts.

Los Angeles used to have its show just days before Detroit. No chance - no one wanted to go to an auto show over New Year's.

LA moved to mid-November last year, to position itself ahead of Detroit, to steal some thunder.

So when Porsche chose to exhibit in Los Angeles last fall and give Detroit a pass this year, some wondered - if this the thin edge of the wedge? Is Detroit losing its lustre?

The official reason given by Porsche is that Detroit isn't their market, so why be here?

The real reason? Mark Phelan, an extremely well-connected Detroit-area auto journalist, told me that people he knows and trusts told him that Porsche was upset by the lack of media coverage afforded the face-lifted Cayenne at last year's Detroit show, and blamed the show organizers.

Yes, but the face-lifted Cayenne wasn't that big a story in the first place. And, they held the press conference in a meeting room downstairs from the main show venue, instead of on their stand like most carmakers do. The media are too busy (no no, not too lazy) at a show like this to wander off to a remote location for a story they know isn't that critical.

Phelan also notes that while Detroit may be organized by the Detroit Area Dealers' Association, it is a media-driven show. People he knows who measure media coverage from auto shows around the world say that the twelfth most-important story at Detroit gets more media coverage, locally, nationally and internationally, than the number one story out of Los Angeles.

Los Angeles may be where the car buyers are, especially high-end car buyers.

But for all its faults, Detroit is still Motor City.

So while LA may be a rising star, the Detroit auto show is still the super-nova.