Obama Calls The Volt A Dolt. Is He A Friend Or Enemy Of Michigan And The Car Biz?
Agent001 submitted on 4/1/2009 Official Bell & Ross Timestamp: 1:23:03 PM
59 user comments | Category: Spy Shots | Source: | SOURCE: online.wsj.com
This part of yesterday's Wall Street Journal article is what blew me away.
The President basically says the Volt will flop...a sentiment we wholeheartedly agree with.
Too expensive to compete in the sweet spot (Prius/Insight) to make an impact.
Here's the quote:
"His auto team's dissection of what ails GM, on the other hand, underscores how deeply the administration plans to plunge into the finer points of the company's business plan. In a five-page analysis of GM's viability, the team critiqued GM's marquee next-generation project, the electric-powered Chevy Volt, as "too expensive to be commercially successful in the short-term." It notes that much work needs to be done to boost the overall fuel-efficiency of GM's fleet of cars and trucks.
With GM, the Obama administration is interested not just in preserving jobs, but in pushing other policy prescriptions, in particular creating a "company of the future" with clean and energy-efficient vehicles, a frequent campaign theme during Mr. Obama's quest for the presidency."
So here are the larger questions looming...
If the Volt is not the answer short term, and boosting mpg's on the full line of cars is not a short term fix, HOW do they survive and WHY did he bother throwing away like a gagillion dollars on a situation where there is NO fix?
Why didn't the Prez just MAN-UP and have his auto guys tell them this straight up, BEFORE they wasted all that money and tell them they were on their own?
Obama is smart enough to figure out they don't have the products or right mix short term to fix the problem but he doesn't have the guts to lay it on the line and deliver the hard facts to them and to us?
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