Charlie Rose

Philip Pallette  08/20/2008 10:46 AM Report

1. Listening to Rose-Wagoner, I got the impression that as oil gets cheaper again lowereing the price at the pump, America goes back to gas guzzlers because they won't pay $4 + at the pump. Nowhere did I hear that Americans en masse will buy non emission vehicles out of a sense of saving the environment and stop poluting. If the price goes back up, Americans become altruistic again. The only way to make them do the right thing is take away their toys by keeping gas prices high.

2. Nowhere did I hear Charlie Rose attempt to tie in T. Boone Pickens plan to convert the auto to natural gas-fueled vehicles. Why did Rose gloss over this when it has been in the news? The major complaints against natural gas are a) Lack of service stations and b) Lack of trunk space. But all those unsold SUVs could be converted to natural gas. At least discuss the hurdles. Every solution has its obstacles.

TABS  08/19/2008 04:34 AM Report

How many more rolls of the dice does GM have?

The worry for GM is CASH! Do they have the cash to see them through? Are they in a position that everything has to go their way or they will fall? Is everything riding on the new Volt technology?.......Maybe in 5 years GM will be reduced to making peddle cars? Anyway Mr Wagoner holds his water well.

Noanie  08/19/2008 03:39 AM Report

I agree with Christopher's post. GM has been shoving gas guzzlers for years knowing full well 4 $ plus/gal gas was on the horizon. I bought a Honda Civic Dx in 1991 and it still runs well. Where are the plugs in and please spare me and others the corporate manifesto that consumers don't want plug in electric cars and efficient hybrids. Why does Mr. Wagoner think Honda has such a successful market share in the U.S.? Give us, the consumers, cars we want; electric plugs-ins, more efficient hybrids, not what you think we should have, bottom line gas guzzlers. Those days are over.

Thank you Mr. Rose for spending so much time with Mr. Wagoner so viewers are able to see the out-dated, Madison Ave corporate mentality. Give us electric plug ins, Mr. Wagoner!!!

Christopher  08/16/2008 03:46 AM Report

Rick is symptomatic of how US companies do not "get it". Their small cars suck. Their only good "small" cars are the Vibes. Their interiors are cheap. Anyone who has entered in a Civic or Corrolla will tell you that a their interiors (quality materials, no rattles) are simply on a superior level when compared to the Cobalt/G5. When a young buyer buys a Toyota, he stays Toyota. As he makes more money, he buys Toyota. His comment about Cadillac, who cares? Who cares if Warren Buffet buys the dumb car? Because GM saw short term ie SUV vs small cars, they are paying the price for screwing over customers of the small car market. And also his petty analysis of Health Care. Pathetic.

Jack Foy  07/22/2008 02:14 PM Report

Volt or Bust:

I went into a Saturn dealership today to look at the hybrid Vue. Three different sales people then told me that the hybrid really is not worth it and that I would be farther ahead to look at a conventional vehicle rather than a hybrid. Also was told, â??no-one has one because they sold 80 of them in 1 week city wide. That there will not be anymore until Feb, March possibly later for the 2008â??. They also said that when they come in they would be very limited as to what is offered because as the salesperson said, â??no one is knocking down our doors to get oneâ?? Gee I wonder whyâ?¦.I then asked for a hybrid of the Aura. There was only one in town but it was a used and the discount did not apply to the used cars.

After being talked out of a hybrid I decided to try another approach and go to a GM or Chevy dealership to see what they offer. There again looking at hybrids. All they had was the Tahoe and the Yukon both of which even with a hybrid did not get any better than 24-28 miles per gallon. Making myself clear that I wanted something that got better than 30 miles per gallon, they suggested the HHR (not a hybrid) but their inventory was very limited and the only way to get a car that got better than 30 miles per gallon was to get a four cylinder.

Not to bad mouth but I am use to some get up and go and when I took this for a test drive it did not have the kick I was expecting or use to.

My over all experience at all of the dealerships was so disappointing that I no longer have any droughts that Toyota will surpass GM as the number one car manufacturer in the USA. No dought it has a lot to do with Toyota sinking billions of dollars into large gas hog vehicles converting them to Hybrids that can only get 24-28 miles per gallon. Oh, no that was GM that did that. Maybe it has something to do with having their sales people talk potential customers out of the hybrids that they came to look at but where unable to because they were sold out in one weekâ?¦No wait that was GM again.

I kept telling everyone I was not going to buy a new car until the Volt came out. However, as I understand that it may or may not come out in 2011. It might come out as a Cadillac first so they can inflate the price so high that it will be a true test to see if they sell because only the moderately rich who really could care less about the price of gas and have an image to keep up would buy the car only to say they have one. GM I can only say you deserve to be passed by a foreign car manufacturer on your own ground. For not delivering, what people are looking for and want now. Toyota will have a plug and run car out next year a good 3 years before GM can get the Volt out. If they stick to the 2011 release of the Volt and not push it out next year as a car everyone can afford and get. They might as well shut the design center down and sell everything to the highest bidder. The only reason to look at a dead dinosaur is to study it to see why it became extinct. Do not worry I will drive by your dealerships. I will stop and talk to everyone I can, to tell them GM might have a car that gets 50 miles per gallon or better by 2011 if they want to wait that long but if they want to get it now Toyota has it and you can for sure take that to the bank.

A Very Disappointed EX GM devotee

P.S. If the sales team sales the volt half as much as the hybrids you might have a problem GM.