On Independent Thinking and the Real Significance of the G8

Suffice to say that the Pontiac G8 has been receiving fairly stellar views for while now; click here to see thecarconnection.com’s “review of the reviews.”

Now there’s loose talk that the G8 will survive Pontiac’s demise as a Chevy or sorts, but GM (client) has not and will not confirm this. The enthusiast in me—as well the detached PR practioner—hopes they figure out a way to make this work.

The enthusiast loves this car because while everyone thinks “muscle car,” all accounts are that this is not the “beast-in-a-straight-line, but-I-wouldn’t-want-it-as-a-daily-driver/boy racer/aging-boomer-with-no-taste” car some might have guessed it would be. Where I live in Northville, Mich. (Ford country), I see a surprising number of these cars. I walk by one house every day that has a new-ish 5-series BMW in the driveway, and the G8 looks every bit to be its equal (the BMW I see, and the G8 I always see in the Cabbagetown area I live in are both white. . . nuanced menace. Dig it.) The PR guy likes it because making great product and creating "owner-advocates" is the best PR going for any consumer products company. I don't even own one and I find myself always talking about it.

Reports are that body integrity, structural rigidity, steering feel, brake feel/strength are all the equal of the benchmark 5 (people say Infiniti is coming up on BMW; having been in a recent G37, I don’t think BMW or Pontiac have much to fear . . . Carlos, check quality control bud . . . dash rattles? Come on, not in 2009). That the G8 has the beans under the hood to run with a 550i with the big mil is the least biggest surprise.

What I believe are the biggest markers of “quality” to most people in the showroom or on test drives. . . the whooomp with which the doors close; the body control and quick chassis recovery from railroad crossings or deep pocked Michigan roads; shutlines . . . the big Poncho/Holden can legitimately hang with the 5-series . . . that’s amazing. BMW can put a ton more money into pricey shocks, better/lighter/stronger structural materials, etc. because, well, it’s costs a lot more.

I think fans of GM should be elated, as should independent thinkers who believe that whoever makes the best cars should win; the doubters/cynics should wallow in some strong cognitive dissonance, because this isn’t about the G8 living on or not . . . it’s about having such kickass product development within the company that any GM product could and does compete with any BMW, let alone for at steep retail discount.

I owned two BMWs, a ’97 M3 and ’94 325iC. Both were great or good to drive, but horrifically expensive to own. If GM could make a G8-like car, this means they could make another car that equally baffled the cynics and delighted the open-minded drivers of America. Here’s to hoping they do (whoops, Camaro already is). Rock steady Tom Stephens, rock steady.

The Future of Turbodiesels (and Gas Turbos)

Everyday on my way to work, John McElroy’s Automotive Insight story runs at 6:53 a.m. on WWJ newsradio 950AM here in Detroit. John has covered the auto industry forever, and knows automotive like no one else in the world. Today's story, which can be heard here, points out that diesel penetration in Europe has fallen back below 50 percent for the first time in a while, and after talking to automakers, John concludes that diesels have probably topped out, and will likely continue to slowly decline.

He notes that this is happening just as all of the German OEMs introduce 50-state diesels here in the U.S. (for the last several years, most diesels were only compliant with emissions regs in 45 states, the oddballs being California and four Northeastern states that follow California Air Resources Board tailpipe standards).

McElroy’s conclusion is that the prospects for widespread diesel adoption in mainstream passenger cars in the U.S. are less than what they were even one year ago, and that diesels will likely remain in the realm of luxury cars in the U.S. where buyers won’t mind higher fuel costs.

My take: this presumes that diesel will continue to cost more than gasoline. Until September 2004, this wasn’t the case. I’ve no indication that this will reverse course anytime soon, but it’s still necessary for this argument to hold water. Although I just paid $3.17/gallon to fill up my car this morning, but there are so many scenarios whereby crude prices could shoot back up in the next 24 months, I don’t know that I’d make a long-term bet on cheaper oil . . .

If you haven’t driven a modern diesel, like VW and Audi’s TDI vehicles, or the monster BMW 330d with a proper Getrag six-speed manual, I can tell you that they are astounding to drive. Driven back to back with gas engines of the same displacement in the same cars is a night and day experience.

Still, John may be on to something here, at least in Europe. Or not. One of my clients, Honeywell Turbo Technologies, has been suggesting that diesels will continue to grow, albeit slowly, through 2012. But in an interesting twist. They contend that while turbodiesels will grow, the real action is in gasoline turbo-equipped vehicles (e.g. EcoBoost and GM’s 1.4 turbo in the Chevy Cruze). Between 2007 and 2012, Honeywell says that gas turbos will triple their share of the global passenger vehicle market.

Still, if regulations in Europe and the U.S. continue their slide toward zero tailpipe emissions, especially of NOx and PM (soot), the cost of meeting these regs--and the subsequent decrease in diesel's efficiency advantage (plugging up those exhaust streams hurts efficiency), John may be right after all.