Automotive News - September 22, 2008 - (Page 4)

4 • SEPTEMBER 22, 2008 Volt: A pricey short hauler? Overshadowed Cruze is GM’s real savior David Sedgwick General Motors is making a big fuss over the wrong vehicle. The company wants us to believe that the Chevy Volt will transform the company, eliminate global warming and achieve world peace. That isn’t going to happen, for reasons I’ll enumerate in a moment. First, I’d like to introduce you to GM’s real savior: the humble Chevy Cruze, the compact car that replaces the Cobalt in 2010. Let’s compare. The Volt is a compact car that could cost as much as $40,000, unless Congress scrounges up some subsidies. By contrast, the unassuming Cruze will sell for a bit more than the Cobalt, which carries a transaction price of $15,573, according to J.D. Power’s PIN data. The Cruze will have a stylish exterior, a nicely equipped interior and a price tag that reflects a premium small car rather than an econobox. And it will achieve outstanding fuel economy — perhaps 40-plus mpg — with its 1.4-liter turbocharged engine. Yes, I know that the Cruze isn’t as sexy as the Volt. And I know that the Volt is supposed to be a halo car that re-establishes GM as a comment For another point of view, see James B. Treece’s column at autonews.com/voltpro. autonews.com David Sedgwick is editor of Automotive News. technology leader. But we’ve been down this road before. GM doesn’t need a halo car. It needs a car — a small car — that can make money. If GM can’t learn to make money on small cars, it won’t survive. Now, this isn’t one of those either-or dilemmas. General Motors is moving ahead with both the Volt and Cruze. But I get a queasy feeling that GM has painted itself into a corner by generating so much hype for a car that is too limited for most consumers. Last week, I learned that GM wants to optimize the Volt for motorists who would use it for relatively short daily hauls. Frank Weber, the Volt’s chief engineer, let slip that the vehicle’s gasoline engine will not recharge the batteries during daily operations. The only way to recharge those lithium ion batteries is by plugging them into an outlet. Ram pickups with the RamBox storage feature will arrive in dealerships around Nov. 1. Dodge RamBox cost: $1,895 Bradford Wernle bwernle@crain.com DETROIT — Dodge has set the option price on its RamBox lockable storage feature at $1,895, said John Heebner, senior manager of product marketing for the Dodge Ram. Heebner said Dodge expects about 20 percent of buyers of the 2009 Ram 1500 crew cab to order the RamBox. The storage feature has three elements: 1. A lockable box on each side of the truck bed capable of storing anything from shovels to 240 12-ounce beverage cans, with enough ice to keep them ready for a party. 2. A bed divider. 3. A bed extender. The RamBox will not be available on the first 2009 Rams but will arrive in dealerships around Nov. 1, Heebner said. The RamBox is available only on trucks made at Chrysler LLC’s St. Louis North truck plant, the second plant to ramp up for production of the Ram. The official production launch at the first plant, in Warren, Mich., was Sept. 12. Some dealers, who think the RamBox will be more popular than Dodge anticipates, had complained that the RamBox should have been available from the start. Heebner said there is a good reason the RamBox is late: It was no simple task to get the firstin-segment feature from the drawing board to the production line. In late 2006, Chrysler — then part of DaimlerChrysler — put the idea of a lockable storage box out for bid. One supplier was chosen from three bidders, Heebner said. The supplier experimented with configurations for lockable storage boxes. One proposal was a sideview concept similar to cargo doors that open upward from the side of a bus, Heebner said. But the supplier was unable to get the cost down to a feasible level. Heebner would not reveal the supplier. So Tom LaSorda, then CEO of the Chrysler division of DaimlerChrysler and now Chrysler co-president, decided to bring the project inhouse. LaSorda has been the primary champion of the RamBox, which was going to be called the LifeBox before copyright problems killed that name, Heebner said. “Bringing it in-house cut cost virtually in half,” Heebner said. And that was enough to sell it to the DaimlerChrysler board in Stuttgart. But the RamBox’s odyssey wasn’t over. Once Cerberus Capital Management LP took majority ownership of Chrysler in August 2007, LaSorda had to defend his idea all over again to his company’s new owners. Since Chrysler was retooling the St. Louis North body shop, LaSorda decided that was the plant to build trucks with the RamBox. Heebner said Dodge took a “walk before you run” approach on the RamBox because of Chrysler’s financial struggles. Said Heebner: “If it proves to be a hit, we’ll take it to other-size boxes and then to our heavy-duty trucks.” c Now, this doesn’t mean that you’ll be stranded by the roadside if the batteries run down. Once you’ve driven 40 miles or so, the gasoline engine will generate electricity to power the car. But after the first 40 miles, the batteries might as well be a paperweight. Weber says GM wants to ensure that the Volt’s battery pack will be discharged at the end of each trip so that motorists will plug it in at night. A three-hour nightly recharge would cost 50 to 80 cents — admittedly a hell of a bargain at a time when gasoline costs upward of $4 a gallon. What’s the trade-off? You have a vehicle optimized for short hauls. No problem, says Weber. About 80 percent of American motorists drive no more than 40 miles a day. But GM’s engineering decision complicates the hybrid’s no fuss, no muss reputation. If you can’t plug in your vehicle at night, that high-tech battery pack will be as useful as an anchor for your bass boat. Given a choice, I’d pick the Cruze. You may e-mail David Sedgwick at dsedgwick@crain.com ■ A horse of a different, uh, color No, these aren’t giant amoebas gone wild! What you have is camouflage to disguise the restyled, re-engineered 2010 Mustang. The sheet metal is all new, although it resembles the ’09 model. Also, the hood and front fenders are slightly lower, requiring a bulge in the hood to fit the engine. The pony badge and narrow horizontal bars between the headlights are strong styling references to the 1964½ Mustang. The car will debut in November at the Los Angeles auto show. BRENDA PRIDDY & CO. Toyota seeks bids to build A-BAT Mark Rechtin mrechtin@crain.com Toyota A-BAT Taking the measure of Toyota’s compact pickup concept Wheelbase: 112.2 in. Length: 181.3 in. Width: 74.4 in. Height: 64.0 in. Bed length: 48.0 in./72.0 in.*/96.0** * With passenger cabin cargo door down ** With cabin cargo door and tailgate down Source: Toyota LOS ANGELES — Toyota Division is one step closer to producing the audaciously styled A-BAT concept pickup truck. Suppliers have been asked to bid on making parts for the compact truck, Toyota executives confirm. But that doesn’t necessarily mean the A-BAT has been greenlighted. “This is a common next step in evaluating cost parameters on promising concepts, but it does not imply a commitment to it yet,” said a senior Toyota executive. Similarly, Jim Lentz, president of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., said no decision to move ahead has been made. Neither executive said when a decision might be made. But the fact that Toyota has requested proposals shows it would like to build the vehicle. Toyota says market research for the A-BAT, which debuted at the Detroit auto show in January, has been highly positive. Supplier queries were sent for both a four-cylinder and hybrid- powered version of the truck, said Mike Levine, founder of PickupTrucks.com. Although the platform architecture is still unknown, the A-BAT would be car-based, rather than use a body-on-frame structure. An industry source predicts that the truck would borrow components and architecture from both the Camry Hybrid and the redesigned 2010 Prius. Still, cost issues mean a production version is no done deal. The ABAT is smaller than the Tacoma truck, but the car architecture would be more expensive than the Tacoma’s body-on-frame platform. “For every one that goes forward, there are others that never go anywhere,” said Toyota spokesman Mike Michels. “Our concepts are not usually a flight of fancy because they are a big investment. They are based on some reality and designed to be somewhat engineer-able.” If the supplier bids show the cost structure is too high to build a profitable vehicle, Toyota will kill it. That happened with the Lexus HPX from the 2003 New York auto show — a seven-seat crossover based on the Lexus GS platform. Besides being too expensive, trying to cram a third row of seats into a rear-drive platform was an ergonomic nightmare. Similarly, Michels said, the much-lauded Toyota FT-HS hybrid sports car from the 2007 Detroit auto show was too expensive to build for the market segment that was targeted. Still, Toyota might be fine breaking even with the A-BAT if it allows the company to bolster its truck CAFE ratings and avoid paying penalties. c http://www.autonews.com http://www.autonews.com/voltpro http://www.PickupTrucks.com http://www.PickupTrucks.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Automotive News - September 22, 2008

Credit-crunched BMW to cut volume and jobs in U.S. Did dealer pitch have a catch? Henderson will keynote World Congress Suppliers: Chrysler jury a worry Learn how going green can be good for business Hyundai hesitates on i10 Ram launches with incentive Dodge RamBox cost: $1,895 Toyota seeks bids to build A-BAT Volt: A pricey short hauler? A horse of a different, uh, color Delphi work moves to N.Y. from plant in Mexico GM store count down 226 so far this year Bill Heard shuts Arizona dealership Would Mazda2 hurt Mazda3? Chrysler dealers may see Volt fighter GM gets more bucks for its 4-bangers GM's '09 list prices rise 2.7% Suppliers seek piece of loan package Don't attach too many strings to federal loans Cars run on money and credit, not gas The workplace is a democracy? Free Choice Act must be defeated Extreme makeover Logo no go A 4-cylinder Cadillac? Get real A double standard on idle workers? Free Choice Act means no choice Saccucci: Let's hear it for free enterprise Dealers signal support for 35% estate tax rate Dealers Designing for MPG Slippery styling What happened to Volt's racy design? Aerodynamics Belletech will supply Honda in Indiana Practicality will top panache at Paris show Chrysler seeks to build loyalty with service Band buddies Personnel Auction group's new boss sees dip in volumes Wholesale prices of big used trucks rise 8.6% in August Big-truck sales off 22.6% in Aug. August sales in Europe worse than in U.S. Honda will let supplier assemble on-site at Ohio plant Farley: Retool image for era of the small car O'Donnell: No stranger to U.S. Honda to debut camera, airbag American Axle lands contract Ex-Ford dealer prevails in court Dodge plans Web blitz for Ram Federal-Mogul will idle 4,000 Sparks will fly over GM, Toyota plug-ins Negotiations fail; chaos (allegedly) ensues Bo plays defense, helps GM avoid weather woes Critics say the new Volt was jolt Lithium, schmithium-- Will the ladies like it? Small and beautiful-- mutually exclusive? Where Andrea Pininfarina saw design headed Designers think small to make it big Designers can't ignore history Pretty and petite Toyota goes its own way with green designs The elements of style It's difficult to design fuel efficiency into big pickups Specialty-car maker has bright design ideas Form follows fashion Vehicle designers aim to please Chinese Suppliers to the 2009 Dodge Ram Eaton will equip '09 VW Golf IAV to move into new tech center BorgWarner makes Tesla deal Mann plans 4th China plant NovaCast buys into Korean firm Valeo shifts rear-light work Supplier personnel

Automotive News - September 22, 2008

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