ON THE TABLE

August 12, 2009

Volt Madness and the AE "Smiley Mile" Index! GM suggests that the EPA will rate the upcoming Volt at 230 miles per gallon in the city - although the EPA wouldn't confirm the number - which sends the mainstream media into a frenzy. It was interesting to see some of the more green-tinged in the media try to explain away the reality of the "mileage" for these electric cars, because it was GM after all and after all GM decidedly isn't cool, don't you know, like uh, er Toyota. As for these triple-digit ratings, expect these fantasy numbers for a while as regulators translate the "mileage" of these extended-range electrics, which normally won't use gasoline in the city. Nissan, for instance, says its new "Leaf" electric car will be rated at 367 mpg in the city. But it's kind of like selling air, isn't it? If you don't use gas in the city, why translate the mileage into "miles per gallon." Why not come up with a new standard, which translates it into how many runs you can make up to the local Starbucks before you have to even think about it? Let's call it the AE "Smiley Mile" Index, that way new legions of Shiny Happy People can enlist in the electrified Volt army. By the way, expect the Volt to get a final combined EPA rating of around 100 mpg.

The Volt. Speaking of the Volt, will the extended-range, electric image-enhancing machine be the only vehicle that GM talks about in certain parts of the country, specifically the notorious anti-car, anti-Detroit enclaves of California, the northwest and the northeast? Duh.

GM's New "Touchy-Feely" Public Posture. Publisher's Note: The RenCen Gang is hell-bent on changing the overwhelmingly negative perception of GM that's out there, and they're taking great pains to do so too. CEO Fritz Henderson is doing some soul searching (and talking about it out loud), they're reaching out to customers and listening - going so far as to engage the "haters" (which will get them exactly nowhere, by the way), and they're even altering their corporate wardrobe, displaying their calculated "casual" look at yesterday's web conference. But all this "listening" will only take them so far, and then they're going to have to start leading their customers - and this industry - with great products if they hope to be anything but a second-tier car company. - PMD

The Electric Car Frenzy. Prepare for the media frenzy that will envelope the airwaves in a fog of unbridled misinformed glee as the electric vehicle becomes The One for the auto industry. Except that it isn't The One, especially when you live in a city (the only place where electric vehicles make sense) and can't get near an electrical outlet. Electric vehicles certainly have a place in our transportation future, but they will not transform our nation's fleet by any stretch of the imagination, primarily because their usefulness will be confined to urban centers. In other words, electric vehicles are not The Answer, but be prepared to be subjected to the cacophony of media overkill over the next 12 months or so that will suggest exactly the opposite. Ugh.

See another live episode of "Autoline After Hours" hosted by Autoline Detroit's John McElroy, with Peter De Lorenzo and friends this Thursday evening, August 13, at 7:00PM EDT at www.autolinedetroit.tv.

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