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With Ads of the Weird, MSNBC.com takes a look at some of the oddest, most eye-catching, controversial and just plain interesting advertising out there today. Primary writer Allison Linn covers the retail and advertising industries for MSNBC.com. The Ads of the Weird team is always interested in hearing what ads have caught your attention, whether it's online, on television or in print.


GM pushes the envelope

Posted: Tuesday, March 04, 2008 3:00 AM by Allison Linn
Filed Under:

In many ways, you can’t help but feel sorry for the U.S. auto industry. For years, they thrived on making vehicles that were bigger, brawnier and boasted ever more cup holders. Then, gas prices shot past $3 a gallon, Al Gore put out a little documentary and suddenly SUVs the size of urban studio apartments didn’t seem nearly as cool as a cute little Prius.

Detroit knows it can’t sell a hybrid like it stereotypically sells its biggest vehicles – stunning images of big tires plundering over once-pristine terrain might not strike that right tone. But different isn’t always better.

General Motors’ recent ad for the new Yukon Hybrid, which the company shelled out major bucks to air during both the Super Bowl and the Oscars, features a zippy line drawing of a man pushing a boulder up a mountain, which turns out to also be made of the same boulders.

In case you don’t get the inspiring message,  it’s accompanied by a voiceover that says, “Why push? Why change? Why grow? Why dream? Questions you don’t have to ask yourself when you never say, ‘It’s good enough.’ When you never say, ‘It can’t be done.’ When you never say never.”

GM deserves credit for breaking out of the stereotypical car commercial mold, and the ad manages to be both understated and eye-catching. Still, the inspiring tone ends up sounding dangerously self-congratulatory, and for what?

Yes, GM has produced that oxymoronic creature known as a hybrid SUV, but this “green” Yukon still only gets an estimated 21 miles per gallon in the city (compared to 14 miles per gallon for the non-hybrid version).  What’s more, prices start at around $50,000, compared to around $36,000 for the regular Yukon -- not exactly in most family’s budgets.

Also, let’s not forget that GM only decided to push, grow, dream, etc. years after its competitors started seeing success with their hybrids. GM may yet find its footing as a viable hybrid competitor, but for now the earnestness of this ad leaves the company more open to being lampooned than lauded.

Click here to watch the ad. You can see all the Super Bowl ads here.

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Comments

Why does the media always bad mouth GM and put foreign car makers on a pedestal.They are no better or no worse then GM.GM never got credit for what they did after 9/11 . They started the 0 financing even thought they couldn't afford it and it kept country from going into deep recession.They couldnt make the cars and trucks fast enough and it kept the factories running on full speed and all their suppliers working and all the other automakers follow suit .It kept america working and should be recognized for it

wade, buffalo, new york (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 10:09 AM)





















The large Yukon Hybrid is A step in the right directon but the price tag is out of the reach of
most buyers. The savings in gas is more than off set
by the high price. It seem that Yukon hybrid is more of a public relations ploy to make GM seem heading in the right directon.
It is going to take a change of mind in the American public that the only way to get better gas mileage is to downsize. We really have no options as they do in Europe when it comes to stylish fuel efficent cars. Automakers should try and make the end of the market profitable.
Bill
KCMO                



Bill Sands, Kansas City Missouri (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:01 AM)

It's a Hybrid and it only gets 21mpg? HAHA, what a joke. Way to go, another piece of gas guzzling crap on the road. Foreign cars Rule!

me, city in, georgia (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:25 AM)

Incredible. You ld think that the GM SUV's were the bloated pigs of the car world after reading this article. This green Yukon might only get 21 mpg in the city, but Toyota's Landcruiser only gets 13 MPG in the city AND 18 HIGHWAY. Did I mention that the Toyota starts at nearly $64,000? The GM SUV's are technological marvels, and that tech does not come cheap, but a lot cheaper than the more gas consuming Toyota.

Ed Gonzalez (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:33 AM)

Once again american car makers are playing follow-the-leader.  When will they learn that cutting the R&D budget so they can overpay executives only undercuts their sales.  The old saying is true.  Companies are built from the bottom up and destroyed from the top down.

Chas, Evansville, Indiana (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:38 AM)

It is one thing to design and engineer a hybrid vehicle that can withstand the rigors of commuter driving in the city...the perfect niche for the Prius.  It is quite another to design one that can also scale mountainous terrain, river fording, and perform off-road in much less than ideal road conditions as needed (I say as needed because we know that it is unlikely that anyone of these Yukon buyers would drive their $50,000 trucks off-road).  You can't just "super-size" a Prius and expect it to perform like a Yukon.  Components will inevitably be either under- or over-engineered, compromising performance.

GMC has engineering and performance standards for all their vehicles to ensure that any one of their trucks will do what the buyer wants it to do, when they need it...much like Jeep has with their Rubicon trail acid-test for the Wrangler and Grand Cherokee.

My point is that GM did not arrive late in offering a hybrid SUV, they simply had to wait out the advancement of engineering and materials technologies to allow a hybrid system to accommodate a more capable vehicle such as the Yukon.  Should that cost an extra $14,000?  My gut says no, but Toyota and Honda charged quite a premium in the beginning to flesh out their first hybrids as well.

J. McCright - La Plata, MD (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:39 AM)

It amazes me to see the American car companies being hammered by the media for building gas hogs when Toyota, Nissen, and Honda build them, too.  You don't hear the media knocking them.  Or is this bias? Neither of these are exactly frugal with gas.  ALL of them are gas hogs and all of the companies will build them as long as people buy them.  Americans pay lip service to high gas prices, but they still pump the gas hogs and complain.  It's time everyone gets off their high horse (pun?) and get into a decent size vehicle, for safety and environmental reasons.  But I don't think tiny Priuses are the only answer.  Standard sedans do just as well.  If you can't fit luggage and junk into a sedan, you've got too much. It never ceases to amaze me to see a large SUV piled high inside with a large roof rack on top! Now folks, do you really need all of that stuff?

Margaret, Richmond, VA (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:45 AM)

Why doesnt GM copy the design of a honda prius and make the same car here?  Problem solved. Maybe their engineers, designers and upper management could learn something.

allen (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:50 AM)

Why doesnt GM copy the design of a honda prius and make the same car here?  Problem solved. Maybe their engineers, designers and upper management could learn something.

allen, houston, texas (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:51 AM)

I drive a Prius but, I have recently come around to agreeing that hybrid-izing big trucks and SUVs first is a good idea.  Yes, 21 MPG is pathetic, but keep reading and see that it is 50% better mileage than the gas version.  Due to the selfishness of the people in the US, it's useless to expect everyone to dump their 8 passenger vehicles ("because it's big and safe", they say) for an economy size car overnight.  So, if those people aren't going to downsize, at least make their full-size vehicle "better", until they learn that they can survive with a smaller car.  

Incremental change is going to get us through this, instead of expecting everyone to go "green" overnight.

Joe, Dallas, TX (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:56 AM)

Allen, you may have a bit more credibility if you would get the make and model correct. It is the Toyota Prius, not Honda. Toyota and GM do have a joint venture, the Vibe/Matrix, that just went through a complete makeover. Oh, by the way, in our region, the Vibe sells 2:1 over the Matrix.

Mike, Muncie, Indiana (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 11:59 AM)

The biggest tragedy in all of this is GM WAS at one point a leader in this field with the release of the EV1.  But rather than grow that emerging green market, they decided to kill it.  All those folks who paid a premium to get a Prius probably would have bought an electric GM car (myself included).  Frankly they should go bankrupt and let the American auto industry start over again.

Clark, Los Angeles, CA (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 12:19 PM)

GM spin!!  What a crock!  They say that safe Lithium-ion batteries are not available yet; but Lithium Technologies, Inc., Plymouth Meeting, PA, does make a Lithium-ion iron-phosphate battery right now, that is safe, powerful, and lightweight.  GM, like other US auto makers, will only reach the great green land of opportunity, kicking and dragging their feet all the way.  How sad.  How unfortunate for the American people, and the world.  If we're "addicted" to oil, and we are, it's the GM's of the world who are the "pushers"!!

Ron Cladrak, Crosslake, Minn. (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 12:20 PM)

American car companies fortunally can not make cars the american people want to  buy, So American car makers Suck! I hope they rut to hell

LowBlow, Lost Angels, Ca (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 12:22 PM)

Large vehicals, like SUVs, are where the hybrid technology needs to be, in the Yukon the addition of a hybrid improves the gas milage by something like 30%. That's an accomplishment. As for the cost, yes, it's a bit of money, but 10 years ago what did a cell phone cost, what did a DVD player cost? This is where most innovation starts, with those willing to pay for it.

Chris , chicago, IL (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 12:36 PM)

A Toyota Prius is one of the most enviromentally damaging cars manufactured. The process involved to make the battery for the Prius has devastated an area around Sudberry Canada so badly that it looks the moon. A GM Hummer is actually more enviromentally friendlier then a Prius. Do a little homework and find out for yourself. Also, look at the 2007 recall list and you will be surprised to find that the biggest number of recalled cars are foreign made.

Mark, West Palm Beach, Florida (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 12:39 PM)

America does not want a Prius.  They want what they've traditionally driven all of their lives...big, flashy, fast, fun, capable cars.  GM is an American car company giving Americans the cars that they want.  Even Toyota and Honda are continually up-sizing their cars for the US market.  Remember when the Accord was a compact?  The Civic a sub-compact?

If you want GM, Ford, or any of the others to build fuel-efficient, alternative energy vehicles, you, as a consumer, must do your part and BUY them.

It is not GM's fault if they sold a bunch of SUV's.  They built what the consumer demanded.  And the consumer bought alot of them!  It used to be that mini-vans were the virus infecting our highways...now it's the SUV.  And the fault lies with the consumer, not the companies providing the goods.

All companies, no matter what they build or sell, look to fill a market.  You are the market.  If you change yourself, the companies providing you goods will be forced to change or go out of business.

Steve N, MN (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 12:54 PM)

It’s even more cliché to bad mouth domestic automakers than it is to drive a ‘green car’.  But hey, I got an idea!  Why don’t we keep kicking them while they’re down?  That’ll help spark the US auto industry/economy.  Good idea… right?

Joel, Middletown, PA (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 1:09 PM)

  Anybody remember the GM produced EV-1? They introduced it in the early 90's and went on to discontinue it and have them all destroyed. They said an electric car wasn't practical for the American public, even after California passed new emission laws
and invested in recharging infrastructure. Granted, GM wasnt the only company who discontinued their electric cars, Toyota, Honda and Ford followed suit.
Had these programs have been allowed to thrive we wouldn't have to rely on oil any longer and not worry about emissions. Sad, just sad.

Phil, Turnersville, New Jersey (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 1:13 PM)

Honda builds gas guzzlers?  That's interesting.  I seem to recall Honda being the most fuel-efficient auto manufacturer.

I read an article on CNN/Money or MSN's Business about 6 or 7 years ago regarding the engineering for the Acura MDX SUV.  the engineer wanted to put a big V8 in it because we Americans wanted more power and didn't care about the cost of gas.  Honda executives refused to allow it, only allowing a V6 because they wanted the best gas milage for the class.

American car manufacturers are behind the times and they're paying the consequences.  I don't feel badly for them whatsoever.  They dug their own graves.

Dave - Columbus, Ohio (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 1:29 PM)

People forget that Toyota trucks have some of the worst gas mileage.  GM finally brought a usefull hybrid to the market. It will tow 6000 pounds and you can still get 21mpg.  What a great idea.  It is easy to build a small car that gets good mileage.  Remember that you can get a Honda Fit or Toyota Yaris for almost $10,000 less than the mighty Prius and only sacrifice about 5-10mpg.  The Prius is still expensive compared to its non-hybrid competition.  The GMC Yukon and Chevy Tahoe will come down in price one the technology starts paying for itself.  They are completly different than the Prius, the electric motors are built into the transmission rather than attached to the motor.  Also this technology was developed not only by GM but Mercedes, BMW and Chrylser all working together.  This is the best system for the worst offenders.  

Mike D. Massena, NY (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 1:32 PM)

PLEEASEEE as an owner of my first 'Import' a Nissan Titan - trust me the Foreign producers make gas guzzlers too. Wish I had a GMC again, my friends 4x4 GMC beats my 2 wheel Titan by at least 3 miles to the gallon. This thing is a pig and definately not better built than my last GMC was. Definately at the bottom of the mileage ratings.

Dave, Dallas, TX (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 1:35 PM)

'93 Honda Civic VX hatchback, nicely carried my 300 lb self while attaining 44mpg in combined city/hiway (realworld) driving, ice cold air blasting from the dash, smooth as glass at 75mph, with over 180,000 miles on the clock.  And did I mention the nice cup holders?  
I'm not so sure that hybrid technology is the best answer.

Willy, Litchfield Park, AZ (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 1:50 PM)

GM HAS SEVERAL SEDANS THAT GET OVER 30 MPG- SAME AS TOYOTA AND HONDA- WHY WOULD YOU WISH SUCH A LARGE EMPLOYER OF AMERICANS OUT OF BUSINESS?

DEBI IN TEXAS (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 2:03 PM)

I'm talking a fireign make here, but my Subaru Outback is an example of what can be.  It doesn't look like an SUV.  It doesn't look big.  Park it next to a Maxima, and you realize how big it is.  It's 170 horsepower in a 3,300 pound package.  Carries five adults comfortably.  Gets 22+ miles per gallon city and is PZEV.  AND I can take the beast off the pavement.  Its a tough car to beat.

Doug, Richmond, VA (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 2:10 PM)

All you guys writing about how GM "killed the electric car" are not quite right. It just didn't sell. People want this and they want that, but don't want to pay for it. Simple as that.
Now with the new hybrid SUV's, how in the world can you guys complain about that? They get the same city mpg as a Toyota, andyour still going to gripe?
Come on, people just like to put GM down. They could come out with a car that is as big as a Yukon, get 100 miles per gallon, cost $35,000 and people will come up with "but it doesn't have a place to set my MP3 player. WWWWAAAAAAA

Simon, Ypsilanti, MI (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 2:21 PM)

While the Yukon may "start" at 36000 of the eleven sitting on the storage lot outside of my office, nine are over 50000 and none of them are Hybred.

cr,columbus,ga (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 2:50 PM)

Guys, this is what you get when you drag someone out of the fashion/advertising department to write an automotive piece. Grossly misinformed.

Chris Godsoe, Harltnad, ME (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 2:59 PM)

My whole family worked for GM at some point, most have moved on to bigger and better things, however, we all agree; American car making policy is outdated. Bigger is not better, and we should have learned that when the first Toyota Tercel hit the market in the early 70's. America needs to wake up, including GM. The world does not care if we can manufacture the biggest boat on the road, rather, can we mass produce an efficient vehicle that is affordable and stylish. It is 2008, no more boxy monsters that eat fuel and break down. Its time our quality control and R&D standards match and exceed our competitors. REMEMBER: We invented the automobile.

Darral Ying III, Rockford,IL (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 3:14 PM)

GM is a dinosaur. They are still using their one tool (a hammer) to try and pound a square peg into a round hole. Instead of retooling to make new and exciting American hybrids, they are just changing the drivetrains on their old, tired, heavy truck designs because that's all they know how to sell! I would hate to see them lose more business and put American workers out of jobs, but if the upper management there doesn't get a clue soon that's exactly what will happen. It simply isn't that hard to change.  It must be assumed they are so short-sighted that they can't see their own eventual demise if they don't change.  

cmac LA, CA (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 3:46 PM)

I think it's selfish of people to assume that everyone can adapt seamlessly to green cars like the Prius.

It is one thing for a single person to drive down the road in a Suburban, but my immediate family has 6 people.  Even as children there was not even room for 5 of us to comfortably fit in a "family sedan".  My brothers and I are tall and broad.  Without these SUVs (or similarly gas consuming vans) there is no way for us to travel anywhere as a family. It would have been impossible for my family to go anywhere together my entire childhood without large vehicles.  Maybe in China where they were limiting family size a Prius would be just fine to pack full for a weekend roadtrip, but here we fill a vehicle with persons let alone baggage.  

My youth would not have produced the person I am today without such valuable family time spent on 8 hour journeys to Wally World and the like.  Every time you see someone driving down the road in a vehicle that costs a fortune to fuel, rather than criticizing, imagine just how many parents drive that SUV to and from work so they can have the leisure of traveling together with the other 4, 5, or more members for family functions.

One day, I hope to have a large family as well.  There is no doubt that I will also one day drive a vehicle that can carry my family and will surely appreciate one better on gas than it's predecessor.

I too commend GM on their progress in making these "large family vehicles" more environmentally friendly.  

Gerry G., Weatherly, PA (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 3:48 PM)

Yes, the Yukon/Tahoe hybrid "only" gets 21 MPG - and a 4-cylinder Toyota Camry also gets "only" 21 MPG.  So what is the point?

David, Washington (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 3:52 PM)

A moderately clever ad that completely lacks sincerity.  GM is in the hybrid market only as a reluctant response to dramatically declining market share.  They finally got the message, but what took so long!?  And a 20-mpg hybrid SUV for $50,000???  Are you kidding?  Even when they get the message that hybrid is the future, they apply the concept in a totally backwards way.  Knucklheads.

To answer the very first comment in this thread, the media puts foreign car manufacturers on a pedestal because they are the ones innovating the industry, leading on quality, and, in general, having the business sense to see where the industry is going BEFORE it goes there.  They're on the pedestal because their market share is rapidly increasing, consumer advocate for their products, and their business is strong.  GM, Ford and most of the other US manufacturers are pathetic when it comes to strategy; they can't think ahead, can't execute and are totally responsive to what foreign manufacturers are doing.  Cadillac may be the one exception.  

Let's look a few years back - who brought the Prius to market, and who brought the HUMMER to market?  That tells us all we need to know about the vision and long-term health of the US auto industry.  

Rick D, Portland, OR (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 4:02 PM)






After inserting my own comment I went back and read a lot of what others have written, so here is a quiz for you.

1)  What company makes the pickup truck with the lowest V6 fuel economy?

A.  Chevrolet
B.  Honda
C.  Toyota
D.  Dodge
E.  Ford

2)  Which company makes the minivan with the lowest V6 fuel economy?

A.  Toyota
B.  Saturn
C.  Nissan
D.  Chrsyler
E.  Ford

3)  Which gets the best mileage?

A.  Toyota Sienna AWD minivan
B.  GMC Acadia AWD SUV
C.  Toyota Tundra crewcab pickup 4WD
D.  Honda Pilot AWD
E.  Hummer H3 4WD

4)  Who has the WORST fullsize truck and SUV fleet EPA average?

A.  Toyota
B.  General Motors
C.  Chrysler
D.  Nissan
E.  Ford

5)  Which company increased infastructure and capacity to more than double fullsize truck and SUV manufacturing capacity in the United States last year?

A.  Nissan
B.  Toyota
C.  Chrysler
D.  Ford
E.  General Motors



Read for the answers?

1) B - Honda - the Honda Ridgeline offers V8 fuel economy in a V6 package

2) A - Toyota - the Toyota Sienna gets the worst fuel economy of any minivan in the United States, and is on the list of ten "meanest" vehicles on the greenest/meanest list based on category

3)  C - GMC - The GMC Acadia SUV in AWD actually gets better MPG than the other vehicles on that list.  It also does it while offering a 272 HP V6 under the hood.

4)  A Toyota - the Tundra and Sequoia get the worst MPG in their class no matter how you slice up the data.  Toyota did nothing to improve the EPA figures on its 4.7L V8 - and interestingly the bigger, beefier 5.7L V8 gets 1 MPG better highway mileage than its smaller cousin.

5) B - Toyota - not only does Toyota get the worst fleet economy for fullsize trucks and SUVs, but they increased their manufacuturing capacity last year 2X by building a new plant in Texas, and sold almost 200,000 Tundra pickup trucks last calendar year.

And you thought Toyota and Honda were green?  Do a little research.




David, Washington (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 4:07 PM)

People want big, burly vehicles because the American auto industry has been hyping them in advertising for the last fifty years. They've been conditioned. But rather than saying, "Sorry; we apologize for convincing you that Big Is Best," they blame it on "what consumers want."

Anyone remember how the American car companies tried to deal with the first round of foreign competition? It wasn't by building better vehicles; it was by lobbying for import quotas, domestic manufacturing, etc.

Any one of the Japanese imports I've owned, the past thirty-some years, has lasted longer, with fewer problems, than all *three* of the US vehicles I have owned put together. When I buy a Toyota, I know that I can drive it 200K miles over ten years and it'll still be getting me around reliably at the end of that time.

Loren, SF Bay Area, CA (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 4:16 PM)

We still live in a free market, I'm sure some of the posters here would love it if our government "overlords" dictated what we all drive but thankfully we still live in a free country.  If large pickups/SUV's are still profitable it's because people, voting with their own money, dictate it to be so.  GM has developed this new hybrid technology (as another poster mentioned) with BMW, Mercedes and Chrysler so the consumers that want to spend the extra money at vehicle purchase can get much better fuel economy.  And it is better, MUCH better city (and highway for that matter) economy than a non hybrid large SUV.  A Yukon/Tahoe 2wd hybrid has the same city fuel economy as a 4 cyl Honda Accord (21 city for both).  A 4x4 Yukon/Tahoe gets 20 city/20 Highway....far better than the comparable Toyota Sequoia (13 city/ 18 Highway)  Don't believe me?  Go do the research yourself.

John, Lawton, OK (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 4:27 PM)

What most people do not realize is that GM has been at the forefront of all vehicle green technologies for many years.  They are, and have been, the largest manufacturer of hybrid vehicles in the world.  GM manufactures hybrid buses that have been on the streets for nearly a decade.  Their hybrid position was to develope the technology for use in the most poluting and least efficient vehicles first, and then move to other platforms.  Seems like the right thing to do for the environment.  

I've owned a Ford Mustand, Renault, Toyota, VW, Pontiac and several Chevrolets.  The most reliable was the Toyota, but followed VERY closely are my Chevrolets.  I still own them. The 2000 Impala has about 150,000 miles and I have not had ONE problem!  

Give GM a break!  I did, and I'm very happy with their products.

We Americans need to do what EVERY other Nation on Earth does:  Support the Environment & OUR OWN COMPANIES!!!!  

Chris, Chicagoland , IL (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 6:27 PM)

Unfortunatly, for those of us with more than 1.6 kids, we have 3, 14 year olds that are 6'2" and have a 90 lb golden retriever, we need something that the entire family can fit into. Mini vans don't cut it so we buy a large SUV with a V8. After many years of owning multiple V8s, we are now down to one and now have a fuel efficient commuter car for daily work travel. It seemed like the responsible thing to do. There is a place in our society for the family cruiser and we should continue to buy them when necessary. I applaud GM for making an attempt at a fuel efficient SUV. Lets see how quickly Honda and Toyota respond.

Steve, MIllbrook, NY (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 6:37 PM)

a Joint venture by GM and Chrystler is currently working on the Hybrid 2 engin for trucks and SUVs. The purpose is to create a hybrid engine that can provide the needed tork and still give great gass milage. Until then we make do.

As for the belief that these companies need to go belly up, these companies are keeping some communities and cities like Buffalo, NY afloat. If it weren't for GM and Ford, there would be thousands of people without jobs. Plus GM is into more than vehicles. to have a company life GM go belly-up would spell demise for millions of families.

Chuck, Buffalo, NY (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 6:58 PM)

Geez - reading through this thread really makes me realize how ashamed I am of my fellow americans. It is amazing what people will come up with to justify their selfishness. "They are driving an SUV to work so I can have family outtings." boo-hoo - poor soccder mom. Moron - buy a cheap, used 4-cylinder foreign car for the commute. leave your freakin SUV in the driveway at home. But you won't do that will you? because it isn't about family outtings - it is about your ego... So I say - keep driving those SUVs. That way I can keep track of how many morons there really are in the country.

Fury, WASHINGTON (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 7:05 PM)

I have been an auto mechanic for most of my life. Let me start with this all car makers make junk in one way or another. All car makers make cars that the public wants to buy. All car makers invest billions of dollars to make cars safer and more efficient. For a truck to get 21 in the city is great most cars don't get that. I own a 07 Chevy Silverado 1500 w/5.3 liter V8. It makes 300 plus horsepower and driving it a very even mix of city and highway gets me 19.5 miles per gallon. I dare anyone to find better mileage from any other truck maker. Oh by the way GM has also invested over a billion bucks in hydrogen power. Which in another 10 years or so will take the place of hybirds. Then we will bad mouth all who do not offer this new technology at rock bottom prices. We will all have to pay to be clean. So all of you who want to bash American Cars take a good objective view at the car you drive! Auto technology changes as fast as computer technology so what was true 2 years ago is not so today. Chevy's Rule!!!!!!!!!

Swifty, Spring Hill, Florida (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 7:25 PM)

As always American car companies following someone else rather than thinking outside the box. What is worse, that so called clever commercial, is also a perfect copy of an award winning animation short, from Europe from around 1980's.

Antonio Jimenez (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 7:29 PM)

Don't ask me! I drive a '74 VW Bug. It still runs great after 34 years, looks cute, replacing parts usually costs me about $30, and I get about 30 MPG.  
Go, German engineering!

BTW, from an advertising view, it's an ineffective ad.  Simple line art isn't going to help GM's problems.

Angi (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 7:30 PM)

You can't compare a hybrid SUV to a Honda Accord as an example of GM being smarter or better than their foreign competitors.  That's flawed logic.  

Success in the hybrid market isn't about who delivers the best gas mileage.  It's about who delivers the best gas mileage to only those customers who CARE about gas mileage, and are willing to pay for it.  

Who cares if GM's SUV gets better mileage than a Honda Accord or a Toyota Camry?  It's an interesting factoid, but totally meaningless. They're totally different markets.  The guy considering an SUV doesn't value fuel economy as much as the guy considering an Accord; he has other priorities, like passenger space, cargo space and accessibility.  He might value fuel economy, but only after other higher priorities that have greater influence on his decision.

Putting a hybrid engine in an SUV is not nearly as wise an investment as putting a hybrid engine in a much smaller car, one that appeals to people whose main concern actually IS fuel economy.  It's not sophisticated marketing, it's just common sense.  And it's another reason that GM gets consistently outperformed - they're constantly reacting to market changes instead of leading them, and their reactions are consistently illogical and reflect a lack of understanding of their customers' priorities.

Rick D, Portland, OR (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 7:39 PM)

It's time GM got their heads out of the sand, it's the same cars and trucks coming off the assembly line year after year, they need some new blood at the top, risk takers, new designs, fuel econony, I can't imagine GM going down but if they don't have the Come to Jesus Meeting real soon there won't be a GM...........

Jean Lecaros (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 7:41 PM)

Ya know, I really don't see why people keep saying foreign is better - a car is a car is a car.  The Japanese brands don't offer anything better than what GM has to offer.  If you want your "Japanese" rice-burner, remember that most of everything you own is probably made in a Japanese country or is of some Japanese brand anyway.  If you hate American industry so much, then why don't you vote in a Japanese President and sell out our country completely.  

GM has played a huge part in America's industrial might, and by the way, without GM, we would not have won World War II.  They may be down, but they'll come back.  They've had to adapt before, and they will again.

Let us not forget that 2008 marks GM's 100th anniversary.  100 years?  Has Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and others been around 100 years?  I don't think so.  The reason GM has been around so long is their ability to adapt.  They survived 2 World Wars, the Great Depression, and numerous other things, and they're still here.  I don't see a foreign brand boasting those claims, or for that matter having a car that is among the World's Best Sports Cars - The Corvette.  Yeah Honda has the NSX, but it doesn't hold a candle to the Corvette.

Darkvette, Baltimore, MD (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 7:59 PM)

The automotive press, even Consumer Reports, does car tests in groups. The biggest and fastest in the group typically gets the best report; auto writers don't pay for gas. The Honda Civic was a 2000# car when it was introduced in 1972. Now its over 3000# and its bigger than the first Accords. Japanese cars are not the size of American full size cars, but the public still thinks of them as small fuel efficient cars.
 Several of the previous posters slam GM for a full size SUV that gets 21 miles/gallon in the city. 30 years ago, it was only the 4 cylinder manual transmission Civics and Corrola that could meet that mileage, and now they aren't much better. Sure the Prius gets much better mileage, but can it haul 6 people plus luggage and tow a boat or trailer. The hybrid Tahoe is a great advance.
 The GM electric was killed by GM because the public did not buy the electric car. They wanted a car that could far from home and did not want to worry about finding a charging station. The press did not support it. As usual they published negative stories about all the drawbacks because it was a GM product. Had it been a Toyota and Ralph Nader said it was good, the story might have been different even if the product was the same.
 GM has been getting  undeserved bad press for so long its standard practice with the automotive press.
 People need to drive the cars and compare for themselves. Cars are bigger, trucks are heavier, because the press has hyped horsepower and a smooth ride over gas mileage or practicality.
 

Bill, Rochester NY (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 8:04 PM)

The Yukon hybrid is a road-hogging, gas guzzling, pathetic attempt to create the impression GM has well-built, economical cars.  All the expensive ads in the word won't change what informed people know: GM has a long way to go.  I look forward to buying an American car when American manufacturers are competitive and innovative again.   Until then, my Prius rocks!

Bob Eicholz, Hollywood, CA (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 8:58 PM)

That is awesome that they are moving in the right direction. I think everyone was to buy american its just that the products havent been there. GM is probably the american company with the best effort and I think its going to start paying off.

I've bought 2 lines of Toyota, Scion and Lexus, and I would of loved to buy american if they had what I wanted.

I want my next car to be american!

I say Kudos to 21 MPG in a yukon.

Victor (Sent Tuesday, March 04, 2008 10:12 PM)

Actually, Toyota's own primary research, and can be found in their SEC filings, indicate that the average Prius buyer does NOT buy a Prius for fuel efficiency and to be "green."

They buy it as a status symbol to say, "look at me, I AM green."

Experts in the industry cite weak sales on other vehicles, including the rest of Toyota's hybrid lineup and the more fun to drive Honda Civic (with more horsepower and almost Prius mileage) because these cars and small SUV's don't LOOK like a hybrid.

It's not about the green people - wake up.  And as everyone chest thumps about the virtue of the Prius they ignore the fact that Toyota sold more planet destroying gas guzzling V8 powered Tundra pickup trucks last year than Priuses - and the Tundra gets the WORST fuel economy of any fullsize pickup truck on the market - and I'm comparing apples to apples, not V8s to V6s or V8s to hybrid models. Look it up yourself.

David, Washington (Sent Wednesday, March 05, 2008 3:50 AM)



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