I'm a GM fan thru n thru... but when one steps into a rival maker's car, like Honda, I begin to think, I wish this was a GM car.

I'm talking about the little things that satisfy buyers. I walked into Honda dealership y/day and was most impressed with the Odyssey as a family car (we in Australia don't have the Tahoe type SUVs, unfortunately). The Odyssey had loads of floor space even with the 3rd row seats up. The instrument cluster looked thoroughly modern (display was almost aircraft like when it lit up - some might like it, others won't) and the quality of interior finish was typically Honda - Honda are leaders here (along with Audi/Vw).

Now, I wish GM would be leaders in innovation - cars with practicality, quality, value and customer satisfaction... instead of continually playing catchup. GM are doing that with their SUVs atm but I wonder whether they've done enough. There is certainly room to move with their cars in making them more appealing. They say the car's exterior is what attracts you to the dealership. It's the interior that ultimately seals the deal.

C'mon GM, make cars that sell themselves instead of making the dealer have to work for a sale!

 

I think that people view GM cars as disposable and Hondas as something to "run forever"
Show me a man that says that GM can't top quality charts and I'll show you a liar.
Thing is that GM treats its entry level cars as such; entry level. Like you knew you were in something bottom of the barrel that is gonna fall apart in a few years.
As Threxx said, GM needs a big warranty. They also need to brush up on small details like nice looking gauge layout, dashboard materials, etc.
IMO if GM wants tog et ahead they should offer options on their "base" models that others don't.

 

I think GM took a big step forward in the entry car market with the Cobalt. The new Civic I think leads this segment right now (even tho im not a fan of the interior at ALL) but when compared to a Corolla, I'd take a Cobalt anyday.

One thing Im curious about is if the Solstice GXP/Sky Redline turbo ecotec motors are ever gonna wind up in the Cobalt/G5. Now THAT would be sweet

 

The biggest problem seems to be that GM consistantly targets a lower Average Selling Price than Toyota/Honda. On top of that, GM generally makes larger vehicles which are presumably more expensive to make. Add in 'legacy costs' and GM has a lot less money to spend on creature comforts. And it pretty much shows.

Fortunately they're making moves to increase their ASPs -- repositioning Saturn as a "high-end" brand, and even limiting production of their bread-n-butter rentalmobiles such as Impala in order to push transaction prices up.

But what GM really needs to do is figure out a way to get back on the East/West Coasts, where incomes are higher and people spend more money on cars. As long as GM is landlocked, they're stuck in a lower-profit segment of the market (except for trucks). Saturn is a start, but they really really need to do more with Saab.

 

They used to have extra options... and IIRC claimed it to be unprofitable. My 1992 Sunbird convertible with leather seats, CD player, power everything... just about everything you'd expect to find in a higher end model at that time, is a testament to that. They used to do it, and said it didn't work.

I agree with you on the interior needing a better look... and definately something in a better warranty, especially for the entry level cars. But what options would you suggest adding to a base model that would really attract a lot of people?

 

That's what the G5 needs IMO in order to make it a little more logical to have the rebadged Cobalt in Pontiac... and finally Pontiac would have a car that outperforms it's counterpart (like you'd expect from the "performance division").

 

the civic has a 5sd auto on all models and the Si comes with a 6sd manual with LSD does the cobalt come with any of this stuff?

 

Cobalt gets a 4spd auto, but there is no difference. If that Honda 5spd is anything like the one in the Accord, you can keep it.
Cobalt SS comes with a 5spd manual and an LSD along with Recaro seats.

 

people believe more speed=better. so no 6sd and the lsd is optional were the Si is standard.

 

Can GM make a serious alternative to Honda/Toyota? Probably. Will they, that remains to be seen. The Cobalts aren't bad, I have driven a supercharged SS Cobalt with an LSD, so that is a start. I haven't been in a new Civic though.

I have to agree about the Cobalt versus Corolla thing. I would take a Cobalt over one every time. There is nothing particularly wrong with the Corolla, but I have never liked them.

 

If they did.... would any new media give them credit for it?

 

Thing is no real enthusiasts are buying Cobalts or Corollas, so they only want whatever's gonna run longer and be cheaper to maintain. Nobody knows about the Cobalt's reliability unless you look it up.
But Toyota's seems to be legendary. So which would you choose if you were the average consumer?

FWIW I think Cobalt's interior needs to be less "cheap" looking...JMO

 

A little vent trim would make quite a difference.

 

I don't really see "cheap", well as far as entry level cars go. I think the Cobalt's problem is it's blandness, which many people inherently associate with cheap.

 

Do you REALLY want GM to be a Honda or Toyota???

Think about it.

Honda sales aren't exactly the best on the planet. They make hig revving engines, but compare the power (horses and torque) they put out verses the fuel they use compared to GM engines.

Toyota got to where they are by focusing on basic transportation and how gaps fit. Ford is copying that strategy to less than impressive results.


The thing that Honda and Toyota are selling are the name and the reputation they (rightfully) gained in the 80s and 90s for building well made cars.

Our makers are catching up, so Toyota is on an agressive campaign to pass themselves off as an American company by buying into NASCAR, embracing country music, and sponsoring fly fishing. Toyota can't sell customer service. Not only has Saturn been burying them for years and Chrysler has been getting good press the past half dozen years for replacing entire engines if they can't quickly find what's wrong, but even Ford has come back from the customere service pits.

As far as quality, seeminly every American car and truck that's been redesigned or reengineered to come out in the past year or so have been so close to dead on with both Toyota and Honda, that you actually have to put in substantial effort to find where we come up short.

If you are talking about Hybrids, you have to look no farther than Ford's Escape Hybrid. Sure Toyota's Prius is still hard to get, but in reality it's a money draining niche car. The more Priuses Toyota makes, the more money they lose. It's engineered from the ground up as a specific car, not new technology that's used to improve exsiting cars. Ford's more practical Escape (even Honda's hybrid versions of regular cars) is sitting on dealer lots. Jury is still out on the Hybrid Camry.

GM's E85 flex fuel vehicles are more than public relation ploys or vehicles sold to better advertise the company (as the Prius is).



People who are going to buy a Toyota or Honda AREN'T buying the reality of the company or styling, or because they make or have the reputation of making exciting cars. They buy them because of a long held reputation for quality and dependability, or because of their reputation for caring for the enviroment, or their reputaion of being low priced, or their reputation in many circles of being the smaller underdog company put down by unlistening, cynical, money hungry US automakers.

Of course, each reputation doesn't hold up under a light today, and might be the reason why Toyota thinks people here are dumb enough to view them as an American company, on par with Ford and GM.

Chrysler on the other hand, is a successful American company (laugh if you will, but Chrysler has almost complete autonomy from Damiler nowadays ) by being almost the complete antithesis of what Toyota and Honda is. I get a feeling listening to Bob Lutz, Ric Wagoner, seeing the Camaro, and hearing about the Impala and other upcoming GM vehicles that General Motors is adopting the Chrysler approach the way Ford seems to be adopting the Toyota approach.

I think GM's approach is better.