Don't know enough about the new guy to form an opinion.

As for the Malibu as a Camaro, yes that was an actual proposition back when the whole thing was still in the idea phase. If you had someone who didn't understand what Camaro meant not just to Chevrolet, but to it's "market" (tech-speak for it's buyers), you would be looking at FWD Camaro by now. (it would have been Chevrolet's version of the new Grand Am).

As I said, I wasn't kidding.

Regardless at to who dismisses Kurt Ritter's management of Chevrolet, when you sit in your newly returned Camaro in a few years, or sipping around curves in your new RWD Chevrolet sedan (it takes years before management direction is felt in the car industry), you are enjoying Kurt Ritter's efforts at pushing and politicking the GM management into bringing these vehicles to market.

GM makes the final decision, but it's the divisional general manager's efforts that convinces GM's management. Dismissing Kurt Ritter's running of Chevrolet is much like dismissing John Middlebrook's running of Cadillac. Sure, Cadillac was a piece of work while he was in charge, but it was him that led the door to door assult in GM to get resources to bring the Cadillac we have today, and will be seeing the next few years.

 

Judging by Kurt Ritter's previous public statements and interviews ...he was Chevy's big gun proponant of Chevy RWD and a future Camaro. I remember reading one of his interviews last year, where he actually had the ***** to use the word "Camaro", and stated how important it was to Chevrolet.

For us, the Chevy enthusiasts...he was the most powerful, most courageous friend we had.

So, is Ritter a Benedict Arnold? From where I sit, the answer is HELL NO!

But some of his bosses may currently be under my scrutiny.

 

All I have to say is good for Ritter. All is fair in love and war (business). He got what he perceived as a raw deal at GM and did something about it. Hey GM, if he wasn't important enough to give him what he wanted while at GM, then why are you fighting this? He must've been good for something, eh?

Hey GM, about stopping your stupid b*tching and start competing more. That would be more beneficial in the long run.

 

I'm assuming that you felt the same pain for Chrysler when GM hired away Nesbitt, right? Didn't think so. Ever hear of a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA)?

Here's an interesting article on this exact topic. It's a couple years old, but still relevant.

 

Worth noting is that not only has the guy pretty much set in motion the Chevrolet we want (including Camaro's return) but unlike most of GMs top guns, he went to a consulting agency not a rival carmaker. Sure, his main customer is Toyota, but what trade secrets exactly is Toyota going to get from him that's not covered by a NDA that they can't find out by buying a GM vehicle & tearing it apart or visiting a website like this and finding out what the competition (if we call it that) is planning?

Let's be honest, everything that's going to be popping up over the next few years at Chevrolet is from Kurt Ritter. He obviously feels GM shafted him by moving him sideways instead of moving him up the ladder. To make matters worse, he won't be a part of Chevy when his handiwork hits the market, so someone else will get the spotlight from what he's done.

One can make a decent case about ethics here, but when so many GM executives were hired directly away from competitors (especially Nesbitt & LaNeve! ), and after 30 years at GM, seemingly moved sideways instead of being kept at Chevy to reap the credit or moved up as a reward, I'm in no rush to condemn the guy for doing what he felt he had to do.

 

Gunion,

I see you are a man of few words!! lol