Posted on 10/12/2011 11:09:33 AM PDT by jazusamo
Many reports have surfaced recently confirming the "bait and switch" strategy of General Motors whereby consumers are lured into showrooms to view the much-hyped Chevy Volt only to be switched to a Chevy Cruze. Edmunds' Insideline quotes GM North American President, Mark Reuss, as stating that the Volt's "technical halo" is a more important benefit to GM than sales of the vehicle itself. The article goes on to confirm that Reuss believes that production of a Cadillac version of the Volt will spur sales of conventional Caddy vehicles as well. None of the articles that I have read on the subject question the ethical issues of a corporation receiving taxpayer funds to produce "green" vehicles only to have that money go towards benefiting sales of conventional vehicles.
The cost to taxpayers on green vehicle production has been in the billions of dollars as grants and low interest loans have been issued in order to ramp up production of electric or hybrid vehicles, like the Chevy Volt. The promised return was that these vehicles would reduce greenhouse gases and save our planet from global warming while at the same time creating scores of green jobs. The conversion to electrified vehicles by the masses would also supposedly lessen America's dependence on foreign oil. Now it seems that the green-based strategy at GM has more to do with raising sales of vehicles other than the ones taxpayers paid to produce.
GM has recently announced that it would not be adding a second shift to produce the Chevy Volt. So much for the claims that demand is exceeding the ability to manufacture the vehicles. If demand for the Volt was so strong, wouldn't GM proceed with plans for a second shift? What about those green jobs the taxpayers were promised? GM continues to blame production constraints for low sales of the Volt, while at the same time they decide to limit that same production. And how honest is GM being with the numbers they are providing regarding available Volts for sale?
My search for new Volts on cars.com today revealed 3,014 vehicles advertised for sale nationwide. This is up from 1,287 vehicles listed when I searched last month. GM claims there are only hundreds of Volts at dealerships available for sale, due to demand exceeding supply. I believe that many states have laws regarding the marketing of motor vehicles that require dealerships to actually have the cars that are advertised in stock. If GM is telling the truth about low Volt availability, perhaps some state attorney generals should be looking into the possibility that GM dealerships are doing something illegal by advertising Volts that are not really for sale. Or GM can confirm the true numbers of Volts available for sale.
In other "something is rotten in Denmark" news, Consumer Reports has given the Volt a recommended rating. This story was quickly touted on multiple websites. Typically, a new vehicle without a long track record on reliability would not receive this recommendation. Of course, the Volt is anything but typical. Although the competing all-electric Nissan Leaf received a higher score on tests, the Leaf did not get a recommended rating. The reason? Even though the Leaf has sold almost twice as many vehicles as the Volt, there was not enough data on reliability for Consumers Reports to recommend the Leaf. How can the long term reliability of the Volt be rated when less than 4,000 have been sold to date?
The Chevy Volt's divisive nature has more to do with the fact that taxpayers have been asked to pay for green initiatives that are having a poor record of return on investment than on the quality of the vehicle itself. I expect that there will be about one to three thousand consumers in any given month that would be willing to pay the high price for a Volt. The number would be much less if taxpayers weren't subsidizing each sale with a $7,500 tax credit. To add insult to taxpayer injury, GM has stated that it is the "affluent" consumers that are benefiting from the credit. Should the wealthy really be getting $7,500 each for buying a $40,000 car that most of us can't afford?
Sales of Chevy Volts to government agencies (whose GM purchases increased 26% in September) and crony corporation, GE, are also expected to ramp up. GM has set the bar so low during the first year that even an eventual low rate of monthly sales in the low thousands will be touted as a great success. The question now isn't about whether or not consumers who purchase Chevy Volts are satisfied. It is about whether or not taxpayers should be paying billions of dollars to subsidize so-called green vehicles like the Volt, particularly if the money received by corporations like GM is going towards a strategy that attempts to bait consumers into showrooms only to increase sales of conventional vehicles.
Mark Modica is an NLPC Associate Fellow.
Wow. Now this is some spin. The Volt, a car no one wants to buy, is the lure to get people on the showroom floor to buy another ugly little car. At least it is creative.
Yep, GM people have admitted people come in to look at the new $40K Volt then buy a an $18K Cruze.
This is like Cher inviting people to date her daughter Chastity and then springing Chaz on them.
LOL!
The wife and I saw It the other night, what a mess.
They don't want to have any personal experience with it, but it makes them feel better to know it exists.
Like small independent coffee shops, African tribal communities, the public library, and the Amazonian rainforest.
“GM has recently announced that it would not be adding a second shift to produce the Chevy Volt. So much for the claims that demand is exceeding the ability to manufacture the vehicles. If demand for the Volt was so strong, wouldn’t GM proceed with plans for a second shift?”
By not having a second shift to produce the Obama Cimmaron, aren’t they admitting that it is a dud?
They won’t admit that they’re admitting it but that’s exactly what they’re doing. They’ve come up with a cock and bull story that they’ve improved the efficiency so much they don’t need the second shift.
The concept of the Volt looked cool too, but the production model is lame.
LOL, their propaganda boys need a lesson on propaganda.
what is the resale of a used hybrid?
old battery,
underpowered car.
LOL.
Cimarron by Cadillac part 2.
A couple months back a GM spokesperson wouldn’t quote a firm price on the Cad Volt but estimated it at around $57K. LOL!
That means it’ll be more.
A 4:25 minute Fox Business News video interview of Mark Modica has been added to this article if any of you are interested.
http://nlpc.org/stories/2011/10/12/taxpayer-funded-chevy-volt-used-lure-sell-cruzes
I sure wouldn’t argue your point about Ms. Joshi and yes, it was an interesting interview. :-)
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