Quote:
Originally Posted by tetsuo111
The irony is that GM's present management learned from the errors of their predecessors. They win more quality awards today than BMW. They invented Magnetic damping technology. They invented (in collaboration with Ford) the 10 sp auto gearbox with faster gear shifts than PDK. They sell very high-output naturally aspirated motors. They build purpose built cars for enthusiasts as well as high-utility value vehicles for families. They test four door sedans on race tracks and at the Ring. The new Camaro (Camaro!) can arguably drop anything made in Germany short of a 918.
GM was the poster child for arrogance in the pursuit of short-term quarterly results. As a result the brand was severely punished by two generations of buyers. When I think of BMW today it reminds me of the bad old GM.
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Well GM has certainly improved, but as somebody who grew up in SE MI with family and friends who worked for the Big 3 I have a huge amount of disdain and distrust for GM. Their management still makes short-sighted and poor decisions; and most of their cars, while not truly "bad" like they once were, still leave much to be desired.
The Cadillac division, for example, is really struggling. The ATS and CTS are two of the slowest selling cars in America (~140 days on dealer lots). They didn't get anything right about those cars save for the chassis tuning, which journalists get a boner from but actual customers will overlook when they get frustrated by the infotainment system or cheap bits in the interior.
Buick is only surviving due to its presence in the Asian market. It's an afterthought in the States for consumers. The Verano and Regal flopped, the Cascada is a decade-old design that only sells to fleets, and the new LaCrosse has received a very lukewarm reception from the press and its sales show for it.
GMC? Don't even get me started. They're just rebadged Chevys. The brand only exists due to America's obsession with trucks and SUVs. A recent article from last week highlighted how GM's original plans for the new Equinox were so bad that they were scrapped. The previous gen Malibu, which came out just 4-5 yrs ago, was a disaster with the press. And boy can I not stand their marketing dept. (making fun of tech Ford has in their cars which they themselves will have eventually, "real people not actors" bs, etc.).
GM is still a mismanaged company relative to the best from Japan and even VW (despite their emissions scandal). But yes, BMW is showing a lot of old school GM arrogance and complacency. Eventually it'll come back and bite them, probably once their core have abandoned everything the brand has to offer save for the ///M cars and likes of the Grand Coupes and M240.