Maximum bob opens mouth.. Hilarity ensues

He blames toyota for issues... HA!

eneral Motors (GM) is recalling 1.3 million small cars in North America because of a power steering problem that has been linked to 14 crashes. The firm said four models were affected - the Chevrolet Cobalt, Pontiac G5, Pontiac Pursuit and Pontiac 4. It said the fault meant that at low speeds "greater steering effort may be required", but that the cars could still be "safely controlled". GM blamed the fault on a supplier partially owned by Toyota. GM vice-chairman Bob Lutz told the BBC at the Geneva Motor show: "This is a case where, yes, we would blame a partially Toyota-owned supplier." Recalling these vehicles is the right thing to do for our customers' peace of mind Jamie Hresko, GM vice president of quality Mr Lutz said the supplier had not met "all requirements for reliability and durability". "So we will have to see who takes financial responsibility," he said. "But this is a risk you sometimes take when you buy a complete system from a supplier." Complaints GM said it had told the US car safety regulator - the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) - about the recall on Monday when it finished an investigation that started last year. ANALYSIS Jorn Madslien By Jorn Madslien, Business reporter, BBC News, Geneva Good news at the Geneva motor show is tempered by bad news out of the US. GM hopes its investment of an additional 1.3bn euros in its European Opel/Vauxhall subsidiary will convince European governments to back its remaining funding requirements by guaranteeing loans. But as GM recalls some 1.3 million models in the US, it seems reluctant to take responsibility for the faulty power steering, as the part in question was produced by a Toyota-owned subsidiary. GM's willingness to pass the buck could further damage Toyota's image - or it could backfire as the affair turns into a mighty row that could involve the US and Japanese governments as well as their largest automotive groups. New investment for Opel The NHTSA itself had been investigating the problem since 27 January after receiving more than 1,100 complaints, including 14 crashes and one injury. The recall covers the 2005 to 2010 model year Chevrolet Cobalt, and 2007 to 2010 Pontiac G5 sold in the US. In addition, it includes the 2005 to 2006 Pontiac Pursuit sold in Canada, and the 2005 to 2006 Pontiac G4 sold in Mexico. "After our in-depth investigation, we found that this is a condition that takes time to develop," said GM vice president of quality, Jamie Hresko. "It tends to occur in older models out of warranty. Recalling these vehicles is the right thing to do for our customers' peace of mind." Toyota recalls The GM recall comes as Toyota is continuing to call back more than eight million cars around the world following accelerator and braking problems. The Japanese carmaker also said on Tuesday that it is repairing another 1.6 million vehicles in the US and Japan over leaky oil hoses. The Toyota recalls are still being investigated by US politicians, and three US Toyota bosses are due to appear later before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has also been called to attend the hearing, as the committee continues to investigate the speed of the recalls and the response of the authorities. Toyota president Akio Toyoda appeared before a separate congressional committee last week - the House Oversight Committee - to apologise and promise that lessons would be learned.

What i REALLY want to know is why they waited until this past January to investigate this? I've been hearing about this for at least a couple years now.

I hope the Government is consistent in how they're going to be handling these issues with their recent acquisition as they have been with their competitor.

Shall we have BMW examine the defendant?

Nissan (350Z) has the same steering problem and the car is huge handful at an autocross where quick inputs are required. A slalom is almost an exercise in futility unless you are a hairy chested guy with massive muscles.

so what he said was wrong how?

What i REALLY want to know is why they waited until this past January to investigate this? I've been hearing about this for at least a couple years now.

Well, probably waited this long because they never INTENDED to recall anything until Toyota came along and opened a can of E36 M3 so smelly that you can look GOOD just by not looking as BAD as toyota. Its the perfect time for a small recall to surface.

so what he said was wrong how?

Wrong, maybe nothing. But the hilarity ensued when the words 'partially toyota-owned supplier' hit my eyes. Thats pure sensationalism and really grasping at straws to even bring up toyota's name in relation to this.

Perhaps the CEO of that supplier also "somewhat resembles Hitler" and "once uttered a word phonetically similar to a common racial slur". Come on, now.

oops.

Vigo wrote:

What i REALLY want to know is why they waited until this past January to investigate this? I've been hearing about this for at least a couple years now.

Well, probably waited this long because they never INTENDED to recall anything until Toyota came along and opened a can of E36 M3 so smelly that you can look GOOD just by not looking as BAD as toyota. Its the perfect time for a small recall to surface.

so what he said was wrong how?

Wrong, maybe nothing. But the hilarity ensued when the words 'partially toyota-owned supplier' hit my eyes. Thats pure sensationalism and really grasping at straws to even bring up toyota's name in relation to this.

Vote for "Say What?" in next GRM.

Bob Lutz = Bob Putz

GM recall:

"we still have no idea how to make competent automobiles and function like a 21st century company, but we're really great at insinuating blame"

how many Cobalt/G5s did GM profit from? they could have at least blamed the Vibe for a more logical finger-pointing.

You know we are living in the bizarro world when GM blames Toyota for it's quality control issues.

SlickDizzy wrote: GM recall: "we still have no idea how to make competent automobiles and function like a 21st century company, but we're really great at insinuating blame" how many Cobalt/G5s did GM profit from? they could have at least blamed the Vibe for a more logical finger-pointing.

plus 86 billion....

Feedyurhed wrote: You know we are living in the bizarro world when people expect a GM car to be anything more than a flaming pile of poo with wooden steering, shards of broken glass for seats, and the crushed dreams of engineers for a chassis.

Fixed

I'll have a hearty laugh at anyone who bought a cobalt amongst the sea of unbelievably better cars in it's class and expected it not to suck.

Well, the "difference" rears its ugly head again.

Toyota says: "My name is on every car, and we will fix this."

GM says: "His fault."

So, Mr. Lutz, what is your process for handling supplier parts that do not meet your requirements?

"Install them, hope for the best, and if the E36 M3 hits the fan, blame Toyota."

Feeling the GM love...

WTF are the "Pontiac Pursuit" and "Pontiac 4"? (nvm, I'll google it myself).

EDIT: Okay, what I assumed... Canadian names.

SlickDizzy wrote: GM recall: "we still have no idea how to make competent automobiles and function like a 21st century company, but we're really great at insinuating blame" how many Cobalt/G5s did GM profit from? they could have at least blamed the Vibe for a more logical finger-pointing.

What do you consider a competent automobile?

I am waiting for the Toyota-Iran link to surface

Y2k

Shawn

WTF.......more reasons why there will NEVER be a GM product in my driveway.

This is just getting more and more retarded.

rogerbvonceg wrote: So, Mr. Lutz, what is your process for handling supplier parts that do not meet your requirements?

Mr Lutz is not in charge of that part of the process, nor really even has a say in it or how the company is run. Unlike the head of Toyota.

Ever since reading the book "Guts," I like Maximum Bob, and hope to be as alive and vigorous as he is at his age. And he says this sort of thing as a wisecrack, not as a "I are serious cat" sort of moment.

SlickDizzy wrote: GM recall: "we still have no idea how to make competent automobiles and function like a 21st century company, but we're really great at insinuating blame"

Kind of like Toyota did about their supplier for the pedals.

Chris_V wrote: Ever since reading the book "Guts," I like Maximum Bob, and hope to be as alive and vigorous as he is at his age. And he says this sort of thing as a wisecrack, not as a "I are serious cat" sort of moment.

No doubt. He is a heck of a guy and has led a cool and exciting life....well still is.

jwdmotorsports wrote: WTF.......more reasons why there will NEVER be a GM product in my driveway. This is just getting more and more retarded.

"I'm not buying milk anymore because some dude that worked at the milk company said something I didn't like OMG OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

This logic cracks me up. I don't care for the company Toyota is today, but that won't keep me from having another Toyota "product in my driveway" from the days when they actually made interesting cars. I troll CL for old Supras on a regular basis.

Cotton wrote:

jwdmotorsports wrote: WTF.......more reasons why there will NEVER be a GM product in my driveway. This is just getting more and more retarded.

"I'm not buying milk anymore because some dude that worked at the milk company said something I didn't like OMG OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!" This logic cracks me up. I don't care for the company Toyota is today, but that won't keep me from having another Toyota "product in my driveway" from the days when they actually made interesting cars. I troll CL for old Supras on a regular basis.

There's a lot more behind what I said than just that one comment. That's just icing on the cake.

rogerbvonceg wrote: Well, the "difference" rears its ugly head again. Toyota says: "My name is on every car, and we will fix this." GM says: "His fault." So, Mr. Lutz, what is your process for handling supplier parts that do not meet your requirements? "Install them, hope for the best, and if the E36 M3 hits the fan, blame Toyota."

ha ha

Garbage motors at its best.

ignorant wrote:

rogerbvonceg wrote: Well, the "difference" rears its ugly head again. Toyota says: "My name is on every car, and we will fix this." GM says: "His fault." So, Mr. Lutz, what is your process for handling supplier parts that do not meet your requirements? "Install them, hope for the best, and if the E36 M3 hits the fan, blame Toyota."

ha ha Garbage motors at its best.

Toyota has recalled over 10,000,000 cars in the US, killed at least 37 people, still hasn't found the problem, and covered up information on rollovers. There's a $1,000,000 bounty to "prove" the unintended acceleration isn't the pedal, a leaked internal document declares "victory" for stalling or canceling recalls, sales are down 9-10% in a huge up month, and they are under investigation for hiring ex-NHSTA employees.

Yet when a Toyota-related part fails for GM it's "garbage motors" and "I'll never put a GM in my driveway". Do y'all realize how berkleying ridiculous you sound?