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Today, GM CEO Rick Wagoner told the media, "I like being number one, and I think our people take pride in it. So it's not something where we're going to sit back and let somebody else pass us." Do you think GM really has a chance to continue on in the top spot? While they've made progress, many products are still not quite there. Can they outrun Toyota?  

As the situation stands currently, I would have to say that all indicators signal the arrival of a takeover by Toyota.  So my short answer is no.  Right now GM cannot hope to maintain the top spot with the amount of growth Toyota is experiencing.  In the editorial pages of some car magazines, automotive historians have compared Toyota’s current domination to General Motors circa 1955.  I think that says a lot.

Is GM’s stock descending because the cars over at Toyota are better?  Yes and no.  Certainly, Toyota is probably most publicly known for the quality and high gas mileage capabilities that it puts into its cars and…well that’s about it.  But the latter statement is incredibly important because that’s Toyota’s image worldwide, and it sells!  And when you are selling arguably the most popular type of cars to consumers, passenger cars not exceeding $30,000, in most cases the deal breaker is perceived quality and, most recently in the United States, gas mileage.  While GM may claim that its newer cars and trucks are more fuel-efficient and/or they can run on ethanol, to many consumers, GM’s plea is too little too late.  In short, consumers are hooked on Toyota because it’s known as almost a sure thing that its cars are the most reliable vehicles for the price.  

It is my opinion that GM can regain its dominance but this cannot be achieved in the short term of course.  First of all, I believe that marque’s like Chevrolet and Buick have lost their compass.  For what is exactly Chevy’s current mission statement anyway?  Here you have a company that brings out tough trucks and then, out of left field, they bring in a wimpy little rent-a-car from South Korea called the Aveo.  If you’re going to build a small car, GM, fine, I as a consumer support that.  But I would wish that your version of a small car is a real Chevy small car that embodies what a true Chevy is.

The latter paragraph is vital, in my opinion.  GM desperately needs focus and cache and right now they simply don’t have those two things.  In addition, and with all due respect to Rick Wagoner, GM needs a new CEO and in my opinion an almost entirely new management office.  To sell cars man, you gotta be excited about CAR’S, not about finances.  I believe that all consumers are smart people and they’ll see through phoniness and they’ll also trust a perceived sure thing (Toyota).  And so, I would submit to GM that it needs new people in its offices, people who are genuinely car fanatics, people who will take risks even when times are brutal, and people who don’t want to aspire to make the next Cadillac a Lexus-beater but to, instead, blow every other car company out of the water with cutting edge design and novel concepts to boot.  I would also recommend some music to help GM get into the mood, preferably “Déjà Vu” or “The Trooper” by Iron Maiden or some other rallying songs to get the folks at GM in the spirit of making the best cars…period.