The future is coming whether we're ready or not
Using Detroit to reinvent transportation, and America
For almost as long as I’ve been a blogger on the auto beat, I’ve been very critical of GM. At the end of the day, it seems to me that foreign oil dependency is the greatest threat facing the US, and GM just hasn’t been a corporate leader on this issue. GM hasn’t been the General leading America in the war for energy independence.
While GM is still not yet the General leading the battle against foreign oil, there is some hope that GM is primed to brake out of its transportation mold.
No. I’m not referring to the Chevy Volt. While I love the concept of the Volt, Volt technology will be too expensive to have any real world impact on US foreign oil dependence any time soon. While the Volt will have long term value, GM’s eAssist mild hybrid powertrain, for instance, will save far more gasoline in the interim to much cheaper plug-in vehicles.
Besides, the plug alone isn’t revolutionary enough.
Ultimately, just plugging in the current US fleet isn’t the future. The entire idea of personal transportation will have to be reinvented from the wheels up to balance increasing congestion, higher energy costs and to meet the needs of emerging markets and new cohorts of consumers.
And that makes recent comments by GM’s North American President Mark Reuss very interesting.
“What if” – the new mantra for Reuss according to the DetroitNews – GM built a new model for the future of transportation in partnership with the city of Detroit and the state of Michigan? What if, this partnership started building the future, right now, in the Motor City?
Thus, instead of using Shanghai, China to prove the viability of something like the EN-V two seat transportation pod, Reuss suggests that Detroit be ground zero. Build the future in America, not China.
Without doubt some will pooh-pooh ideas like the EN-V, but such concepts will inevitably change transportation fundamentally and far sooner than most dare to believe, not just because of congestion and costs, but also because of seemingly unrelated technologies like social networking. So, the fact that GM seems to recognize this inevitable reality is great news.
Of course, GM recognized the possibility of $4.00 gasoline long before 2008, but did little because the status quo made more sense in the boardroom. Will GM be different this time? Will GM dare lead America to a new future, a future that most Americans can’t even yet comprehend?
One way or another, changing America’s energy paradigm is the key to the future, and transportation is a huge part of that equation. Few US companies have more ability to help lead America towards a new future than GM. Yes, it’s a heck of a lot to ask of any company, but if the US is going to win the future, it’s going to need a great General.
Hopefully, America won’t have to wonder “what if” GM can be such a corporate steward too long, but at least GM seems to be wondering “what if” they built a new corporate mold. That’s at least a good start.
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