Interview With Bob Lutz, Industry Icon
This is not meant to criticize Rick Wagoner, Chairman of GM but when it comes to the voice and face representing General Motors today, Robert A. (Bob) Lutz is the man most people 
turn to. Lutz is an industry icon, an automotive name who will be remembered for many generations to come for impacting the direction of BMW, Ford, Chrysler, and GM by bringing forth important new products such as the Dodge Viper, BMW 3-Series, Pontiac Solstice and other products.
Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to sit down with Lutz at the NAIAS for a group interview with other members of our social media team. There are videos of the discussion available online, but I’ve decided to share with you my perspective of how the interview went. Please read on for my synopsis.
At 72 years of age, Bob Lutz has seen the automotive industry grow and change remarkably. Back during the days when GM, Ford and Chrysler were really and truly the Big 3, Japanese competition was limited and European brands had a small, rather ineffective presence on American highways. Cars from Korea were non-existent and gas was retailing for about 35 cents a gallon.
Today, the world is the marketplace with GM and Toyota battling for supremacy. 
Chrysler married and then divorced Daimler, Ford has fallen behind Toyota in U.S. sales, and GM is in the process of a historic makeover with Oldsmobile gone and Saturn, Hummer and Saab the niche brands complementing GM’s widespread fleet.
For Lutz, he doesn’t have too many years of work ahead of him, but he is still a man on a mission. That mission is overseeing GM’s Chevrolet Volt project, a hybrid car that promises to revolutionize the automotive industry and help reduce mankind’s demand on fossil fuels. If Lutz is looking for a legacy — as if he doesn’t have one already — the Volt is the perfect vehicle to enhance his. What better way to be known then as the Father of the Modern Hybrid Car? I’m sure historians will have a better description than that one, but you get the picture.
During our interview, Lutz admitted that he is more involved with the Volt project right now than with any conventional vehicle. The Cadillac CTS coupe and Hummer HX, important 
vehicles in GM’s future, likely will be handled by someone else — the Volt is Lutz’s pet project and will be brought into production largely due to his guidance.
Inasmuch as the Volt is the pet project of Lutz, there are concerns that the program has some important obstacles to overcome. One question asked was this one: isn’t there a risk that the batteries in the Volt will overheat? And, if so — would GM continue to sell the car? Lutz emphatically stated that if there is a problem with the battery, the car will not go into production — plain and simple. He did counter that he was supremely confident that the lithium maganese and nanophosphate materials used are much more stable than early generation batteries. Readers likely recall that GM had early generation battery technology in the 1990s with a limited number of test EV1 
vehicles on the road. These cars were eventually pulled and destroyed due to limited battery technology.
Although battery technology is a concern with the Volt, Lutz mentioned that software issues are also a concern. Specifically, complicated and sophisticated software must be developed which will have the electric engine switch to the internal combustion engine when needed.
Lutz seemed passionate about the use of cellulosic ethanol — waste material such as newspapers, rubber tires, almost anything but glass and metal — as the way ethanol should be made in the future. He explained that these waste products can be ground into powder with plasma introduced to create a gas which would create an anorobic material. In effect, the product eats gas molecules and poops ethanol.
Concerning Coskata, the company partnering with GM to bring forth cellulosic ethanol, Lutz mentioned that GM took a small amount of equity in the company (how much, that wasn’t said). Lutz insisted that “we” have to explore alternatives to imported oil, and replace that source with domestically produced E85. Lutz stated that GM must do its part to take the pressure off of the car industry which is being blamed for everything from global warming to terrorism to pollution, and more.
Lutz wants the federal government to have a stronger hand in the development of ethanol through regulation. Specifically, requiring fueling stations which pump out a not yet determined amount of gasoline to have one or two ethanol pumps on hand. Lutz seemed comfortable with the federal government stepping up its involvement, but he knows that it won’t happen until a new administration is in place. Pressure from the oil industry is a big problem as Lutz believes that they are standing in the way of ethanol distribution.
Finally, some have compared the Volt project to man’s quest to reach the moon — with a November 2010 deadline in place and both Toyota and Nissan announcing that they would complete similar projects about that time, General Motors has a lot riding on this project. Personally, I believe that he is the right man for moment — a person with the passion, experience and foresight to bring about a sea change in the automotive industry. Again.
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