George Will of the Washington Post released an attack on GM and the Volt this morning. The question I asked is did he have all the facts?
Wayne Gerdes -
CleanMPG - Nov. 14, 2010
2011 Chevrolet Volt – Will it ever get a break? This coming from at times its worst critic
“
Every single great idea that has marked the 21st century, the 20th century and the 19th century has required government vision and government incentive."
Joe Biden, Oct. 26
The very conservative and widely read Op-Ed columnist for the Washington Post, George Will, let loose a salvo aimed straight at the heart of the just getting back on its feet, GM in his Sunday morning column,
What's driving Obama's subsidies of Chevy's Volt?. In classic George style, he decided to take on the entire company while deriding the Volt with his almost patented shooting from the hip style barrage.
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Originally Posted by George Will
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As we have already been through “Volt-Gate” with many heavy’s in the automotive world decrying GM as “lying”, in the bigger scheme of things did it really matter? And back on point, what does George Will know about HEVs, BEVs, EREVs and Blended PHEV’s?
Proof:
Fuzzy Climate Math
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Originally Posted by George Will
Speaking of Hummers, perhaps it is environmentally responsible to buy one and squash a Prius with it. The Prius hybrid is, of course, fuel-efficient. There are, however, environmental costs to mining and smelting (in Canada) 1,000 tons a year of zinc for the battery-powered second motor, and the shipping of the zinc 10,000 miles -- trailing a cloud of carbon dioxide -- to Wales for refining and then to China for turning it into the component that is then sent to a battery factory in Japan.
Opinions differ as to whether acid rain from the Canadian mining and smelting operation is killing vegetation that once absorbed carbon dioxide. But a report from CNW Marketing Research ("Dust to Dust: The Energy Cost of New Vehicles from Concept to Disposal") concludes that in "dollars per lifetime mile," a Prius (expected life: 109,000 miles) costs $3.25, compared with $1.95 for a Hummer H3 (expected life: 207,000 miles).
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CNW and the Dust to Dust story? Oh god
As you can tell, he knows little to nothing about automobiles let alone the technology that drives them
Back on point… Again.
Good ole George next goes on to attack the $7,500 Tax Credit being doled out by our very own Uncle Sam.
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Originally Posted by George Will
Good, because the federal government, which evidently is feeling flush, will give tax credits of up to $7,500 to every Volt purchaser. The Volt was conceived to appease the automotive engineers in Congress, which knows that people will have to be bribed, with other people's money, to buy this $41,000 car that seats only four people (the 435-pound battery eats up space).
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While we have had this debate any number of times here at CleanMPG and as most here know, I am not in favor of a tax subsidy to anyone that can afford very expensive automobile no matter what the type or benefit. That said, does anyone remember the tax loopholes allowing business owners who purchase heavy luxury SUVs over 6,000 pounds (Escalades and Hummers) to receive a very favorable tax-depreciation schedule allowing upwards of a $25,000 tax break on our dime? I Googled George Will and Hummer and did not see a single tax credit rebuttal over 7-pages of hits but I did see plenty of his commentary deriding the Prius as the Anti-Christ while the Hummer was our savior? I hope someone can find his rebuke of the $25,000 Hummer, Escalade, Excursion and (name your FSP of choice here) deal?
The fact is, the tax credit is now mandated by law and there is little that you, I or anyone else other than 535 members of Congress can do about it. Which is my point. What does crying over spilled milk have to do with GM and the Volt other than benefit those that take advantage of the available incentives through its purchase?
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Originally Posted by Mark Reuss, president of GM North America
The early enthusiastic consumer response - more than 120,000 potential Volt customers have already signaled interest in the car, and orders have flowed since the summer - give us confidence that the Volt will succeed on its merits.
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George goes on to add his flowery prose about GM’s canned response to a Wall Street Journal reporter...
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Originally Posted by George Will
"Signaled interest" how? and telltale reticence (how many orders have "flowed"?). But "on its merits"? Why, then, the tax credits and other subsidies?
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Hey George, can you not tell the difference between marketing hype and future sales? Do you think Mark Reuss invented the term “buzz”? He did not and this kind of stuff has been going on for millennia. Did you just recently discover this fact of business and then use specific quotes to shoot down a company and a vehicle? If so, your own are fair game? How does it feel now that I am taking potshots at your own “derision”?
Oh how I loved the next one
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Originally Posted by George Will
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Hey George, 50 + miles all electric range in a Volt from a full charge is easy and I will limo you around your beloved Washington DC to prove it!
Statements from a source filled with gear heads about a given range or mpg figure is like dust in the wind. Choose your outlet for the conclusions you want to make and run with it. Which appears to be your standard approach to this and many of your past Op Ed’s?
And in saying that, do not expect the rest of us to stand idly by without commenting on the trash you just bestowed. I am sure you would be quite satisfied with 25 miles all-electric range in a 2011 Chevrolet Volt. It is all in how you drive and if you do not care, 40-miles will be a pipedream vs. most here that would never in their worst day or week see below 40 miles AER.
By the way, what do you drive and what is your FE driving around Washington DC anyway? Does it even come close to the Monroney sticker that was mandated to be placed on your new car when you purchased it? 1) I doubt you even know what your cars FE rating is and 2), I doubt you have ever achieved it either! Tell me about how YMMV now?
NEXT!
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Originally Posted by George Will
The federal government, although waist-deep in red ink, offers another bribe: Any purchaser can get a tax credit of up to 50 percent of the cost (up to $2,000) of an extra-powerful (240-volt) charger. California, although so strapped it recently issued IOUs to vendors, offers a $5,000 cash rebate for which Volt buyers are not eligible but purchasers of Nissan's electric Leaf are. Go figure.
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The US and California Government tax credit offers have what to do with the decisions that GM made to bring the Volt to market beginning back in 2005 and 2006?
Subsidies do indeed suck. So for one, since you are one of those high worth individuals probably making $1,000,000 per year or more, why not pay more to the federal government than you are legally responsible for. After all, you could do a lot more towards our current $13.7 Trillion USD shortfall than I could?
When it comes to the fuzzy math that both the US Government and GM has imparted on us with regard to GM’s bankruptcy filings through today, you are spot on. Unfortunately, it is a done deal thanks to some of your friends on the Hill. I cannot do anything about it but hopefully you can?
So was the Washington Post Op-Ed meant to stir up the populace or simply provide fodder for people like me to write about our good ole friend George while muddying the outlook for real solution we really need to act on today?
Let us look for real solutions for our most pressing problems and we all know what they are. While the Volt is not the ideal, it sure beats the hell out of being driven around Washington in 10-year old Crown Vic Taxi or worse yet, full sized Lincoln and Cadillac limo at < 9 mpg.
Ah crap, I should have went to bed before 04:30 AM this morning while working a VW Toureg Hybrid spec sheet in order to respond with a clearer head and in a far more concise manner
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