Comments on: GM to do PR right http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/2009/09/12/gm-does-it-right/ Chrysler, car, and other discussions by Allpar contributors Wed, 10 Aug 2011 22:43:58 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Don Tait http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/2009/09/12/gm-does-it-right/comment-page-1/#comment-77881 Don Tait Sat, 19 Sep 2009 06:05:46 +0000 http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/?p=857#comment-77881 Re: Comments by Curtis & Dusty The 1951 Chyrsler 331 Hemi had 180 HP, but Cadillac advertised their High Performance 331 with 160 HP. I remember my Ford & Chevy friends razzing about the noise made by our Starters with the reduction gear, but they seemed a mite too silent when in the winter my car would start so I could boost theirs. Chrysler and their ad agencies seem to often to shy away from blowing their own horn, to their detriment. Re: Comments by Curtis & Dusty
The 1951 Chyrsler 331 Hemi had 180 HP, but Cadillac advertised their High Performance 331 with 160 HP. I remember my Ford & Chevy friends razzing about the noise made by our Starters with the reduction gear, but they seemed a mite too silent when in the winter my car would start so I could boost theirs.
Chrysler and their ad agencies seem to often to shy away from blowing their own horn, to their detriment.

]]> By: Curtis Redgap http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/2009/09/12/gm-does-it-right/comment-page-1/#comment-77879 Curtis Redgap Thu, 17 Sep 2009 22:27:12 +0000 http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/?p=857#comment-77879 More to the point, the marketing has not really improved, as Dave shows with the Neon, from then to now. If FIAT is going to turn things around, it needs to start with places like we have right here. Granted, they are just jumping into the frying pan, and I reckon that there are plenty of things that need frying. But, when I see the new GM President delivering his message 5 or 6 times a night on various TV networks, I can only wonder where is Chrysler? Mr. Whitacre is a guy comes off as your average home spun salt of the earth easy going dude, happy with who he is, and darned proud of what his company is building! You can't beat that sort of selling job. And notice he isn't "selling" the cars. He is offering the "sizzle" which is really what makes sales. Good IS better! The RAM is probably a better pick up than the Chevy or the F-150. But ads don't sell us that. They show a RAM being abused through the dirt, mud, and rough stuff, without any particular message except trying to "Sell" the truck, rather than good "sizzle" to get one. Somehow, sales have gone awry and marketing is probably responsible. As much as I disliked Iaccoca, and his management style, he did know how to push the sizzle. When the new "K" cars came out, and they were priced and optioned way too high, he immediately cut costs, made some things "standard" and in general got the price down to a more palatable level. Even then, sales weren't going as well as they had projected. So he made some commercials where he starred in them. He didn't sell the cars, he sold the things ABOUT the cars, and lo and behold, they did start to move. More than one customer was heard to remark that "we are gonna buy one of these because Lee said they were good." So it was and so it should be right now. More to the point, the marketing has not really improved, as Dave shows with the Neon, from then to now. If FIAT is going to turn things around, it needs to start with places like we have right here. Granted, they are just jumping into the frying pan, and I reckon that there are plenty of things that need frying. But, when I see the new GM President delivering his message 5 or 6 times a night on various TV networks, I can only wonder where is Chrysler? Mr. Whitacre is a guy comes off as your average home spun salt of the earth easy going dude, happy with who he is, and darned proud of what his company is building! You can’t beat that sort of selling job. And notice he isn’t “selling” the cars. He is offering the “sizzle” which is really what makes sales. Good IS better! The RAM is probably a better pick up than the Chevy or the F-150. But ads don’t sell us that. They show a RAM being abused through the dirt, mud, and rough stuff, without any particular message except trying to “Sell” the truck, rather than good “sizzle” to get one. Somehow, sales have gone awry and marketing is probably responsible.

As much as I disliked Iaccoca, and his management style, he did know how to push the sizzle. When the new “K” cars came out, and they were priced and optioned way too high, he immediately cut costs, made some things “standard” and in general got the price down to a more palatable level. Even then, sales weren’t going as well as they had projected. So he made some commercials where he starred in them. He didn’t sell the cars, he sold the things ABOUT the cars, and lo and behold, they did start to move. More than one customer was heard to remark that “we are gonna buy one of these because Lee said they were good.” So it was and so it should be right now.

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]]> By: DaveAdmin http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/2009/09/12/gm-does-it-right/comment-page-1/#comment-77864 DaveAdmin Tue, 15 Sep 2009 18:47:19 +0000 http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/?p=857#comment-77864 Oh, I don't think people give a toss for gas mileage, in general, now. I think when prices go up again with the restarting of the economy, then Chrysler will be happy Fiat's cars are there. What I don't understand is why 90% of the pundits believe people really care about gas mileage, especially when it doesn't help Chrysler to have the best-mileage minivan or, AFAIK, full size pickup. Likewise, I don't get this whole line about "no desirable vehicles until 2011" that gets parroted. The 2009 Ram is less than ONE YEAR OLD and it's still the BEST pickup out there, though Ford's inferior-mileage F-150 gets the headlines with its "20% more efficient than our last POS." And that's another example of Chrysler not getting any message across. Oh, I don’t think people give a toss for gas mileage, in general, now. I think when prices go up again with the restarting of the economy, then Chrysler will be happy Fiat’s cars are there.

What I don’t understand is why 90% of the pundits believe people really care about gas mileage, especially when it doesn’t help Chrysler to have the best-mileage minivan or, AFAIK, full size pickup.

Likewise, I don’t get this whole line about “no desirable vehicles until 2011″ that gets parroted. The 2009 Ram is less than ONE YEAR OLD and it’s still the BEST pickup out there, though Ford’s inferior-mileage F-150 gets the headlines with its “20% more efficient than our last POS.” And that’s another example of Chrysler not getting any message across.

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