Tesla is an absolute darling of the media. The way it conducts business, its outspoken CEO Elon Musk and it’s undeniable achievements make for good stories. The Tesla Model 3 is proof pudding of this.
Through it all, General Motors remains unphased and plans to keep course with a “slow and steady wins the race” mantra. Forbes recently penned a report surrounding the Model 3 hyper versus the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV’s rather silent marketing message. While Musk plans for 20,000 Model 3 deliveries in the month of December, GM is moving a little over 1,500 Bolt EVs per month, per July sales data.
GM recently idled its Orion assembly plant, which it says it not in response to slow Bolt EV sales, but rather slow Chevrolet Sonic sales. Indeed, the subcompact hatchback and sedan have had a difficult time finding driveways in the current market.
Jim Cain, Chevrolet Business and Dealer Communications, responded to the Model 3 production ramp up and said, “Tesla is certainly a unique company with a lot going for it. Let me respond…where is the 238-plus mile EV from Toyota, Honda, Fiat-Chrysler, Nissan, Hyundai-Kia, Nissan, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Mercedes, BMW, Volkswagen, Mazda, et al?”
GM is clearly measuring its success against traditional automakers, but might that be a long-term downfall? Sure, Tesla has a rough road ahead, but it’s gotten this far. Is underestimating the underdog a smart move?
Comments
GM sold almost 2,000 Bolts in July. The story was right in one respect. Tesla get ALL the Media Hype
I’d like to see a “sporty” electric car from GM to add some excitement. The Bolt was a huge win for GM in more than one way but they shouldn’t rest on that. Make an electric Chevy Cruze hatch (just an example) and give it brisk acceleration, doesn’t have to be Model S ludicrous fast but something to match the coming competition from other brands. We know SUVs are in hot demand and those should be focused on too. I’m a big fan of GMs cars and design but I think they’re moving too slow in some areas and playing it safe. Barra & Co cleaned up GM well in financial terms (which was helped by the auto boom and SUV craze) and should try something more risky. An electric Chevy Cruze hatch or whatever wouldn’t rake in the $$$ but would get some more people talking. I think the added brand recognition and PR will be important during the market slow down. When sales pick back up increased awareness of GM could help take market share from competitors
Mary, has done fine on Finance, and most products. What GM really lacks is a productive P/R Dept. They have won awards and they are not being used in marketing. I get 2 video’s Monday – Friday a day from Auto News with almost no GM product news. Lots of P/R from most other Auto manufacturers.
Yeah. Bolt should have kept the Volt styling. Volt is a much nicer looking car.
However, GM is not going to sell many Bolts if its dealership network doesn’t buy into these cars.
I’ve had multiple stories of people going to dealers looking for a Bolt only to be lead by the sales people to other cars, or the sales person being totally unknowledgeable about the Bolt.
i don’t buy the hype that tesla is smarter than everyone else and the rest of the auto industry are a bunch of troglodytes.
that requires a leap of faith that defies common sense.
Its not really about being smarter, its about being committed. GM makes its money selling ICE cars and has only been making hybrid cars as compliance cars. The 450,000 people who signed up for the model 3, sight unseen, let GM, et. al. realise that there is a market for cheaper EVs. That’s really the only reason they’re getting into the EV space, but they’re still not committed. Tesla, on the other hand, has no choice. It ONLY makes EV so its got to get people to buy them. So they have to be compelling cars (visually sexy, fast, decent range, etc.)
Chevy give up on trying to compete with Tesla. Your competition is with Leaf and Prius. Tesla is in its own class.