Talk:Bob Lutz (businessman)/Archives/2013

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Photo

How about a more recent photo?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.146.16.63 (talk) 15:35, 5 May 2010 (UTC)

Languages Does anyone know what languages he speaks? Zurich is a German-speaking town, so I'm going to assume he speaks German. I heard him speaking French on a French radio station last night, and he obviously speaks English. Is this relevant, and should it be added? --Zegoma beach (talk) 14:06, 15 January 2008 (UTC)

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His disdain, or as his says that engineers in the US are taught to be more like managers, annoys me. He seems to look down on technology, for example, saying: "mathematics and modeling" are like pre-packaged and talks of modern computers as detrating (I would say abstracting) from children playing with erector sets and car engines.

He attacks the EPA, by saying its standards discourage people from altering their engines. Seems like he is not a scientist, seems "instictive" conclusion I draw. He uses instictive as lacking in young US boys tinkering, now that erector and car engine tuning are less popular.

Albeit a Swiss, he was a US miltary, seems like a dumb one at that. Just my opionions as a Master in Computer science trained and season professional statistician. This guy is another egomaniacal coprate bigwig, no intelligence, just intuition or instict needed!

Lets comment on some of his comments:

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=1102&e=3&u=/ap/20050412/ap_on_bi_ge/gm_lutz&sid=95616385

Feel free to comment,

Bruce

Bruce,

Here are a few comments:

1. Everything you write above has little or nothing to do with criticism of, or any effort to improve, this Wikipedia entry.

2. "Seems like he is not a scientist." No, he's not. He never claimed he was. He's an automobile executive.

3. I'm confused as to why you cite your background as a "Master in Computer science (sic)" and "a season (sic) professional statistician" to condemn Robert Lutz who, last I checked, was still an automobile executive. Once one fights through your painful writing, the essence of your logic comes perilously close to this: "as an experienced archaeologist, I have doubts about the design of this satellite."

4. You go on to condemn him as a "coprate (sic)" bigwig, and state that "just intuition or instict (sic)" is needed to do his job. Again, to a large degree you are correct, and your "observations" are right in line with both what observers of Mr. Lutz as well as Mr. Lutz himself would likely say. People do not purchase automobiles like automatons, by running a series of statistics or computer models. They buy vehicles they like for various objective and subjective reasons, many of which are based on instinct and gut feeling. Mr. Lutz has proven to be far more successful than most at developing and marketing vehicles. He has also shown an ability to introduce vehicles with design features that were unknown or obscure in mass market vehicles until he introduced them. (The Ford Sierra rushes to mind.) This has often led to success and profits at the "coprations" that employed him. Whether or not any of this appeals to your number-crunchin' and computer-science-masterin' ethos is irrelevant; even way down here after 300 words or so, Mr. Lutz is still an automobile executive. "Borderline illiterate season professional statistician pleaser" does not, nor has it ever, appeared near "Robert A Lutz" on a business card.

5. BTW, your link doesn't work. (In what discipline do you ostensibly have your Masters, Bruce?)

In the future, you might write your comments about a topic you actually understand, and in a language in which you actually have a modicum of fluency.

Regards,

Bob

P.S. "Albeit a Swiss, he was a US miltary, seems like a dumb one at that." Your insult to the U.S. Military did not go unnoticed, nor was it either appropriate or appreciated.

Yeah, he still sucks as an automotive exec. He can sit there and watch General Motors collapse, just like he did while he was at Exide. Fucking elitist money-grubbing out of touch scumbag.

Lutz' four years at Exide are passed over without comment, but should be mentioned. Lutz ignored the heavy load of debt and continuing losses, purchasing GNB to "reduce global battery over-capacity". The resulting debt load resulted inn Exide's filing for bankruptcy protection, and Lutz fled back to the Auto industry. While in fairness Exide was already in poor shape, he did leave the remains of the company in disarray, leaving it to others to clean up the mess and reconstruct a shadow of the former company. It's also arguably not a real "car-guy" company, of course; but the jury is still out on Lutz' purported car-design credentials. All-in-all, a case can be made for Lutz not being the right guy in the right place, car-guy for Wagoner's numbers-guy, to revive GM. Too old, too inflexible, and too few ideas.

Disdain for Prius Design and Ecological Impact of Cars

The article deserves some mention of the topics raised in the NY Times Business section aricle of 05/19/07, GM's Mr. Horsepower has Electric Conversion, regarding the announcement of the GM Volt, where he says that the Toyota Prius was a PR stunt, and that only a few nuts in California care about the ecological impact of cars. Judging by this, it would seem Mr. Lutz is part of what's wrong with American auto industry, i.e. lack of vision and true innovation, as opposed to infantile designs of ridiculously big engines and fat tires to appeal to the ignorant adolescent level mentality.

While this isn't exactly the place for that, I agree. See also Van Jolissaint. --Jnelson09 03:41, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Of course the Prius is a PR stunt. Why else would you ship 100,000 units a year of a vehicle and lose money on every one?

And, a car with a "big engine" and "fat tires" is infantile? OK, What's the rational justification for a hybrid? You pay a huge upfront cost to "save fuel," yet you will never save enough gasoline to make up for the additional upfront cost. Plus, every 100,000 miles you get to spend $1,500 or so on a battery pack, making this an even worse financial proposition.

What's infantile is hybrid owners spending money to save us all from global warming and to save fuel while the adults drive around in our SUVs. You're making no impact on the environment and you're helping to reduce demand for gasoline...which helps keep prices down...which lets me drive my Tahoe farther for less money...which negates your supposed societal hybrid benefits. Lutz sees that you are, in fact, a bunch of nuts, and acts accordingly. Hybrids are less than 1/2 of 1% of the U.S. automobile market: that's a fringe market of irrational people. GM and Lutz are dead on to pay lip service to this enviro crap with the E85 stuff and this low-volume Volt nobody will buy.

I doubt that you NEED a car that big, and you imply that you LIKE wasting money. And you obviously don't think logically. The extra cost would indeed be paid off in time. Now, I wouldn't want this page to become a heated argument, but you're asking for it. --Jnelson09 02:48, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

Its not about need, its about "Freedom of Choice" and all that, right? Who are you to tell anyone what they should or should not drive? It is not your place to tell me or any one else what they should or should not purchase with their own monies.--68.115.80.156 (talk) 03:59, 25 February 2008 (UTC)

Sure it is you asswipe. If you have a history of mental illness, and then express your intention of purchasing a firearm, it is the place of society to prevent you from doing so. You, personally, may not be mentally ill, but you obviously do have a mental inferiority complex, perhaps due to your small penis, so you have to buy an oversized, smog spewing, gas guzzling monster to compensate for it. With gasoline pushing $4.00/gallon, and global warming becoming a bigger concern, I pray to Almighty God that miserable 'people' [sic.] like you are forced into smaller cars.

Nickname

Page needs a reference to his nickname "Maximum Bob" and how he got or why he has that nickname. 12.37.58.228 (talk) 17:34, 13 December 2007 (UTC)

One, wow, two, hmmm

1) Why has this turned into a discussion page on the man and environmental policies? Why hasn't work been done to improve a horribly lacking article?

2) Since we are all in the mood, I propose a "National Bob Lutz Hating Holiday" for Wikipedia, where we deface this article and add references to how horrible a human being he is in others.

And no thats not joking, I am serious. I hate la douchebag. Guy seems to know absolutely nothing about anything except what the world looked like 30 years ago.

Scryer_360 (talk) 17:52, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Hi, he's an auto exec and a human being, imperfect though he is, he does have knack for the auto business. His nickname was Umberto Bigone —Preceding unsigned comment added by 199.197.135.1 (talk) 20:04, 9 December 2008 (UTC)