3 ms·
The other replies are all correct. The EV1 debacle earned them a bad reputation (plus their bad reputation in general from decades of substandard, unreliable p
by Grishnakh 10y ago
The other replies are all correct. The EV1 debacle earned them a bad reputation (plus their bad reputation in general from decades of substandard, unreliable products compared to the Japanese, plus their more-recent ignition switch fiasco resulting in many deaths), the general lackluster reputation of the Big 3, and the looks.
It's pretty sad really. If GM sold the tech to some Japanese automakers and they built cars with the exact same drivetrain but more attractive bodies (and likely nicer interiors; GM isn't known for great interiors either) and the promise of Japanese reliability, these things would probably be selling like hotcakes.
Perception and reputation are important things.
- hx87 10y agoGM interiors are actually quite good now, but it takes a while to reputationally recover from making cheap, tacky, rattle-prone pieces of crap from 1969 to ~2008.
- Grishnakh 10y agoI'll admit they're a lot better than they used to be, but the GM rental cars I've had since 2008 haven't been all that great. For instance, they still have the idiotic put-everthing-you-can-on-a-single-stalk mentality instead of putting lights and wipers on separate stalks like the Japanese. A friend of mine has a 2010 Impala and the interior in that is still pretty lame, and worse it's inflicted with the common problem that GM cars had for a whole decade where the cheapo vent control motors would break a gear tooth and make clicking noises.