Electric vehicles…the future.

0:00 Speaker 1 The automobile industry a lot of transition going on with us today. Is Bob Lutz. And Bob is a Swiss and American automobile executive. For many, many years, he has worked with all three automobile companies. He was executive vice president and board member of the Ford Motor Company. He was a vice chairman and board member of the Chrysler

0:26 Corporation and a vice chairman of General Motives. So I think that nobody knows automobile is better than mister Lutz. Mister Lutz, we’re talking about the future of automobiles. Are we ever going to have a flying automobile like we used to watch in the Jetson show?

0:48 Speaker 2 I don’t think so. Too many problems, and with today’s technology, the dangers of people flying around would be just too great, even if they’re fully autonomous. So I don’t think we have to worry about flying cars for another twenty years or.

1:07 Speaker 1 So, well, twenty years, I hope I live that long. But we used to watch it in the cartoons in the early days. It seems right. It seems now that the government has decided they should go towards the automobile industry, towards electric vehicles, and I know the Toyota chairman has said that Toyota is going to continue to make all four.

1:38 They’re going to continue to make gas powered, electric powered, hyper powered, and diesel because they want their consumer to make the decisions. The Ford Company has said that they are going to go to a combination gasoline and electric versus all electric. How do you feel the automobile industry should handle this over the next five ten years.

2:09 Speaker 2 Well, the automobile industry has to obey government regulation, whether that’s in Europe, China, or the United States. And the government fuel economy rules in Europe they’re called CO two emission rules, but it amounts to the same thing, are such that they basically cannot be met without broad scale electrification.

2:35 So what we’re seeing is electrification that could occur naturally, because there’s a lot to be said for electric vehicles, but right now it’s being forced by governments for environmental reasons understood.

2:55 Speaker 1 Of the I used to know a few of these CEOs. I knew Coca in the Chrysler days. And who do you think the best CEO of all the three companies?

3:06 Speaker 2 Now? As I look back, I wrote a book on this called Icons and Idiots, which basically describes the many strange personalities that I’ve worked for. And Leiah Coca was a controversial personality, very autocratic, but also highly intelligent and very action oriented. And I would have to say, despite all his faults, Leiah Coca was probably the best, the

3:38 best CEO I worked for.

3:40 Speaker 1 And do you dare say who the worst was?

3:46 Speaker 2 Well, there have been some bad ones. But all I can say is read my book and you’ll find out.

3:53 Speaker 1 Tell us about your book so we can get people who read it.

3:56 Speaker 2 Yeah, it’s called Icons and Idiots. It was first published about two or three years ago, No, a little more than that, about ten years ago. But it’s still available and.

4:08 Speaker 1 It’s Icons Idiots by Bob Lutzon. I’m sure it’s available by in Amazon and Bonsan Noble. Absolutely. Now do you know it all? Miss Mary Barra at General Motives, Oh.

4:26 Speaker 2 Sure, I know her well, she used to work for me.

4:30 Speaker 1 Is she a good CEO?

4:33 Speaker 2 She’s an excellent CEO. She’s a you know, not a highly visible, not a highly visible CEO, and she’s very teamoring on it, but she makes sure she gets what she wants. And she’s been extremely successful so far in leading General motors. There can be no argument about that.

4:56 The company is producing excellent products and is extremely profitable, which is the purpose of any automobile company. So I’d have to give her high marks. I never worked for her again. She was under me by a couple of layers when I was there. But she’s doing a good job.

5:18 Speaker 1 Understood. Now, the government has said we want you to make electric vehicles by a certain gate. Do you think our country is ready to do it by that day?

5:33 Speaker 2 Well, the government thinks so, but I don’t think we have enough electricity generating infrastructure, and I don’t think. I think what’s happening here is the regulation is way ahead of the public. The American public is not ready for the broad adoption of electric vehicle. There are may be ten to twelve percent of people who really want an

6:06 electric vehicle, and that’s good, but the remainder still want internal combustion. And what’s going to happen is this transition by twenty thirty is just not going to happen. And what will happen is the government will everybody will continue to make a lot of internal combustion vehicles which sell, and they’ll make electric vehicles, which even now are not

6:37 selling at the pace that everybody would like. So what will happen is the governments both in Europe, China, and the United States are going to have to say, well, we’ll push out the deadline, or if it’s an authoritarian government like China, they’ll just say you either buy an electric vehicle or you buy no vehicle at all. Well,

7:02 that may work in China, but it’s not going to work in the United States or Europe. So what will happen in my judgment is the deadline will get pushed out and pushed out and pushed out and permit the transition to elect to an electric vehicle park to occur.

7:22 Speaker 1 Gradually understood, mister less, We have a minute left. Tell us what you want to tell you all the American people. But tell us what you want to say to all the American people. We got a minute left.

7:38 Speaker 2 I didn’t understand the question.

7:41 Speaker 1 We have one. We have one minute left on the interview. Tell us what you want to tell the American people.

7:47 Speaker 2 You tell us what I want to tell the American people. Yes, I would say, if you’re interested in excellent transportation, silence refinement, hyperer for months, etcetera, etcetera. You should definitely consider an electric vehicle. There is absolutely no reason not to buy one unless you’re a person who makes frequent trips over three hundred or over four hundred miles, in which case

8:17 you shouldn’t. But by all means, consider one and see if you like them.

8:24 Speaker 1 Mister lets thank you again for everything you’ve done for American automobile industry. And you’ve served all three big big automobile companies, and thank you so much. And I’m going to urge people to buy your book. And the name of the book is icon and Idiots, Icon and Idiots.

8:47 I’ve got to read the book to find out which ones are the idiots.

8:50 Speaker 2 And thank you.

8:54 Speaker 1 Thank you so much for calling in to WABC, and we’ll catch up with you again real soon.

8:59 Speaker 2 You’re quite welcome. Thank you very much. Thank you,