So Olds is being "phased out." An event that I am of two minds about.
One side is disappointed. The 1904 Curved Dash Olds is arguably the first U.S. production vehicle built. And so it is sad that another page of automotive history will be turned whenever the logistics can be worked out by the folks in the Ren Cen (aka GM Global HQ).
The other notion is "It's about time."
A solid product like the Aurora notwithstanding, Olds has been in an untenable place, an alien place, for some years now: The company's rocket logo brings to mind a terrain from "Star Trek," an ill-defined and almost eerie environment. This is because the brand wizards at GM haven't been able to position the division.
Chevy is bread and butter. Pontiac is excitement. Buick is for those who can't get a Cadillac. Cadillac is for those who still want to believe that they're getting, well, a Cadillac.
What is Olds?
No answer. Soon no division.
If nothing else, I am a proponent of change. Some people claim that I am TOO MUCH a proponent of change. I believe that people who are unwilling to change are those who are destined to find themselves yesterday's news.
But as I think about some of the people whom I know at Olds, people who have both imagination and enthusiam, I realize that sometimes the willingness to change may be there, but the structure is such that it is prohibited.
Will the demise of Olds make GM's not-so-shiny brass take the time to reconsider what really needs to be done, like the fervent embrace of methods that will allow the corporation to truly respond to the market?
