In any form of art, everyone looks back cyclically and there are always revivals, and car design is a form of art. We're young enough where we haven't had an opportunity to cycle through it. We're simply trying to recognize the amount of work that went into those vehicles and the wonderful designs. We're never going to replicate a vehicle from the past, but we may imitate some aspects. We would try to evoke the elegance and the pace of life of past styles. It has to be good unto itself first, and then if it evokes something beyond that, so much the better.
What's going to happen with emissions and fuel-economy regulations, and how do these affect meeting customer needs?Julow: As a company, the concern we have with regulations is that if it somehow doesn't adjust consumer demand, then where are you heading? If you're arbitrarily saying you have to have some magic fuel-economy number but gas is 97 cents a gallon, there's no consistency there. Our concern has been how to shift consumer demand to the product that you'd theoretically like to see built. We have lots of proven technology that does a lot of what you've talked about. We have a Cummins diesel engine on large trucks that is very fuel efficient for that size vehicle, has all the torque you'd ever want for towing or to put payload into, and performs wonderfully. Will it be legal in five years? I don't know.
You have to ask the question, how much do you want to invest in light trucks on diesels in general? I really don't know where the state and federal governments will go, but if they don't have an impact on the primary demand for vehicles, then they are fraught with disaster. Boats aren't downsizing. People aren't downsizing.
Everyone admits that we have to find alternative fuel sources and more efficient powertrains. But it has to be in the context of usage. That's what concerns me the most. We need to work very carefully with the government to make sure that, as regulations are applied, they are balanced against that same set of characteristics.
Lee: Our phase-in plan is so complicated. Not only are there the regulations, but we must have the ability to manufacture what products the customer wants. Product complexity-we're going to this complexity and we're going to be here whether it's what the customer wants or not. The customer's wants and needs are not going to be shut out.
Where do alternative fuels fit into the future?Julow: There are a lot of options out there today that don't require signification revision to lifestyle, such as the variable fuel engines (VFE). These allow you to decide what fuel you want to run. There are some infrastructure issues with that. You can't ask the customer to build infrastructure-he just needs to buy fuel. I'm sure that most of the VFE vehicles aren't running on the fuel they had hoped they would run on. If the gasoline station is right around the corner, you aren't going to drive two counties away to get methanol.
I know I keep harping on diesel engines but it's as good today as it's ever been. Never has there been a better time, from a performance standpoint, to buy a diesel. The Dodge Charger in the auto show was natural gas. To hear it run and to drive it, there's no compromise there and it's easier to get natural gas than methanol. At some point you're going to have vehicles running around without burning gasoline. But in the short term with the practical application, the customer doesn't want to compromise. Why should I have to drive an extra mile or pay an extra dollar for fuel if I don't have to?