car design thread

Two of my former bosses were responsible for the ‘59 Cadillac. They told me when they would drive the convertible version you always thought there was something creeping up on you.

 

And the design story continues:

Never a Dull Moment — Part 17


Pressure? What pressure?

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President Ronald Reagan and GM Chairman Roger Smith. Source via the author.

Roger Smith was so proud of the potential for Saturn, he decided to invite the then President of the United States, Ronald Reagan for a look. Among my multitude of responses was: seriously? The President? Well now, that won’t make us too visible, will it? No flying under the radar on this baby. Why don’t they just ask us to stand up sans clothing in front of the whole world and design this thing? OK, then, where do we start?

The Advanced Studios had done a commendable job of priming the design pump by producing several full size clay models as an opening salvo. But as these things usually go, now that we had the attention of everyone watching in anticipation, maybe it would be a good idea to explore other alternatives. Could we do better? We were about to find out.

Irv Rybicki and Chuck Jordan wanted the Saturn team to more or less start over now that everyone was serious about the programme. The plan was to have a four-door Sedan and a 2+2 coupé. With no historical brand DNA to guide us, we embraced my lifelong design philosophy of: “there is only one rule in designing a car; there aren’t any rules.” Since nothing had come before, more or less, we were free to do something that would attempt to live up to all the hype that had been heretofore promised. No small task indeed.

We had made a commitment to what was in our minds, reinventing the wheel, when in fact it was just going to be a compact four-door sedan and a coupé. We were driven, committed and proud in knowing we had the best of everything. All we had to do was fill in the blanks.

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Saturn Sedan/ Saturn Coupé and Roadster. ©GM Design

Behind the scenes, Mr. Rybicki was nearing his mandatory retirement age and the rumor underground went into hyperdrive. Since Chuck Jordan hadn’t been chosen as Bill Mitchell’s replacement, everyone made the assumption that this time it would be his turn at the wheel. The smart money was on Chuck and it was during these periods of leadership transition that things got complicated. ‘Which side are you on?’ questions. My attitude was to keep my head down and focus on the task at hand until the dust settled. Sometimes, more difficult than one might imagine.

The 1986 Eldorado/Seville had been launched to a lukewarm reception, and even though I was engaged in the Saturn experiment, I couldn’t help but feel the pain that Cadillac was going to endure. Ultimately several years later, the Eldo/Seville had a minor facelift, adding to the rear of the Eldo to fix some of the design issues, but too little, too late — the damage had been done and it was to be another wound to the once proud Cadillac brand.

The construction of the Saturn would be a continuation of the plastic bodied Pontiac Fiero process, established several years prior. Plastic panels attached to a metal underbody. No rust, easily repaired/replaced and easily facelifted with new designs. I believed the panel gaps necessary for expansion/contraction were to be a problem, but the consensus was it was a tolerable trade off for the advantages of plastic.

The Saturn Team worked hard to develop a strong visual theme that would be unique and distinctive within the allowable constraints and parameters. Over the course of a year and half we developed the sedan and coupé designs and in October, 1986, Irv Rybicki departed, as mandated. The Corporation then made the announcement naming Chuck as the new VP of GM Design; Harley Earl, Bill Mitchell, Irv Rybicki and now Chuck Jordan.

Within the ranks at the Design Center, Irv had been a controversial choice for the all-important Design VP position. Chuck had believed he would be Mitchell’s successor, but things didn’t work out that way and now that Mr. Mitchell had risen to the top, the sense was that we were in for major changes at Design including personnel moves, design philosophy and a new beginning as far as Chuck Jordan was concerned. He made it clear that fun was going to be an integral part of our jobs again. No more lookalike cars and creativity would reign.

In no time Jordan made significant personnel changes in the design organization. There were retirements and promotions. Chuck wanted to build his own team around his personal design philosophy. Exciting times for sure.

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Full size airbrush Coupe and Roadster. ©GM Design

In the Spring of 1987, John Schinella, Chief Designer Pontiac 2 Exterior Studio which worked on Firebird, Bonneville and Fiero, was slated to be transferred to run the Advanced GM Design Studio in California; which of course meant there would be an opening and an opportunity for a Chief Designer position. So of course I thought why not; I had ten years’ experience, a fancy schmancy Advanced Business Degree and an enthusiasm and passion for design. In my mind I was ready for the next step. Running my own studio.

With that strategy in my head, I wasted no time in contacting Chuck’s admin to make an appointment to let him know my thoughts and to throw my hat in the ring. She made the appointment, saying I could see him on the Friday he was leaving for Europe to attend the upcoming Geneva Motor Show. Armed with all the cool things we had done in Saturn, I was prepared for a conversation about my potential to further the Design Staff mission and be an important part of Chuck’s new team.

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GM Design VP office suite. General Motors Tech Center. ©GM Design.

And then. I walked into that legendary office, once home to Harley Earl, Bill Mitchell and Irv Rybicki; Chuck had his feet up on the glass coffee table with his back to the Tech Center Lake. If these walls could talk, I thought. I proceeded to extol my virtues and explain why I believed I was ready for the next level to become a Chief Designer. I had paid my dues, displayed my talents and skillset and was ready for what I thought was the very important next step.

And then suddenly it all went wrong. Big time. Chuck spent the next ten minutes railing on how I had disappointed him with my performance in Saturn and that the entire Saturn Studio needed to be completely cleaned out. He said he couldn’t have been more disappointed in the cars.

Chuck had hired me and had believed in me and now I had let him down.

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GM Design VP office suite. General Motors Tech Center. ©GM Design.

And then I made a fatal error. I had the temerity to declare that I believed the cars looked great and I would put them up against any small car, anywhere. Period.

I was staring out at the lake thinking this couldn’t be happening and yet here I was receiving the wrath of Mr. Jordan, AKA the ‘Chrome Cobra’. I felt like a piñata at a five year old’s birthday party. It was at that point he gave me ‘the look’ and I knew I was doomed. His comment was, “John, you need to go home and sit in a dark room and think about what you did in Saturn” And with that, the conversation was over.

How could I have been so wrong with my thoughts? Now what had I done? Where would this put me? Should I consider leaving GM and search for employment elsewhere? The drive home that night still resonates to this day.

 

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