With the current economic climate, how will the design of new GM vehicles play into improving the company’s financial outlook?
Design plays a critical role. As a designer, we work three to four years in the future. It’s important to stay focused right now and be as innovative and creative as we can be. We are leading in technology. The Chevrolet Volt is reinventing the automobile. As designers, we embrace technology and make it user-friendly. With the Volt, especially, you have to make it easy to understand — unique enough so the driver knows it’s something different and new, but familiar enough so they can operate it. It has to be flowing, harmonious, and inviting. The entire approach to the Volt is new – definitely a new design era where we see a balance between technology and design. Even though I have not worked on the Volt, all of us at GM Design are excited and inspired by it. Are there any models that will provide practicality, creativity, and cost-effective design elements for drivers? Yes. The Saturn Aura and Chevy Malibu are two great examples of vehicles currently available where we had direct bala
