Finding the NEW GM

[Bruce Nunnally]

Lutz regales audiences with bureaucratic horror stories, like the one about the engineer who designed Cadillac ashtrays that met an ancient standard that they operate at -- 40 degrees, but were so rigid they could barely be opened. "GM had a zillion regulations that products had to meet," says Lutz. "Fritz hates to waste time and believes in a lean organization. He looks at the data and then decides."

Sometimes Henderson's speedy decision-making inflicts casualties, and earlier this year Lutz took a hit. Lutz had decided that the Australian-made Pontiac G8 sedan should be renamed the Chevrolet Caprice, since the Pontiac brand was being discontinued. But while Lutz may have decided, Henderson hadn't. He griped publicly that "there's way too much speculation" about the car, and noted, as an aside, "Bob Lutz says a lot of things, but he works for me." Lutz quickly backpedaled. In his blog on GM's FastLane website, he announced, "The G8 will not be a Caprice after all." Summing up the episode later, Lutz said, "I said yes, Fritz said no. It was a 48-hour job."

Fortune