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GM's Electric Car Guru Resigns

 
1,666 views Sep 30, 2009

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Bob Kruse, who formulated General Motors' long-term electric vehicle plans and whose team helped develop the Chevy Volt, has resigned, ending his 31-year career with the company. The 50-year-old Rochester Hills, Michigan, resident has served as GM's executive director of global vehicle engineering for hybrids, electric vehicles and batteries since 2008. His first days with the company were spent as a student co-op in the Buick division.

Kruse will now devote his efforts to E V Consulting LLC., a firm he founded on August 13th, one week after the Big Three were awarded $1.3 billion in federal grants. His new company will help clients qualify for the remaining $1.1 billion in grant money available for next generation battery and EV technology.

Although Kruse left on good terms, he says GM probably isn't happy about it. GM spokesperson, Rob Peterson, echoed the sentiment. "There's no good time to lose good people," said Peterson. "But that said, the Volt team goes way beyond one person."

Industry analysts say the move was predictable, considering the government's new rules for the company's executives. "You can't blame the guy," said Joe Phillippi  of Auto Trends Consulting Inc.. "What is the prospect of ever making serious money...working for a ward of the government, where your pay is capped?"

Kevin Riddell of J.D. Power and Associates powertrain forecasting believes the impact to GM and the Volt program will be minimal.  "I don't think it's really a factor. People come and go all the time," he said.

Kruse will be succeeded by Micky Bly, who has also contributed to the Volt project. Despite the personnel change, GM says the Volt is still planned for a November 2010 release.

Source: The Detroit News





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Comments (2)

  1. By Tim Posted: 10/1/2009 9:47am PDT

    Mr. Kruse just wants to use his new Gov't contacts to help others in the auto industry steal taxpayer money with of course a healthy slice for himself.
    Society is held hostage by Corporatists (Google it) and their crony Progressive redistributionist career politicians. This is obvious and easily demonstrated by the bailouts, Gov’t loans & other Corporate welfare. To big to fail? Yet these tyrants have the gall to blame the heavily regulated Free Market Capitalists.
    These Corporatists and their career politician crones will keep us busy with partisan politics while they play both sides to rape us silly. This has been going on since the Fed was created to help “centrally plan” financial markets. If politicians only honored their oath to the Constitution, this could NOT happen.
    Bob Kruse is SCUM!
     
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  2. By hsr0601 Posted: 10/2/2009 10:23am PDT

    The auto industry should not forget the bitter lesson from its bankruptcy. Automakers pledged change in direction before people and thereby barely received taxpayer's cash, but they are still doing nothing. The current "unsustainable" fuel price, which is projected to go even higher, has gone far beyond a hybrid level again as it did not deter the recession.

    The auto industry needs to leverage the rebates of cash for clunkers as a stepping stone for a fundamental change as promised, not business as usual. I still think the densely populated countries are consuming such incredible natural resources right now that inefficiency as it is is not allowed any more.
     
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