GM reveals the car that will drive them out of trouble

The Chinese word for crisis is made up of two characters: danger and opportunity. This is because some cultures believe that both words mean the same thing. Now, unless you have been living under the only known tree in the Kalahari desert, or you are related to the former Iraqi information minister, you would have already heard that General Motors is in crisis. To avoid pointing out the painfully obvious, let’s not dwell on the danger part for now and head straight into the opportunity. But first a background.

When GM came in to the Philippines in July, 1997, there was a lot of fanfare as the company wooed buyers with more choices than an SM foodcourt. In just one dealership, you could buy a luxury European brand like Opel, or the sporty Subaru, the groundbreaking (literally) Chevrolet Suburban and even a Suzuki at one point. The company meant well, of course, but in effect, their enthusiasm had managed to create their very own "battle of the brands" within their own showroom floors and planted the seeds for civil war. It would later be referred to as the "war of the choices".

There was a lack of focus (don’t get excited, Ford, there’s no pun intended) Buyers started complaining of poor service and a lack of spare parts. "There were too many brands, sourced from too many countries to keep a realistic inventory of spares. Plus the Euro kept strengthening," said John Thomson, Director of ASEAN Sales, in a moment of complete honesty. He was absolutely right, too — just ask any owner of an Opel who felt that the turn around time for an average repair was slower than a US visa application; resale values began suffering and the company was officially in crisis. An identity crisis.

This is of course separate to the global crisis that GM is going through in North America.

Drastic times call for drastic measures, and if GM was going to turn this all around, they would have to grab the problem by the scruff of the neck — or the bow tie in this case — and re-invent themselves. They did. In case you haven’t noticed yet, gone are the old GM Auto world dealerships that sold everything but the kitchen sink, and in sails the new GM, flying just one corporate flag proudly from their showrooms. "We needed to tighten up our operations in the Philippines," John Thomson continued fluently during a private interview with The STAR at the Thailand International Motor EXPO. "We understand that we made some mistakes in the Philippine market and we are working tirelessly to reverse that. This is the first step. We will source our products from within the region to ensure competitive and stable pricing and to avoid ever having a repeat of the parts famine that you have referred to. We will do this by focusing solely on building one brand: Chevrolet."

John takes a swig of his Diet Coke and braces himself for the battery of questions I have lined up. "How can you reassure the Filipinos of your commitment. This is not the first time Opel has loved us and left us," I ask with no hostility in my tone. John answers straight, with sincerity and no PR sugar coating laced around his words. "We are in the Philippines for the long haul. We’re not going anywhere." That statement doesn’t print as well as it was delivered and may not satisfy our bureaucrats, but it holds a lot more weight than any of the empty promises our government has ever given GM. Remember, there are always three sides to every story, and as much as we want to get on our high horse and make GM beg to regain our confidence and patronage, the same can also be said in reverse. We also need to do our bit. It’s a two way street. It’s a long story for another place and time but I mention it only to add perspective to the problem; we are not completely free from sin, either...

After a few teething problems, GM is now on the road to a bright future — and they believe the Optra is the vehicle that will get them there. Funnily enough, if GM is facing a global crisis, somebody forgot to memo the guys in the Rayong plant in Thailand. Either that, or they are operating under that only tree in the Kalahari desert. A world class facility modeled after GM’s plant in Eisenach, Germany, which was ranked as one of the most efficient automotive facilities in the world, the Rayong plant has yet to be able to cope with its soaring production demand, despite setting an automotive industry record of working over 40 million man hours without a single day lost. A brand new USD $66 million painting facility is currently being constructed just to attempt to cope with the growing demand.

It is here where the Optra is born. And it was here where our 300 kilometer journey would begin, winding through the breathtaking scenes of the provincial Thai countryside driving the latest iteration of GM Philippines’ best selling model, the Optra Estate. Or wagon, as it will come to be known over here. Most of the Optra is familiar, of course, because essentially, it is the same vehicle we get at home just with the added practicality of a wagon. It uses the same 1.6-liter E-Tec II DOHC engine that churns out a modest 107 hp@5,800rpm, but GM promises us better fuel consumption with this new variation despite adding on an extra 100 kilos to complete the transformation.

Power is all relative and the Optra wagon does well to keep up with traffic and only runs out of breath when driven beyond its intended function. Basically, you can forget about dragging anyone off at the traffic lights, but you can expect perhaps the most isolated and comfortable ride in its class — or price bracket. This for me is where the Optra leads the field. Aside from turning to the gurus at Porsche to sort out a few handling quirks, the Optra wagon has been re-engineered to provide the quietest possible ride and features the unique Euro-Ride Tuning Suspension shock absorbing system, which is said to be specially designed to accommodate load distribution for any road condition.

On the twisted, cambered mountain roads that led to the Kirimaya resort in Thailand’s largest national park, the Optra remained beautifully balanced and remarkably comfortable throughout the four hour drive. The cabin remains the roomiest in its class and the choice of materials gives it a very bright and airy feel. It is also the first car in its class to offer a compact cool box conveniently located in a front compartment. There’s no word from GM Philippines, however, as to whether this will be included in our local models.

Some of the early model Optras suffered from some minor quality issues. GM quickly addressed this by providing a comprehensive, two year free maintenance package with every Optra sold. The drive away, no-more-to-pay scheme catapulted the Optra to number three in its class, with 2005 being its strongest year yet. Since then, it has gone from strength to strength, and is still enjoying steady sales and an improving customer rating. Another concern was fuel consumption. GM Thailand has claimed to have improved on this, although in fairness, I cannot comment because we didn’t need to fill up, nor were we driving frugally.

Lastly, the service. By streamlining operations in the Philippines, and focusing solely on the Chevrolet brand, GM promises a dramatic improvement in parts inventory and quality of service. For the Optra, the main hub for parts would come from Thailand with little to no delay for most common parts. And as far as the strength of the brand in the Philippines? "Like a rock," I was told by one proud GM executive. "Asia has built up an immunity from the troubles that face GM in North America. We are the fastest growing market right now and are run almost autonomously from North America — which is what insulates us. We are constantly growing and improving. Our goal is to build enough cars to accommodate the insatiable appetite people have built up for our products," John Thomson added.

The unique selling point of the Optra is that it will be the only wagon to be sold locally. Ironically, it replaces the only other one to be sold — the Astra wagon. Oh, and the Suzuki Esteem. And then there was the Omega... And a Subaru? All GM products. But this will be far better supported than its orphaned cousins. Personally, I think it looks even better than the sedan. With the new grill and sleek Pininfarina design, I can see this family wagon heading down tuner row for some nasty upgrades, too. As gas prices continue to rise and with today’s active lifestyles still demanding more from their vehicles, the Optra wagon fills a huge void in the local line up. It promises the convenience and economy of a sedan with the versatility of a wagon.

And if Chevrolet ever comes out with the 2.0 liter sport version... We’ll be there!