\n<\/p>\n
By P<\/em><\/strong>eter M. DeLorenzo<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019ve been an inside-outside observer, charting the comings and goings, documenting the exceptional highs and the excruciating lows. Let\u2019s face it, at times this industry has been overrun by a kaleidoscope of dunces, with a rotisserie of rubes spitting out mediocrity at every turn. Fortunately, the spineless weasels and recalcitrant twerps who have done their level best over the years to bring this industry down to a mind-numbing cadence of lowest-common-denominator thinking have been superseded and overcome by legions of True Believers, men and women who care deeply about what they do and take pride in everything they do. If it weren\u2019t for them, this industry would have already been relegated to the dustbin of history, a smoldering hulk by the side of the road.<\/p>\n Twenty-six years ago,\u00a0when I became tired of what the ad biz had become, tired of the ass kissers and the other two-bit players who had turned what was once a pretty interesting profession into a vapid wasteland, I knew I had to do something different. I had also grown tired of seeing the auto business \u2013 as practiced here in Detroit \u2013\u00a0sink further into the Abyss of risk-avoidance-driven mediocrity, and watching legions of so-called “executives” make horrendous, piss-poor decisions day after day on behalf of their respective auto companies.<\/p>\n As I watched the carnage unfold around me, I knew that something had to be said by someone who had firsthand knowledge of what was going on \u2013\u00a0someone who was in the trenches and on the front lines of the ongoing battle. That someone turned out to be me.\u00a0And Autoextremist.com became my forum to say it.<\/p>\n I originally envisioned Autoextremist as a concept for a new car magazine back in 1986. The print version of Autoextremist was going to target hard-core enthusiasts, while telling it like it is with a distinctive, combative style. It would also be the first enthusiast car publication that wouldn\u2019t accept advertising.<\/p>\n The state of the enthusiast car mags back then was a dismal parade of sameness that left me cold, and I was determined to breathe some life into the genre (and it is different today, how? \u2013WG). But my ad career got in the way, and by the time I looked up it was the late spring of 1999, and I knew that if I didn\u2019t do it then, I\u2019d never do it \u2013\u00a0so the time was finally right for creating Autoextremist. The Internet, of course, would replace the print magazine idea, but the essence of my original manifesto written back in 1986 remained unchanged.<\/p>\n And that’s how this publication and “The High-Octane Truth” came about, whether people were ready for it or not. A lot has changed about this business over the ensuing years, but, as I am continually reminded, a lot hasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n The past 26 years have been a journalistic rocket ride like no other. When we started this publication back on June 1, 1999, there was no real plan other than that I was ready to recount a lifetime of automotive history that began in Detroit\u2019s heyday, combine that with my life\u2019s work in the auto advertising and marketing trenches, and blow the lid off of the status quo in a business that had become petrified and jaded.\u00a0I was going to tell the real stories and name the real names, and I wasn\u2019t going to hide behind the usual journalistic chestnuts of \u201cdeep background\u201d and \u201coff-the-record\u201d sobriquets. I was going to make people accountable in a business in which\u00a0not<\/em>\u00a0being accountable had become a cottage industry.<\/p>\n Back when we started AE, the car business as writ large here \u2013\u00a0this once-glorious, exuberant business that created The Arsenal of Democracy and made up the fabric of American industrial might \u2013\u00a0had become overrun with bloodsucking parasites and hordes of \u201cI-am-going-to-do-the-absolute-minimum-I-can-do-to-get-by\u201d super drones.<\/p>\n This industry that once boasted industrial giants who roamed the earth creating fabulous machines while leaving heroic legacies in their wake had been reduced to a mewling chorus of sycophants making excuses for what couldn\u2019t be done and why \u201cthey\u201d \u2013 aka Detroit \u2013\u00a0couldn\u2019t compete, while churning out mind-numbing, rolling monuments to mediocrity that drove millions of consumers away, for good.<\/p>\n Watching Detroit\u2019s collective market share do a pirouette into The Darkness was not so much sobering as it was frightening, and my writings took the fight to these purveyors of boneheaded excuses and feckless mediocrity and changed the conversation forever.<\/p>\n I challenged every single convention and exposed the excuse-making machines that the car company PR functions had become, and turned this business on its ear, which was, in reality, much harder to do than it sounds now.<\/p>\n In thinking about the relationship between the press and the auto companies back then, there was no news or opinion of any substance, just rote regurgitation of the auto company press releases with an occasional \u201ctough\u201d question thrown in for good measure. And if it was too \u201ctough\u201d an editor would get \u201cthe call\u201d and be taken to the proverbial woodshed by the Chief PR minion because, well, you know, it just wasn\u2019t done. And for their penance the offending scribes would be denied access to a top executive \u2013 especially the CEO \u2013 which at the time was akin to the death penalty. Without access they wouldn\u2019t be able to distinguish themselves in the debilitating dance of predictability that the industry press corps had become. Without access, they were pretty much dead.<\/p>\n But the key differentiator for me was that I didn\u2019t care about access, because I not only knew the Detroit auto executive mindset intimately, inside and out, I had it down cold. I knew what they thought and why they were thinking it. So much so in fact, that on more than one occasion \u2013 okay, make that more times than I can even recall over the past two-and-a-half-plus decades \u2013 I heard comments from top executives that went something like this: \u201cI don\u2019t know who you\u2019re talking to, or where you\u2019re getting your information, but it\u2019s so uncannily accurate that it is scary.\u201d<\/p>\n In fact, it was so disconcerting to the car company PR minions that it struck fear into their very hearts and kept them awake at night. And as they watched their digital clocks tick over with a sickening thud in the middle of the night, the prayers that could be heard in the darkness sounded achingly similar: \u201cI hope he stops. Or starts writing about somebody else. Or gets hit by a truck, whichever comes first, Dear Lord.\u201d But those prayers fell on deaf ears.<\/p>\n I am gratified to say that Autoextremist.com changed the tone and tenor of the media coverage of this business once and for all. There are members of the esteemed \u2013 cough, hack \u2013 media who scoff at this notion, but it\u2019s painfully true. And by the way, countless imitators and wannabes sprang up and are still springing up to this day. I have had writers attempt to copy my style while brazenly calling it their own, and I\u2019ve even had Internet trolls blatantly steal my copy and post it on their websites thinking no one would notice. But we did, and others did too.<\/p>\n But it didn\u2019t really matter in the end, because the voice \u2013 and the impact \u2013\u00a0of Autoextremist.com rang loud and true, and has been powerful for, as hard as it is to believe \u2013\u00a026 years now \u2013\u00a0and the imitators and freeloaders slunk away back under the rocks from whence they came.<\/p>\n I walked away from car advertising because the relationship between the car companies and their ad agencies had become so polluted that it was too embarrassing for words, a sickening dance of egregious malfeasance that was an insult to the craft, on both sides of the ball. What had once been a pretty damn great way to make a living \u2013 one filled with bristling creativity and collaborative excellence \u2013\u00a0had deteriorated into a cesspool of go-along-to-get-along cowardice and \u201cthank you, sir, may I have another?\u201d bullshit. The profoundly inept were leading the spineless order takers, and the resulting chaos masquerading as marketing was devastating.<\/p>\n Is it better now? Well, let\u2019s see, two of the three American car companies went bankrupt 16 years ago, with one of those being gifted to a foreign car company because no one else had a better idea about how to save it. But, let\u2019s get back to the question \u2013\u00a0is it\u00a0really<\/em>\u00a0better now?<\/p>\n Yes and no. The products\u00a0are<\/em>\u00a0better, make no mistake about that. In fact, we are experiencing the finest machines in automotive history at this very moment in time. And that is no insignificant thing.<\/p>\n But the romance and art that once fueled this business, and the passion and willingness to do great things and strive for excellence that took it to lofty heights, are now confined to the thriving pockets of True Believers spread out among the car companies. These are the people who keep the passion of this business alive and who stay true to their beliefs against overwhelming odds.\u00a0Because in reality this \u201cnew\u201d auto business has been defined by the deal makers and the interloping carpetbaggers hell-bent on maximizing their balance sheets while embracing commoditization and globalization. The art of the machine means less than zero to them and has become irrelevant, and the art of this business is dying with it. And it\u2019s sad.<\/p>\n As I\u2019ve said repeatedly, this business isn\u2019t for the faint of heart. And though it seems that there are legions of recalcitrant twerps and two-bit hacks running around out there who add nothing of import to the discussion and who pump up their self-worth for reasons that remain a mystery, the real essence of the business remains unsullied.<\/p>\n When we first contemplated doing Autoextremist, I wrote a manifesto for what it was and what it was not. And I am proud to say it still resonates today.<\/p>\n Except that isn\u2019t really true, unfortunately. All the bad old habits are still present and accounted for and then some, looming just under the surface. And as much as reasoned, logical and eminently bright executives in charge at these auto companies protest otherwise and insist that \u201cwe don\u2019t do that stuff anymore,\u201d that kind of bad behavior is just one bad product or marketing decision away from rearing its ugly head, and usually at the most inopportune time too.<\/p>\n From the very beginning we exposed the go-along-to-get-along, kick-the-can-down-the-road hordes on a regular basis, because the damage they cause can bring these companies to their knees in a heartbeat.\u00a0<\/p>\n A key point in the Autoextremist Manifesto? Mediocrity \u2013 in any way, shape or form \u2013 isn\u2019t bliss. Instead, it\u2019s an insidious disease that has not only decimated this industry, it has screwed up life as we used to know it too.<\/p>\n At some point this business \u2013 and American life \u2013 turned down the wrong path. Pushing the envelope, getting knocked down and picking yourself back up and going at it again, battling to the buzzer, and striving for achievement were part and parcel of the upward trajectory of the automobile business \u2013 and country \u2013\u00a0we used to live in. Achieving greatness wasn\u2019t just a goal, it was an expectation to shoot for, because anything less would be, well, ordinary. And even worse, boring.<\/p>\n Today, this business has too often given way to an unspoken attitude of just doing enough to get by because when it comes right down to it, judging by the chorus of muttering I hear, doing more begs the question, \u201cDoes it really make all that much difference?\u201d Fundamental accountability has been replaced by \u201cIt\u2019s not my problem.\u201d And \u201cIt\u2019s okay, at least you tried\u201d has become more than just an acceptable phrase, but a mantra that too many people live by. After all, when everyone gets a group hug and a trophy just for showing up, why bother extending effort to do better, or achieve greatness, or strive to be the best?<\/p>\n Why bother, indeed.<\/p>\n The result? Abject mediocrity. And it\u2019s everywhere. It\u2019s in this business and it\u2019s rampant throughout the country. Some people have actually said to me (and with a straight face too), \u201cGet over it, it\u2019s the world we live in today.\u201d But I\u2019m not buying it, and it is simply unacceptable to me, which is why I will continue to call people and companies out on it whenever and wherever I see it. It\u2019s not a value-added path for this business, and it\u2019s already proven not to be the answer for the country, either.<\/p>\n The stellar machines of our day \u2013 and we are living in the golden age of automotive greatness in case you haven\u2019t noticed \u2013 aren\u2019t the product of \u201cit\u2019s good enough.\u201d Instead, these machines bristle with the passion, vision and commitment of the men and women who created them, those \u201cTrue Believers\u201d that I often write about. If it weren\u2019t for them, this business would be riding on the Last Train to Nowhere, next stop, Oblivion.<\/p>\n But, unfortunately, the harsh reality of this moment is that arbitrarily applied tariffs \u2013 with no rhyme or reason \u2013 are threatening to destroy the American auto industry as we know it, and if these tariffs are allowed to proceed unencumbered and without any shred of common sense, it won\u2019t matter what the \u201cTrue Believers\u201d believe in and do, this business will be toast.<\/p>\n That said, to say that Autoextremist.com has been a labor of love doesn\u2019t even begin to cover it. It has been my passion \u2013\u00a0and my life \u2013\u00a0for 26 years. And make no mistake, the time hasn\u2019t flown by either, far from it, in fact. I have lived every single moment of it, and every bit of it is seared in my memory.\u00a0<\/p>\n Suffice to say that you have no idea of the time, effort and energy that it has taken to deliver the Bare-Knuckled, Unvarnished, High-Octane Truth to you every week for 26 years now.\u00a0And if you knew, I mean\u00a0really\u00a0<\/em>knew, few of you would comprehend and even fewer of you would even begin to understand. (The commitment? It\u2019s daunting, as Peter starts writing at 3:00 a.m. most days. -WG)<\/p>\n It has been our blood on these tracks. And it was our unwavering passion and unflinching standards amidst the torrent of mediocrity and just plain dismal behavior on the Internet that stood out. That\u2019s not just us talking, that is the consistent refrain we hear from upper echelon auto executives, members of the media, and from a countless number of our readers out there, week in and week out.<\/p>\n The fact of the matter is that you can go anywhere and read anything about cars on the Internet, but we\u2019re extremely grateful and proud to say that the best and the brightest come here.<\/p>\n I go back and forth every time the Anniversary of Autoextremist.com rolls around. How do I really feel about it, what does it all mean, and most important, how much longer will I do it? How much longer\u00a0can<\/em>\u00a0I do it?\u00a0\u00a0And so on.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the reality is, when faced with the real possibility of pulling the plug on Autoextremist.com, I have come to the conclusion that I am not ready to walk away from it. Yes, I will admit that it is a giant pain in the ass sometimes, because we\u2019ve set a high standard here that isn\u2019t conducive to phoning it in, or going through the motions in any way, thank goodness. And those high standards push me to keep bringing the High-Octane Truth to you every single week.\u00a0<\/p>\n And frankly, as the years have passed by, it has helped me sharpen my focus and my thoughts even more, and it has helped me realize that there are no free rides or guarantees in life. I am lucky in that I found something in Autoextremist.com that has kept me motivated and sharp for 26 years. And I truly appreciate the fact that I have it.\u00a0<\/p>\n We\u2019re very proud of what we\u2019ve achieved here, and extremely thankful for the support, for\u00a0the kind words and for all of the True Believers we\u2019ve met along the way.<\/p>\n It has been all-encompassing. It has been tough. And it has been, at times, soul-sucking exhausting. But if I had a do-over, I would do it all over again.\u00a0Because even though it has been a relentless grind, I am very proud to say that we\u2019ve made a difference and we\u2019ve made a lasting impact. We set out to influence the influencers in this business and that is\u00a0exactly<\/em>\u00a0what we did and will continue to do.<\/p>\n It has been one glorious ride.<\/p>\n WordGirl and I thank you for listening and, as always, thanks for reading.<\/p>\n And that\u2019s the High-Octane Truth on our 26th\u00a0Anniversary.<\/p>\n Editor\u2019s Note:\u00a0On June 1, 1999, Peter signed off Rant Number One with the following:\u00a0“Welcome to autoextremist.com.\u00a0It’s gonna be one helluva ride.” Well, 26 years and 1298 issues later, I can confirm that it has, indeed, been just that. So much has changed in this business that it is almost unrecognizable from that June day, but shift the lens just slightly and you can find so much that is exactly the same. Equal parts exhilarating and exasperating. That pretty much describes The High-Octane Truth, as brought to you by AE. Thank you to our loyal readers – thanks for joining us on this truly incredible ride.\u00a0Also, Peter is stepping away from the site for a few weeks due to a serious medical issue. He will be updating other parts of the site \u2013 \u201cOn The Table,\u201d \u201cFumes\u201d and \u201cThe Line\u201d – but we will be re-running some of his most-requested columns in the meantime.\u00a0-WG<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Peter M. DeLorenzo Detroit.\u00a0It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It has been, on occasion, an up-at-dawn, pride-swallowing siege (thank you, Cameron Crowe). In an industry consumed by the Swirling Maelstrom each and every day, I have been consumed in a relentless, 24\/7 pursuit bringing the High-Octane Truth to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[105588,105590,105591,105593,105589,5477,105592],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-277645","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-anotherthing","tag-autoextremist-com","tag-bareknuckled","tag-highelectron","tag-rants","tag-truth","tag-unvarnished"],"yoast_head":"\n