Sneek Peek

General Motors Corp.'s recovery program isn't all about job reductions, plant closings and health-care cost cuts.

There's a fourth prong in the game plan: product development.

And to get the word out that there's a lot of new, more competitive iron in the pipeline, GM last month began quietly ushering media, dealers, analysts and others through the Design Dome at its Warren, MI, tech center, where it is displaying a portion of the 25 or so vehicles it plans to roll out over the next 30 months.

In addition to a dramatically restyled Saturn portfolio that was partially revealed last year, product plans include new fullsize pickups and SUVs, all-new Lambda-platform based cross/utility vehicles, revamped Chevrolet Malibu and Cadillac CTS and new rear-drive cars, as well as a number of vehicles about to hit the market, such as the Pontiac Solstice roadster and retro Chevrolet HHR CUV.

What GM hopes to prove to visitors is that it is betting its future on more than big SUVs and pickups. It is trying to show it is moving away from bland styling and that it has a better grasp on how to delineate its myriad brands. That includes a firmed-up strategy for its merging Buick-Pontiac-GMC showrooms that calls for little or no product overlap between the three marques.

If the 20 cars, trucks and CUVs on display are any indication, GM is putting much of its future design focus on interiors, an area that has been the target of considerable criticism for their stodgy design, poor choice of materials and sometimes substandard fit and finish.

Interiors on display for several car and truck models feature Audi-like treatment of gauge clusters and surface finishes. Instrument panels are slimmed down and tucked in neatly, thanks to top-deploying (rather than front-deploying) passenger airbags.

Even truck interiors feature luxury car-like tailoring, with a mix of wood and aluminum accents; bold, stylistic gauges with tasteful graphics; and oversized buttons and controls for ease of operation. There even are a couple unique, elegant touches involving wood trim and cupholders not seen elsewhere.

The truck models also feature bigger wheels and wheel housings (GM's current SUVs accommodate wheels up to 20 ins.), answering another frequent complaint.

In both interior and exterior designs, GM has put greater emphasis on distinguishing the brands. That is most evident in three versions of the upcoming Lambda-based CUVs displayed, with the Buick model's more rounded, voluptuous sheet metal separating it from the traditional SUV-look of the Saturn and GMC renditions.

GM has invested heavily in the GMT900 vehicles. Still, executives say they realize the market may be topped out and under pressure from new competition, and they believe they have their bases covered with the upcoming lineup of new CUVs and passenger cars.