The smart fortwo has received a lot of attention since it was announced it would be making its way to the U.S. market, but will it be able to live up to the hype? On this edition of Autoline EXTRA, John McElroy speaks with the man in charge of launching the brand in the US, smart USA President Dave Schembri. They discuss what kind of fuel economy can be expected from the fortwo as well the price of the vehicle and much more. Joining John on the panel is Wes Raynal from AutoWeek and Jerome Vaughn from WDET-FM, Detroit Public Radio.

SHORT PEOPLE

In 1978 when Academy Award-winning composer Randy Newman reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 with his tongue-in-cheek song about short people, the "little cars that go beep, beep, beep" he said they drive, it was nothing more than a creation of his fertile imagination. How could Mr. Newman know that the automotive industry was already hard at work designing versions of his imaginary little cars? Yet those vehicles wouldn't take the leap from designs to drivable machines for another two decades when Daimler released what it called "The smart car" and they started to "beep, beep, beep" all over Europe. But as cute and economical as those cars were, there wasn't a market for them in America...that is until now.

2008 saw Automotive Icon Roger Penske bring the smart car to the U.S. shores for the first time. His Penske Automotive Group struck a deal with Daimler and has opened up more than 70 "smart centers" -- or dealerships -- around America, and so far, the reaction has been overwhelming. Before Daimler even started delivering cars to the centers earlier this year, Penske had more than 30,000 orders. Everyone from Publishing Moguls to High School Seniors have taken to Smart. The question is how long will the car stay hot?

The man in charge of those predictions as well as everything smart-related from Connecticut to California visits Autoline this week. Dave Schembri, the President of smart USA at first joins John on set to talk about Smart and its U.S. strategy. And then Dave takes over as he gives John a tour of smart USA's unique headquarters building in suburban Detroit that is built as an appendage to one of those 70+ smart centers.

So get ready to learn about the "little car that goes beep, beep, beep" from the big guy himself.

Also, don't forget to catch Autoline EXTRA--our Internet-only interviews available at our website, http://www.autolinedetroit.tv/.

The troubles at GM have been well documented but a couple of its suppliers have been going through some turmoil as well. Delphi is trying to emerge from bankruptcy and American Axle is involved in an ugly strike with its workers. To share his company’s insight on this issue, General Motors CEO and Chairman, Rick Wagoner joins John McElroy on this edition of Autoline EXTRA.

KING’S GAMBIT

As any veteran chess player knows, "King's Gambit" is a classic move made to protect your center. Nothing charismatic, nothing adventurous…pure nuts-and-bolts practicality. And though running one of the largest corporations in the world is a little different than the chess board, in essence the moves you make have the same objective: to protect the center. And lately, that's a potion of what's been going on at General Motors. With major executive moves paired with product innovations and North American sales slipping to mid-90s numbers, perhaps it's more appropriate in this case to change our title here to "Wagoner's Gambit."

This week an Autoline exclusive--John McElroy goes head-to-head with the King -- in chess terms -- of General Motors, Rick Wagoner. The Chairman and CEO of arguably the world's largest car company sat down with John this week at GM's Global Headquarters in downtown Detroit to discuss everything from personnel shifts to new product to the uncertain economy.

Join John as he angles to discover the next "moves" Rick Wagoner plans to make as he continues to protect "his center" -- General Motors.

Also, don't forget to catch Autoline EXTRA--our Internet-only interviews available at our website, http://www.autolinedetroit.tv/.

The new COO of Bentley Motors, Christophe Georges, is the guest on this edition of Autoline EXTRA. He discusses the differences between American and European customers and how to satisfy their different needs. And Mr. Georges also discusses what Bentley must do to keep ahead of other luxury competitors such as Aston Martin, Maserati and Rolls-Royce. Joining John McElroy on the panel is John McCormick of The Detroit News and Keith Naughton of Newsweek.

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