Groovy! The GM Beat goes on 

When GM’s Vice Chairman Bob Lutz announced the carmaker would begin production of the Chevy Beat mini car, he noted that more than 1.8 million people voted on which vehicle was their favorite.

The Beat, he told journalists at the Los Angeles Auto Show, pulled out a narrow victory over the Groove. The other concept mini car was named the Trax. Voting began around the time of the New York Auto Show in April.

Good thing the Beat won, Lutz noted, adding, "It’s the vehicle we planned to build from the start."

"I can’t tell you how many GM employees we had to get to vote to make sure," he joked.

Shell shells out free gas

Congress is out of session next week and the Washington Automotive Press Association was having some trouble getting reporters to attend a lunch next Tuesday with Jens Mueller-Belau from Shell Oil Products to talk about future technologies. So Shell greased the wheels, so to speak, by noting in an email "ALERT: Shell will give FREE GAS CARDS to the first 40 members to RSVP for the luncheon."

Although a journalistic no-no and Business Insider declined the offer, Royal Dutch Shell can probably afford to give away some gas — since it made $25.4 billion in 2006.

Background music shifts Focus

On Wednesday, Ford’s new chief marketing officer, Jim Farley, and Ford Americas President Mark Fields took a few journalists on a tour around the automaker’s stand at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Stopping in front of a pimped-out Ford Focus, they started talking about the endless customization options for the entry-level ride.

Farley, who was just snagged from Toyota, where he helped create the youth-oriented Scion brand, said he sees a lot of potential to bring younger buyers to Ford. He had to speak up though — the hip-hop music from the Scion booth nearly drowned out his words.

Auditioning for teacher’s pet

During a dinner Tuesday, Ford CEO Alan Mulally was asked if some comments he made in a recent Automotive News article were true.

"I must have said that, because I believe all the s— I read in the paper," he said, bringing down the house. Then he remembered he was speaking to a group of reporters.

"Great," he said. "I’ll get burned for that, too!"

Later, Mulally was asked what grade he would give himself after his first year on the job. He deftly sidestepped and put his No. 2 on the spot by asking Ford Americas President Mark Fields to answer instead. No stranger to boardroom politics, Fields quickly launched into a long-winded chronicle of all that Mulally has accomplished since coming to Ford last fall.

"You could have just said A-plus, actually," chided Peter Horbury, Ford’s North American design chief.

"Peter, what would you say?" Mulally asked without missing a beat.

"I agree with Mark," Horbury said.

The Chevy Beat concept car, shown at the L.A. Auto Show on Wednesday. GM’s Bob Lutz, front, said 1.8 million votes will mean a production run for the Beat. (Darrel Ellis/ The Detroit News; Detroit News illus)