Everybody and their uncle is linking to this NYT essay, but it seems a bit half-baked to me. If the author is seriously trying to argue that an American car company could remake itself as completely green, making only hybrids and low-emission diesel cars, in today’s market, and not become a "niche player," well, he’s nuts. I think American automakers have adopted a disastrously brown strategy over the last 20 years, but turning in a new, greener direction is going to take time, thought, and care.
On a related note, it’s too bad the auto industry isn’t more competitive, such that a niche company making exclusively green cars could get off the ground.
