GM cancels ugly new Buick SUV. What a concept!

In an astounding move, General Motors Corp. has shelved plans for a new Buick SUV because some potential buyers apparently hated it.

Asking the public for its opinion on a car before it rolls off the assembly line is a bold and innovative concept. Historically speaking, one of the reasons that Detroit has gotten into trouble is that its executives seem to think that they know what the public wants, even when the public doesn't. Witness the decades of look-alike models (Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable), weird bodies (Pontiac Aztec), and bad engineering (Chevrolet SSR).

In the case of the new Buick, General Motors apparently thought that it had a sure-fire hit -- until they actually showed it to people.