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Posts Tagged ‘opel’

GM Looking to be Back in the Black in 2010, Says Whitacre

Automaker also expects to rehire “hundreds” of dealers.

by Paul A. Eisenstein on Jan.06, 2010

Just a year after going through its bankruptcy reorganization, General Motors expects to be back in the black for 2010, or so forecast the carmaker’s chairman. But Ed Whitacre, who is also serving as GM’s acting CEO conceded, “there are some obstacles that could get in the way.”

In his second “media roundtable” since taking on the chief executive’s duties at the end of November, a surprisingly candid Whitacre also acknowledged GM “probably made some mistakes” when it dropped more than 1000 dealers as part of its bankruptcy reorganization. And, as a result, it will likely bring back “hundreds,” he added, through a new, Congressionally-mandated arbitration program.

“It was not a perfect process,” said Whitacre, a former chairman of AT&T. As a result, some good dealers may have been cut and, he added, they will “be good” to get back into the General Motors retail network. But Whitacre also expressed concern that GM not be forced to take back “a lousy dealer…arbitrarily.”

Your Online Auto News Source!

During an hour-long session, GM’s new boss covered a wide range of topics including the search for a permanent CEO, a slot left in limbo by the firing, on November 30th, of former Chief Executive Fritz Henderson. An outside search firm has been overseeing the process and Whitacre said he expects it to brief the GM Board of Directors soon, though he declined to say when a candidate might be selected.

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Tags: auto news, automotive news, car news, ed whitacre, general motors, gm bailout, gm bankruptcy, gm dealers, gm news, gm profit, Hummer, opel, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, Saab Sale, thedetroitbureau, whitacre gm
Posted in Automobiles | No Comments »

The Top Ten Auto Stories of 2009

Bankruptcies, bailouts, recalls, oh what a bad year it was!

by Paul A. Eisenstein on Dec.30, 2009

Brother, can you spare a dime? The jet-setting Detroit Three at hearings: left, fired GM CEO Rick Wagoner, ex Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli, middle, Ford's surviving CEO Alan Mulally, right.

Every December, a group of auto scribes gathers together to share some good cheer and see how we did at predicting the events of the unfolding year. To be honest, even the best of the group failed to come close to calling the big stories of 2009.

No surprise, really, when you consider the strange twists and turns the auto industry has taken during the last 12 months. Even the best fiction writers would have had trouble scripting this plot.

Sure, there were signs that the auto industry was slumping, and that the Detroit’s Three were in trouble, but having both General Motors and Chrysler go bankrupt? And the U.S. government become majority owner of GM, with Italian automaker Fiat controlling Chrysler? And what about Toyota? Twelve months ago, most of us were writing about the fact that the giant Japanese automaker seemed certain to become the world’s largest automaker, finally overtaking troubled GM. So, who could have begun to suspect all the problems that would follow for Toyota in 2009? And what about the unexpected rise of the Chinese?

Top Ten!

But I’m getting ahead of myself. The fact is, there were so many big stories in 2009 it may be impossible to come up with a fair, accurate and complete list of the 10 Top Auto Stories that everyone will agree on. But I’ll try.

And TheDetroitBureau.com would like to encourage readers to come up with the stories they would add to the list. Just go to the Comments section at the end of this story.

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Tags: auto dealers, auto news, automotive news, big 3 bailout, car news, chrysler bankrupt, chrysler dealers, dealers closing, detroit bailout, gm bankrupt, gm dealers, hummer sale, opel, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, Pontiac, pontiac closes, saab sales, saturn closes, thedetroitbureau, top 10 auto stories of 2009, toyota recalls, toyota trouble
Posted in Automobiles | 4 Comments »

National Taxpayers Union Assails GM over Opel

The "illogic" is flawless and could cost you more money.

by Ken Zino on Nov.10, 2009

A successful Opel in Europe, a successful Buick in China, and a natural to come ot the U.S. So why are we against an Opel reorganization?

A successful Opel in Europe, a successful Buick in China, and a natural for the U.S. So why are we against an Opel reorganization?

The National Taxpayers Union (NTU) is urging European governments to reject GM’s request for funding its reorganization of Opel.

This presumably will hasten GM’s demise and increase the chance that taxpayers will loose their entire investment in GM. The latest criticism comes at a time when GM is showing some signs, albeit small ones, of regaining momentum.

The conservative NTU was also an opponent of the original auto bailout plans, and — as a vocal proponent of the “Let GM Fail” ideology, NTU then went on to excoriate GM’s 60-day money back guarantee program, which is actually increasing consideration, sales and contributing positively to the bottom line.

Now NTU Vice President for Policy and Communications Pete Sepp is offering the following comments regarding GM’s Opel restructuring decision. GM’s latest plan has GM retaining Opel instead of selling it off and losing control of vital engineering and design resources.

“In order to do that, GM has requested $4.43 billion in taxpayer bailouts from European governments, including Germany, Poland, the U.K., and Spain. Incredibly, Opel already has $2.23 billion in loans from the German government to keep it afloat,” Sepp claimed.

Well, not quite, Sepp. First off, these are all loans. Back in late May, the German government provided a bridge loan to Opel, which at the time was within days of running out of operating cash. Opel still owes the government about €900 million of €1.5 billion advanced but improvements in its operations and an increase in sales have allowed GM to pay some back already.

Secondly, GM has not publicly revealed its revised plan, which is being discussed with European governments this week and next, but it will likely involve more loan guarantees.

Global Outlook!

In other areas, Sepp mirrors rigid conservative ideology, which would rather see GM fail, than succeed.

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Tags: Auto Bailouts, Detroit Bureau, gm bankruptcy, GM Opel Vauxhaul, ken zino, National Taxpayers Union, opel, TheDetroitBureau.com.
Posted in Automobiles | No Comments »

A Diesel Running on Gasoline is Just as Sweet

By using compression ignition, a gasoline-fueled engine can be as efficient as an oil burner, and maybe less expensive.

by Ken Zino on May.21, 2009

Members of the GM's HCCI team preparing a prototype engine for testing.

The battle between the Otto cycle and the Diesel cycle in auto engines goes back more than 100 years. Diesels have a fuel economy advantage, roughly 20%, compared to traditional gasoline engines largely because of a higher compression ratio needed to ignite the fuel and the elimination of “pumping losses” caused during the intake stroke of a gasoline engine when it is operating at partial throttle.

However, the fuel injection system of a diesel and the heavier components required to hold up to the higher pressures make it much more expensive – these days thousands of dollars more – than a gasoline engine. Tighter emissions laws on cancer-causing particulate matter are adding to the expense and reducing fuel economy. Also, diesel fuel doesn’t ignite as readily as gasoline, which makes cold starting problematic.

As automakers continue the unending quest for greater fuel efficiency, a hybrid combination of diesel and gasoline engines is being studied to see if the best characteristics of both can be obtained.

One such initiative is going on at General Motors where a homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engine is under study. An HCCI engine, when combined with other advanced technologies, can provide up to 15% greater fuel economy than a comparable, non-HCCI engine by using the diesel combustion process.

“HCCI delivers enhanced fuel savings without sacrificing the performance consumers have come to expect,” said Dr. Uwe Grebe, executive director for GM Powertrain Advanced Engineering. (more…)

Tags: buick, Cadillac, chevrolet, Daewoo, fuel economy, general motors, gmc, HCCI Engine, Holden, homogenous charge compression ignition, Hummer, ken zino, opel, Pontiac, saab, saturn, thedetroitbureau.com, vauxhall, Wuling
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Magna’s Opel Offer Not Exactly Magnanimous

Critics say missing job guarantees must be included.

by Joseph Szczesny on May.05, 2009

The Canadians versus the Italians in a bid for German Opel?

“There is no assurance that any transaction will result from Magna’s current involvement,” Magna noted in a statement that confirmed it was bidding for up to 25% share of Opel.

Magna’s interest has come under attack in Germany because it does not offer any specific job guarantees or offer any assurance the Opel name will actually live on.

Fiat Spa also wants to buy German-based Opel, although CEO, Sergio Marchionne, is looking for the German Government to help finance a complete takeover of the company by Fiat, which would then create a new publicly-held corporation consisting of the loss-making automotive arms of both entities that would be sold to shareholders.

If that sounds like financial engineering of the kind that brought you sub-prime loans as AAA -rated paper by Standard and Poors, well, it sure seems similar. German government officials are apparently considering this proposition, with one senior minister calling it “intriguing.” (more…)

Tags: auto news, auto sales slump, automotive news, car news, fiat, general motors, joe szcesny, Magna International, OAO GAZ, OAO Sberbank, Oleg Deripaska, opel, Sergio Marchionne, thedetroitbureau.com
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Fiat Now Chasing Opel

Italian makers says it wants to buy - but does GM want to sell?

by Paul A. Eisenstein on May.04, 2009

He's got the whole world, in his hands...at least Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne would like to, and he could come a lot closer if he gets GM's Opel subsidiary, as well as a planned stake in Chrysler.

Already set to gain a major stake in bankrupt U.S. automaker Chrysler LLC, the Italian “white knight,” Fiat SpA, may be riding in to sweep up another troubled automotive venture, in this case, General Motors Corp.’s European subsidiary, Opel.

Though there’d been suggestions that Fiat might want to purchase a piece of German-based Opel, which GM was willing to sell to raise some much-needed cash, it now appears that Fiat’s global-minded CEO, Sergio Marchionne, could be looking to buy Opel lock, stock and carburetor barrel.

That raises a number of questions, for one thing, whether GM would walk away from Opel entirely, and if so, how would it survive without the vast European empire it had created over the last seven decades? What would Fiat have in mind for Opel, and how would it integrate the operation into its own automaking empire? Perhaps most importantly, how would the heavily debt-laden Italian maker be able to afford the acquisition, considering its own financial challenges?

A new statement, issued by the Fiat Board of Directors, in Turin, confirmed “its full support for the initiative to be undertaken, over the next few weeks, by its Chief Executive Officer, Sergio Marchionne, to assess the viability of a merger of Fiat Group Automobiles (including the interest in Chrysler) and General Motors Europe into a new company.”

The deal, the board statement declared, would create a global automotive behemoth, with approximately 80 billion Euros ($106.9 billion) in annual revenues.

Earlier this year, former GM CEO Rick Wagoner announced the automaker would consider selling a large, and possibly controlling stake in Opel in return for a European government bailout that would keep the troubled operation in business. But until now, Wagoner, his successor, Fritz Henderson and other senior General Motors executives had said they would maintain at least a major, if not controlling stake.

“We are talking to them, amongst other parties,” CEO Henderson on Monday told the Associated Press, “Not solely Fiat, but several parties who have an interest in making investment in our European business.” (more…)

Tags: auto news, car news, chrysler, Chrysler-fiat, fiat, Fiat-Chrysler, general motors, general motors europe, gm, GM of Europe, opel, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, swedish automaker, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automobiles | 1 Comment »

Saturn Sale by GM Grows More Likely

Restructuring process goes forward, one small step at a time.

by Joseph Szczesny on May.04, 2009

It may still fly, if a buyer surfaces.

General Motors Corporation is apparently growing more confident that it can sell its Saturn brand. GM said Monday morning that there are a number of competing bids for Saturn, and there is sufficient interest to complete a deal prior to the end of the year.

“The process to sell (Saturn) is moving ahead,” GM spokesman Tom Wilkinson told TheDetroitBureau.com, saying it planned to move forward with the disposition of the Saturn distribution network, which is partially owned by the GM and Saturn dealers.

“A number of potential buyers have surfaced and expressed interest in the Saturn brand and retail network. GM will be reviewing expressions of interest from the potential buyers and will look to secure an agreement with a specific buyer later this year,” GM said in a statement.

GM said it had retained S.J. Girsky & Company of New York to act as an advisor for this transaction. Saturn will continue to keep its retailers updated on its progress throughout this process, GM said. (more…)

Tags: automotive news, bids for saturn, distribution network, general motors corporation, Hummer, joseph szczesny, opel, Pontiac, s.j. girsky & company, saab, saturn, thedetroitbureau.com, vauxhall
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Daimler AG Head Pans Government Help for Opel

However, Dieter Zetsche thinks aid for Chrysler is just fine.

by Joseph Szczesny on Apr.08, 2009

Dr. Zetsche is trying to have it both ways on government aid to auto companies.

The German government should not offer Opel, the heart of General Motors’ European operations, any special aid, according to Daimler AG Chief Executive Officer Dieter Zetsche. He made this assertion at the company’s shareholders’ meeting in Berlin. Not only is it surprising that Zetsche would wade into this political quagmire, but the patent hypocrisy of his position is clear, where he endorses government aid to help Chrysler avoid bankruptcy, thereby cutting Daimler’s exposure of more than $1 billion in liabilities at the same time as he accepts German government aid for Mercedes-Benz.

Zetsche also admitted that governments are facing the full brunt of a global economic crisis.

“Just think about how quickly the most pro-market governments have moved to partially nationalize their country’s banking system in order to prevent a total meltdown of the global financial system,” Zetsche said.

“I emphatically approve of the decisive action taken by political leaders. After all, extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary measures and governments simply have to step in when a crisis threatens the very foundation of our free-market system,” he said.

In fact, Daimler is using short-week benefits provided by the German government to reduce bloated inventories at a critical time. In addition, it is asking its 20 unions for $2.6 billion in concessions. Other German automakers, Volkswagen AG and BMW, are certain to follow suit if Daimler is successful, which is considered likely. Indeed, unions at Opel AG have already begun offering concessions in an effort to avert the historic demise of GM Europe. (more…)

Tags: auto bailout, chrysler, daimler ag, general motors, joe szczesny, mercedes-Benz, opel, opel auto bailout, thedetroitbureau.com
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New General Motors CEO Expands Restructuring

Henderson implicitly accepts President Obama's harsh criticism, but what's next at the failing automaker?

by Ken Zino on Mar.30, 2009

The party's over, now the real cutting, consolidation and closings begin at General Motors.

President and politician Obama went directly to the point during his auto industry announcement. The way the industry got to its latest crisis is because of management.

“The pain being felt in places that rely on our auto industry is not the fault of our workers, who labor tirelessly and desperately want to see their companies succeed. And it is not the fault of all the families and communities that supported manufacturing plants throughout the generations. Rather, it is a failure of leadership – from Washington to Detroit – that led our auto companies to this point,” he said.

In a reaction to the President’s explicit criticism, newly appointed GM CEO Fritz Henderson said, “Over the next 60 days, we will work around the clock, with all parties, to meet the aggressive requirements that have been set by the Task Force, and to make the fundamental and lasting changes necessary to reinvent GM for the long-term.”

What this means is that there are more, many more cuts coming at GM. More brands will have to go. More operations will have to be eliminated in the U.S.

GM faces similar challenges and the same solutions in Canada and Europe, where skeptical national governments and the European Community central government have not committed to helping it. In fact, they have been just as publicly critical of the ailing maker. Fritz Henderson was recently thrown out of a meeting with the patrician German economic minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg and told not to come back until he had a better plan for Opel.

And within minutes of the of the President’s speech, Canada mirrored his position.

“The plans submitted by General Motors and Chrysler to the government of Canada, do not go far enough to ensure the long-term viability of these companies,” said Tony Clement, Canada’s industry minister. Like the U.S., Canada will provide some short-term financing until a better plan is arrived at.

The question is what can GM do to make its already heavily reworked plan better?

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Tags: auto bailout, auto sales slump, automotive news, brand elimination, buick, Cadillac, chevrolet, factory closings, fritz henderson, general motors, gmc, ken zino, opel, Pontiac, President Obama, sales and marketing, saturn, thedetroitbureau, thedetroitbureau.com, UAW, vauxhaul, white collar firings
Posted in Automobiles | 4 Comments »

GM, Opel & Vauxhall Launch New European Website to Build Case for Financial Aid

The latest effort comes after stinging criticism from European Community leaders over lack of transparency.

by Ken Zino on Mar.16, 2009

“The emotions and opinions on this topic are many," said GM Europe's President Forster.

One thing can be said about GM, if it is going down, it has finally decided it is going down fighting. GM is now using every communication, lobbying and political pressure technique available to it. This is a welcome change from the obsequiousness of GM leaders in front of egotistical — and largely clueless — American politicians at public hearings for loans.

The latest sign of a more aggressive public thrust came last Friday when GM and Opel & Vauxhall opened a website called gmeuropefactsandfiction.com. GM said it “dispels common misinformation and urban legends” about its European strategy. It also supplies “answers to questions around company structure, actions and plans.”

This appears to be a direct counter attack on the Vice-President of the European Commission, G. Verheugen, and his colleagues, N. Kroes and V. Spidla, after meeting with EC ministers in charge of the automotive industry and with representatives of General Motors, including Carl-Peter Forster, President of GM Europe.

After the meeting, Verheugen, speaking in English at an EC press conference, said with evident annoyance, “Isolated national initiatives or protectionism will not help… It is obvious that GM is discussing at regional and country levels” plans for financial help. Verheugen called for more “transparency” in the coming months and the outcome would depend on the information gathered. (The EC Competition Council will not even meet again until May.) He made it clear that the meeting was “not to prepare a rescue plan for GM.”

His public annoyance – I can only imagine what was said privately — came from an Opel supervisory board plan that was being discussed with individual European countries for the need for 3.3 billion Euros in loans to bridge what GM estimates will be a five-year period before car sales in Europe return to normal levels. GM will put in more than 3 billion Euros in commitment, including a potential third party equity source that would sell off as much as 50% of GM’s stake in Opel. GM is also facing the political nightmare of 1.2 billion Euros in structural cost reductions, which means job losses and plant closings that will take months upon months to negotiate in Europe’s fragmented political structure.

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Tags: Add new tag, auto bailout, auto news, european community, general motors, ken zino, opel, thedetroitbureau.com
Posted in Automobiles | 2 Comments »

Posts Tagged ‘opel’

GM Looking to be Back in the Black in 2010, Says Whitacre

The Top Ten Auto Stories of 2009

National Taxpayers Union Assails GM over Opel

A Diesel Running on Gasoline is Just as Sweet

Magna’s Opel Offer Not Exactly Magnanimous

Fiat Now Chasing Opel

Saturn Sale by GM Grows More Likely

Daimler AG Head Pans Government Help for Opel

New General Motors CEO Expands Restructuring

GM, Opel & Vauxhall Launch New European Website to Build Case for Financial Aid

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