BREAKING NEWS: Opel sold to Magna

Not to be rude but Chevy was/is Canadian.

If you're talking about the founder, Louis Chevrolet, then no, he was French (born in Switzerland). If you're talking about the car company he founded, then he started it in Detroit, USA, with William Crapo Durant, who was born in Boston.
 
What does that have to do with the price of tea in China or the sale of Opel?
 
late august bump
I read R?ttgers and the state of Nordrhein-Westfalen is officially very angry and Dr Merkel is more than annoyed at GM's inability to come to a close. I also hear GM actually isnt interested in selling Opel at all anymore and want to keep it.
 
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GM isn't as desperate anymore. They have the U.S. government backing them so they can now keep Opel. For GM it is a good move as they now can keep their R&D over there (and not worry about the patent issues).

They need Opel for their small to mid sized cars.
 
US tax payer OK with this - bailing out a German company in a way?

Ok then, but if I were GM the whole way forward is with smaller cars - Ford are showing the way (Ford hello, the Focus though!), and GM will need to follow IMHO - so no, from GMs point of view, do not sell.
 
I am against it, GM should be allowed to die and rot. Let others buy what is worthwhile in their remains.

However if I were GM I would use any opportunity I could to survive.
 
If you're talking about the founder, Louis Chevrolet, then no, he was French (born in Switzerland). If you're talking about the car company he founded, then he started it in Detroit, USA, with William Crapo Durant, who was born in Boston.

Yeah, but we own a percentage now! Not as much as the US government, but we've still got some portion of the company.

The moral of the story? Liberal or conservative, politicians will fuck you and then try to sell you a shitty car.
 
Why the fuck didnt they say they keep it, it was the only choice anyway for GM because Opel is at some point an integral part of the company, especially the R&D. I didn't understand that "we have to sell Opel" bit from the first minute they announced it
 
Autoblog has now picked up the article I was talking about yesterday and boiled it down into small chunks that are easy to swallow but lack the aroma and depth of more cultivated journalism. Oh yes, the article...

General Motors was meant to decide who would be the winning bidder for Opel last Friday. But it didn't. Instead, GM asked the German government for more information on federal financial assistance available to buyers. The German government would like Magna to take over Opel as it vowed to retain a huge chunk of jobs in Germany, but GM has given every indication of preferring Belgian investment fund RHJ.

GM wants to know how much money RHJ would get in case it was chosen to buy Opel. It looks like GM still has issues with Magna buying Opel and is looking for a way to choose RHJ and save at least a little face with the German government. If RHJ can get an attractive financial package from the feds, it can also save more jobs than it might be inclined to otherwise, and GM doesn't have to worry about Russian competitors using its own technology.

The German government wants none of it, though. It has called on the United States government to get GM to make a decision. That isn't likely to happen, but it shows how intense things are with Opel, politicians, labor and upcoming elections. On a side note, the BBC reported that part of GM's plan could include a buy-back option for Opel, which, if true, would probably make a lot more sense for RHJ than Magna.

Elections are in september arent they?
 
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Did you guys really believe that Opel was going to be independent and GM was really meaning to give it away?

There was a short window of time when it seemed possible. But I never believed it. That's why I kept telling that "it's not over yet".

GM is feeling stronger again and now they don't see the necessity anymore to sell Opel. Also no need anymore to make concessions. And since U.S. companies are known for having no morals or modesty when it comes to their own interests, playing dirty is what we have to expect now.

You didn't have to have a crystal ball to see that coming...

In my opinion there are two realistic scenarios:

1. GM simply doesn't sell, keeps Opel/Vauxhall in its current state and shows the naive German polticians the middle finger with a grinning face

2. GM sends Opel into insolvency, secure the best bits for themselves and show the naive German politicians the middle finger with an even bigger grin.

The selling option is history.

Of course the Opel workforce will go berserk and probably burn down the U.S. embassy or something like that (they have already mentally detached themselves from GM) and it will all lead to yet another political crisis between Germany and the USA, because Obama will not help.

But GM will simply sit like a fat Buddha and do nothing. In the end it's another case of "stupid politicians lose against ruthless company management".

And it was so foreseeable...
 
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You have to remeber there were 2 hanges in leadership at GM. Who knw WTF those have/had in mind. Hopefully GM keep thm and pulls out of this "crisis", starts making good cars, and pays back it loans. In reality, I just hope they don't fuck things up more.
 
There is a chance GM might pull a Renault. But I don't see the same caliber of leadership in GM right now as Renault had.
 
Well, more interestingly, GM is controlled by the US government, so basically the US Government just majorly annoyed the German and Russian governments.

I say let's just say FUCK YOU and cut the money to 0. Bad luck for the workers, but this is ridiculous.
 
The U.S. is pretty good at treating other countries badly. Unfortunately for the other countries Obama is still seen as a super star and gets free passes.
 
The U.S. is pretty good at treating other countries badly. Unfortunately for the other countries Obama is still seen as a super star and gets free passes.

Just wait until those other countries figure out what 'Chicago machine politics' are... they might be screaming for us to bring Bush back then. :D
 
Opel sold to Magna, again!
replaced long and detailed report from AN with easy to swallow light weight stuff stolen from AB said:
Finally, after what seems like an eternity of protracted negotiations, bickering and stalling tactics, General Motors has agreed to sell a majority stake in its European operations to Magna International and its Russian financial partner Sberbank. Under the terms of the deal, 55% of Opel and Vauxhall will be owned by Magna/Sberbank; GM will hold on to a 35% stake and employees of the two companies will hold the final 10 percent.

Naturally, the European automakers will continue to offer the recently redesigned Astra and Insignia, and future technologies ? such as the extended-range electric powertrain that will be used in the upcoming Ampera ? will be shared between the U.S. and European companies.

According to Automotive News, there are still strings attached to the deal and the German government doesn't expect anything to be completely finalized until after the next set of elections scheduled to take place in Germany on September 27, so the saga is likely to continue.

http://www.autonews.com/article/20090910/COPY01/309109971/1308

You think it's a done deal this time? Or will GM change their mind again? Stalling is after all what GM does best. Politically, who wins?
 
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And again nothing is decided... yet.

They say it will take months of negotiations -- again.
 
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