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Home » Vauxhall

PSA may buy Opel/Vauxhall, but does it make sense? [w/poll]

February 16, 2017 by Bart Demandt 17 Comments

Peugeot-Opel-logoThis week it became apparent that PSA Peugeot-Citroën and General Motors are having talks about the possible takeover of GM’s European division by the French automaker. This includes the Opel and Vauxhall brands, which have been a decade-long money drain on General Motors. The two automakers have been working together closely on the development of a handful of models and are looking for opportunities to boost each company’s profitability, which includes a sale of the two brands. GM has had a stake in PSA until 2013 when it became apparent that projected savings from their cooperation and platform sharing would fall short of expectations. After this breakup, the French company had to be bailed out by the French government and its Chinese partner Dongfeng Motor, which each control 14% of the shares.

Would a new, more intense cooperation bring the promised synergies? And does this mark the start of a much-needed wave of consolidations in the European car market? Or will it only cause PSA to lose focus on its own financial recovery and resurrection of its brands? Let’s look a the pros and cons for both parties involved:

Opel-Citroen-logo [Read more…]

Industry, Opinion Carlos Tavares, citroen, DS, merger, opel, peugeot, PSA, Sergio Marchionne, strategy, takeover, Vauxhall

Why Volkswagen designers are lazy but smart

February 5, 2015 by Bart Demandt 8 Comments

Audi_A3-koalaAudi exterior designers are known in the automotive world to be among the laziest in the business, they’re the automotive design equivalent of koalas: sleeping for 18 hours a day until a deadline approaches, at which time they’ll just pull an existing design from the drawer and make a few quick changes and then convince their bosses that evolutionary design keeps the outgoing model from looking old, which should help resale values of the brand. And the amazing thing is that they actually get away with it, because apparently it does seem to work like that, not only in theory.

And now Volkswagen designers seem to have been contaminated by the same laziness virus, as they’ve first proven with the “eighth” generation Passat, which really should be called the seven-and-a-halfth generation, especially when looking at it from the rear three quarters. Usually, a new model generation would imply that the car is completely redesigned, while a facelift means that the so-called hard points, like the window frames and door pillars stay the same, and only minor changes are made to the headlights and taillights, with subsequently the hood and boot lid, and sometimes even the front wings.

Volkswagen_Passat-rear-quarter-designBut with the Passat, they couldn’t be bothered to change the C-pillar, or even something simple like the shape of the rear lights or fender, which means it should be classified as only a minor facelift, even if the platform and engines have been completely reworked. The designers must have realized this when they saw the final clay model, and in order to make the world believe they had actually done any work, they sneaked back into the studio the night before the design was frozen and quickly made the belt line a bit more pronounced. [Read more…]

Fun stuff, Opinion Audi, caddy, caricature, corsa, design, opel, passat, Vauxhall, Volkswagen

Chasing VW: the battle for Europe’s second place

September 19, 2014 by Bart Demandt 4 Comments

The Volkswagen Group continues to dominate the European automobile market with a record 27% market share in July 2014 thanks to increasing sales of the Skoda and Seat brands, and on a much smaller scale Porsche. Its core VW brand meanwhile has taken a large chunk of market share from its direct competitors to position itself as the clear sales leader in Europe.

Market_share-Europe-VW-Ford-Opel-RenaultIn the last decade, as the European passenger car market has slumped from a record high of just over 16 million units in 2004 to a record low of 12,27 million in 2013, sales of Volkswagen have shown very little effect from this crisis. VW brand sales in 2013 were just 9.000 less than in 2004, and as a result the brand’s market share has grown from a low of 9,59% in 2004 to a record 12,57% in 2013. This means that VW has positioned itself as the clear market leader in Europe, leaving its three closest competitors Ford, Opel/Vauxhall and Renault scrambling for second place, all at least five full percentage points below the German brand.

In contrast, from 1997 until 2001, the top three brands in Europe all had market shares above 10%, and when VW was Europe’s no. 1 brand from 1998 until 2001, it never had an advantage of more than half a percentage point over its nearest competitor.

VW-Ford-Opel_Vauxhall-Renault-Europe-salesFord, Opel/Vauxhall and Renault each have set short- to mid-term goals of either reclaiming or maintaining a second place in the European brand charts, fully aware that’s the best they could hope for, as Volkswagen is too powerful to let any of them even come near. [Read more…]

Industry, Opinion analysis, europe, Ford, opel, ranking, renault, sales, Vauxhall, Volkswagen

European sales 2014 first half Convertible segment

August 22, 2014 by Bart Demandt Leave a Comment

Opel-Cascada-auto-sales-statistics-EuropeAfter a tiny 1% increase in 2013, European convertible sales are back down 12% again in the first half of this year. The top-3 of the segment remains unchanged, as the VW Golf Cabriolet has held on to its advantage over the Beetle softtop. I had thought the Opel/Vauxhall Cascada would be able to challenge the two Volkswagens this year, but so far it lags far behind, as theVW still sells almost twice as many Golf convertibles as Opel and Vauxhall sell Cascadas.

The Citroën DS3 Cabrio, which moved up to the fourth position in 2013, is already down 29% again, also losing a spot to the 308CC. Awaiting the new, fourth generation MX-5, the little Japanese roadster doesn’t seem to suffer that much, as it’s relatively stable at -4%. [Read more…]

Car sales Europe, Coupe and convertible segment 2014, Audi, bmw, citroen, convertible, europe, H1, mercedes-benz, opel, peugeot, porsche, premium convertible, sales, segment, smart, Vauxhall, Volkswagen

A new kind of retro: naming a model after the company’s founder

March 26, 2014 by Bart Demandt Leave a Comment

As manufacturers are running out of inspiration for another retro styled car, a trend for which Volkswagen is credited since it introduced the New Beetle back in 1997, I have started to notice a new trend: retro naming. And with that, at this moment, I don’t mean re-using model names from the past, like Alfa Giulia or Chrysler 300, which could be the subject of an entirely different article, but I mean using the first name of the company’s founder as a model name.

Ferrari-EnzoFerrari started this trend in 2002 when the Italians decided to name their supercar Ferrari Enzo. While the model’s two predecessors, F40 and F50, were named to celebrate the company’s 40th and 48th anniversary in 1987 and 1995 respectively, the Italians may have been a bit too quick with the development of their next supercar. It was already completed and ready to be sold in 2002, so the Italians must have called for an emergency board meeting during lunch time:

  • “Oh mama mia! Grande catastrofe! Gianni, what do we do now? The F60 is already finished!
  • — Eating spaghetti —
  • “When is the 60th anniversary, Alberto?”
  • — Drinking Chianti —
  • “That’s another five years, Vincenzo! We cannot wait that long! The Germans are working on a Carrera GT, which is much better than ours. We need it to be sold out before they finish their car!” [Read more…]

Fun stuff adam, alfieri, beetle, Buick, caricature, enzo, ferrari, founder, laferrari, maserati, name, opel, Vauxhall, Volkswagen

European sales 2013 Convertible segment

February 6, 2014 by Bart Demandt Leave a Comment

VW-Golf-Cabrio-sales-European-convertible-segmentThe convertible segment in Europe remains virtually stable from 2012 to 2013, but the ranking is shuffled by the introduction of new models and large declines of existing models. Volkswagen is the convertible segment’s biggest brand, with no less than three cars in the top-1o, including the 2 best selling models. The VW Golf Cabriolet holds onto its lead, but barely. A 43% drop in its sales gives the VW Beetle the opportunity to come within 150 units of the top spot. Of course, the new generation Beetle (which losses the “New” in its previous name as New Beetle), is largely responsible for the decline in Golf Cabrio sales, as customers seem to prefer the newer model of the two. It would be interesting to see which of these two softtops finishes 2014 in the lead.

The Smart Fortwo Cabrio sells exactly 4 units less than in 2012 and holds on to its third place of the segment, now trailed by the Citroën DS3 Cabrio, introduced late 2012. The little Citroën outsells each of its Peugeot convertible hardtop siblings 207CC and 308CC, which are starting to show their age and are both down more than 30%. [Read more…]

Car sales Europe, Coupe and convertible segment 2013, Audi, bmw, citroen, convertible, europe, Mazda, mercedes-benz, opel, peugeot, porsche, premium convertible, sales, segment, smart, Vauxhall, Volkswagen

GM to drop Chevrolet in Europe to focus on Opel

December 5, 2013 by Bart Demandt Leave a Comment

Chevrolet-EuropeGeneral Motors must be reading Left-Lane.com, as they have announced that Chevrolet will be pulled from the European car market, in order to focus on Opel (and Vauxhall in the UK), just two weeks after I wrote my article on What should General Motors do with Opel and Vauxhall in Europe?

Automotive News reported that “due to a challenging business model and the difficult economic situation in Europe” Chevrolet will no longer have a presence in Europe from 2016. “We have growing confidence in the Opel and Vauxhall brands in Europe. We are focusing our resources in mainstream Europe,” according to Stephen J. Girsky, Vice Chairman at General Motors.

Although that is exactly what I wrote in my article on Opel, that GM should focus on its local brands, in my article on How does GMs Global Brand Strategy fit in Europe? I said that they could keep Chevrolet in Europe, but make a bigger distinction between the brands. Chevrolet should be the budget brand, like Dacia, which is very successful and profitable for Renault. Daewoo was selling quite a bit of cars before it was renamed Chevrolet and raised its prices to mainstream levels for budget cars. For Dacia prices, Chevrolet would have been able to compete in Europe. [Read more…]

Opinion astra, Buick, Chevrolet, corsa, europe, General Motors, Holden, opel, Vauxhall

How does GMs Global Brand Strategy fit in Europe?

November 19, 2013 by Bart Demandt Leave a Comment

Chevrolet-OrlandoI recently wrote about GMs strategy for Opel, and I received encouraging support from a few readers, asking for more details on my views of GMs Global Brand Strategy. In this strategy, General Motors wants to build Chevrolet and Cadillac into global brands that are present in every country of the world, “Chevy” as a mainstream brand, “Caddy” as a premium brand.

I personally believe that it’s a dead end to push a brand just for the sake of bragging rights; GM should let go of its focus on Chevrolet and Cadillac as global brands. They are American. Full stop.

Chevrolet’s image in Europe

Chevrolet is an historic American brand in the US and Canada, known for strong and durable pick-up trucks and large family cars. But in Europe, it’s a bargain-basement budget brand, selling cheap South-Korean small cars of lesser style and quality than competitors Hyundai and Kia. It has no heritage, no clear image and next-to-zero brand value. Compare that to cross-town rival Ford, which has had a presence in Europe since the beginning of the 20th century, selling cars that have been designed and built in Europe for Europeans. Ford is considered a European brand instead of an American brand, and it’s brand value is way above that of Chevrolet. [Read more…]

Opinion Cadillac, Chevrolet, dacia, europe, General Motors, opel, sales, Vauxhall

What should General Motors do with Opel and Vauxhall in Europe?

November 12, 2013 by Bart Demandt 1 Comment

Opel-logoGeneral Motors has a problem in Europe. The world’s second largest automaker European Opel brand (named Vauxhall in the UK) is losing money faster than drunk guy in a strip club.

For decades, Opel has been GMs European bread-and-butter brand, competing with Ford, Peugeot, and Volkswagen for the likes of families looking for safe and comfortable, non-pretentious transportation. But the European car market has shifted away from the middle-of-the-road brands, and unless you’re a premium or low-cost brand, you’re in trouble, especially without any chance of growing your volume outside of Europe. Several competitors have come up with different strategies to cope with this reality.

Should Opel follow any of these strategies?

Volkswagen strategy

Volkswagen reacted to the rise of (mostly South-Korean) budget competition by moving its core VW brand more upmarket by introducing more advanced technology, better individualization options and more luxurious interiors, with some help from its premium Audi brand, meanwhile re-introducing Skoda as a budget competitor for price sensitive customers.

But it’s extremely difficult to move a mainstream brand like Opel upmarket into (semi)premium territory, and it will take huge investments into technology, design and marketing. Money that GM is not willing to spend on a “local brand” like Opel, especially one that has already lost an unimaginable $ 18 Billion in the past 12 years. And it will also take a lot of time, at least a few decades, to get the new, higher-end image into the minds of consumers. Time the brand doesn’t have, with stockholders breathing down GMs neck, looking for it to focus on high-growth markets and brands, offering a quick return on investment. Arguably, VW isn’t quite there yet either. [Read more…]

Opinion Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, citroen, europe, Ford, General Motors, GM, Holden, opel, peugeot, PSA, Vauxhall, Volkswagen

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