Opel to take over all GM midsize development
Opel is to take responsibility for development of all of General Motors' upcoming mid-sized vehicles, reports Automotive News Europe. Opel chief Carl-Peter Forster said that development of models for brands such as Vauxhall/Opel, Saab, Chevrolet and Saturn would be "consolidated"; midsized models for Pontiac, Cadillac and Buick may also be engineered in Europe. He said that "in the past, we developed vehicles of the same class in several areas of the world. We do not want to continue to do that... to have two engineering groups working on the same technology makes no sense." Under a "radical" restructuring plan Saab's engineers in Sweden are to take responsibility for all chassis engineering, and items such as electrical and wiring harnesses will be shared by all brands. Development of the cars' basic architecture, or platforms, will take place at the General Motors Europe technical centre in Russelsheim, Germany. Opel is not expected to return to profit for another five years and further cost-cutting measures will include integration of more brand-specific administration, distribution and back-office functions. (Automotive News)
Opel is to take responsibility for development of all of General Motors' upcoming mid-sized vehicles, reports Automotive News Europe. Opel chief Carl-Peter Forster said that development of models for brands such as Vauxhall/Opel, Saab, Chevrolet and Saturn would be "consolidated"; midsized models for Pontiac, Cadillac and Buick may also be engineered in Europe. He said that "in the past, we developed vehicles of the same class in several areas of the world. We do not want to continue to do that... to have two engineering groups working on the same technology makes no sense." Under a "radical" restructuring plan Saab's engineers in Sweden are to take responsibility for all chassis engineering, and items such as electrical and wiring harnesses will be shared by all brands. Development of the cars' basic architecture, or platforms, will take place at the General Motors Europe technical centre in Russelsheim, Germany. Opel is not expected to return to profit for another five years and further cost-cutting measures will include integration of more brand-specific administration, distribution and back-office functions. (Automotive News)
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Vanhimmat
Itsenäisyyttä jos ajattelee niin eiköhän se loppunut sinä päivänä kun Saab tuli riippuvaiseksi ulkopuolisesta rahasta eli jo aikoja sitten.
Nukun yöni rauhallisesti niin kauan kun on olemassa oma "Saab engineering" ryhmänsä vaikka se olisi saman katon alla kuin Opelin ja muiden insinöörit.
Ja se saa lisää vastuualueita kuten nykyisin turbo moottorit GM:n sisällä.
Ruotsalaislehdet hehkuttelivat tässä joku päivä, että asiassa saattaa käydä osin toisinkin päin!
Se on totta, että GM haluaa saman luokan autojen pohjalevyjen ja päälinjojen olevan sukua toisilleen ja kehitystyön olevan yhtenäistä, mutta paremman keskiluokan osalta voi yhtä hyvin käydä niin, että Saab saa päävastuun myös seuraavan Vectran suunnittelussa. Ja kaiken lisäksi seuraavan polven Vectraa saatetaan kasata Saabien ja Cadillacien rinnalla Trollhättanissa.
Maailma muuttuu ja muutosta vastustetaan aina. Kunhan uudet Saabit ovat edelleen Saabeja eivätkä Opeleita, Fiateja tai Subaruja Saabin merkeillä, niin asiat ovat ihan hyvin! Ei Saab itsenäisenä pienenä merkkinä olisi enää hengissä ollenkaan...