-
Opinion: What should happen to Saturn, Vauxhall and Opel during GM's reorganization?
Amidst all the recent bailout talk, one question being asked is what role GM's Opel division will serve in a new-and-hopefully-improved General Motors. More succinctly, will Vauxhall and Saturn soldier on unchanged or will they simply fade into automotive landscape? Automotive News seems to think the question of Opel and how it relates to Vauxhall and Saturn is so important that it's worth devoting three separate editorials to the issue, with varying levels of clarity.
more
-
Vauxhall offering workers 9-month sabbatical with 30% pay
Auto sales in the UK are taking a beating just as bad as they are here in the States, as year over year sales in the Queen's country dropped 27% in October and 37% in November. That's bad news for General Motors' Vauxhall brand, especially considering the automaker's current financial situation (or lack thereof).
To help keep costs in check during this lean time, Vauxhall has offered a nine-month sabbatical to any worker at its Ellesmere Port facility that wants to hang up his or her work boots until October 2009. In return, Vauxhall is offering up to 30% of that worker's pay during the time off. While that doesn't pay the bills in most cases, money for nothing is tough to beat. The goal of the program is to help Vauxhall and GM keep their structural costs down, though they aren't expecting many takers. The 5,000 workers at Ellesmere are getting a trial run of life without work right now anyway, as the plant is on shut down for an entire month. Thanks for the tip, James!
[Source: BBC]
more
-
Opel/Vauxhall Insignia Named 2009 European Car of the Year
The news has been pretty grim over at GM the past few weeks, but one thing the automaker can celebrate is that the 2009 Opel/ Vauxhall Insignia has been named the 2009 European Car of the Year.The Insignia achieved the award by a mere one point (321) over the 2nd place finisher, the Ford Fiesta (320). The bronze winner was the VW Golf with 223 points. This is the first win for the Opel brand in 22 years.
more
