If Opel makes it out of the General Motors era alive, its dealers want a bigger say in its recovery as an independent automaker. And by a bigger say, they mean taking a 20% stake in the company – and along with it, a new CEO. One of the candidates being touted as a potential new chief executive for a resurgent, independent Opel is none other than Bernd Pischetsrieder.

Sure, we still have to slow down to spell his name, but the seasoned automotive executive is no stranger to us. He served as the chief executive officer of BMW before being tapped for the top job in the Volkswagen Group, and after being replaced by Martin Winterkorn, Pischetsrieder chaired VW's Scania truck division through some difficult negotiations.

According to Automotive News Europe, the way Opel's largest German dealer group sees it, Pischetsrieder would be in a better position to negotiate with Detroit executives over the separation of the European unit, and they're probably right: He certainly has the experience and the clout, but we can't help but wonder if he'd manage to keep Opel from swallowing up other companies and turning into a megalithic auto group like the others that he has lead. Mind you, the thought of an Opel Veyron certainly sounds interesting....

[Source: Automotive News Europe - subs. req'd, Photo by ROLAND MAGUNIA/AFP/Getty]