REPORT: Lutz to step in as interim Opel chairman
Just hours before General Motors announced that it wasn't going to sell Opel, GM Europe head Carl-Peter Forster said publicly that Opel would be better off under the control of Magna. Talk about bad timing. Now that GM is keeping Opel, Forster is out as the head of the General's European operations. A couple of familiar names will step in, at least on an interim basis.
Bloomberg reports that GM Vice Chairman and head of Marketing and Communications Bob Lutz is taking over as interim chairman of the Opel supervisory board until a permanent leader can be chosen. The bombastic Lutz has suddenly found himself with increasing responsibility after semi-retiring back in April. Fellow GM exec Nick Reilly will lead the Opel and Vauxhall units until a replacement can be found.
GM CEO Fritz Henderson said in a statement that the hunt is on for a new Opel CEO and that no other management moves were imminent. Henderson went on to say that Opel improved under Forster, which is a real compliment when you consider that Forster replaced Fritz as head of GM Europe back in 2004. Word on the street is that GM could pick a German executive for the Opel post, due mostly to the fact that Germany wasn't very happy about GM's decision to scuttle the sale to Magna. Magna's plan called for fewer layoffs within Germany and more in other European countries.
[Source: Bloomberg]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Dr. Greenthumb 9:13AM (11/08/2009)
I bet fraulein (sp) Merkel is pissed.
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Sal 9:14AM (11/08/2009)
No good has come out to either Americans or Germans for years. Leave Opel alone or bring over their stuff stateside not as buicks or caddys.. put up or shut up.
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Dr. Greenthumb 9:29AM (11/08/2009)
What the hell are you talking about? How many car companies have you managed in the last 100 or so years? GM had its problems, the collapse was ultimately caused by the country's economic woes, which was (choose one) Greedily, Stupidly, Selfishly created by Wall St. They have this obsession with sending jobs overseas, now we see the result of their actions.
P.S. The people that were fired, laid off etc. Are the customers to the companies that trade on the Street. No jobs = No money = No consumer spending = More Layoffs.
The dog finally caught his tail, and bit it. Guess who felt the pain?
Aznauto 10:08AM (11/08/2009)
Yeap i agree leave Opel alone, GM is sinking ship will only take opel down with it.
daleam 1:53PM (11/08/2009)
Thanks to greenthumb for inserting some intelligence between two pieces of $*it.
lne937s 7:07PM (11/08/2009)
@Dr. Greenthumb
I may not have run a car company, but I do know how to read a balance sheet and income statement- losing $70 billion from 2007-2008 and having a net worth of NEGATIVE $86 billion is not just the result of an economic downturn. GM was a consistent money loser and created their own problems- you can't blame this all on Wall Street. From a business perspective, GM was on life support- the recession just pulled the plug.
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/is?s=MTLQQ.PK&annual
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bs?s=MTLQQ.PK&annual
Hazdaz 9:15AM (11/08/2009)
If Maximum Bob can handle all these duties, then this should work out to be another positive... after all, he is the one that is supposed to be the guy responsible for GM (USDM) cars, so being in charge of the European division that will be researching and developing much of the technology that will end up in our cars is a no-brainer.
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AutoCritical 8:16AM (11/09/2009)
I'm sure he would do a good job, but I can't help think he has his fingers in every pie!
I wonder why Opel did not have any sort of succession plan in the event of this happening. Good on Lutz for doing this (a sign of strength i guess)!
twistedbitz 9:19AM (11/08/2009)
Every time I see this guy I just want to smack him! Why is it, not only in this industry, that certain types get promoted even though they have been part of a losing philosophy?
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sk 9:37AM (11/08/2009)
Since GM hired Bob the quality and design improved 10 fold.
jv2k 10:08AM (11/08/2009)
"I don't know anything about how GM was run or the actual reasoning behind why they ended up going bankrupt but I feel the need to voice my opinion anyway!"
Judy Zik 11:50AM (11/08/2009)
Solstice and Sky anyone? Beautiful cars to look at. Horrible execution and they are falling apart fast with age according to all the surveys. The Camaro has also had it's share of glitches already. The CTS continues the Caddy legacy of Electrical and Drive train problems. Lutz may have brought some excitement to the GM lineup but quality hasn't been part of the equation. He is not the car god.
GM's quality has improved with some of the new models. But that just means that models like the Malibu are finally holding up the way an average car should. It has not been a 10 fold increase in quality and still falls short of the leaders.
There is still work to be done at GM. Fortunately Ford has proven it is possible for a North American giant to turn things around and build vehicles as good or better than Toyota quality wise.
summazooma 9:58AM (11/08/2009)
Wolfgang Bernhard might make a compelling leader for Opel, especially if you also make that position a key GM global one (like a GM board member, vice-chairman of the board or join Buick-Opel into one super-division, with Bernhard as it's global head).
I don't agree that Opel & Buick shouldn't be joined at the hip; In fact, it could be argued that the previous global plan for Chevrolet-Opel would work nicely for Chevrolet-Buick in the U.S.
The fact that key parts of Buick's product plan is tied to Opel (Regal, compact car) makes further consolidation even more of an opportunity. Do this, and you potentially reinvigorate Buick. Gotta focus Cadillac even more to make IT work, though... Maybe make it a basis for ultra-high performance police vehicles (not taxis), to build economies of scale, similar to what Luxury brands from Europe do in their home markets.
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Avinash machado 10:09AM (11/08/2009)
Bob Lutz deserves credit for some of the best cars GM has launched in recent times. Malibu,G8,Solstice\Sky,Camaro,Enclave,LaCrosse,CTS etc.
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Tony 10:42AM (11/08/2009)
The Malibu is kinda blah in styling and driving dynamics in comparison to say an Altima. The G8 is gone bye-bye, same for the Sky/Solstice. The Camaro is oversized and over weight. The Enclave, LaCrosse and CTS are interesting cars and will do well. While it seems everybody is complementing GM for making some very good product these days, I would think twice about buying their products due to lack of dealer support in my area. GM shuttered 5 of 7 dealerships within my service area. The remaining dealers have a very poor service history with me and I will not be going back. It's not about the product but the service with me. The very best dealer service I have ever got is with the local Suzuki dealer.
I wish Lutz well, but the German unions are very pissed about GM screwing Magna and will make GM's life hell in Germany.
DiRF 10:43AM (11/08/2009)
...don't forget the Ford Sierra, Ford Explorer, BMW 3-Series, Dodge Viper, Chrysler PT Cruiser...
bornfromjets03 11:08AM (11/08/2009)
Tony:
I drive an Aura (same as Malibu) and I have to say that it's one of the nicest cars I've ever driven, and I work for Nissan, so I drive altimas around daily, no way would I consider an altima sportier than a Malibu.
and the G8 and Camaro are dang good sports cars also. blame fritz for USDM losing the G8.
DiRF 10:41AM (11/08/2009)
Didn't Bob work for GM Europe/Opel back in the '60s? So this may be kinda a flashback for him...
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jack.j.flash 11:04AM (11/08/2009)
They need to rename Opel and Vauxhall to Chevy to remind them who they work for then move most of the manufacturing out of Germany to other EU countries that are willing to work with GM.
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EvolutionVII 1:30PM (11/08/2009)
You need to remember who came up with all the good ideas. German engineers. GM is simply rebadging Opels work. Anything with a Chevrolet badge on it, is considered FUBAR here in Europe.