Autoblog

Thomas Bscher wanted to see the Bugatti range expand. He had taken charge of the über-premium brand during the tenure of Dr. Bernd Pischetsrieder, the former head of the Volkswagen Group. But when Pischetsrieder was replaced by Audi chief Dr. Martin Winterkorn, plans changed.

Evidently failing to realize his goals of broadening the Bugatti range beyond the Veyron, Bscher opted to resign from his post. Taking his place will be a fellow brand manager from VW's de facto premium auto group, Franz-Josef Paefgen, who will reportedly take on the management of Bugatti in addition to Bentley, the Volkswagen subsidiary over which he currently presides. Whether this will be an interim role or a more permanent arrangement remains to be seen, but with the same man controlling both brands, Bugatti isn't prone to pose a threat to Bentley's stature at the top of the corporate luxury hierarchy.

This management shift pretty much puts the final nail in the coffin of any future Bugatti model, whatever shape it might have taken. Porsche AG, a major shareholder in the VW Group that had voiced its opposition to any expansion of the Bugatti brand, just might get its wish.

[Source: Der Spiegel (tr.) via German Car Scene]

Forbes automotive columnist Jerry Flint provides a history lesson of various automotive couplings and even triads to illustrate that while a few have been beneficial to one or (rarely) all parties, most fall flat on their faces. None, however, are easy for any of the parties, successful or not.

Successful mergers, buyouts, partnerships, and other combos include General Motors' Daewoo purchase and its acquisition of the HUMMER name. Chryslers' purchase of American Motors (AMC) that not only gave Jeep to the automaker but a top notch engineering team. Interestingly, Renault sold its controlling shares of AMC because its French unions couldn't stand the thought of francs bolstering American products. Sound familiar, anyone?

But successful combinations are scarce. Flint discusses DaimlerChrysler's alliance with Hyundai Motors and, earlier, Mitsubishi, both of which fell apart. Ford nearly lost the Brazilian market with its ill-fated Volkswagen alliance in the "AutoLatina" venture. And Flint provides a litany on GM's failed alliances, from Fiat to Suzuki to Isuzu, and the cost of each to the company.

Flint isn't necessarily against mergers or alliances, he just points out that none of them, no matter how successful they are eventually, are ever easy.

[Source: Forbes]

Michelin's joint managing director, Edouard Michelin, has died in a boating accident off of the Ile de Sein island in Brittany in Western France, according to the French media. The unfortunate occurrence leaves the company's other managing director, Michel Rollier, to carry the company forward.

The Michelin boss was born in 1963 and joined his family's company in 1985, holding various research, production and sales posts before earning the top spot in 1999.

[Source: Reuters]

Businessweek (BW) provides a detailed description of the conditions in the emerging automotive markets of China, India and Russia.

According to the business journal, Chinese demand for automobiles grew between 60% to 70% per year between 2001 through 2004, only to be slowed down when the government increased interest rates. BW predicts the average growth to be at least 10%-15% per year with Global Insight Inc. suggesting the Middle Kingdom will be the second largest marketplace after the U.S. by the year 2013.

[More after the jump]

[Source: Business Week]