magna


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 ... Read more →

BREAKING: GM board opts to call off Opel sale Chris Shunk

After months of negotiations with supplier Magna and its Russian partner Sberbank, General Motors has decided not to sell its Opel unit. The General mentioned in the post-jump press release that ...

What Conflict? Mercedes awards SLS AMG body panel construction to Magna Noah Joseph

Magna International pulled a bold move when it declared its intention to buy Opel from General Motors, bridging the gap between component supplier and contract manufacturer on the one hand, to ...

Porsche to pull Boxster production from Magna over Opel stake? Jonathon Ramsey

After a great deal of international haggling, Magna ended up winning the competition for Opel. One of the many questions to be answered now is: How will the deal affect Magna's engineering and ...

You didn't think the battle for Opel was over, did you? Belgium reportedly asking EU to investigate Jonathon Ramsey

When GM decided to hand 55% of Opel to Magna, you didn't think the Belgians were just going to have some waffles and call it quits, did you? Oh no. Belgium's prime minister made a call to the EU ...

BREAKING: GM board recommends coughing up 55% Opel stake to Magna, Sberbank 2 months ago on Autoblog

Finally, after what seems like an eternity of protracted negotiations, bickering and stalling tactics, General Motors has agreed to sell a majority stake in its European operations to Magna International and its Russian financial partner Sberbank. Under the terms of the deal, 55% of Opel and ...

GM would rather have Opel, Vauxhall fall into insolvency than sell to Magna? 2 months ago on Autoblog

While General Motors was going through its 42 day bankruptcy period, one of the stories that didn't receive much play was the sale of GM's Opel brand. The major players in the Opel sale appear to be the German government, Canadian supplier Magna and Belgian private investor RHJ International. ...

REPORT: Opel labor union goes on the offensive, GM negotiator meets with German feds 3 months ago on Autoblog

The battle for Opel has added another front: Opel labor unions at two of the company's German factories retracted an agreement made last year to forgo vacation bonuses. The move demands that General Motors pay the laborers €70 million ($100.2M U.S.) by next week, the amount that they agreed to ...

GM issues a 'No-Decision' on fate of Opel, German government not happy 3 months ago on Autoblog

General Motors was meant to decide who would be the winning bidder for Opel last Friday. But it didn't. Instead, GM asked the German government for more information on federal financial assistance available to buyers. The German government would like Magna to take over Opel as it vowed to retain a ...

RHJ ups offer for Opel, commits to Vauxhall, has "good chances of winning" 3 months ago on Autoblog

Belgian investment firm RHJ, once considered a back-up bidder for Opel, is now considered a front-runner – at least according to its own CEO. RHJ head Leonhard Fischer has already told U.K. officials that the company is committed to retaining the Vauxhall name, and speaking to German ...

Opel fate still up in the air as Russian involvement reportedly complicates Magna offer 3 months ago on Autoblog

Over on General Motors' Europe "Driving Conversations" blog, VP John Smith has posted an update on the company's negotiations to sell a majority stake in Opel and Vauxhall. Although no final decision has been made yet, it's looking increasingly likely that the previous tentative agreement with ...

REPORT: Opel, waiting on GM and the German government, heading toward bankruptcy 4 months ago on Autoblog

There are five noteworthy parties involved in the negotiations over Opel's fate: GM, the German government, the Opel trust, states with Opel manufacturing plants, and the Opel labor union. The Opel trust is the body created to run Opel after GM's bankruptcy, and consists of five members: a ...

German economics minister reportedly says no to Opel buy-back option for GM 4 months ago on Autoblog

One of the many clauses that General Motors is reportedly trying negotiate into any deal involving majority control of Opel is the option to eventually buy back the stake it is selling. As the theory goes, GM isn't selling Opel because it feels like it doesn't add value – Opel in fact offers ...

Beijing Automotive bids for Opel; Magna still expected to close deal 5 months ago on Autoblog

Even though Beijing Automotive (BAIC) tendered a non-binding offer for Opel, the company is said to have no chance of actually acquiring the brand. General Motors is still in talks with Magna and its partners, GAZ and Sberbank, and according to Sberbank CEO German Graf, "The choice has been made ...

Marchionne confirms Fiat still interested in Opel 5 months ago on Autoblog

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne, watching the travails of GM, Opel and Magna from his comfy Italian perch, has sent word that his previous offer for Opel is still on the table if anyone is interested. That offer, though, can't be sweetened because he doesn't "believe we could improve Fiat's offer. It's ...

GM worried about Magna deal for Opel, sign backup deal with RHJ, Beijing Automotive 5 months ago on Autoblog

When it came to buying Opel, Fiat's Sergio Marchionne told GM and the German government: "If you have a better offer, take it." They both took Magna, along with its Russian partners Sberbank and GAZ, because that consortium offered a better competitive arrangement and fewer job cuts in Germany. The ...

REPORT: Opel to cut prices 40% in order to save jobs? 5 months ago on Autoblog

Sometimes deals get made, and then the dealmakers have to employ some pretty creative tactics to get the terms to work. Magna's deal for Opel included taking €1.5 billion in short term loans from the German government, the string attached being that Magna had to guarantee German jobs. Saving ...

Opel stake could give Russian automaker an injection of "know-how" 5 months ago on Autoblog

If you tried telling us even as recently as a year ago that General Motors would be forced to sell its European assets and that a partnership between a Canadian parts supplier and a Russian bank would step up to take the stake, we'd have probably raised a few eyebrows. But such is the state of the ...

REPORT: VW takes issue with Magna/Opel tie-up 6 months ago on Autoblog

You knew that something like this was coming sooner or later: at least one of Magna's clients have found the supplier's majority stake in Opel to be a conflict of interest. As it turns out, Volkswagen was the first automaker to cry foul. Magna is a major supplier for VW and its brands, while Opel ...

Autoblog Podcast #130 6 months ago on Autoblog

Episode #130 of the Autoblog Podcast sees Chris, Sam, and Dan kibbitzing over the obvious news, but it's not an All-GM-Bankruptcy show. Starting with General Motors (after all, it's a huge event) we move on to Magna's deal with Opel (and GM, coincidentally). Volvo's clever implementation of a ...

German government approves majority sale of Opel to Magna, Russians 6 months ago on Autoblog

With General Motors expected to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York on Monday morning, negotiators in Germany scrambled to finalize a deal to save Opel from insolvency. Following a six-hour meeting in the German Chancellor's office in Berlin on Friday evening, a deal was finally ...

BREAKING: BBC says Magna has agreed to take majority stake in Opel from GM 6 months ago on Autoblog

According to the BBC News, supplier Magna International has come to terms with General Motors to purchase a majority stake in its European Opel division. While an agreement has been reached between the two parties, the German government – which has agreed to provide financial assistance for ...

REPORT: Opel's 'preferred' buyer(s) expected to be named mid-week 6 months ago on Autoblog

It looks like the German government is about to announce its list of preferred bidders for Opel this week, and the list is likely to include Fiat and Magna. Why would this list be coming from Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman and not, say, GM? Because the German government will have to step in ...

REPORT: Magna eyeing Saturn 6 months ago on Autoblog

Magna tried and lost when Chrysler was for sale. Pulling a Marchionne, Magna's now trying to win GM Europe's Opel division for itself, and rumor is that Saturn is also on the shopping list. GM would get much-needed capital for the transactions, but it could also be facing its old properties as new ...

REPORT: Magna could use Opel to produce vehicles for other automakers 6 months ago on Autoblog

General Motors is very close to selling its Opel unit, with Canadian supplier Magna and Italian automaker Fiat among the suitors. If Magna and its Russian partners Gaz and Sberbank scores the winning bid for Opel, the parts supplier has big plans for the German brand and its factories. Automotive ...

REPORT: GAZ confirms interest in Opel 6 months ago on Autoblog

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin himself has said that at the behest of Magna, Russia's GAZ conglomerate is considering taking a 30% interest in Opel. GAZ, though, has made it clear that it does not want to run or own Opel – what it really seems to want is to have cars to produce at its ...

Marchionne to Germans: If you have a better offer for Opel, take it 6 months ago on Autoblog

Fiat's bid for worldwide domination of the automotive industry has seen a bit of a snag in Germany, where government officials are said to be balking at the Italian automaker's plan to take over GM's struggling Opel brand. Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne sounds confident that his plan is the best way ...

Documents reveal Chrysler tried to sell parts to Chinese, tie-up with almost every automaker 7 months ago on Autoblog

According to an affidavit filed in the New York U.S. Bankruptcy Court where Chrysler filed for Chapter 11, the automaker's Co-President and Vice Chairman Tom LaSorda is quoted as saying "Chrysler has attempted in recent weeks to sell product lines and other units to a number of Chinese companies, ...

Auto threesome? Fiat CEO confirms pursuing partnership with Opel 7 months ago on Autoblog

As if Fiat doesn't have enough on its plate while working on an alliance with Chrysler during its bankruptcy proceedings, the Italian automaker's CEO has finally confirmed that it's pursuing an alliance with General Motors' German arm Opel. In the Fiat-owned newspaper La Stampa, CEO Sergio ...

Geneva Preview: Magna Steyr unveils flexible Mila EV concept 9 months ago on Autoblog

Amongst all of the various concept and production-ready vehicles that major automakers will unveil this week at the Geneva Motor Show is a new concept from auto supplier Magna Steyr called the mila ev. This electric machine was designed from the start to eschew the carbon-spewing, ...

Paris Preview: MINI SAV 5-door coming, FWD variant planned 1 year ago on Autoblog

After nearly three years of rumors and speculation, the new jacked-up MINI SAV will finally make its debut, according to Autocar. The Brit pub is reporting that the MINI 'ute is bound for Paris, with an on-sale date sometime in 2010 and sporting a five-door design. Questions still remain about what ...

Porsche to move Cayman & Boxster production from Finland to Austria 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click for a hi-res gallery of Porsche production in Finland Porsche has announced that production of its Boxster and Cayman models is to shift to component supplier Magna Steyr's facility in Austria beginning in 2012. Last year the contract with Finland's Valmet to assemble the two associated ...

BMW and Mercedes talk to Magna about Mila 1 year ago on Autoblog

The Magna MILA Alpin concept car shown in Geneva has gotten the attention of both Mercedes and BMW. The button-cute 4-wheeler rode on a flexible platform, could utilize a variety of fuel sources, climb 45-degree angles, and get up to 120 mph. Those capabilities, and the ability to be easily ...

Geneva '08 Preview: Magna Steyr MILA Alpin concept 1 year ago on Autoblog

Click above for more pics of the Magna Mila Alpin concept Three years ago, Magna Steyr debut what it called the Mila concept car -- Magna Innovation Lightweight Auto. Conceived as a pure driver's car, it was an environmentally-conscious single-seater that ran on natural gas up to 120 mph. Last year ...

European coachbuilders will sink or swim in changing market 1 year ago on Autoblog

We've posted a number of articles in recent months about coachbuilders like Pininfarina and Bertone finding themselves in financially troubled waters. The difficulties these and other independent manufacturers around Europe are suffering now appear to be part of a larger trend that's forcing these ...

Magna finally opens up the doors to unions 2 years ago on Autoblog

Since it's inception a half century ago, Magna has grown into the fourth largest automotive parts supplier in the world with sales of almost $24 billion in 2006. The Canadian company has even gotten into complete vehicle assembly with its purchase of Steyr-Daimler-Puch a few years back. Of all the ...

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Autoblog Podcast #155: 'Twas the night before LA...

Chris, Dan, and Editor Paukert go over some LA Preview action and quietly whoop it up on the podcast.

 
 

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