The GM Opel saga continues—at least until it doesn’t. Meanwhile, Spiegel is reporting that GM pressured the German government to separate the Russians (OAO Sberbank and automaker GAZ) from the Canadians (Magna) to make an Opel sale more palatable to its owners (the American government). Spiegel’s sources say Germany nixed the request; it had made promises to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev about the sanctity (if you want to call it that) of the deal. For those of you who want a little background on this international game of chess, the World Socialist Website has the 411.
GM has been active in Russia since 2001 producing its Chevrolet brand in a factory in Togliatti on the Volga river run jointly with Russian auto company AvtoVaz Jeeps. Initial plans to produce the Opel Astra in Togliatti or shift the German Bochum Opel plant to Russia have failed to be realised.
In 2006, there was a dispute when the ownership of Avtovaz changed hands. The Russian armaments export company Rosoboronexport bought up a huge number of shares in the company and obtained a majority holding. The new owners then briefly stopped production.
According to the German Handelsblatt newspaper in February 2006, ‘The Russians want to chase out the Americans and run the business alone in future.’ GM remained involved, and Magna also intends to increase production at this factory, which would then be part of the ‘new Opel company.’
I am sick and tired of this!
Those Russian and Chinese crapmobile makers make all the money they make, just because the subjects of the Russian government and the ants of China are forced to purchase their cars from them.
We all know how it goes. The comminazi governments of Russia and China don’t want to see their hard earned cash being lost on cars and trucks imported from somewhere else. Since the vehicles their indigenous car firms produce are terrible (guess they haven’t heard of research and development yet), in order for the government to protect those firms, huge import duties are introduced. Then, when things are going well, they decide to earn foreign currency by exporting their cars to the west. Till the time the people of the west find out, even more money are made! (eg Zastava, Lada, Proton, Perodua, Jiangling, Brilliance).
Since no money has been spent on research and development, and since manufacturing is done by convict workers, these companies start to have a huge cash surplus.
And look at what is happening now: They are trying to buy western companies to take advantage of their know how. Sounds innocent enough: GAZ will bring the cash and Opel the know-how. But don’t be fooled. GAZ, being the comminazi government-backed company it’s always been, it will just take the know-how and do nothing with it. Here I give you the Gaz Insignia 2024. They ‘ll just keep selling the same vehicle over and over, while replacing the high-quality German chassis parts with third-hand (s)crap materials from China, Vietnam and Botswana, so that they can charge the costumers the same exact price with the newer, far crappier editions of their vehicles.
During the past, GAZ has been importing know-how from Ford, Chevrolet and Chrysler for years, and what did they do with it? Nothing! Absolutely nothing!
See, people of China and Russia grew up with a bicycle and a tok-tok, so they really can’t tell the differnce. Now add the government protectionism to this, and it’s not hard to understand why these companies don’t bother about competition.
It is called the survivor of the crappiest, just like Microsoft Windows squandered Lisp Machines and BeOS from the computer market. People didn’t know about computers back then, so they realy couldn’t tell the difference. Bang! instant domination of the crappiest.
So, please, do not buy anything with wheels from China or Russia, or any company that sells their booty to them. You grew up with a real car, so you can tell the difference. Perhaps we can still save the car industry from the Chinese and the Russians.
If we don’t and the competition gets crushed, we will soon all be driving crappy Chinese cars, being charged at the price of the BMW!
Poor opel, once being a strong force on the German automotive landscape, now you are bring sold to a company that some years ago begged FSO to license them a car. *sigh*
^
At least in China the deadbeat criminal scum is given wrenches and does useful work, unlike here. kurkosdr, millions of welfare receipents, including the useless prison system, depend on you, work harder!
Re: Those Russian … crapmobile makers make all the money they make, just because the subjects of the Russian government … are forced to purchase their cars from them.
Is that right? Haven’t been in Russia since mid 90th, but from the pictures that I see there seems to be not that many newer Russian cars on the streets, unless you count Russian-made Chevy/Daewoos.
and since manufacturing is done by convict workers …
kurkosdr: I live in China and I see more factories for parts and cars than I like. I can assure you that people who work there are not in shackles and the foremen don’t carry shotguns. People get paid and line up in front of the factories for jobs.
See, people of China and Russia grew up with a bicycle and a tok-tok, so they really can’t tell the differnce. Hmmm. Where have you been? On Mars? Did you get the memo that China is the world’s largest auto market? Ok, so numbers don’t impress you. How about the world’s largest Mercedes S-Class market?
Rada: Did you know that a favorite product of the U.S, prison system is stretch limos? Now that’s forced labor in style ….
Sounds to me like the Russians oligarchs are playing Monopoly in real life.
Just last week, there were indications that the Russian Government wanted a Russian Leyland, merging Avtovaz (LADA) with two other part-government owned entities.
Yet here we see that Gaz, Sperbank and Magna obviously have plans to take over Opel and presumably take over Avtovaz, in order to build Opels in Russia!
Hey, you just landed on my Park Lane, and I have a Hotel on it. Pay up!
Except this is what passes for real life in a world dominated by fascist governments.
Fascism = the merger of corporate and government interests (leaving the proles/people/voters out of the equation).
So we American’s can’t point and laugh at the Russians or the Germans or the Chinese –
we have Government Motors and Chicago-Italia Mobster Motors, ourselves.