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GM cancels Opel Vauxhall sale to Magna

By Tim Pollard Motor Industry 03 November 2009 22:59 General Motors tonight surprised the world by pulling its proposed sale of its European division – Opel and Vauxhall – to Magna. In a dramatic U-turn, Detroit said 'an improving business environment for GM over the past few months' had made it reappraise its spin-off plans.The 11th hour switch means that GM will still retain full ownership of Opel and Vauxhall, which will now 'be restructured in earnest'. Canadian parts giant Magna had won the race to buy a controlling stake in GM Europe, as a newly relaunched Detroit sought to shore up its finances.

Saturn alerts customers it is considering a spinoff

Saturn has begun alerting customers that it may be spun off by General Motors as an independent marketing and distribution company. In a letter sent to about 1.5 million Saturn owners Wednesday night, Saturn said it would have to line up products to sell--either from other manufacturers or from GM in the role of a vendor--after GM's current commitment to build Saturn products ends after the 2012 model year. "The Saturn Distribution Corporation already exists as an indirect subsidiary of GM," wrote Jill Lajdziak, general manager of Saturn, in the letter.

Hyundai PassoCorto coming to Geneva

Hot on the tailpipes of the Kia GT4 Stinger's debut in Detroit comes word of an even racier-looking two-seater from parent company Hyundai – the PassoCorto. Built by and for Gen Y car enthusiasts, the PassoCorto was styled by 16 students in the Master's program of transportation design at the Istituto Europeo Design (IED) in Turin. The students were tasked by Hyundai Design Center Europe with making “…the car that would be on top of their list for buying and driving.” We don't know any Gen Ys who could fork over close to $60,000 for a car, the cost of the similarly-sized Alfa 4C, but we know plenty who would like to have one.