Marchionne Refutes Bloomberg Report on Fiat, Peugeot and Opel Tie-up

On Tuesday, we ran a story based on a report by Bloomberg News that Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has been talking to PSA Peugeot Citroen and Opel executives about the three carmakers merging into a single entity. Today, however, Marchionne refuted the report describing it to Automotive Europe as “bizarre”.

The Fiat-Chrysler CEO admitted that he had been talking with GM and PSA CEOs Dan Akerson and Philippe Varin, respectively, but he stressed that the discussions were misinterpreted by the report.

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Once More: Marchionne Wants to Merge with Peugeot and Opel, Outgun VW in Europe

All mainstream European carmakers are, to a higher or lower degree, facing problems due to the debt crisis that’s storming the continent.

Ford has started closing down plants, Opel and Peugeot are burning cash each day for the past eight months while they try to figure out how to work on their partnership and, as for Fiat… well, thank God that Chrysler is profitable.

The sole survivor in this mess seems to be the VW Group that’s still very profitable, much to the annoyance of its rivals and especially Marchionne who accused Wolfsburg of not playing by the book. However, even the mighty VW has been forced to trim its estimates, as the crisis begins to knock on Germany’s door.

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GM CEO Likes the Opel Cascada, Says 'Why don't we bring it to the US'. What Do You Think? [w/Poll]

From the time GM linked its Opel and Buick brands, whenever the German company comes out with a new model, the question arises whether the Detroit automaker should bring it to North America.

Currently, of the six Buick vehicles sold in the States, three are based on Opel models: the Verano compact sedan (Astra Sedan), the Regal mid-size saloon (Insignia) and the Encore small crossover (Mokka).

This week, Opel and its British sibling Vauxhall lifted the wraps off a new model, the Cascada soft-top convertible born from Astra and Insignia underpinnings.

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New Opel / Vauxhall Cascada is a Stylish Mid-Size Four-Seater Convertible

Here comes the latest model from Opel and its British counterpart Vauxhall, the all-new Cascada, a mid-size convertible with ample seating for four that was officially revealed today ahead of a European market launch in March of 2013.

The Cascada is the brand's fourth new model this year following the Ampera, Mokka small crossover and Adam premium city car, and its first convertible after the demise of the smaller Astra Twin Top.

With the Cascada, Opel and Vauxhall are moving away from the compact segment and entering the mid-size sector. At 4,697mm long and 1,840mm wide, the Cascada is not only significantly bigger than the Astra Twin Top, but it's actually 71mm longer than the Audi A5 Cabrio and 85mm longer than the BMW 3-Series Convertible.

The car uses a platform derived from Astra and Insignia underpinnings sporting a 71mm longer wheelbase and front and rear tracks that are 56mm and 70mm wider respectively than the Astra Twin Top.

The company says that despite being significantly larger, the Cascada’s body is 43 per cent stiffer torsionally and 10 per cent more resistant to bending forces than its last open-topped car.

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GM and PSA Peugeot Citroen Reportedly Considering European Merger

With GM’s European Opel/Vauxhall brands and PSA Peugeot Citroen losing money as well as market share fast, the two groups are looking for ways to make the best out of the alliance they formed on February 29.

Under the initial agreement, GM paid US$423 million (€326 million) for a 7 percent stake in its French partner, which made it its second-largest shareholder. The Detroit carmaker had stated, however, that despite the massive gains for both companies, it might be forced to write down its investment.

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New Corsa 1.3 CDTI ecoFlex is the Most Fuel Efficient Opel / Vauxhall Diesel Ever at 3.3lt/100km

Thanks to a series of enhancements, mainly to the engine and transmission, the new Corsa 1.3 CDTI is claiming the title of the most economical diesel model that Opel and its sister company Vauxhall have ever built.

The latest generation of the three-door Corsa 1.3 CDTI ecoFLEX Start/Stop returns a fuel economy of 3.3lt/100km or 85.6mpg UK / 71.3mpg US, with corresponding CO2 emissions of 88g/km. That's a 0.2lt/100km or 2.4mpg UK and a 6g/km improvement over the 2011 model.

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German Union Wants Opel to Rule Out Redundancies, Sign New Deal by October 26

Opel has been bleeding money for the past 12 years and analysts predict that it will post a total of US$1billion operating losses annually until 2021. General Motors wants to restructure the ailing carmaker and turn it around. This, however, involves not only collaborating with PSA Peugeot Citroen, but some serious cost cutting as well.

Industriegewerkschaft Metall, the Industrial Union of Metalworkers that is (thankfully…) more commonly known as simply IG Metall, is the most prominent union in Germany and has some really serious clout with both manufacturers and the government.

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Irmscher Working on New Styling and Performance Packages for Opel Mokka

Irmscher, a tuner of all things Opel, is offering us our first look at the program it is preparing for the German automaker's newest arrival, the Mokka small crossover, which is sold in Britain as a Vauxhall and in North America, as the Buick Encore, starting from the first quarter of 2013.

The crossover's aesthetics can be upgraded with Irmscher's signature front grille that places the Opel logo in the center, protective metal bars under the doors, a larger roof spoiler (which is not pictured in these renderings), black or silver side stripes, and a quad tailpipe exhaust system.

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Blast from the Past: 1991 Opel Kadett GSi Meets 2012 Astra GTC OPC

Back in the mid-1980s, General Motors' Opel brand attempted to fight the hugely popular Volkswagen Golf GTI and its like in Europe's compact sport hatchback segment with a performance version of the sleek Kadett E called the GSi (sold as the Vauxhall Astra GTE Mk2 in Britain).

The Kadett GSi came equipped with a 2.0-liter naturally-aspirated four-cylinder producing 114hp (115PS) in the 8v OCH model and 148Hp (150PS) in the 16v DOCH (Double Overhead Camshaft) variant.

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Opel Wallpapers2013-2014

Red Opel Adam Automobile Wallpapers

New Opel Mokka  Wallpapers

White Colour Car Opel Ampera Automobile Wallpapers

Latest Opel Astra OPC Automobile Wallpapers