Why is vauxhall not opel

Opel and Vauxhall are just launching a new Insignia, built at Russelsheim. The Astra, built at Ellesmere Port, is only a year old. It will be a long time before those can be brought onto new common foundations. In the meantime — say any time over the next six years — if there's a downturn PSA would have a lot of excess factory capacity, and that's cripplingly expensive. I put this to Tavares. He replied: "If the black scenario was to happen, by having a stronger financial situation you can resist.

If you are weak you cannot. But, er, in those circumstances it'd be safer not to have Opel and Vauxhall at all. Having finally managed to put some space between the positions of Peugeot and Citroen, can Tavares find room in people's minds for Opel and Vauxhall too?

Part of it, he says, is about the perceived nationality of the brands. People buy cars from a brand not a group. Tavares says Vauxhall and Opel people will be in charge of those brands. There will be common engineering, some done by PSA's existing engineering base and some by Opel's in Germany: "We have five brands now, we need a lot of engineers.

It builds Astras, so that almost certainly makes it safe for the next five years. After that, if the group's cars are in demand and profitable, then it has a good chance. Speaking of all the plants, Tavares says: "We will help them become more efficient.

By becoming more efficient then they can have a better future. Tavares also says building here makes Britons keener to buy Vauxhalls. Perhaps crucially, Tavares adds that if Britain becomes more isolated after Brexit, there's an extra opportunity for Ellesmere Port.

If it was a hard Brexit it would be a very good thing to have a UK footprint to supply the UK market when there are significant custom duties all around. But it's hard to see specifically how, and Tavares refuses to be drawn.

Currently they're sold as Buicks and Holdens. Opel is only allowed to compete when it replaces them with cars on PSA Group platforms. Opel builds vehicles that are also sold in other parts of the world under a variety of names.

For example, its cars are sold under the Buick nameplate in North America and China, whereas it is called Holden in Australia. This in itself makes sense if you know anything about branding. These markets are overseas, but the UK is part of Europe, the same place as Germany.

Opel manufactured its first car in , whereas Vauxhall did not create its first car until Both brands proved popular at home, and Opel even caught the eye of American corporation General Motors, thanks to its vast market share within Germany. The partnership has endured ever since. But what about Vauxhall? Its first cars certainly conjured up interest, with a successful Y-Type that was one of the most comfortable and relaxing vehicles currently in existence.

The build quality declined, and strikes in the 60s and 70s put Vauxhall in a precarious position. Conversely, the economic surge in West Germany meant business was booming for Opel. To be fair to GM, they were not the only company that struggled in Europe. Its American rival Ford has also dialed back its European presence, focusing on markets where it is most profitable.

The European market is a fragmented one made up of several countries, and it is dominated by European brands, such as the three major German manufacturers BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen. Why is it tricky, you might ask? Well because while the U. So why are cars not sold under the Opel nameplate but rather Vauxhall? The famous manufacturer can trace its roots back to a sewing machine designed in the , founded by the great Adam Opel himself.

The company started off by building bicycles in , with its first car making an entrance some 13 years later in In fact, Opel became the first German car manufacturer to include a mass production assembly line in the building process.