Frankfurt Auto Show Update: GM Developing Rear Drive "World Platform" for New Upscale Models

CLICK4 Frankfurt Auto Show

FRANKFURT, Sept 8, 2003; Justin Hyde writing for Reuters reports that General Motors Corp. on Monday said it was considering a new line of rear-wheel-drive cars for markets around the world, including Europe and the United States.

The vehicles would be built off an all-new global "platform," or group of common parts, that were used to construct a concept version of a mid-size Opel luxury sedan unveiled Monday. The new platform, which may be several years away from production, would plug some gaping holes in GM's vehicle lineup and give it the chance to compete for a richer class of buyers.

"We have a couple of brands where we think this kind of platform could apply, especially in the U.S.," GM Chairman Rick Wagoner told reporters at the unveiling before the Frankfurt motor show. "I think it makes sense, increasingly, for a product of this size...to sell it on several continents."

GM has for years pursued a strategy of building as many models as possible off a small number of platforms. That allows it to spread engineering, parts and tooling costs over a larger number of vehicles.

While GM has been successful in platform sharing for trucks, and has begun consolidating its car models onto fewer platforms, it has lacked a high-volume, moderately priced, rear-wheel-drive car platform. That has left the market open for luxury automakers such as BMW AG and DaimlerChrysler AG's Mercedes brand to sell less expensive models and grow market share.

When GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz decided to resurrect the Pontiac GTO muscle car, he was forced to import a rear-wheel drive car from GM's Australian unit and fit it for the U.S. market. Lutz has said he wants to build the next-generation GTO in the United States, after GM develops a new rear-wheel drive car platform.

Wagoner said the problem was most acute in Europe, where Opel has traditionally sold a larger rear-wheel-drive sedan that hasn't always fared so well. GM Europe's sales are up this year, but it's still forecast to post profits between breakeven and a loss of $200 million as pricing pressures mount.

"As the so-called premium brands have come downmarket, that has put some pressure on us, so we need to find ways to push up," he said.

The concept car, the Opel Insignia, bears some resemblance to the Chrysler Airflite, another rear-wheel-drive concept unveiled earlier this year. Wagoner said the Insignia was designed as a head-on competitor to the BMW 5-Series sedans, and was meant to make Opel more of a luxury brand, leaving the cut-rate European car market to GM's Korean affiliate, Daewoo.

"Daewoo is going to cover more of the value price points," Wagoner said, "and I think over time that's going to let us use more of the Opel product development capabilities to move up in line a little more consistently with its German heritage, and to be quite honest, a little more consistent with its German cost structure."