GM Sells 471,823 Vehicles in Europe in Second Quarter 2009

ZURICH, Switzerland – July 10, 2009: General Motors (GM) sales in Europe reached a volume of 471,823* vehicles in the second quarter of 2009, with a market share of 9.2 percent. Due to the deepest economic crisis since the Great Depression, which strongly impacted the automotive business, GM sales were down 20 percent in the region, compared to a decline of 18 percent for the industry.

Opel/Vauxhall sales reached a volume of 347,330 vehicles from April to June 2009, with a share of 6.8 percent. Opel sales in Germany were up 45 percent, making Q2 the best sales quarter since 2000 for Opel, leveraged also by the country’s governmental scrappage program. The Opel Corsa was the segment leader in Germany in the second quarter.

Chevrolet sold 115,526 cars in Europe in the second quarter, with a record market share of 2.3 percent. Chevrolet recorded impressive sales results in Germany (up 43 percent), France (up 102 percent) and Turkey (up 120 percent).

In the first half of 2009, GM sold 878,641 vehicles in Europe and had a market share of 9.1 percent. In Germany, Opel sales were up 27 percent and Chevrolet sales were up 41 percent for the first six months of 2009, leading to the highest GM group sales in Germany since 2001 of 210,828 vehicles. The Opel/Vauxhall Insignia, European Car of the Year 2009, continues to excel: with sales of 86,350 units in the first half of 2009, the Insignia is the second best-selling car in the mid-size car segment in Europe. The Opel/Vauxhall Meriva was also leading sales in its segment.

In June, GM Europe sold a total of 166,824 vehicles. Opel in Germany achieved its highest June sales since 1999, with sales up 52 percent and a market share of 9.2 percent. Chevrolet recorded the highest monthly sales volume in its history in Germany, with sales up 61 percent in June. “These registrations seem to indicate that we might have seen the bottom in certain markets. Stimulus programs, like the scrappage program in Germany, are good examples, where strong public policy is helping to offset the impact of the global economic crisis,” said Brent Dewar, GM Europe vice president, sales, marketing and aftersales.

“While it will probably take some years for the industry to return to 2007 levels, as we are facing an unprecedented set of economic challenges due to the global economic crisis, we are working intensively with our retail network to fight for every sale and to successfully manage the business during this challenging period,” said Dewar. “We have a host of new products – including the Opel Insignia, the European Car of the Year 2009, and the Chevrolet Cruze. We will keep managing our production and costs as tightly as possible, while communicating our strong product message in the marketplace.”