GM Expected To Move Cruze Production From Korea To Europe
GM told Reuters that it won’t build the next-generation Chevrolet Cruze in South Korea. Reuters says this is “raising the possibility that GM might shift the assembly to Europe to help boost efficiency at its money-losing unit there.”
The next-generation Cruze is due in fall 2014 as a 2015 model. A GM Korea spokesman confirmed that the new Cruze will not be built in South Korea, but he kept mum on where the car will be built instead.
The current Cruze model makes for half of about 260,000 vehicles produced at GM Korea’s plant.
For many months, there had been rumors and leaks about GM moving production from its South Korean former Daewoo plants to Europe, to keep some of Opel’s idling capacity busy. When the rumors surfaced, South Korean unions threatened to “wage a war” if GM shifts output to Europe.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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no way this can be cost effective. once politics and owenship of the GM were mixed we find it difficult to extract the two.
Can one make generalizations that cars assembled in Country A are better quality than cars made in Country B? If so, then would shifting production from Korea to Germany improve or worsen quality?
I agree, the real reasons may be driven by the albatross called the European connection of GM. GM has to do something to keep their European labor occupied. They're draining the kitty faster than a running toilet. And it is also a way for GM to reward the South Korean unions for their disruptiveness. If this comes to pass, I think it is a prudent and smooth move on GM's part. And if it doesn't work out for some reason, GM can always count on another taxpayer bailout to move forward.
Here's the thing. Everyone wants his way. All of the countries that GM produces cars in gripe and moan when production moves away. The same is true for Ford. But GM and Ford are corporations and they have to make profits. Something's got to give...or everyone will lose.