GM May Move Mokka Production From Korea To Europe
GM has rocky relations with its Korean unions, and the relations will get a lot rockier if what Germany’s Handelsblatt says is true. According to the report, GM is seriously looking into moving most of the production of the Opel Mokka to Europe.
Currently, the hot selling SUVlet is made in South Korea only. Says Reuters:
“More than 100,000 Mokkas have been ordered since the market launch a half year ago and demand has been much better than expected, leading to production bottlenecks and long waiting lists for the subcompact SUV.
Producing the Mokka in the factory of General Motors’ Opel unit in Zaragoza would help to fill up that plant’s spare capacity and could lower losses of the division.”
An Opel spokesman told Reuters that “GM was looking for additional capacity to produce subcompact SUVs.” The Trax, a Chevrolet-badged Mokka sibling, will continue to be built in Korea, a Chevrolet spokesman said. A shift of the Mokka production has been discussed for a while. The next generation Mokka already is scheduled to be produced in Europe.
Three days ago, the Korean unions threatened strike after hearing that the new Aveo/Sonic will be made in China and the United States. This latest piece of news could cause the already simmering kettle to boil over.
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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What's with all of the unrest? Surely people know when they sign up to assemble cars that automakers will move production elsewhere if and when it becomes cost-effective to do so. I know that's an oversimplified view, but automakers aren't in the business of putting food into people's mouths; they're in it to maximize profit.
Does this mean we'd be getting German Buick Encores?
Holy f**king sh*t. Score one for the new GM. I have test driven this automobile. It makes almost ZERO sense for a 6'2" American in the western USA. But, in the Far East? GM can truthfully say it is identical to the ones sold in North America. It must be selling better than expected somewhere, else the workers won't be restive.
It doesn't look like a bad car. It's just ... small.