The General is setting a plan in motion to move its European brands Opel/Vauxhall upmarket in order to avoid competition from sister brand Chevrolet, which seemingly has been getting some healthy traction in the Old World as well as in North America. Insiders at Opel/Vauxhall say that they will place more emphasis on technology and styling while Chevrolet would stay as the hip value brand in the market.
“We are targeting different people and the approach is roughly ‘value versus cutting edge,” a source told Autocar.
“A good example is the next-generation Corsa. Although the new small car architecture will be engineered by GM in Korea, the Corsa will be engineered in Germany. The Corsa will be executed in a very different way, and the differences between it and the equivalent Chevrolet will go deep. We will use different component modules under the skin, as well as an upmarket interior and the application of more high technology.”
The strategic brand re-positioning seems very appropriate, especially considering the flack GM Europe has been getting from Chevy’s recent success in Europe with models such as the Cruze and Spark.
Source: Autocar
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Im glad that is the case, and things are getting better at GM.