General Motors has appointed Mahmoud Samara as President and Managing Director of GM Europe.
Samara, who currently serves as the Vice President of Cadillac North America Sales, Service and Marketing, will move into his new role on December 1st. Based out of Zurich, Switzerland, Samara will report to GM Senior Vice President and President GM International Steve Kiefer and will “lead the transformation,” of the automaker’s European operations.
“Mahmoud comes to this role with a really impressive track record in delivering a world-class customer experience, as well as growing sales in the North America Cadillac business,” Kiefer said in a statement. “His mission is to transform our current operations into a non-traditional mobility start-up in the region, identifying entrepreneurial opportunities to commercialize our global growth strategy investments in Europe. We will make very deliberate decisions about where and how we compete in Europe.”
GM describes its new strategy for Europe as a “non-traditional start-up.” The automaker sees Europe as a prime market for selling certain future electric and autonomous products and Samara will be tasked with helping GM gain more of a foothold in the region.
“Europe is the second largest and fastest growing electric vehicle market in the world, presenting a significant opportunity as GM is about to roll out its comprehensive and cutting-edge EV and AV portfolio along with new and innovative software, autonomous technology and freight and logistics services,” Samara said.
GM previously scaled back its European presence and as such, the Cadillac XT4 is the only vehicle the automaker sells there currently. Cadillac also had just 20 retail storefronts and 123 aftersales partners in Europe as of last November. With more EVs on the way, though, the automaker is once again looking to expand in Europe.
“Over the coming months, our team will develop our plans to bring our best products and services to customers in Europe and help build a cleaner and better future,” Samara added.
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Comments
Here we go again! GM burnt all their bridges in Europe with the Vauxhall-Opel fiasco, the same as they did with Holden in Australia. There is little to no traction or appeal for anything to do with GM products especially in the UK or Germany so the chances are this will be another multi-million dollar failure like all the others. Buyers are not going to commit themselves to an organization that will likely be gone again a few years down the line.
I think that the Cadillac Lyric could find interest. The body is looking quite different from everything else on the market. Since Tesla sells very well, the Lyric could be received as a more exotic alternative to Tesla and the BEVs from the German manufacturers. The Porsche Taycan is second place in the upper class (Oberklasse) segment, behind Mercedes S-Klasse and before the BMW 7-series.
We will see.
BTW: In Germany, people get up to 9000 Euro subsidies for buying a BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle). For cars costing more than a given threshold (I don’t know the exact number), the subsidy is reduced.
… disagree Cadillac Lyric is an [[ugly³(awful)²]]³ car, so please do not bring another ugly here
… disagree Cadillac Lyric is an [[ugly³(awful)²]]³ car, so please do not bring another ugly here
Porsche Taycan is unproportional, ugly and for rich 60 years old playboys, so please stop Porsche here, Mercedes S-Klasse has a lot of exterior design errors. BMW 7 is strange… as said what we do not have here in Germany are the elegant and beautiful cars, unfortunate the designs schools in Germany and worldwide are too bad and talent does not exist anymore. > SO WE ARE WITHOUT GOOD OPTIONS > a reason why try to keep my car for more 40 years, because there is none in market to satisfy… all manual unfortunate… the only more or less ok is Mitsubishi with CVT, but too expensive and exterior not that great, so … we are in whole Europe without good autoindustry… in 10 years do not know, but for now is all ugly. we need chinese options here
One can endlessly rant about questions of taste, but in the end, taste is something individual.
I should admit that judging by the images of the Cadillac Lyric, this car pleases my eye. But sure, I should see it in nature. That will come, if not next year, then the year after that.
Maybe you will understand me when I tell you that my car was for a quarter of a century the Peugeot 205, which in my eyes was a really beautiful car.
If I dig deeper in my memory, I may find some more examples of cars which please(d) my esthetic senses, but I just don’t get very far.
Anyway, I am sure that the Lyric will find its its admirers, who — if they have the funds — will buy a Lyric, and this is not dependent of you liking the Lyric, nor me.
Über Geschmack läßt sich streiten, aber man wird nie einen Einheitsgeschmack finden.
… well .. I know… taste is personal… but since more than 40 years see Design Styling and analyse car on world worldwide… Also was Engineer and CAD Designer of BIW and Interiors in GmB, VWB, indirect to Audi, Webasto and BMW… So was a little bit together car projects, not much but some models details as as schooled designer and mechanical engineer can judge vehicles, because was a bit in yachts and aircrafts interiors projects touch too… in beginning not, but with time the eye came accurate even when hands kept more or less the same.
… keep with Peugeot 205, it is a beautiful and precise in design car, much better than today we have in streets. I had a 1996 Peugeot 106, loved the car, it was perfect, analysing all… you will not find the same design quality in market today… believe me..
yes, the lyric will sell easy, BMWs are horrible and sell easy, those SUV X3, X5, etc in streets brings 10 000 000 000 to BMW owners pocket. People today does not have any taste like the 1930ies, 1940ies, 1950ies elegance once had… So lyric will sell equally as water or coffee does.
But it does not mean because selling is beautiful, no, it is just because people accepts any thing is throw throat down which has in shops and shelves… There is no other option, this is the problem.
Ja, Geschmack ist nicht einfach… Ich habe eine 2013 Dacia Sandero Essentiel, nicht perfekt… mit viele Sache die ich nicht mag, aber Kompromiss für € 8000 neu 27950 km 8 jahre alt… Ansonst wenn passiert etwas, dann nur Mitsubishi Space € 7900 mit CVT € 14000… weil Dacia ist schlecketer und teuer geworden.
@MK: if you think that the “Peugeot 205, it is a beautiful and precise in design car, much better than today we have in streets”, why don’t you recognize the common elements of the 205 and Cadillac Lyric, especially the rear?
… well, P205 is simple designed x Lyric very complicated smashed !
They are different, both Fruits but Apple x Ananas
but if in your taste you see the Lyric the most awesome this world, up to u, buy it
those subsidies are farse, because an electric car costs minimal 40000 euros and most salaries are 2000 or 3000 netto euros a month… plus a majority 400 euro jobs in Germany they can not even afford an old car… so electric politics in central europe is a cheat … from this salary you can not buy a house of more than 340 000 euros neither pay much, cause a rental 60m² is 900 euros, so only rich people can buy electric cars in Germany… none house owners make the installations
At least about 10 to 12 percent of all new car registrations in Germany are BEVs (Battery Electric Cars). So there must be some people who can buy such stuff, and who actually do it.
And GM will find buyers to their Lyric, as they found buyers for the XT4, even if in small numbers.
I surely wont buy, but not because I don’t like the Lyric, but because I do not need a car just alone for me. I have 2 cars of my car-sharing subscription waiting just 100 meters away from my apartment, have S-Bahn, U-Bahn, Buses, all in short walking distance.
No reason, dear MK, to get excited.
.. there is too many people rich… so they buy. if BMW sold the horrible funky i3 nice, GM sells nice here the Bolt too… people buy all. I am not excited, in opposite… very lazy…
Because EV vehicles are both popular and subsidized in Europe General Motors would be insane to take a pass on the region.
Opel should have never been sold as it was at near break when PSA took over and GM, too, was capable of leasing out all unnecessary factory space (& workers) to achieve higher utilization. GM is still responsible for many legacy costs so got a bum deal. Opel was great at designing US cars which will be quite handy when the US/Chinese Cold War heats up.
Now GM will likely sell a mix and match of EV models from every brand without a cohesive design language or the brand cache enjoyed by Tesla. The best bet would be to badge everything from Lyriq to Bolt as GM or purchase a small brand like Lancia or the rights to a defunct UK make as GM’s European brand.
…. ok GM back to Europe… what we need here is not electric cars, but stationary wankel E85 motors which produces electricity for 4 electric motors integrated in wheels all automatic with no mechanical axle, no tunnel but an extreme beautiful design elegant which lacks in whole Europe. And that all € 7000 final price as new for a 4 doors car with much chromes, at side window and front and rear window too… if it is another the more or less the same which has in market then we do not need you… if it is to bring the USA current product palette which you have again here in Germany, then please be off.. we have enough ugly cars on road and do not need one more offering same others do
Some weeks ago, the Chevrolet Corvette C8 was presented to European journalists, inviting them for a tour in the USA. This resulted in a number of press articles.
Yea but the corvette is a ridiculous price over here in Europe.
… in europe you have the same lanborghinii or ferrari equal to this corvette c9. so we do not need such toys here either
What is L-gm going to sell in Europe? They should just save money and not have a president position.
… agree,,, from the shelf they have now, none.. it is why we do not see any chevys neither caddys here
Currently, they sell the XT4.
yeah, saw, but correct the errors and sent a proposal to Cadillac Design Director…the front is a kind of the copy vampire peugeot teeth… so … too expensive € 40000 is too much..
but never saw one here in the streets… if they sold maybe only 10 in Frankfurt Am Main.
I neither ever noticed to see a Cadillac XT4 in the streets. But then I also don’t walk around so much.
In Germany, there were 184 Cadillac XT4 newly registered, 24 Escalade and 2 other in the first 10 months of 2021.
We’ll see how the number evolve once the Corvette is available, and then the Cacillac Lyric.
Wait and see.
184+24+2— equal 210 is really not that much to come to a sight here in neighbourhood
i’m getting a strong hunger games vibe from this guy.
… totally truth ! … reading Samara… thought to be a woman… but with this arabic mahmoud with this funny uk dress and hair totally agree… yes.. we are already surviving hunger games here in europe, mrs merkel paid too weak money for us, now we had none candidates,.. so the future of germany is lost after december, we will see how expensive all will be… with the trillion guy of spd, the greens and others…
They are still selling Camaros and Corvettes (incl. the upcoming Z06) in Europe though
… Vehicles were stylish … today … are weak … {{awful²[[ugly³(horrible)³]]²}}³
Vauxhall (GM UK) was a great and well-liked brand. One of the oldest automobile manufacturers in the World (pre-dating GM), and bought by millions of Brits for over a century.
Then they handed over authority to the Germans, and the British love of Vauxhall slowly faded.
Now the French own it, they’ll kill Vauxhall entirely.
So sad – and so unnecessary.
the love of Vauxhall dropped so low that the Vauxhall Corsa is the best selling car in this year, January to October.
I’m not sure, but I hold it to be quite probable that the Corsa was leading the sales charts for the whole last year, too.
Look it up yourself at the SMMT (you know, there has to be a co.uk following the name SMMT to complete the URL).
I know that Carlos Tavares, the Stellantis CEO, values the Vauxhall brand highly.
I for myself think that there might be another attempt to enter the Australian market with Opel/Vauxhall cars, but this time using the Vauxhall brand instead of Opel.
We’ll see.
I’m with most of you…gm’s bailout of these markets left a very BAD partnership impression on any future “trustworthy” business that could depend on gm’s integrity. Like leaving American’s in Afghanistan, not telling your allies you are bailing out of Afghanistan, taking a dump on France’s contract with Australia, who needs enemy’s, and giving Russia a pipeline to to crap on Europe and the US…. leading the WH to beg for an increase in production from OPEC and Russia…
gm will not have trouble convincing the international market (excluding China) they are a friend and can be trusted.
A: I don’t think European are all that interested in anything American.
B: GM left a Bad taste in their mouth and an even worst taste when they split.
C. The car is kind of bland. What is it about? Even though it’s a Cadillac it has no history. People here in North America can barely associate it with Cadillac of past.
D: we are NOT going to see Tesla like numbers. No one will be overwhelmed.
E: hope the best for the not so mighty GM. It’s a shadow of what it was and so is Cadillac. Please do it right. Don’t disguise Kraft dinner as something delicious when only caviar will do.