GM Officially Sells Opel-Vauxhall To Renault

GM never seemed to know completely what to do with Opel and Vauxhall. The two brands created some of the most compelling small vehicles inside the company, yet received little in the way of support. It doesn’t matter now, because they’ve officially been sold off to Peugeot-Citroen for a measly $2.3 billion.

Yeah, measly. If GM had managed the two brands better, they’d be worth so much more. Instead, General Motors is down two more marques. At least they’re not entirely dead, and have a better chance than Saab.

Mary Barra, GM’s CEO, has been quoted as saying the decision to let Opel and Vauxhall go was hard, but necessary. In general, I’ve liked the decisions she’s made at the helm of the company, but this one I don’t. Many industry analysts think Brexit was the factor that pushed GM over the edge. If so, bravo, Britain, bravo.

Buick will suffer as a result, because several models from the brand were based on European siblings. Supposedly Peugeot will continue this arrangement, but it doubtfully will go on for too long. Unless GM has a plan for creating compelling, tight-handling cars in the United States, this will only make the company more dependent on SUVs and trucks.

Looking further in the future, GM is feeling out a chance to work with Peugeot on electric and fuel-cell vehicles. This comes as the automaker is strengthening ties with Honda with a bigger fuel-cell venture.