Artwell Dlamini
2 June 2009
Johannesburg — GM African operations president Stevan Koch said the bankruptcy filing by the parent in the US yesterday made no difference to the local operation.
Koch said the local unit would continue to honour warranties, maintain service plans and keep its dealership network intact. He said no deal involving Hummer, one of the brands GM sought to sell as part of the restructuring, had been reached yet.
He said Opel, despite a deal at the weekend, was in close contact with GMSA, which assembled Opel Corsas at its plant in Port Elizabeth.
GM Europe, GM's European operation, said it had secured approval on Saturday for a à 1,5bn bridging financing agreement with the German government based on the partnership with Canadian part supplier Magna and Russia's Sberbank.
Opel/Vauxhall assets had been pooled under Adam Opel, with most shares of Adam Opel being put into an independent trust and the balance to remain with GM.
Koch said none of GM's operations outside the US were included in the US court filings. GMSA would continue to provide full sales and after-sales backing for "all our vehicles including honouring all warranties, service and maintenance plans, parts supply and all other areas of after- sales support for the Chevrolet, Isuzu, Opel, Hummer, Saab and Cadillac brands".
Koch said if GMSA failed to deal with the effects of the US bankruptcy filing effectively, it ran the risk of losing the confidence of customers.
"With all the publicity surrounding GM in North America, I have had less than five customers over the past few months raise the point with me," said Dave Emond, the dealer principal at a GMSA dealer in Durban. These concerned customers, he said, inquired about what GM's bankruptcy meant for GM cars in SA. He had told customers that GM had an enormous global footprint and most of its global operations such as GMSA remained profitable.
Brand Pretorius, chairman of McCarthy Motor Holdings, said customers would also ask about resale values of their cars and raise questions about after-sale support. Pretorius said it was up to GMSA to move quickly to provide further reassurance to local customers.
The company, he said, had already started doing this with its "total confidence" campaign. GMSA had extended warranties to five years and provided redundancy protection to customers who might lose their jobs.
Jeff Osborne, CEO of Retail Motor Industry, a body representing 8000 retail motor traders, said customer confidence in the brand would remain strong as GM, which was established in 1908, was one of the oldest brands.
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