GM, Renault's mini alliance

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GM, Renault's mini alliance
Automakers weighing global tie-up already produce vans jointly
Bill Vlasic and Christine Tierney / The Detroit News

General Motors Corp.

The Movano, produced by GM and Renault's joint venture in Europe, is sold under GM's Opel brand. The nearly identical Master is sold with a Renault badge.

Successful partnership

A joint venture between General Motors Corp., Renault SA, and later Nissan Motor Co., has been successful.

The venture builds 250,000 vans a year. The companies have sold 1.2 million vans since 1999.

While the business world obsesses over a possible alliance of General Motors Corp. and Renault SA, the two auto giants are quietly launching their latest vehicle developed together in Europe.

There was zero fanfare -- and no sign of Rick Wagoner or Carlos Ghosn -- at media events this month for the new Opel Movano and Renault Master, nearly identical mid-sized commercial vans developed together by GM and Renault.

The vans are the product of a joint venture between GM and Renault dating back to 1999, when the Detroit automaker and its French counterpart began building light commercial vehicles together for the European market.

It's an obscure partnership among many in the global auto industry, but its success could offer a peek into the future of an historic international alliance between GM, Renault and the French carmaker's Japanese partner Nissan Motor Co.

And since Wagoner, GM's chairman, and Ghosn, CEO of Renault and Nissan, opened talks July 14 on a potentially huge deal to link their companies, the lessons learned from a small joint venture could have a big impact.

"That's really significant," said David Cole, director of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor. "To establish a relationship is one thing, but if you already have an existing relationship, things can go much easier."
GM and Renault-Nissan have said little about the agenda for the 90-day alliance talks. But if the commercial van business is any indication, the two sides may be more compatible than outsiders expect.

"We have a very professional relationship," said Jamal El-Hout, vice president of planning for GM Europe. "We work through tough issues very well."

Together, they produce 250,000 commercial vans a year at a GM plant in England, a Nissan factory in Spain and a Renault plant in France. About two-thirds of the output is mid-sized vans, and the rest is smaller models sold by GM as the Vivaro and by Renault as the Trafic.

"This is a cooperation that has been very positive for both partners," said a spokeswoman for Renault.

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