Bill Parfitt, chairman and CEO of Vauxhall and Chevrolet in the UK and Opel Ireland discusses the UK manufacturing base, the UK market in 2011 and the launch of the Ampera.
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The UK will be the biggest market for the extended-range Ampera EV in Europe and if a decision is taken to build the car outside the US, Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port plant stands “head and shoulders” above any other GM plant in Europe to build it.
“A second-generation Ampera almost certainly will be made in Europe from 2013, but where it is made has to be a business decision and I will have to make the case for Ellesmere Port, said Bill Parfitt, on the sidelines of the Welsh Automotive Forum.
“Ellesmere Port is ready, willing and more than capable and remember that the Ampera is built off the same Astra platform already at the factory,” he said.
Parfitt was upbeat about the prospects for Ampera which he believes will leapfrog everyone else’s technology.
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By GlobalData“There is room for hybrids, and they work really well in commercial vehicles, but why have a vehicle with two systems, one of which is redundant at any one time?” He also believes that there is also a lot of future in pure EVs as city cars.
“But Ampera is quiet, powerful and economical with a range of 400 miles, no redundant system and less than 80g/km CO2.”
Parfitt expects the UK to be the largest market in Europe for Ampera because of the strength of the company car market – boosted by the ‘benefit in kind’ taxation system – and the green lobby.
But Ampera will not be the only trick up GM’s green sleeve. “The earth will run out of oil 85 years from now so that gives a long life for internal combustion engines which will become more efficient and cheaper to make than alternatives so you will see a lot of small, sub-1.0-litre three-cylinder engines.
On the product front, Parfitt said that he would like to see a convertible “a rag top of some sort” return to the Vauxhall line but cautioned that “the business model must add up”.
“We’re already planning a new, sub-Corsa city car and we will launch the Junior, a premium supermini to rival Fiat 500 and BMW Mini in 2013.” This will be built at the Eisenach plant in Germany.
One of Parfitt’s biggest challenges is foreign exchange fluctuations. “I’m a hostage to pound/euro exchange rates and all I have to offset that is the payroll [Vauxhall has 5,000 UK employees] and where I buy parts.”
Recently, he had helped negotiate for GM about GBP200m of UK-sourced parts over the last 12 months, adding, “When you take into account logistics costs, reliability of supply without huge distances to deliver to plants, and you factor these into the business case, it gives a truer cost and buyers are really starting to look at this business case.”
Parfitt expects GM to sell 260,000 vehicles in the UK in 2010 making it GM’s fourth largest global market after China, North America and Brazil.
That sales volume gives the company a 12% market share and he plans to improve on that next year, despite a 30% reduction on less profitable ‘short cycle’ deals – cars that return to the market within 12 months of purchase. These typically are daily rental vehicles, GM’s own fleet and demonstrators.
“Our retail sales are growing, up 40%, and are now 10% of our total, led by product. Agila, Astra and Insignia are doing well and Zafira, which we replace next year, is still the segment leader five years after its launch.”
Vauxhall’s lifetime warranty has helped boost retail sales, he said. “It’s doing really well for us as a deal clincher at the moment and I expect it to start driving new customers to us soon.”
For 2011 he anticipates the market staying at about the same level before starting a long, slow climb over the following three to four years, taking the market back to its pre-crisis levels of over 2.4m vehicles.
Parfitt is also chairman of Chevrolet in the UK but points out that the brand has its own managing director and “stands on its own”.
Sales this year will be around 20,000 units and “the won has been kind to us” helping the profitability of the Korean-built vehicles.
“Chevrolet has 89 dealers in the UK and that’s about right. The brand will grow steadily and organically because it doesn’t have the money to advertise but I think the blueprint is about right.”
There is no customer overlap with Vauxhall and around 60% of Chevrolet dealerships are multi-franchise, sharing with Vauxhall or another brand. “By the time people go to a showroom, 75% of them have made up their minds what they want – they aren’t going to go in to buy a Vauxhall and come out with a Chevrolet.”
