Questions over the Volkswagen-Suzuki ‘alliance’, coming apart at the seams before it has even begun, inevitably followed executives to the Frankfurt show.
Suzuki has said it wants to end the two year old alliance but VW wants discussions first.
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“We want to talk. We haven’t changed our view of Suzuki as an investment,” VW chief Martin Winterkorn told AFP on the eve of the show’s first press day.
“We’re not working on any alternative scenarios” to the cooperation with Suzuki and VW has no plans to sell its 19.9% stake in the Japanese firm, finance chief Hans Dieter Poetsch added. Suzuki has said it would ask VW to dispose of the stake.
Miffed about being described as a VW “associate” in an annual report that suggested the German automaker could “significantly influence financial and operating policy decisions” at Suzuki, the Japanese company has said it wanted to sever ties with VW, claiming its autonomy was under threat.
After the two carmakers entered into a strategic alliance in December 2009, VW bought a 19.9% stake in Suzuki and the Japanese group acquired 1.5% of its German partner with the aim of pooling their respective strengths in hybrid and small car technologies.
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By GlobalDataSeparately, Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Fiat with which Suzuki only recently inked a diesel engine deal, annoying VW, told Reuters Suzuki would be an interesting partner for the Asian market.
