Children of alliances past; GM and Fiat have divorced, but their few shared products are just arriving.(General Motors)(Fiat Auto S.p.A.)(Brief article)

Automotive News Europe, July, 2006 by Weernink, Wim Oude

Byline: Wim Oude Weernink

The Opel/Vauxhall Corsa unveiled at the British auto show here last week is the first and only shared vehicle from parent General Motors' now-

dissolved five-year alliance with Fiat Auto.

The small-segment car shares its architecture with the Fiat Grande Punto and has a 1.3-liter diesel engine jointly developed and built by GM and Fiat.

Later, the Corsa will get an optional 1.7-liter diesel from Japan's Isuzu, another former GM alliance partner.

The Corsa is a good reminder of how long automotive alliances take to produce results from joint development projects.

GM's savings on the Corsa are substantial.

"It may be 5 percent on joint components," GM Europe President...

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