Rebirth 99 to become a car giant

General Motors, the world's largest car company by sales, went bankrupt.

This matter is definitely not something that can simply be reported by the media and then go away.

Last year, Xingchen Motors bought Jaguar Land Rover back from Ford Motor Company.

Then Jaguar Land Rover's sales in China continue to rise. This year it seems that Jaguar Land Rover will be able to turn losses into profits, and its valuation will rise sharply.

This successful case has made many car companies very jealous.

For example, Geely Automobile has always wanted to buy Volvo from Ford Motor Company.

Now that General Motors is bankrupt, Li Su feels that Ford will definitely be under great pressure internally.

After all, the boss has fallen, how long can the second one hold on?

Although General Motors' situation is more severe than Ford's, the entire American auto market is actually in a slump.

In particular, the three major American car companies are facing internal and external troubles.

Therefore, Li Su is now confident in acquiring Volvo Cars.

"Lao Gao, you fly to Detroit with me next week. I want to visit the senior management of Ford Motor."

"We have had direct contact with Ford since last year and have always expressed to them our intention to acquire Volvo."

"But they were not particularly active before, and the price they offered was very high."

"I think now is a more suitable opportunity to communicate with them again to see if we can finalize this acquisition as soon as possible."

Geely Automobile has developed very well in China in recent years.

Geely Auto, which has been manufacturing cars for ten years, has now established a firm foothold in the automobile industry.

Thanks to the assistance of Nanshan Group, Geely Auto at this time is much stronger than the same period in history.

Especially in terms of profitability and sales, it has obviously risen to a new level.

This made Li Su more confident about the future.

Affected by last year's financial crisis, various places in China have provided very strong support for the development of the automobile industry.

Li Su has communicated with some local banks. If they want to acquire Volvo Cars overseas, these banks can help provide a large amount of funds.

This is also an important reason why Li Su now wants to go to the United States to have another face-to-face talk with Ford Motor Company.

He has already vaguely felt that China's automobile market is about to usher in an unprecedented prosperity scene.

If you miss this good opportunity, you don’t know how long it will take to encounter a similar good opportunity in the future.

"Wouldn't it be a bit sensitive for us to go to Ford Motor Company at this time?"

"If they become angry when the time comes, it may be detrimental to the negotiations."

Gao Songlin interpreted the upcoming negotiations from another perspective.

However, Li Su's attitude was very firm, saying: "Americans don't have so many twists and turns. For them, the matter of selling Volvo cars is relatively clear. It is nothing more than whether the price is appropriate. "

"Now that General Motors has fallen, if they don't take action as soon as possible, no one knows whether Ford will be the next to fall."

"I believe Mulally doesn't want his performance this year to be very ugly."

"Selling Volvo Cars can make Ford's financial report this year look much better and even achieve a small profit."

"It was a temptation Mulally couldn't refuse."

During this time, Li Su also spent a lot of time analyzing and understanding the situation of Ford Motors.

Mulally is a professional manager who came from outside.

For these people, they must consider recent changes in business performance.

If Mulally can't convince Ford's board of directors that the future will get better and shareholders can't let shareholders see that the financial results are getting better, then his position may not be saved.

Even though he is now the CEO of Ford Motor Company, he may be fired tomorrow.

"Then I'll make some arrangements and see if I can find some material that is beneficial to the negotiations."

"But if we can really successfully acquire Volvo, it will be very helpful to improve our R\u0026D strength."

"At that time, just like Jaguar Land Rover, we will set up a factory and R\u0026D center in China and transfer all the other party's technology."

"No matter how things change in the future, this acquisition will be a success for us."

Gao Songlin is responsible for Geely Automobile's R\u0026D work. He is very aware of the gap between Geely Automobile's R\u0026D capabilities and Volvo's.

Although after ten years of development, Geely Automobile's sales and profits have reached a new level.

But in terms of R\u0026D strength, it is actually still relatively weak.

It's not even time for technology to explode.

For Geely Auto at this time, it really needs to acquire a mature car company and then digest and absorb the other party's technology.

As a result, Geely Automobile has firmly established itself in the automobile industry and become the darling of the times.

"When dealing with overseas companies, the relevant lawyers must be found in advance to avoid any delays."

"In recent years, Chinese companies have frequently acquired overseas companies, and many of them have paid tuition fees."

"We must do a good job in this matter and stop being treated as a joke."

Li Su was not carried away, and knew that he needed to be cautious at this time.

However, he is very determined to acquire Volvo Cars.

Similarly, it is not just Geely Automobile that has seen acquisition opportunities through the bankruptcy of General Motors.

Inside Chery Automobile, Yin Chuan was also discussing similar topics with Wang Ze.

"Mr. Yin, judging from the information we have compiled and analyzed from various media in the United States, General Motors will definitely cut some brands and models after its bankruptcy and reorganization this time."

"General Motors now owns a series of brands including Buick, Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC, Opel, Pontiac, Hummer, etc., and hundreds of models are on sale."

"In comparison, Toyota Motor, which is close in size to General Motors, has less than half the number of brands and models as General Motors."

"So some brands that are not selling well are likely to be sold by General Motors."

"According to the analysis of our sales department, the brands currently being introduced by GM in Shanghai should be the brands that GM sells well internally."

"Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac, these three brands will most likely not be sold."

"Several other brands are likely to be abandoned by General Motors after the reorganization."

"This should be a very good time to go to General Motors to discuss acquisitions."

"After the reorganization, the other party definitely hopes to come up with some cost-cutting plans as soon as possible in a short period of time to give everyone confidence."

"At this time, it is entirely possible for us to acquire some brands at low prices."

"Like a Pontiac, a Saab, or a Hummer."

"Hummer, in particular, is actually quite well-known in the country."

"Although they all produce large-displacement models, Xingchen Motors can sell large-displacement models so well. I don't think Hummer has no hope at all in China."

Wang Ze combined the information he obtained and reported the relevant situation to Yin Chuan there.

Chery Automobile is now the leader among China's independent brands, well, excluding Xingchen Automobile.

Under such circumstances, Yin Chuan definitely hopes to further make Chery Automobile bigger and stronger.

Xingchen Motors has put its successful examples there, and everyone will naturally consider learning from them.

If the acquisition of a certain brand can be successfully completed, Chery Automobile should be able to reach a higher level in China.

Yin Chuan also saw this situation clearly.

Otherwise, Wang Ze would not be arranged to sort out this information.

"Do you think General Motors will be like Ford, selling a brand to the outside world every year and extending the front line?"

"If they have this mentality, then our negotiations will become very difficult."

Yin Chuan really didn't know much about General Motors' situation.

Especially for some of the ideas within General Motors, he has even less control.

As the general manager of Chery Automobile, it is impossible for him to follow the news of General Motors' bankruptcy online every day.

The most important thing is that there is a case like Ford Motor Company, and it is difficult not to worry about whether General Motors will follow suit.

After all, everyone knows that if you sell multiple brands at once, you will definitely not be able to sell them at a high price.

There may even be competition between your own brand and yourself.

This is certainly not a situation that the people at General Motors want to see.

"General Motors' situation this time is still very different from Ford's."

"After Ford Motor changed to a new CEO, it took a series of measures to save itself."

"For the new CEO, making Ford's situation better year after year is the most important task."

"Under this background, it is more appropriate to sell one brand every year."

"This time, the main thing that saved General Motors was the funds from the American government and the Maple Leaf Country. As financial funds, they definitely don't have that much patience to wait."

"So I think General Motors' self-rescue plan will have final results within this year."

"Whether it is shutting down some brands or selling some brands, the action will be much faster than Ford."

"After all, it is taxpayers' money that is being spent, and it must be visible to everyone so that it will not easily lead to criticism."

"Especially this time, in order to respond to the bankruptcy of General Motors, the United States also established a special presidential automobile task force."

"For these politicians, it is almost inevitable to deal with General Motors' assets in a drastic way."

Wang Ze gave his judgment with certainty.

Whether it is American websites, European and Japanese websites, or China's own internal websites, there are many reports about General Motors' bankruptcy.

Wang Ze, who has studied carefully for several days, has a relatively good understanding of all aspects of the situation.

Otherwise, he would not dare to come over and discuss this topic with Yin Chuan.

"If this is the case, then what brand acquisition do you think it would be more appropriate for us to negotiate with General Motors?"

Although Wang Ze just mentioned his views on some General Motors brands.

But if you really want to start communicating with General Motors, you must not be half-hearted. Instead, you should accurately aim at a target and explore it carefully.

"Each General Motors brand has its own uniqueness, but if you have to choose one, Hummer or Saab may be more suitable."

Wang Ze considered it for a while and gave his own judgment.

"Why not Pontiac and Opel?"

Yin Chuan asked a question that many people wanted to know.

Wang Ze obviously had some preparations for this.

"Pontiac joined General Motors in 1909 and officially used the Pontiac automobile trademark in 1932."

"Historically speaking, it has a very profound foundation."

"But it is positioned as a sports sedan brand within the General Motors Group, which is a relatively niche market in China."

"Nowadays, consumers like SUV models. Except for Xingchen Motors' Ziweixing, there are no other products that are good for sports sedans."

"If we acquire Pontiac, we will probably lose all our money by then."

Personal preferences and business logic are sometimes contradictory.

Many people may like sneaker cars, but when they actually buy them, they may not buy them for various reasons.

Wang Ze also has a clear understanding of this.

"What about Opel?"

“It’s not a sports brand!”

Yin Chuan immediately asked, and Wang Ze quickly responded.

"Opel's main market is in Europe, and General Motors probably has no intention of abandoning the European market in the short term."

"So I think there is a high probability that they will not sell Opel. Of course, this is not absolute."

"If I can buy Opel, I think it will not be worse than Saab."

Obviously, Wang Ze is quite optimistic about Opel.

Europe is the birthplace of automobiles. Although sales have not been as good as those in the United States over the years, the foundation is still there.

Although Opel is not well-known in China, it is still well-known in Europe.

In this respect, it is somewhat similar to Saab.

"Then why would you consider a Hummer?"

Yin Chuan basically accepted Wang Ze's explanation.

So instead of continuing to delve into this topic, I started to learn about Hummer.

"Hummer has appeared in many Hollywood movies and is relatively well-known."

"If I hadn't read on Yahoo America that General Motors planned to sell Hummer, I would have thought that Hummer might not be for sale."

"Although the Hummer market may be relatively niche, I think it can sometimes be compared with Land Rover."

"The domestic SUV market has developed rapidly in recent years, and the sales of Xingchen Automobile's Yangwang and Xingtu are very good."

"Hummer can completely match the prices of Yangwang and Xingtu and compete with them for consumers."

"Of course, Hummer is more focused on off-road performance, and may have a stronger competitive relationship with Range Rover in this regard."

Wang Ze still has a soft spot for Hummer cars.

In fact, there are few men who don't like Hummers.

Of course, whether you like it or not, whether you can afford it or not is another matter.

"Hummer uses large-displacement engines. By then, General Motors shouldn't be selling the engine technology along with it, right?"

Based on Ford's previous sale of Jaguar Land Rover, Yin Chuan felt that General Motors' conditions could not be better.

After all, engines can be used not only by Hummers, but also by other brands.

This technology is considered the core technology of General Motors.

Naturally, it is impossible to follow the sale of Hummer cars.

At best it would allow you to continue buying engines from GM.

As for the price, it's hard to say.

"Now Nanshan Engine has opened large-displacement engines to all customers. If we really acquire Hummer, the worst-case scenario is to turn to Nanshan Engine to buy their products."

When Wang Ze said this, Yin Chuan felt a little more confident.

However, considering that Nanshan Group had the most experience in external acquisitions, Yin Chuan thought about it and decided to call Cao Yang and ask.

As for whether Nanshan Group might also want to acquire Hummer, this question would cause trouble for him, but Yin Chuan was not worried.

Not to mention that Nanshan Group is unlikely to acquire Hummer. Even if it has the idea to acquire Hummer, knowing it in advance can avoid vicious competition.

Take action when your heart moves.

Yin Chuan immediately called Cao Yang.

After a moment of greetings, Yin Chuan got to the point directly and asked, "Mr. Cao, this time General Motors goes bankrupt, do you think they will sell off some of their brands?"

"Definitely, Ford is losing weight. It's impossible for General Motors to lose weight even if it goes bankrupt."

This question can be easily answered even without God's perspective.

"Do you think General Motors will sell the Hummer brand?"

Since I was interested in Hummer, I naturally asked about Hummer directly.

“In the era of high oil prices, American automobile companies such as General Motors were forced to transform their products into more energy-saving, smaller, and more environmentally friendly products, following the path of Toyota and Honda.”

"Hummer's brand DNA and technical DNA belong to a niche within a niche, and it is an alternative model that goes against the trend."

"Especially the ultra-high fuel consumption, which is completely inconsistent with the future trend."

"So General Motors will definitely sell the Hummer. If it cannot be sold, General Motors will consider shutting down the Hummer directly."

"After all, if such a large car company goes bankrupt, it has to find a reason that everyone can accept."

"For cars like Hummer, they will definitely take the blame."

"So being sold is inevitable, and it is also an explanation from the United States to taxpayers."

Cao Yang gave his reply very definitely.

At this point, Nanshan Group has no interest in acquiring other car brands.

Not to mention Hummer, a car company with a high probability that its acquisition will not be approved by China.

There is no harm in selling one to Yin Chuan.

After all, China is still a human society. Sometimes people have good or bad relationships, and their attitudes are completely different when things happen.

"Mr. Cao, to tell you the truth, we at Chery Automobile have some interest in General Motors' brands, and Hummer is the brand we are most interested in."

"What do you think will happen if Chery acquires Hummer?"

The phone call had already been made, so Yin Chuan would no longer hide it.

So I just expressed my thoughts directly, and then listened to Cao Yang's opinion.

Although Cao Yang is relatively young, no one in the Chinese automobile industry dares to underestimate his existence.

The strength of Nanshan Group is no longer comparable to that of any Chinese car company.

Not to mention the special status of Nanshan Group.

"The acquirer of Hummer not only has to bear the cash involved in the transaction, but also considers all debts. This poses a huge challenge to the new Hummer to control costs and improve competitiveness."

“When making an acquisition, you also need to be wary of some traps that you can easily fall into because you don’t understand local regulations.”

"We must be mentally prepared for the friction and resistance between labor and management after the acquisition is completed."

"Companies also need to be prepared for the increasingly stringent fuel consumption and emission regulations in the United States, which means an upgrade in R\u0026D costs."

"And it is still unknown whether the acquisition of Hummer can pass the approval of relevant domestic departments."

"According to China's current regulations, the acquisition of foreign enterprises by domestic enterprises is considered overseas investment. If the amount exceeds a certain amount, it needs to be approved by the Reform Commission and the Ministry of Commerce."

"In addition, according to estimates by our group's experts, Hummer's current annual loss may be around US$200 million."

"And its global sales in 2007 were only more than 60,000 units. This resulted in Hummer's low profitability. How to change this situation also needs to be considered."

"If we develop new products, the research and development of subsequent products will involve huge capital investments."

Since I want to sell a good one to Yin Chuan, I naturally have to tell some practical information.

There are even some contents that have a certain "prophetic" nature. It depends on whether Yin Chuan can understand it.

To put it bluntly, what Cao Yang meant was that he was not optimistic about Qiry Automobile's acquisition of Hummer.

Yin Chuan naturally heard this.

However, he said a little unwillingly: "Hummer models have unprecedented power performance, handling performance and durability. They can be applied to various special roads and can travel on many roads that sports vehicles cannot travel. They are praised by the industry as off-road vehicles." King of Cars.”

"Nowadays, domestic off-road vehicles are becoming more and more popular among consumers. I think there should still be some market for Hummer cars in China, right?"

It has to be said that many people in China agree with Yin Chuan's point of view.

However, these people have not seen the power of the UAW.

Your Hummer's current development focus is in the United States. It is not that easy to avoid the UAW.

"Mr. Yin, what you said makes sense. It depends on whether the amount of Hummer acquisition is high, what technology can be obtained, and whether it can be approved."

Some words are enough. If someone wants to pay tuition, you can't forcefully stop them.

It depends on Chery Automobile's own considerations later.