BMW reveals i8 Protonic special edition
Arare admission that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is not in a position to hold merger talks came from the group’s CEO Sergio Marchionne this month in Amsterdam after two failed attempts to merge with General Motors (GM) and Volkswagen (VW).
The admission came in a meeting of company investors in which he said there were no longer talks with VW on a merger. Only last month, Marchionne had said a deal with the German company was a possibility. The response from VW management at the time was swift as its CEO denied any merger talks saying: “We have other problems.”
It is not clear whether Marchionne was under pressure from his own group to abandon his obsession of a merger deal as the FCA Chairman John Elkann said he was not interested in a merger deal. “Historically, deals are struck at times of difficulty…. We do not want to be in trouble.”
Elkann said that the priority for the company was to focus on its business plan despite the difficult environment.
Marchionne seems to be heading for retirement without achieving his dream of “one more big deal,” which he tried to achieve for more than a year. He is due to retire after the approval of the 2018 plan. A successor is being actively sought from within the ranks of the group.
This was a case of a Quixotic pursuit of a merger at the wrong time when other potential partners were either trying to downsize and getting rid of non-performing assets, such as GM, or dealing with a major crisis sapping their energy and resources, such as the case with VW. It was not fair to put FCA in that position of seeking partners under the perception that it was trying to resolve its own difficulties at the expense of other companies.
It was also obvious that the distraction of seeking partners so publicly could have possibly hindered the progress of the group, which is trying to overcome difficulties and developing new technologies.
Now with merger talks binned for good, FCA is in a much better position. Adel Murad is a senior motoring and business journalist based in London. BMW has launched a special edition of the plug- in hybrid i8 at this week’s Shanghai Auto Show. The BMW i8 has been developed into the world’s highest- selling plug- in hybrid sports car.
Its appeal has been given a fresh luster with the presentation, for the first time, of the BMW i8 Protonic Frozen Yellow Edition.
This latest special edition stands out with its exclusive Protonic Frozen Yellow paint finish, newly designed 20- inch light- alloy wheels and distinctive interior design cues
The BMW group is also building on its successful track record in sustainable mobility, where the BMW i division has played a significant role.
The BMW eDrive system technology, originally developed for the all- electric BMW i3 and BMW i8 plug- in hybrid sports car, can now be experienced in six BMW model ranges and one MINI.
Auto Shanghai is one of the most important motor shows of the year for the global automotive industry.