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'Calm down, dear' became a catch-phrase in Britain linked with a TV ad, and maybe the world's automotive manufacturers could take the notion on board as they flail around seeking a new technology to replace internal combustion engines.
It's all gone quiet for now at General Motors Europe and its Opel and Vauxhall subsidiaries, thanks to some mildly positive news about the bottom line, an agreement, albeit it grudging, with unions, and protestations from Detroit that yes, it really, really is committed to the company long-term, come rain or come shine.
German premium auto manufacturers like BMW, Mercedes and Audi have been racing down the fast lane scooping up profits and sales the last five years as they rode China’s unprecedented expansion and latched on to the recent U.S. market recovery.
The European disease has finally caught up with Germany, and car sales in the continent’s biggest market are now on the slide. That might sound like a knockout blow for the European market, but many forecasters predict that despite an awful 2013, next year will finally bring at least a tentative end to the protracted slump in car sales.
Neil Winton writes the European Perspective column for Autos Insider. He was Reuter's Science and Technology Correspondent and European Auto Correspondent before setting up as a freelance columnist and web site publisher, writing about the European automotive industry and its products.
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