New details about General Motors strategic cooperation with the PSA Citroen-Peugeot group surfaced today after Jean-Luc Perrard, head of PSA’s factory in Rennes, France, told local newspaper Ouest France that Opel will build next generation of the Citroen C5, codenamed X8.
According to a report from Autonews Europe, Perrard did not say which Opel factory would manufacture Citroen’s mid-size model, but there’s a good chance it may be the Ruesselsheim plant that assembles the current Opel Insignia series.
The two automotive groups have said that GM will develop the platform(s) for midsize models such as the Opel Insignia, Peugeot 508 and Citroen C5, while the French group will take over subcompact segment with models the Opel Corsa, Peugeot 206 and Citroen C3.
The PSA group’s Rennes factory currently builds the Citroen C5 alongside the Citroen C6 and Peugeot 508 midsized vehicles with production reaching 182,300 units last year.
Perrard told the French daily that the Rennes plant will compensate for the loss of the C5 by adding new models to its assembly lines and that the company is planning to invest €40 million in the site for this purpose.
Asked about Perrard’s statements, a spokesman for the French automaker said that the two automakers have not finalized any plans yet. “The alliance working groups will communicate their final plans before the end of the year,” he said. “It is too early to draw any conclusions.”
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