GM buys 50% stake in Italian diesel engine maker

GM has been recently making quite a push to bring more diesel variants of their cars to the market. The company will now expand its diesel engine capacity with the purchase of 50 percent stake in VM Motori S.p.A, an Italian diesel maker.

VW Motori S.p.A is owned by Penske, which will retain its 50 percent stake. GM has not made any comments on the deal besides a few words from Dan Hancock, vice president of global engineering for GM Powertrain, called the purchase “a good value.”

GM and VM Motori S.p.A have already teamed up for a 2.9 liter V6 turbodiesel engine variant for the new Cadillac CTS sedan. The car is expected to make its debut in Europe in 2009.

“There is a growing importance of light commercial vehicles when looked at from a global context,” Hancock said. “Light commercial vehicles account for 32 percent of the sales in the emerging markets. We see this to be a very strong and continually growing market opportunity.”

Besides the 2.9 liter turbodiesel engine mention here GM will also be introducing a 4.5 liter turbodiesel in 2010 in light-duty pickups and its HUMMER lineup.

 

Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

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