Big hit at Stellantis? The head of the Opel parent company is said to have resigned

The CEO the troubled Opel parent company Stellar, Carlos Tavares has resigned, according to insiders. Reuters learned this on Sunday evening from a person familiar with the matter. The agency Bloomberg had previously reported that Tavares was about to withdraw. A corresponding announcement is expected on Sunday. The former also belonged to Stellantis Opel factory in Vienna-Aspern where 6-speed manual transmissions were produced until July 2024.

Stellantis had stated in mid-October that Tavares would retire when his contract expired at the beginning of 2026. The head of the world’s fourth-largest car manufacturer in terms of sales has been exposed to harsh criticism from unions, car dealers and shareholders in recent months. The group’s earnings and sales had recently declined, forcing Stellantis to lower its profit forecast. In addition to Opel, Stellantis also owns the brands Peugeot, Citroen, Fiat, Chrysler, Jeep and Ram.

The former Opel plant in Vienna-Aspern also belonged to Stellantis

Stellantis also owned the former Opel plant in Vienna-Aspern, which became part of the French PSA group in August 2017, which merged with Fiat-Chrysler to form Stellantis in January 2021. In 2020, engine production in Vienna-Aspern ended because the contract with General Motors expired. Until July of this year, 6-speed manual transmissions were still being produced and were installed in various vehicles from the Stellantis Group with brands such as Opel, Fiat, Peugeot and Alfa Romeo.

A total of 850,000 such 6-speed transmissions were manufactured in Aspern from 2019 to 2024. Two companies in India and France are among the last to still produce this gearbox.