[opelbits]

I'm no great fan of GM (US, that is) or Pontiac, but I have been defending GM in conversations about how the car companies have 'failed'. Compared to 20 years ago, GM/Ford/Chrysler have made huge improvements in quality and engineering. All this talk about how they don't build cars we need is just plain crap. They are in the business of building what we want, not what we need.
As someone pointed out, look at all the Grand Ams running around. I see far more of them than I do Buicks. But as was also pointed out, there are more old people available to buy old people cars than there are young people to buy that Pontiac excitement. It's a good point...except that this nice little financial meltdown (the real reason we are even talking about auto industry bailouts and bankrupties), how many of those baby boomers have lost a good chunk of their retirement funds are going to be looking at buying any car, much less a Buick?
In this country, Buick is almost defunct. Keep building them in China if they sell that many there, but Pontiac should stay. So should Saturn.
Those too companies represent GM's best chances at fighting the imports.
And GM selling Opel? Virtually everything GM has that is any good at competing with the Japanese originates at Opel, whether it is whole cars or just the engineering.

I guess now I can stop defending the 'turnaround' GM had made...

As for Chrysler, aside from their trucks and Jeep, everything new from the time of the K-car, has been based on foreign (European) engineering. The whole cab-forward thing in 93-94 was based on the Renault platform and the current stuff is M-B based, so FIAT would be no real change.