The first time I heard that GM was going to split off its European operations, I was shocked. Opel has been part of GM for 90 years. Over the past decade they’ve worked hard to create a globally-integrated organization, and GME has provided the platforms for GM’s compact and midsize cars. How could they so easily get rid of such an integral part of the organization?

At first glance, GM simply needs the cash. But they’re not divesting of their operations in Korea, China, Australia, or Latin America. Only those in Europe.

So, is GM’s poor financial condition simply providing a cover for a divorce that many people on both sides of the Atlantic have been wanting anyway?

It wasn’t too long ago–the 1990s–that Opel’s management was on the verge of mutiny. Was that rift never fully mended? Was all of the talk of a truly global orgnization just that, talk?

It’s not enough that Opel might want to split from GM. It seems that, even after 90 years, Opel has never really identified with the corporate parent. Nothing new here.

What is new: the willingness of Detroit to let Opel go.

One piece of the puzzle: Latin America and especially Asia are growing markets. Europe is not.

Another: it probably costs more to develop a car in Europe than anywhere else in the world, and it certainly costs more to make a car there. European unions are also no fun to deal with.

Then there’s the matter of need. Now that GM has GMDAT in Korea for small cars, and a increasingly capable product development organization in China, do they feel they no longer need (or even want) Opel?