A Car Trend Analysis - Opel Netherlands - Willem Castelijns (2)

OPEL NederlandA Car trend analysis

By Willem Castelijns

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OPELNEDERLAND

A CAR TREND ANALYSIS

Agila ADAM Corsa Meriva

Astra Astra GTC Cascada Zafira Tourer

Insignia Mokka Ampera Combo

Assignee: Fontys University of Applied science, Marketing Management

Organization: General Motors Co.

Author: Willem Castelijns

Student number: 2181592

Breda 5/30/2013

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Preface

First of all I would like to mention that I really enjoyed my internship/traineeship period at GeneralMotors Nederland B.V. and had a great time with my colleagues who treated me like a full timeemployee who already worked at General Motors Nederland for years. Furthermore I developed myprofessional skills in a proficient way by applying the learned theory intro practice on the work floor.

Currently I am in the fourth semester of the course ‘International Business & Management Studies’at the Fontys in Eindhoven. For this course each student needs to work as intern in an internationalcompany for at least 20 weeks. The choice for General Motors Nederland B.V. as internship companywas one I will not regret, this opportunity gave me a look in the kitchen of one of the mostinnovating and interesting car builders of the world.

This report will show my research and findings regarding my school assignment which consists of‘Car trend analysis’. Beside this I worked on several other assignments for General Motors B.V. ,however the only one who I would like to discuss will be the ‘Cascada dealer toolkit’ assignmentwhich is an information document prepared by me with its goal to inform all the Opel dealersregarding Opel’s newest model: The Cascada.

Furthermore this report is intended for informational use, the contents of this report may be used asan example to show to other students at Fontys Hogescholen.

At last I would like the thank the following people for their efforts and helping me to create thisreport during my internship at General Motors Nederland B.V. :

Frans van der Werf Carline Manager Opel Nederland /Company Internship Supervisor

John Dane Cross-Carline Manager Opel Nederland

Dorine de Boer Fontys Internship Supervisor

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http://phys.org/news/2013-02-big-smartphone-accessory-car.html

http://www.mirrorlink.com/

http://www.ppg.com/en/newsroom/news/Pages/20121010A.aspx

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1288457/Black-cars-likely-involved-accidents.html

http://www2.dupont.com/automotive/en-us/au/article/color-popularity.html

http://www.caroftheyear.org/winner/2012_1/coty

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Table of contents

I ...............................................................................................................................Title page

II ................................................................................................................................. Preface

III ................................................................................................................ Table of contents

IV ............................................................................................................. Executive summary

Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 11

Company description ...................................................................................................................................... 12

Opel key facts ................................................................................................................................................... 12

Opel’s history ................................................................................................................................................... 12

Opel’s philosophy ............................................................................................................................................. 13

Products & Services .......................................................................................................................................... 13

Dutch market & positioning .............................................................................................................................. 15

Organization ..................................................................................................................................................... 15

Global passenger car trends .............................................................................................................................. 16

Income statement, market share & employee numbers .................................................................................... 17

Analysis of the current situation/market ......................................................................................................... 18

problem definition & assignment objective ..................................................................................................... 18

Option analysis ............................................................................................................................................... 19

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................... 19

Desk research for changes in options ................................................................................................................ 19

Dealer interviews ........................................................................................................................................... 26

Infotainment .................................................................................................................................................... 27

Wheels/Rims .................................................................................................................................................... 27

Exterior colors .................................................................................................................................................. 27

Engine power ................................................................................................................................................... 27

Co2 emission .................................................................................................................................................... 28

III


Other remarks .................................................................................................................................................. 28

Cascada Dealer toolkit & other assignments for Opel ...................................................................................... 28

Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................................... 29

Recommendation ........................................................................................................................................... 30

Reflection ....................................................................................................................................................... 31

International Business Awareness & Intercultural Proficiency .................................................................. 31

International Marketing Management .................................................................................................... 31

Research, Professional behavior & Personal leadership ........................................................................... 32

Reference list ................................................................................................................................................. 33

Appendices .................................................................................................................................................... 35

16. Visited dealers + interview: ............................................................................................................... 51

Table of figures

Page

Table 1.1 Income statement Opel 2010-2011 18

Table 1.2: Market shares Opel 2010-2011 18

Table: 1.3: GM and Opel employees 18

Graph: 2.1: Infotainment options 21

Graph 2.2: Astra rim sizes 2007-2013 22

Graph 2.3: Opel exterior colors 24

Graph 2.4: Opel coating 24

Graph 2.5 : Opel Horsepower 25

Graph 2.6: Opel carlines by fuel 26

Graph 2.7: Opel Co2 emission compared 27

Figure 2.8 Map dealer interviews 27

III


Executive Summary

First of all this summary includes a concise, but complete, description of the future Automotivetrends in the current market, supplemented by a recommendation for Opel Netherlands.

In the current automotive market, manufacturers are required to offer innovative and ‘trendy’products in order to stay in the competition. Beside a proper design cars consist of options such asnavigation, Bluetooth, bigger rims, a fancy coating and some technical options. These change overthe years. Now the categories are shortly described:

Infotainment options, such as Bluetooth, touchscreen navigation and mobile phone integrationnever have been so important as nowadays, there is a great demand for touchscreen infotainmentsystems which include mobile phone integration. Opel ADAM offers a system like this: Intellilink,however the system is affected by start-up problems and needs to be improved properly in order tobecome popular.

Furthermore Opel rim sizes are changing a lot, people are demanding bigger rims while this isdisadvantageous for a driver’s comfort and it is expensive. This is against the worldwide trend ofsmaller rims. However all dealers opted for bigger rims for Opel’s Zafira Business+.

Besides rims, people judge a car on its color. The days of silver and grey are gone according to thecoating repots. White is gaining popularity due to the fact that it looks minimalistic/eco-friendly andit often looks innovative. Furthermore natural colors like Opel’s Noblesse, Dark Mahogany orEmerald Green are probably increasing in popularity in the future.

When it comes to fuel, Opel is leader in electric propulsion in the Netherlands with their OpelAmpera. However due to fiscal policy this car is threatened to lose its strong market position.Therefore all dealers suggested to make the car cheaper or more completed by adding rain sensorsstandard.

Also the amount of horsepower that an engine possesses is increasing for Opel engines, while theworldwide trend is to downsize engines (decrease power for Fiscal & Environmental issues). Thiscould fall into Opel’s advantage if they are able to keep Co2 emission of these stronger engines onthe same level. However this is Opel’s pitfall, since the Dutch authorities use very strict fiscal lawsbased on Co2 emission. Other brands like Renault are able to compete better due to the fact theyhave eco-friendly engines.

At last I would like to mention that the automotive industry is on the verge of change, now it is up toOpel Netherlands to change their threats into new opportunities.

IV


INTRODUCTION

‘A general direction in which something is developing or changing’ is the definition of trendaccording to Oxford dictionaries (Oxford 2013). In this report the word ‘trend’ is used a lot incombination with the automotive industry.

Currently the automotive industry has two faces:

Innovation and change are depending the route of car manufacturers. Technology ischanging rapidly in the shape of infotainment systems and engines.Affected by the credit crunch the automotive industry collapsed, people postpone thetransaction of a new car due to uncertainty.

Opel Netherlands is one of the daughter companies of General Motors, who are the third biggest carproducers in the world. With German roots Opel expresses their selves as a reliable, quality mid-class car manufacturer.

In order for Opel to compete with its rivals they need to deal with these trends effectively. Thereforethis report creates insight and gives a recommendation for the Product & Pricing department of OpelNetherlands.

Furthermore this report is part of my study at Fontys Hogescholen. At the moment I am studyingIBMS and as part of this four year during education it is required for each student to do atraineeship/internship in a company.

In co-operation with my internship supervisor (Frans van der Werf, Opel carline manager) Icomposed an assignment which correlates with the IBMS competencies. Beside the trend analysis Iadded a so called ‘Dealer toolkit’, which was an assignment I had to do for Opel. At last I also addeda product/competitor comparison.

Regarding this report I started with a company description where Opel’s vision, mission, productoffer and other facts around Opel are presented. After this the most relevant global automotivetrends are described followed by the trends around Opel. Furthermore some dealers were visited foran interview regarding the latest trends.

also I give a recommendation of my findings together with a conclusion and a reflection of what Ilearned at Opel Netherlands.

At last I would like to mention that beside that trend analysis I spend a lot of time with the addedDealer toolkit and the Competitor comparison which is also added as separate file.

Thank you for your kind attention


COMPANY DESCRIPTION

OPEL KEY FACTS

Founded in 1862 in Rüsselsheim, Opel is one of the most technologically advanced automobilemanufacturers in Europe. It has a long and rich history. The company is shaped by a passion for cars.Together with Vauxhall, Opel’s sister brand in the U.K., they sell vehicles in over 40 markets inEurope. The company operates plants and development centers in seven European countries, andemploys around 40,000 people. Many additional jobs are provided by over 6,500 dealer / servicesites.

With the market introduction of the electric Opel Ampera, the company has founded a new segmentin the European automotive market and underlines its role as a trendsetter for progressive mobilitysolutions.

In 2011, Opel sold over 1.2 million passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in Europe, which isresulting in a market share of 6.1 percent.

OPEL’S HISTORY

Opel is a car manufacturer founded in 1862 by Adam Opel in Rüsselheim (Germany), at the start ofthe company’s existence Opel produced sewing machines followed by bicycles. After their sewingmachines and bicycles became massive successes Opel started producing their first automobile in1899.

However Opel’s successes were noticed from the USA, in 1929 the American company GeneralMotors bought Opel, since then Opel can be seen as daughter company from General Motors whoalso possess other car brands such as Cadillac, Buick, GMC, Holden, Chevrolet and the British variantof Opel called Vauxhall.

After world war II Opel started making a name for themselves as a car for the big public, over 30years the Opel Kadett was the most sold car in Europe. Also their Omega and Ascona were awardwinning models. From their current product range the Insignia and Ampera both won the prestigiousprice ‘Car of the year’ in 2009 and 2012.

However the past years Opel is making losses in Europe and their mother company General Motorsalmost sold them in 2009, but due to Opel’s technology centers they did not.

At the moment Opel is trying to become profitable again and regain their market share that theypossessed in the sixties and seventies by launching 26 new models between 2012 and 2016.

In the appendices under 1 a timeline of important milestones of Opel are summed up.


OPEL’S PHILOSOPHY

Opel’s roots go back more than a century. More than 110 years of looking confidently to the future,of putting all our energy into making your drive more rewarding. More than 110 years of passionateengineering summarized in the three words of our new guiding principle: “Wir leben Autos”

Wir leben Autos: The living expression of Opel’s values

“Wir leben Autos” does not only refer to our German roots and the love we share for Germanengineering, it also expresses the strong emotion and passion that influences everything we do.

The “Wir” communicates our shared enthusiasm and a strong positive “can do” attitude thatenables us to develop clever, surprising and innovative products for our consumers.

But we do not only build cars, we live for cars and the word “leben” expresses our high level ofenergy which can be felt by everyone whose life is touched by an Opel. They may feel this throughthe wealth of purposeful Opel features, insightful innovations or simply by our appealing,contemporary design.

Last, but not least we believe that also in the future “Autos” will mean much more to people thanjust transportation. Opel cars are not just about driving, but an essential part of our everyday lives.

We combine our personal experiences with those of our consumers in order to make their dailymobility easier and more rewarding. We never stop thinking about new and sustainable ways inwhich we can positively influence – or energize – people’s lives through every contact with the Opelbrand.

“Wir leben Autos” is our passion, our involvement, our attention to detail, our responsibility, ourintention and – yes – our confidence.This is who we are.Opel. Wir leben Autos. (Opel Experience, 2013)

Opel express their selves through a ‘philosophy’ instead of a mission & vision statement, howeverOpel does want to be European leader in alternative propulsions, using its expertise in innovationtechnologies and making them affordable. Furthermore their strategy consists of providing cars forthe bigger public that offer true German premium quality and technology for a reasonable price. Atlast Opel cars can be considered as German car quality for a not-German price

General motors, which is Opel’s mother company also expresses their selves by values, an overviewof these can be found in the appendices under heading 2

PRODUCTS & SERVICES

At the moment Opel is producing sixteen car models in factories all around the world. Carmanufacturing is their primary activity. The cars that Opel produces are known of their good qualitycombined with innovative technology such as traffic sign detection, lane departure warning andprobably the most important innovation: Opel Ampera, which is Opel’s electric vehicle and wasawarded in 2012 as car of the year. In the appendices under 3 an overview of Opel’s current models


with their segment, starting price and sales volume. The car market can be divided by passenger carslike an Opel Astra and commercial vehicles like a Opel Movano.

So first the customer decides which vehicle he wants to buy, after the customer has picked hisvehicle of choice he can decide for some models to order a ‘modelvariant’. For example: The OpelAstra can be ordered as a 4-door, 5-door or Sports Tourer (Station).

So after the customer decided which engine he wants for his car he arrives at step three, he alreadyknows which model and which model variant, for example an Opel Astra 5-Door. The next step is tochoose an equipment level. Each vehicle that Opel offers to its customers can be customized in orderto meet the customers’ expectations and demand. Therefore Opel developed differenteditions/styling levels for each car which are:

BerlinThe Berlin edition can be considered as the ‘basic’ edition of each car, which is equippedwith all the standard options.Design editionFor the design edition the focus is on style effects therefor if your choose for this packageyou will have a lower chassis and LED lights for example.Business+For the real business people that have to travel a lot they developed a special packagecontaining navigation .CosmoThis is for all models the most exclusive package with a lot of options such as adaptiveforward lighting, rain sensor etc.Sport/BiTurboFor some Opel models such as Astra Opel developed a sport and BiTurbo package containingsideskirts, powerful engines and sport chairs in order to give a race sensation to itscustomers.

In the appendix under 4 you will find an overview of the differences between the equipmentlevels for an Opel Astra (In Dutch).

Astra 4-Door Astra 5-Door Astra Sports Tourer


After choosing a car, car variant and equipment level such as an Opel Astra 5-door Cosmo customersare able to adjust the colors, trims and lining together with extra options.

At last Opel offers unique, highly technological options for their cars, a few of them are:

Opel Eye camera, which is able to detect traffic signs and the lane you are driving.Adaptive forward lighting(AFL), headlights that are able to suit themselves depending on theroad or turn you are driving.Forward collision alert and following distance indicator which detect if you approach slowlydriving traffic to hard.Park expert.Hill start assist.

DUTCH MARKET & POSITIONING

Since my internship is at Opel Nederland I will only focus my research on the Dutch automotivemarket. This market is very transparent and a lot of competitor information can be found in ourdatabases. Broadly the Dutch car market can be divided in Passenger cars and Light commercialvehicle cars, after this distinction all cars are divided by segments such as A, B, SUV-B etc. anoverview of this can be found in the appendix under heading 5.

With 1.9 million sold cars in the Netherlands (measured since 1983) Opel sold the most cars afterVolkswagen with 1.5 million sold cars, However the past years Opel is struggling with their marketposition and are decreasing in market share slowly. There are several factors for this decrease suchas, some people believe it is because Opel was not innovating for years and become dull, alsobecause a few recalls their image was heavily damaged or Asian car brands who are attacking themarket.

Furthermore Opel tries to position themselves as a brand that offers true German car quality anddependability, combined with technological options and a reasonable price Opel wants to conquerback what they lost. Therefore they are also launching 26 new models from 2012 till 2016. In theappendices under heading 6 an overview of causes which relate to Opel’s bad market position canbe found.

The overall Dutch car market is struggling due to the credit crisis, this year’s January was the worstsince years, in the table which can be found in the appendices under 7 an overview of car brands inthe Netherlands with their market share from the past years can be found.

ORGANIZATION

In the appendices under heading 8 an organizational chart can be found for the Marketingdepartment, my placement is under the supervision of Frans van der Werf, who is a carline managerresponsible for Astra, Cascada, Zafira and Antara. Together with 3 other carline managers they areresponsible for pricing & product of all Opel passenger car’s. They are under supervision of JohnDane who is a cross-carline manager and co-ordinates the four carline managers. His directsupervisor is Michell Vercruyssen and can be called Marketing manager who is responsible forProduct & Pricing, Events, Communication and PR.


GLOBAL PASSENGER CAR TRENDS

As explained previously the passenger car market is a turbulent market which is changing anddeveloping very fast. The big car brands should keep up with the latest trends in order to ensurethemselves of a bright future. In this part of the report the latest trends are summed up andexplained. Note that most of the data concerning market shares and sales figures comes from an in-house database which is only accessible at the HQ of Opel Nederland.

Compact carsNowadays all cars cannot be too compact or small enough, a lot of the newly launched carscan be called ‘compact cars’. There is a change between the car segments, in figure 9(Appendices) an overview of the car segments can be found. The A and B segment (compactcars) are growing year after year, graph 9 which can be found in the appendices illustratesthis change across segments. The expectation is set to grow even further.Asian expansion & Asian ConquestCountries like China and South Korea are not only the places where most cars aremanufactured but also the world’s biggest and fastest growing passenger car market. Since2010 more passenger cars are sold in China than whole Europe together. However besidesthe fact that the Asian market is booming and extremely interesting for brands like GeneralMotors and Volkswagen their domestic brands are conquering Europe and North America ontheir turn. The best examples are KIA and Hyundai who both grew enormously withinEurope the past few years. Graph 10 (appendices) shows the market shares in theNetherlands.InfotainmentMobile phone integration, around two/third of the people in the Netherlands are in thepossession of a smartphone. Therefore it is very important for car manufacturers toimplement mobile device integration as smoothly as possible. It starts with navigation, butat the moment people can send text messages while speaking in their car. An evolution iscoming to car infotainment systems since it is expected that cars built in 2014 all have aninternet connection.Autonomous carsIt is expected that by 2012 autonomous cars will be introduces, cars that will drive youinstead of you driving the car. At the moment there already are a lot of features on cars thathave a certain ‘autonomy’ such as Lane departure warning, Adaptive cruise control orAdaptive forward lighting. These features will make car driving easier and safer.Alternative propulsionOff course alternative propulsion will stay as a trend. However a bigger growth was expecteddue to the price of these vehicles for private buyers, limited but fast growing fast-chargespots and the range of hybrid/plug-ins is limited. However this car segment is growing andevolving over time as can be seen in graph 11 (Appendices).


INCOME STATEMENT, MARKET SHARE & EMPLOYEE NUMBERS

(Euro 000’s) 2011 2010

Net sales 702,066 656,983

Cost of Sales 645,146 - 613,861 -

Gross Margin 56,920 43,122

Total Expenses 53,472 - 39,916 -

Net margin 3,448 3,206

Other costs & Expenses 317+ 38-

Year Result 3,765 3,168Table -.1.1 Income statement Opel 2010-2011

Market Segments 2011 2010

Totalmarket

Opel % Totalmarket

Opel %

Passenger Cars 555.920 41.236 7.4% 483.164 35.683 7.4

LV vehicles 71.945 5.685 7.9% 49.608 4.275 8.6%

Total 627.865 46.921 7.5% 532.772 39.959 7.5%Table 1.2: Market shares Opel 2010-2011

Company Employees (approximately)

General Motors 212.000

Opel 40.000

Opel Nederland 150Table: 1.3: GM and Opel employees.


ANALYSIS OF THE CURRENT SITUATION/MARKET

Declining sales, closing of factories, layoffs, increasing oil prices and even the AutoRAI which iscancelled for the first time in history. European passenger car sales declined 8,9% in January whereDutch passenger car sales even declined 31,2%. In short: the car/automotive sector is facing hugeproblems and massive changes. In Figure 10 the passenger car registrations in the Netherlands from1998 till 2012 can be found. At Opel these changes hit hard, with a market share in the Netherlandsdeclining year after year which can be seen in figure 10 in the appendices.

Furthermore the automotive sector can be seen as highly competitive, and this new situation ‘tests’the ability of car manufacturers to compete with their rivals. This can be done with alternativepropulsions like hybrid cars, new innovations such as park assist and lowering their CO2 labels inorder to decrease the fiscal taxes.

However, in my opinion Opel’s future is way better than their current situation, since the launch ofthe Insignia they established a solid basis for future development of their products. FurthermoreOpel is exploring new markets and offers new innovative products like the Opel ADAM, Cascada,Mokka and especially the Opel Ampera.

The automotive sector is on the step of change, now its Opel’s turn to make the most out of it.

PROBLEM DEFINITION & ASSIGNMENT OBJECTIVE

Navigation, Led lights, Leather, steer heating, bigger rims or a fancy color are most of time an optionfor a car. Which means that they can be ordered upon the engine and standard equipment. Car’s donot longer exist of only an engine. Nowadays options are of a very high importance for customers.For example imagine that there is car A for €25.000 and car B for €24.000, however car A offersstandard navigation while car B has navigation as extra option for €1.750. Now if the customer reallywants navigation he probably go’s for car A. Like explained, car’s do not longer only consist of onlyan engine.

There are plenty of options for interior, safety, rims, exterior etc. However the composition andimportance of these options is continuously changing, infotainment systems are more importantthan ever while motor force (PK/HP) is declining in importance.

All these changes between options can cause confusion and demand great flexibility from theproduct & pricing department since they need to keep up with the latest trends for the automotivesector and use this knowledge in order to make the perfect product and price composition.

Based on all the previous information my assignment objective will be:

Analyze the latest option trends in the automotive sector in order to make arecommendation for the Product & Pricing department and to create understandinginside the Opel organization regarding the development of car options.


OPTION ANALYSIS

INTRODUCTION

Now it is clear what Opel Nederland stands for, problem defined and assignment objective is clearthe research and analysis can begin. The analysis will contain of desk and field research, during thedesk research Opel’s databases will be informed to analyze the latest trends among each optioncategory for the Opel Astra since it is Opel’s most important model at the moment. Now the deskresearch is discussed the report continues with the field study which contained a Opel dealerinterview and online questionnaire. At the end the results of the desk research are compared withthe results of the field study in order to give a clear recommendation for Opel.

DESK RESEARCH FOR CHANGES IN OPTIONS

Options can roughly be defined as upgrades for your car and can be divided in the followingcategories:

InfotainmentRims/wheelsColorsFuel typeHorse power/engineCo2 emission

In order to acquire an answer on the research question these option categories are analyzed throughdifferent Opel databases. This option distinction will be used through the entire report.

Infotainment

Car infotainment, also called In-Vehicle-Infotainment (IVI) consists of various features such as: Rearseat entertainment, Navigation, Radio/Cd, Internet connectivity and other mobile phone integrationpossibilities.

Probably infotainment is the option category with the brightest prospects. At the moment carinfotainment is facing a great change. This category started with a simple radio and is now growingtowards a ‘connected car’, an overview of this change can be found in the appendices under heading13.

At the moment car manufacturers are setting up alliances with soft/hardware developers to createand implement infotainment systems. Such as Ford with Spotify and Microsoft (MyFord Touch),besides that car manufactures are implementing Google Maps and Android in the future

Navigation systems, Bluetooth©, voice control and an USB port are a few of Opel’s so calledinfotainment options. Besides those Opel developed an infotainment system for the ADAM so called‘Intellilink’ which is a multi-media system that sets new standards in its car segment. Furthermoreone of General Motors other brands : Cadillac, makes use of CUE which is an innovative newmultimedia system for luxury cars. The probability is there that Opel will implement the Intellilinksystem or the Cadillac Cue system into their upcoming models.


Graph: 2.1: Infotainment options

However at the moment the focus for Opel is on Navigation systems and mobile device integration,therefore the following options are analyzed:

NAVI 600 (Benelux)NAVI 900 (Europa)Telefoonvoorbereiding met Voicecontrol en Bluetooth(Mobile phone integration)

After seeing the graph the most notable conclusion is that Mobile phone integration is increasing inimportance. Since the introduction of the product on new Opel Astra’s now more than 80% of allsold Astra’s possesses mobile phone integration. Regarding navigation a steady increase can be seenfor Navi 900. This means that more customers are choosing for European navigation instead ofBenelux navigation.

‘In the nearby future people will be using theirsmartphone applications and services for 80% of thetime, and the other 20% they are driving their car’1.Therefore our car can be seen as the next smartphoneaccessory. For the future internet in our cars becomeof great importance, and it is expected that by 2017 afifth of all the cars in North-America and WesternEurope will be App-Enabled2. On the world’s biggesttechnology and phone fair’s & conferences carmanufacturers like GM, Ford and several other brandsare showing their latest mobile device integrations forcars.

1 http://phys.org/news/2013-02-big-smartphone-accessory-car.html2 http://www.mirrorlink.com/

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Graph 2.2: Astra rim sizes 2007-2013

Currently there is a device called ‘MirrorLink’ which offers seamless integration between aSmartphone and a car’s infotainment system. This is already adopted by 80% of the carmanufacturers which makes the succession chance of this system high.

In the future it is expected that your car becomes part of the ‘Cloud’. For example the car will knowwhen you are awake, the car communicates with your work schedule, alarm clock, thermostat andradio for example in order to decide at what time to wake up, what music to play in the car, to lowerthe thermostat when leaving the house, shutting the garage door while scanning for social mediaupdates of your friends and navigating you to work with the most efficient route and reserves you aparking spot. This might sound strange but this is going to happen within a few years.

Wheels/Rims

This essential car part can be bought in many different sizes, colors and brands. However thequestion is: is there a trend regarding car rims?

First of all when customers order Wheels/Rims they take rim size in account which is usuallyexpressed in inches (“). Regarding Opel Astra the standard Rims have changed from 15’’ to 16’’ from2008 till now. Furthermore in the next graph the development of this change is showed.

From this graph it can be concluded that 17’’rims under an Opel Astra became the standard for mostpeople, this means that 70% of all the Astra buyers does not buys the standard rims(16’’) and wishesto have wheels without hubcaps and with rims.

Regarding the future this option category will remain pretty stable due to technology factors. It issimply not possible now to put 21’’ rims under an Opel Agila for example.

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Astra rim sizes 2007-2013

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Exterior Colors

One of the first aspects people take into account when they are buying a car: Color. Besides beautyand taste color is important since it affects the re-sell value a lot. For example, you buy a new carwith a very intensive unusual color such as pink the chance for re-selling it again will be lower sinceyou need to find a person that likes that specific color. Therefore most people pick a ‘safe’ color(Black, grey or white) when they buy a new car in order to prevent problems or value decrease sincethese colors are tend to stay timeless. In the appendices under heading 15 an overview of theEuropean car color popularity index can be seen.

A survey of one of the world’s biggest coating manufacturer PPG published a survey which revealedthree important bullet points:3

77 percent of respondents said exterior color was a factor in their automotive purchasedecision.Owners of large luxury cars, sporty cars and large premium SUVs place the most value ongetting the color of their choice.45 percent of respondents said they would prefer a wider range of color choices.

This shows that color cannot be underestimated as an option for customers and requires someserious attention. Besides the survey PPG also published the ‘Automotive color trend report’ whichgives insight in to the future of car colors. The report shows that white is the most popular (23percent), followed by black (21 percent), gray (17 percent), silver (13 percent), blue, natural and red(7 percent each), other colors (3 percent) and green (2 percent) as can be seen in the next figure.

First of all the choice of customers to choose white as exterior color increases, this is because whiteis seen as inspiration for the ecological megatrend in Europe, it represents minimalism and futuretechnology, besides that Apple© integrated white into all their products which resulted intoconsumers no longer associating white with refrigerators but with high tech products like the AppleIpad.

Secondly black is a very popular color as it always has been. Especially in the luxury segment it iswinning ground. However black is also seen as an unsafe color and causes accidents morefrequently4.

Natural colors like green, brown and bronze are gaining popularity and can be considered as colorsfor the future. However ‘Safe’ colors like black, grey and silver still possess 75% of the market andare expected to keep this share.5

In figure 1.3 four pie charts can be found which show the current color division in Europe, and thecolor division of Opel’s most popular cars Astra, Corsa and Insignia. From this figure we can see thatthe so called ‘safe’ colors have the overhand for all Opel models.

Corsa, the smallest and most sold cars from these three has a wide color pallet. Perhaps toowide since colors like yellow, red and green are not in line with the color division of Europe.

3 http://www.ppg.com/en/newsroom/news/Pages/20121010A.aspx4 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1288457/Black-cars-likely-involved-accidents.html5 http://www2.dupont.com/automotive/en-us/au/article/color-popularity.html


Astra, this car also has a wide color pallet and customers make use of this. Red has a bigshare while black and white have small shares.Insignia, a car which is mostly driven business wise and is more towards the premiumsegment. People tend to choose ‘safe’ colors for cars like this. Therefore the share of blackand grey is very large.

Graph 2.3: Opel exterior colors

Besides the color of your coating the type of coating is important since it gives multiple effects butmore importantly the endurance and durability are based on the type of coating. In graph … anoverview of all sold Opel Astra’s since 2007 are showed based on their coating type. Where‘basiskleur’ stands for standard color (€,0) the other colors require extra money, typically between€250,- and €500,-. The graph shows that 90% of the Astra buyers do not like the standard color andprefer to pay more for a color they like. Furthermore ‘briljant’ colors are almost never ordered while‘Metaal kleuren’ are increasing in popularity.

Graph 2.4: Opel coating

Engine power (hp)

Horse-power, it has been a criterion for cars since decades. A lot of people are attracted by a carsnumber of horse powers since it expresses the power or speed of a car, however this is dependenton a lot more features such as weight, tires and engine efficiency.

Nowadays more emphasis is put on the efficiency of engines in order to be eco-friendly. Thereforewhen car manufacturers are designing new engines they are trying to design it in order to increasethe amount of horsepower but at the same time decrease the level of Co2 emission and fuelconsumption.

In the next graph we can see an overview of sold Opel’s based on HP from the last five years.

0%20%40%60%80%

100%

% sold Opel's by coating

Metaal Kleur MICA

Metaal Kleur

Briljant kleur

Basiskleur


Graph 2.5 : Opel Horsepower

First of all it can be seen that weaker engines with less hp are replaced by stronger engines withmore hp. As a result of this Opel does not offer any engines weaker than 80hp while at the samemoment high performance engines with more than 160 hp are being introduced to Opel models.

The reason why engines possess more hp nowadays is probably because engines are beingdeveloped fast and eco-friendly which means that manufacturers are able to add more hp to anengine while the Co2 levels remain the same.

Fuel type

A few years ago customers only had the possibility of choosing between gasoline and sometimesdiesel when buying a car. However nowadays technologies are evolved that it is possible to driveelectric or on bio-gas for example. As an international car manufacturer you should cope with thesechanges in order to keep a strong market position.

Opel is a leading brand regarding alternative fuel propulsions, in the Netherlands Opel is marketleader with their Opel Ampera which was awarded as car of the year 20126. Furthermore Opel offers‘Ecoflex’ engines which are significantly decreasing the Co2 emission.

In the next figure an overview is seen which shows the different fuel types as a percentage of allOpel sales.

6 http://www.caroftheyear.org/winner/2012_1/coty

0%

25%

50%

75%

100%

Opel Horsepower (hp)160+

140-159

120-139

100-119

80-99

60-79


Graph 2.6: Opel carlines by fuel

From 1.6 . we can see that Gasoline and Diesel are still the most popular fuel type, simply because itis available everywhere. However in 2011 Opel starts producing cars with a different propulsion:Electricity. This eco-friendly fuel is growing steadily, mostly due to the fact that cars with electricpropulsion offer fiscal advantages and therefore are a lot cheaper than normal Gasoline cars. Butsales are not booming, the reason for this is that people are not able to ‘load’ their car everywhereand therefore the Opel Ampera’s action radius is not big enough for long trips.

At the end we can conclude that traditional fuel types like diesel and gasoline are decreasing inpopularity slightly over the years while a new fuel is upcoming: Electricity.

Co2 Emission

Cars are a major polluter of our environment, therefore the Co2 emission of a car Is becoming moreimportant nowadays. The Dutch government decided that taxes paid on cars have to be decidedbased on a car’s Co2 emission. Furthermore the business market for cars is dependent on Co2emission. In order to create an understanding on Opel’s average Co2 values they are compared tothe Co2 values of their biggest competitors (Volkswagen + Ford), and compared with the passengermarket average Co2 emission.

Based on the graph showed on the next page it can be concluded that Opel , as well as their maincompetitors are not able to distinguish their selves from the industry average.

0%

25%

50%

75%

100%

Opel Carlines by fuel

Liquid PetrolGasElectric

Diesel

Gasoline


Graph 2.7: Opel Co2 emission compared

DEALER INTERVIEWS

The Opel organization Netherlands organization consists of more than 150 selling points/dealersthroughout the Netherlands. In order to create an insight in the automotive market it is not good toretrieve all the information from internal sources and internet to make a clear conclusion. ThereforeI planned interviews with five sales managers who all have more than five year experience within thecar industry.

On the map which is showed in figure 1.8 the location of the dealers is showed, the addresses ofthese dealers can be found in the appendices under heading 16 together with the list of questions(in Dutch).

Figure 2.8 Map dealer interviews

During these interviews I discussed each option category, the results are described in the followingchapters.

100

125

150

175

Average Co2 emissions

Opel Models Passenger car market Netherlands Volkswagen Ford


INFOTAINMENT

Regarding car infotainment the majority of the time ‘IntelliLink’ was discussed, the new infotainmentsystem for ADAM and for future models. The most important remarks were that it has some ‘Childdiseases’ which means that the system does not work to belongings due to some errors which wereoverlooked. Some of them are navigation problems and compatibility of your smartphone. Howeverall dealers admitted that this system will be the future and that it has great potential. The biggestadvantage is that it can be updated automatically.

Furthermore when the question raised if they would like to see the Intellilink system in more Opelmodels they all immediately said yes, but if it would work smoothly and with in-car navigation sopeople are not dependent of their smart phone. Also they added that for the business market it isessential that phone integration will be wire-less.

At last Opel’s navigation systems were discussed, at the moment customers are able to buynavigation for the Benelux (Navi 600) or for Western Europe (Navi 900). Most of the dealers optedfor one navigation system for all customers.

WHEELS/RIMS

Big rims are part of Opel’s house style, therefore this subject is sensitive. However three out of fivedealers proposed to delete 20’’ rims of the assortment due to the demand, high repair costs anduncomfortable driving behavior.

Furthermore it became clear that the offer of rims on Business+ editions is to limited, therefore all ofthe dealers asked for different 17’’ and 18’’ rims on Business+ cars.

EXTERIOR COLORS

When we were discussing exterior colors they all agreed with the statement : ‘White for Silver’.Beside that all the dealers were very enthusiastic about the color ‘Dark Mahagony’ which fits in thetrend of natural colors. Since it is expected that natural colors like green and brown are returning onthe field. Also people are paying more attention to the quality of the painting and their interest isgrowing more and more towards metallic colors.

ENGINE POWER

During the meetings with the sales managers they all admitted that they were suffering from thedownsizing syndrome , a lot of their customers are choosing for smaller and cleaner cars in order tobenefit from fiscal regulations and for the business market engine power is not even so relevant anymore since they are dependent on Co2 emission.

Furthermore the dealers hoped to see a stronger engine in the Cascada in the form of a Gasolineturbo and a new engine in the ADAM.


CO2 EMISSION

All the spoken dealers were worrying about Opel’s Co2 emissions, and they were even more whenthey heard that the Opel Ampera will probably be placed in the new 7% ‘bijtelling’ class, through thisOpel will lo se its market position regarding emission free driving. Therefore they asked to lower toprice of the Opel Ampera otherwise it will not be able to compete with the Outlander and Prius.

OTHER REMARKS

Make Rain sensor standard on the Opel AmperaMake leather standard for CascadaMake it possible to order a few more colors and rims on the ADAM – ADAMMake one package from forward parking sensors and backward parking sensorsCome up with an instruction video regarding the ‘Intellilink system’

CASCADA DEALER TOOLKIT & OTHER ASSIGNMENTS FOR OPEL

Together with my internship supervisor Frans van der Werf i composed my internship assignmentabout trends in the car industry. However during my internship I was asked to make a so called‘Cascada Dealer Toolkit’. This extra assignment gave me approximately the same amount ofworkload as my internship case and therefore I would like to include this in my final report.

Each year Opel release new models onto the market, for 2013(January-July) it were the fashionablecitycar ADAM and the new Opel Cascada which is an up-market cabriolet. With each launch Opelsends out a Dealer Toolkit to its dealers (189 throughout the Netherlands).

With this dealer toolkit Opel tries to prepare their dealers with all the necessary marketinginformation regarding this new model, I was asked to make this toolkit for their newest cabriolet‘Cascada’. For this model the marketing goals, target group, market facts, market instruments suchas television commercials, social media activities etc. were described extensively. Furthermore Ilearned a lot with this assignment and I was able to see a product launch step by step.

The Cascada dealer toolkit is enclosed as a separate document and is written in Dutch since thetarget audience were the Dutch Opel dealers.

Besides the Cascada dealer toolkit I had to make several competitor comparisons, since theautomotive industry is highly competitive brands like Opel base their price on prices of competitorslike Volkswagen. My task for Opel was to make those competitor comparisons. Just like theDealertoolkit I included an example of a competitor comparison as a separate excel file.


CONCLUSION

Based on all the done research it can be concluded that the automotive sector is changing rapidly.Unsteady demand, new technologies and in the Netherlands a tight fiscal policy which results incustomers to buy cleaner cars.

At the end we can say that infotainment is growing towards one of the most important categories.By 2012 it is expected that 80% of the cars will have the possibility to open Apps, connect throughWiFi and in the future cars will be active in the so called ‘cloud’.

On the surface of Rims and Wheels an increase of bigger rims can be seen, the reason behind it isprobably because it became Opel’s house style. Regarding exterior colors it is striking to see thereplacement of white colors for silver colors combined with the trend of natural colors like greenand brown.

Also Opel engines are increasing in power (HP) while the majority of the competition is decreasing inpower due to the downsizing trend. This is in line with Co2 emission which is currently from greatimportance in the Dutch car market since a lot of fiscal regulations such as ‘Bijtelling’ and severaltaxes like ‘Motorrijtuigen belasting’ are affected by it.

If the world trends as discussed in the chapter: World passenger car trends on page 17 arecompared with the trends that Opel uses there are some similarities but also some differences.

First of all Opel is developing a multimedia/infotainment system that can compete with the systemsof its rivals. The so called system ‘Intellilink’ should improve a lot based on the dealer interviews inorder to work proficient. Also it should be possible to work with the cloud and have a WiFiconnection before 2015.

Secondly Opel has innovative technological options such as park expert, Adaptive Forward Lightingand FlexFix for example. In the future Opel needs to make sure these options will develop towards acertain phase of technology that they become autonomously.

Another huge trend is alternative propulsions as explained, Opel is a world leader in this aspect withtheir Opel Ampera. Market leader in the segment of alternative propulsion, however in 2014 it isexpected that this model will lose its market position.

Furthermore Opel is following the trend of compact cars partially, with their newest model : ADAM,Opel is entering a segment with Mini and Fiat 500 as competitors. Cars are changing fromtransportation good towards a lifestyle product, this results in cars like ADAM with hundreds of colorcombinations, touchscreen infotainment and a lot of eye for details.

At last it can be concluded that Opel is coping in the right way with the current trends, however thequestions is if they will do so in the future.


RECOMMENDATION

Based on the done research, small assignments, interviews and my conclusion it can be assumedthat the current car industry is facing heavy changes, now its Opel’s task to cope with these changeas good as possible. This could be done to adapt the product/option offer to the future trends bymaking innovative options standard on certain models and delete certain options.

First of all Opel should definitely continue with the Intellilink system since it has the potential tobecome a standard within this industry. It had some startup problems with the usability and if thoseproblems are tackled and navigation becomes available without smartphone wirelessly nothing willbe in its way to become successful. Intellilink should be offered on all new models as optionaccording to dealers and its market potential. Also an instruction video should be made in order tomake the system easier to use.

Secondly opinions are divided when it comes to rims, bigger rims are detrimental for a car’s drivingcomfort. Even though it is Opel’s house style to have big rims it will be a point of attention in thefuture since bigger rims can also affect a car’s Co2 emission which is extremely important. Dealersasked for more choice in rims for Business+ editions since now there are only two sorts available.

Furthermore the annual color reports as well as the dealers opted for more natural colors like DarkMahogany or the new color Emerald green. Also dealers would like to see a stronger gasoline engineon the Cascada.

Also all the interviewed dealers came up with the idea to make the rain sensor standard on theAmpera and to make package concerning parking sensors which includes forward as well asbackwards sensors.

At last regarding the subject of the trend analysis I would suggest Opel Nederland keep watching thetrends through all possible channels such social media and competitor websites in order to stayahead of the trends.


REFLECTION

The framework of IBMS competencies returns during the internship. In this chapter I explain what Ihave learned from my assignments in relation to the IBMS competencies. The following three IBMScompetencies are related to my internship:

1. International Business Awareness & Intercultural Proficiency

The ability to gather information, to spot and analyze trends, to evaluate the impact ofchanges in the international business environment, to develop a vision on these trends, andto advise management.The ability to recognize and appreciate cultural differences in behavior and values and towork with an open attitude in an international environment.Fields of study: International Business, Economics, Law, Intercultural Awareness

4. International Marketing Management

The ability to draft a marketing strategy, to plan and organize e-marketing activities in aninternational and intercultural context and to solve problems in the implementation.Fields of study: International Marketing, E-commerce, CRM,

9. Research, Professional behavior & Personal leadership

The ability conduct research, to develop a professional attitude and to understand anddevelop oneself in a professional relationship with others.Fields of study: Intercultural team development, cooperation, personal leadership, projectmanagement, business research and learning

International Business Awareness Intercultural Proficiency

This competency gives a great summary of IBMS, therefore it can be seen as one of the mostimportant competencies. During my internship I mainly worked with the first bullet point: ‘ Theability to gather information, to spot and analyze trends, to evaluate the impact of changes in theinternational business environment, to develop e vision on these trends and to advise management’.

First of all my internship assignment is a trend analysis, which means that I will consult Opel aboutthe latest trends in the automotive market based on desk & field research. During this research Ilearned that the automotive sector is by far one of the most competing and evolving industries. Butalso it is a struggling industry. I gathered information by doing mystery shopping calls, interviews andstriving the internet for hours.

International Marketing Management

Setting up a marketing strategy, probably this is what students do must in their first year at IBMS.However at Opel I also needed to set up a marketing plan called ‘Cascada Dealer Toolkit’ which isincluded as separate file to this report. For this assignment it was my goal to inform all Opel dealers(189) about all the ins and outs of Opel’s latest model in a marketing plan. Furthermore I had tomake price comparisons and competitor comparisons, these are in my opinion part of a marketingplan, an example of a competitor analysis can be found in the appendix.


Research, Professional behavior Personal leadership

At last I would like to discuss the competency of ‘Research, Professional behavior & Personalleadership’ since during my internship I had to do a lot of research. I certainly developed myresearch skills since I had to work with extensive databases but also my task was to retrievecompetitor information which is not always available.

At last I would like to add that I learned a lot on the field of Excel, and therefore I hope that IBMSstarts a course of Excel in the near future since it is a beautiful program with a lot of opportunities.During my internship my skills in excel grown from almost zero to an average user.


REFERENCE LIST

Beside the internet links and books that were used to carry out this research a lot of the foundinformation comes from GM/Opel secured sources, these can be accessed only by GM employees.All relevant information concerning market shares, option penetration and all Opel information ismostly found in those databases such as JATO or the T-drive.

Accenture. (2011). Perspectives on In-Vehicle Infotainment Systems and Telematics. Retrieved from:http://accenture.com/SiteCollectionDocuments/PDF/Accenture-Perspectives-on-In-Vehicle-Infotainment-Systems-and-Telematics.pdf

Autoweek. (2013). ‘’Verkoopgegevens , News items’’ . Retrieved from: www.autoweek.nlBarry, Keith. (2010). ''The Future of In-Car Technology’’. Retrieved from:http://www.caranddriver.com/features/10q2/the_future_of_in-car_technology-feature

Bartz, Daniel.(2009). ''In-Car Wi-Fi Puts Infobahn on the Autobahn’’. Retrieved from:http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/10/in-car-internet/

Bovag. (2012). ‘’ Duurzaamheidsmonitor 2012’’. Retrieved from:www.bovag.nl/data/sitemanagement/media/Duurzaamheidsmonitor%202012.pdf

Bovag. (2012). ‘’Mobiliteit in cijfers’’. Retrieved from:http://www.bovagrai.info/auto/2012/2.7e.html

Boyle, Rebecca.(2011). ''How Intelligent Cars Will Make Driving Easier and Greener.'' Retrieved from:http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2011-07/smartening-car

Car connectivity consortium. (2013). ‘’Mirrorlink overview’’. Retrieved from:http://www.mirrorlink.com/products/

Car of the year. (2012). ‘’Ampera/Volt sweeps on car of the year 2012’’. Retrieved from:www.caroftheyear.org/winner/2012_1/coty

Cara McLaughlin. (2013). ‘’Competitiveness of auto industry must not be overlooked in Co2 review’’.Retrevied from :http://www.acea.be/news/news_detail/http://www.acea.be/index.php/news/news_detail/passenger_car_registrations_-8.7_in_january_2013/

Chappell, Lindsay. (2011). ''War with computer hackers hits the road’’. Retrieved from:http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110919/OEM06/309199991/1143

Charles Murray. (2011). ‘’ Ready to be chauffeured by your car?’’. Retrieved from:www.designnews.com/author.asp?section_id=1395&doc_id=235321

Claes Bell. (2012). ‘’Connected car: Cloud computing drives off’’ . Retrieved from:http://www.bankrate.com/finance/auto/connected-car-cloud-computing-drives-off-1.aspx

Consumer Reports.(2011). ''Connected cars: A new risk.'' Retrieved from:http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine-archive/2011/october/cars/the-connected-car/overview/index.htm

http://www.accenture.com/SiteCollectionDocuments/PDF/Accenture-Perspectives-on-In-Vehicle-Infotainment-Systems-and-Telematics.pdf



http://www.autoweek.nl/

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/10q2/the_future_of_in-car_technology-feature

http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/10/in-car-internet/

http://www.bovag.nl/data/sitemanagement/media/Duurzaamheidsmonitor%202012.pdf

http://www.bovagrai.info/auto/2012/2.7e.html

http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2011-07/smartening-car

http://www.mirrorlink.com/products/

http://www.caroftheyear.org/winner/2012_1/coty

http://www.acea.be/news/news_detail/http://www.acea.be/index.php/news/news_detail/passenger_car_registrations_-8.7_in_january_2013/

http://www.acea.be/news/news_detail/http://www.acea.be/index.php/news/news_detail/passenger_car_registrations_-8.7_in_january_2013/

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110919/OEM06/309199991/1143

http://www.designnews.com/author.asp?section_id=1395&doc_id=235321

http://www.bankrate.com/finance/auto/connected-car-cloud-computing-drives-off-1.aspx

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine-archive/2011/october/cars/the-connected-car/overview/index.htm

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine-archive/2011/october/cars/the-connected-car/overview/index.htm


Cunningham, Wayne. (2011) ''10 automakers race for the apps. ''. Retrieved from:http://reviews.cnet.com/2300-10863_7-10009488-4.html?s=1&o=10009478

Danny Oosterveer. (2012). ‘’Smartphone bezit in Nederland groeit naar 58%’’. Retrieved from:http://www.marketingfacts.nl/berichten/marktaandeel-smartphone-in-nederland-groeit-naar-58-procent

Del-Colle, Andrew. (2011). ''Why Your Smartphone Will Become Your In-Car Infotainment System.''Retrieved from: http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/industry/why-your-smartphone-will-become-your-in-car-infotainment-system

Dupont. (2012). ‘’2011 DuPont Global Automotive Color Popularity Report Insights’’. Retrieved from:http://www2.dupont.com/automotive/en-us/au/article/color-popularity.html

Fiona Macrae. (2010). ‘’Black cars most likely to be involved with accidents’’. Retrieved from:www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1288457/Black-cars-likely-involved-accidents.html

Fontys. (2013). ‘’All relevant information regarding school assignments’’. Retrieved from:https://portal.fontys.nl/instituten/marketingmanagement/ENG/Semester4-2013S/default.aspx

Ford Motors. (2013). ‘’Ford Personenauto’s, all relevant information regarding Ford’s product offer’’.Retrieved from: www.ford.nl/Personenautos/Overzicht?gclid=CLums5iEyLcCFUTHtAodYlYA-A

General Motors intern. (2013). ‘’All press releases, organograms and organizational matters’’.Retrieved from: https://gmweb.gm.com/sites/socrates/Pages/Home.aspx

General Motors. (2013). ‘’In vehicle infotainment’’. Retrieved from:http://www.gm.com/vision/design_technology/in-vehicle_infotainment.html

Jeremy Neuhart. (2012). ‘’PPG announces annual automotive color popularity, trend data’’.Retrieved from: http://www.ppg.com/en/newsroom/news/Pages/20121010A.aspx

Nitin Puri. (2013). ‘’Your vehicle is now a smartphone app’’ . Retrieved from:http://www.zdnet.com/mirrorlink-your-vehicle-is-now-a-smartphone-app-7000012017/

Opel Nederland. (2013). ‘’All relevant information regarding Opel actions and models’’. Retrievedfrom: http://www.opel.nl/Default.aspx

Opel Experience. (2013). ‘’Wir Leben Auto’s’’. Retreived from:http://www.opel.com/experience_opel/index.html

Oxford. (2013). ‘Definition of trend’. Retrieved from:http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/trend

Rabobank. (2013). ‘’Cijfers & Trends Automotive branche’’. Retrieved from:https://www.rabobankcijfersentrends.nl/index.cfm?action=branche&branche=Automotive&p=1

Roger C. Lanctot. (2012). ‘’The connected car : It’s all about HMI”. Retrieved from:http://www.w3.org/2012/08/web-and-automotive/slides/webandauto-day2-Strategy_Analytics.pdf

Tod Woody. (2011). ‘’ Bill Ford’s better idea: The car in the cloud.’’ Retrieved from:http://www.forbes.com/sites/toddwoody/2011/11/02/bill-fords-better-idea-the-car-in-the-cloud/

http://reviews.cnet.com/2300-10863_7-10009488-4.html?s=1&o=10009478

http://www.marketingfacts.nl/berichten/marktaandeel-smartphone-in-nederland-groeit-naar-58-procent

http://www.marketingfacts.nl/berichten/marktaandeel-smartphone-in-nederland-groeit-naar-58-procent

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/industry/why-your-smartphone-will-become-your-in-car-infotainment-system

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/industry/why-your-smartphone-will-become-your-in-car-infotainment-system

http://www2.dupont.com/automotive/en-us/au/article/color-popularity.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1288457/Black-cars-likely-involved-accidents.html

https://portal.fontys.nl/instituten/marketingmanagement/ENG/Semester4-2013S/default.aspx

http://www.ford.nl/Personenautos/Overzicht?gclid=CLums5iEyLcCFUTHtAodYlYA-A

https://gmweb.gm.com/sites/socrates/Pages/Home.aspx

http://www.gm.com/vision/design_technology/in-vehicle_infotainment.html

http://www.ppg.com/en/newsroom/news/Pages/20121010A.aspx

http://www.zdnet.com/mirrorlink-your-vehicle-is-now-a-smartphone-app-7000012017/

http://www.opel.nl/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.com/experience_opel/index.html

https://www.rabobankcijfersentrends.nl/index.cfm?action=branche&branche=Automotive&p=1

http://www.w3.org/2012/08/web-and-automotive/slides/webandauto-day2-Strategy_Analytics.pdf

http://www.forbes.com/sites/toddwoody/2011/11/02/bill-fords-better-idea-the-car-in-the-cloud/


APPENDICES

Here the appendices of the Automotive option trend analysis can be found .

1. Timeline

1862Adam Opel founded Opel as a sewing machine manufacturer.1899Auto construction started in Rüsselheim, 11 Opel Patent Motor Cars system Lutzmann wereshipped.1924Opel started producing models on the assembly line as first company in Germany.1929General Motors buys Opel and so Opel and Vauxhall become part of America’s biggest carmanufacturer.1936Opel’s bestseller is born, the Kadett comes in the production line. Opel becomes Europe’sbiggest car manufacturer.1959Launch of the Opel Kapitän and became the most successful luxury-class model Opel hasever built.1991Opel launches the Astra which is the most sold Opel in the Netherlands (450.000).2001The Zafira CNG is launched which is one of the first earth gas cars for consumers.2009The Opel Insignia wins the car of the year award, furthermore Opel closes a plant inAntwerpen and was almost sold by General Motors to a Russian Company.2012Opel Ampera wins car of the year award and sets new standards for electric vehicles, alsoOpel announces savings and closings of a factory in Bochum, furthermore they announced tolaunch 26 new models from now on till 2016 in order to improve their results.

*Opel Insignia *Opel Ampera


2. General Motors Vision and Values


3. Opel product range

Opel Passenger cars

Model Segment Starting price Registrations 2012 Market share ofsegment

Picture

ADAM* A €12.495,00 - -

Agila A €10.695,00 5.677 4.7%

Ampera C €48.295,00 2.696 3,5%

Astra C €19.495,00 8.010 6.9%

Cascada* C-C €34.395,00 - -

Corsa B €12.995,00 9.362 8,2%

Insignia D €28.095,00 3.977 7,1%

Meriva MPV-B €18.995,00 3.003 24,5%

Mokka* SUV-B €22.645,00 - -

ZafiraTourer

MPV-C €25.595,00 2.381 10,6%

Total - - 35.106 7,1% of total passenger’s vehicle market

*Models ADAM, Cascada & Mokka were not available in 2012 since they are new therefore they have noregistrations yet.

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/ADAM/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Agila/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Ampera/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Astra/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Cascada/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Corsa/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Insignia/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Meriva/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Mokka/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Zafira_Tourer/Default.aspx


Opel Commercial vehicle cars

Model Segment Startingprice

Registrations 2012 Market share ofsegment(%)

Picture

Combo Van-B € 9.995,00 1.434 7,2%

Vivaro Van-D € 16.990,00 1.128 14,7%

Movano Van-E € 19.995,00 3.210 6,3%

Total - - 5.772 8,83% of the total commercialvehicle market

4. Equipment levels (in Dutch)

BerlinDesignEditionCosmoSportBusiness+BiTurbo

Buitenspiegels elektrisch bedienbaar,verwarmbaar en handmatig wegklapbaar, incarrosseriekleur

Cruise control en snelheidsbegrenzer

Boordcomputer

Zichtbare uitlaatpijp

Airconditioning

Dagrijverlichting 'Wing'

Radio CD300

Bevat:Aansluiting externe audio-apparatuur(iPod, MP3, ...)

Verlaagd chassis

RADIO CD400

Bevat:Aansluiting externe audio-apparatuur(iPod, MP3, ...)

Chromen omlijsting rondom de zijramen

Mistlampen vóór

LED Dagrijverlichting 'Wing'

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Combo/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Vivaro/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Movano/Default.aspx


BerlinDesignEditionCosmoSportBusiness+BiTurbo

Lichtmetalen velgen 7Jx17" '10-spaaks'

Zicht- en lichtpakket 1

Bevat:Regensensor

Automatisch dimmende binnenspiegel

Automatic Light Control (ALC)

Electronic Climate Control

Lichtmetalen velgen 7Jx17" 'Multi spaaks',Technical Grey

Ergonomische comfortstoelen (AGR-gecertificeerd)

Bevat:Zesvoudig verstelbare bestuurdersstoel

Zesvoudig verstelbare passagiersstoel

Verschuifbare zitting bestuurderszijde

Verschuifbare zitting passagierszijde

Elektrisch verstelbare lendensteunbestuurderszijde

Elektrisch verstelbare lendensteunpassagierszijde

Actieve hoofdsteunen voor, 4 voudigverstelbaar

Lichtmetalen velgen 7,5J x 18'' 5-dubbelspaaks

Lichtmetalen velgen 8J x 18'' 5-dubbelspaaks

BiTurbo Sportchassis

Ergonomsiche Bestuurdersstoel

Bevat:Zesvoudig verstelbare bestuurdersstoel

In lengte verstelbare passagiersstoel

Verschuifbare zitting bestuurderszijde

Elektrisch verstelbare lendensteunbestuurderszijde

Actieve hoofdsteunen voor, 4-voudigverstelbaar bestuurder, 2-voudigverstelbaar passagier


5. Overview car segments

Segments Examples Picture

A Opel Agila, Fiat Panda, Renault Twingo, Peugeot 107

B Opel Corsa, Toyota Yaris, VW Polo, Ford Fiesta

B-MPV Opel Meriva, Ford B-max, Nissan Note, Hyundai IX20

C Opel Astra, Opel Ampera, Ford Focus, VW Golf, Audi A1

C-MPV Opel Zafira, Ford C-Max, Renault scenic, VW Touran

D Opel Insignia, Audi A4, VW Passat, BMW3, Peugeot 508

SUV Opel Mokka, VW Tiguan, BMW X3, Kia Sportage

Van-B Opel Combo, VW Caddy, Renault Kangoo, Fiat Doblo

Van-D Opel Vivaro, VW Transporter, Ford Transit,

Van-E Opel Movano, Mercedes Sprinter, Renault Master

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Agila/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Corsa/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Meriva/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Astra/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Zafira_Tourer/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Insignia/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Mokka/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Combo/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Vivaro/Default.aspx

http://www.opel.nl/Showroom/Movano/Default.aspx


Declinein

marketshare

IncreasingAsian

competition

Kia Hyundai

Economiccrisis

Fuel prices

Savings

Environmentallaws

BPM

'Bijtelling'MRB

Competitors

Ford

Volkswagen

Frenchcar's

(Citroen,Renault,Peugeot)

Image

6. Causes of Opel’s bad market position


7. Market share automotive market in the Netherlands

8. Organizational chart marketing department Opel


9. Market share per car segment

10. Market share Netherlands

Opel7.1% Ford

7.1%

VW12.0%

Audi4.0%

BMW3.7%

Renault8.7%

Peugeot8.0%

Toyota6.7%

OtherJapanese

7.9%

Kia5.4%

Others29.3%

2012Opel3.7% Ford

8.8%

VW12.2%

Audi5.9%

BMW6.2%

Renault7.7%Peugeot

8.6%

Toyota5.8%

OtherJapanese

6.6%

Kia7.6%

Others27.1%

Jan 13

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011Other 19 24.2 26.4 25.9 27.7 27.6 21.9 19.3 17.6 16.1E 5 4 3.8 3.8 3.5 3.4 3 3 2.7 2.7D 20.3 18.6 16.8 17.2 15.7 13.8 14.6 14.1 10.3 10.9C 23.1 22.1 22.4 22.5 18.4 19.8 21.1 22 19.9 17.9B 22.4 22.6 20.5 20.5 22 22.2 22.8 21.3 24.2 26.8A 10.2 8.5 10.1 10.1 12.7 13.2 16.6 20.3 25.3 25.6

020406080

100

Mar

ket%

Year

Market share (%) per car segmentOtherEDCBA


11. Alternative propulsion

12. Vehicles sold per energy label

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

30000

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Uni

tsAlternative prupolsion sales

Earth-gas

Bio-fuel

Electric

LPG

Hybrid

0

100,000

200,000

300,000

400,000

500,000

600,000

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Vehicles sold per energy label

G

F

E

D

C

B

A


13. Infotainment changes

14 Automotive color popularity

-1997

• Cassette• CD

1998-2005

• Cassette• CD• Phone

2006-2010

• CD• Phone• MP3

2011-

• CD• Phone• MP3• Apps• 'Cloud'


2013GM

Willem Castelijns

[A CAR TREND ANALYSIS]

DealerNaam


Dit onderzoek gaat over de laatste trends en ontwikkelingen van opties op personen auto’s.

Nu heb ik opties onderverdeelt in verschillende categorieën zoals infotainment, velgen, technologische opties,kleuren etc.

INFOTAINMENT

1. Waarschijnlijk een van de belangrijkste en groter wordende categorie is infotainment zoals diegenoemd wordt binnen Opel, Audio systemen, navigatie en niet te vergeten mobiele telefoonintegratie. Wat merkt u van de veranderingen over deze groep?

2. Het nieuwe systeem op de ADAM, Intellilink is volgens Opel de start van de integratie van mobieletelefoons in Auto’s, werkt dit volgens u naar behoren en zou dit in meer auto’s moeten komen, zo jawelke?

3. Navigatie systemen zijn tegenwoordig ook heel erg belangrijk en dat is te zien in de verkoop ervan.Merkt u dit ook en ziet u ook een ontwikkeling in het verschil tussen navi 600 en navi 900?

4.

WHEELS/RIMS

5. De schoenen van de auto, de velgen. Wat verandert er in deze categorie? Menig Opel’s hebbenbijvoorbeeld grotere velgen dan een Mercedes slk. Is dit een goede zaak volgens u? omdat groterevelgen misschien wel mooi overkomen, alleen vaak wel nadelig zijn voor het rijcomfort.

6. Kiezen er tegenwoordig nog veel mensen voor lichtmetaal? Of laten ze het liever bij de standaardvelgen/wieldoppen?


7. Wat zou Opel volgens u moeten doen op het gebied van velgen in de toekomst, bijvoorbeeld kleinerevelgen standaard maken, of 20’’ uit het assortiment halen etc?

EXTERIOR COLORS

8. Nu auto’s zich steeds meer ontwikkelen als transportmiddel naar lifestyle product worden ookkleuren steeds belangrijker, zeker met een model als ADAM. Ziet u ontwikkelen in de selectie van eenkleur door de klant? En zo ja bij welke soort auto, Adam vs Insignia.

9. Bij het kiezen van een kleur, neemt de klant dan ook de soort lak mee in zijn keuze voor een kleur? BvParelmoer of briljant lak.

ENGINE POWER

10. Meestal is een van de eerste keuzes van een klant welke motor hij kiest, waar wordt dan meestal naargekeken? Kortom: wat is de meetbaarheid van een motor. PK? Of verandert dat steeds meer naaruitstoot per motor.

11. Merkt u het downsizen goed in uw verkoop? Met Downsizen bedoel ik dan het kiezen voor eenzuinigere maar ook minder sterke motor?

12. Wat zou Opel volgens u moeten doen qua vermogen van motoren?


FUEL TYPE

13. Momenteel is er ook veel te doen om het kiezen van een brandstof. Waar in 2007 opel alleen maarbenzine en diesel motoren verkocht, verkoopt opel nu zo’n 20% aan alternatieve brandstoffen zoalsElectrisch (Ampera), LPG en zelfs CNG op de Zafira tourer. Merkt u dit zelf ook aan uw verkopen?

14. Is het waar dat zakelijke klanten steeds minder voor Diesel kiezen i.v.m. de hoge BPM en de opkomstvan alternatieve brandstoffen?

15. Dat de Opel Ampera een succes is, valt niet om heen te gaan. Alleen dreigt deze in 2014 in eennieuwe bijtellingscategorie te vallen van 7% waardoor hij zijn marktpositie kan gaan verliezen. Watkan Opel Nederland doen behalve het verbeteren van de co2 waardes om de markpositie van deAmpera zo te houden?

CO2 EMISSION

De oude Managing Director van Opel Karl Howkins, de enigste Engelsman in de organisatie kent eigenlijk maareen woord Nederlands en dat is Bijtelling. Dit is ontzettend belangrijk voor de autoverkopen omdat een grootdeel van de totale verkopen zakelijk is.

16. Opel heeft laatste jaren kritiek gekregen op het gewicht en de co2 uitstoot van hun motoren watzorgt voor een lagere bijtellingsklasse. Merkt u zelf op lokaal niveau dat Opel hier niet in mee kan endus de concurrent om de hoek het beter is gaan doen?


17. Vindt u dat de Nederlandse overheid overdrijft met het stellen van zulke strenge fiscale regelingen?Om die helemaal afhankelijk te maken van de co2 uitstoot van een auto. Omdat het in landen zoalsBelgie of Duitsland nauwelijks gebeurt?

BEKLEDING, LEER OF STOF?

18. Bij Opel heeft ongeveer 10 % van de nieuw verkochte auto’s leer. Dit zie je met name op auto’s alsInsignia. Maar wat opvalt in deze categorie is dat van alle verkochte Mokka’s 26% leer als uitrustingheeft. Heeft u een idee waarom dit is?

19. Opel wil het oude imago van kwaliteit en premium terug krijgen, dit kan onder meer door lederenbekleding standaard te maken op bepaalde modellen zoals Cascada of sommige edities van Insigniazoals de Cosmo of Sport. Bent u hier een voorstander van?

TECHNISCHE OPTIES

Opel heeft behoorlijk wat technische opties in huis, zoals AFL, traffic sign detection en Opel Eye.

20. Wat is volgens u Opel’s innovatiefste optie?

21. Wat is bij uw klanten een populaire optie?


16. Visited dealers:

DriessenHugo van der Goeslaan 1a5643 TW Eindhoven

Telefoon: 040 264 66 99Fax: 040 258 77 [email protected]

MarkgraaffIndustrieweg 255527 AJ Hapert

Telefoon: 0497 - 38 29 13Fax: 0497 - 38 70 [email protected]

VullingsBestseweg 475688 NP Oirschot

Telefoon: [email protected]

LathouwersAfrikalaan 25232 BD Hertogenbosch 's-


Van MillMijlweg 313316 BE Dordrecht


mailto:[email protected]



