Wagoner: GM can go it alone

General Motors supremo Rick Wagoner has told authoritative US industry journal Automotive News that the car-making giant doesn't need a partner to extricate itself from its current fiscal predicament.

"GM sells more than nine million vehicles a year globally. It's not logical or responsible to say we must have a partner to recover," Wagoner told Automotive News at the Paris motor show.

However, Wagoner hedged his bets by adding that GM is "always on the lookout for opportunities."

There's been much media speculation in recent times regarding a proposed tie-up between GM and Renault-Nissan. The alliance is being looked into at the urging of billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian, who holds 9.9 per cent of GM's shares.

Kerkorian had earlier suggested that Renault-Nissan acquire a 20 per cent stake in the world's No 1 carmaker (a status GM will soon lose to Toyota) to rescue GM from itself.

The intensely private tycoon sent a private letter to Wagoner spelling out this proposal, and the letter was also released to the public to put extra pressure on the General Motors executive hierarchy.

Wagoner met with Renault-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn last week to review the progress of study teams and to set October 15 as D-Day for a decision.

"Our interest in this or other deals is whether it creates a capacity to sell more vehicles," Wagoner told Automotive News.

"One advantage for us (discussing alliances and joint ventures) is that we have lots of experience, and we know a lot about what works for us," Wagoner said.

GM has successfully cooperated with Fiat on powertrains, but an arrangement in which it acquired a 20 per cent stake in the Italian carmaker in exchange for five per cent of its own shares failed miserably.

In fact, GM last year coughed up $US2 billion just to wash its hands of the Fiat alliance.

Meanwhile, Wagoner has neither confirmed nor denied that GM could look into a partnership with cross-town rival Ford.

"In this business these days, who knows?" Wagoner told Automotive News in response to a question about a potential tie-up with the Blue Oval. Nevertheless, he did reveal that there have not been any recent meetings between Ford and GM on the subject.