GM launches Chevy Cruze compact car in S. Korea

(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with fresh quotes, details; AMENDS headline; TRIMS some
previous materials)
SEOGWIPO, South Korea, Oct. 29 (Yonhap) -- General Motors Corp. officially
launched its new compact car in South Korea on Wednesday, in what company
officials say is a significant model for the troubled U.S. auto giant.
The Chevrolet Cruze, GM's first model developed as a part of its shift to more
fuel-efficient vehicles, will hit showrooms in Korea in mid-November before
launching in Europe in early 2009 and the U.S. in 2010.
GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Co., the local unit of GM, is producing the Cruze at
a GM Daewoo plant in Gunsan, a port city 247 kilometers southwest of Seoul.
The Cruze "is a significant model for GM around the world," said Michael
Grimaldi, chief executive officer of GM Daewoo, in a press conference on South
Korea's southern resort island of Jeju.
The Cruze, equipped with a 1.6-liter gasoline engine that produces 140 horsepower
at its peak, will be sold in South Korea as the Lacetti Premiere. GM unveiled the
new car this month at the Paris Motor Show for the first time.
"Working together with GM's global design and engineering teams has resulted in a
vehicle that is destined to be a global benchmark and a sales winner," Grimaldi
said.
"The Lacetti Premiere is the first member of the next generation of
segment-leading products for GM Daewoo," he said.
GM Daewoo is the South Korean unit of GM. The company said it took 27 months to
develop the Cruze, without saying how much it spent.
The Cruze is priced from 11.15 million won (US$7,600) to 16.5 million won in
South Korea, depending on accessories. Prices for other markets weren't revealed.

In South Korea, the Cruze will compete with the crowded segment of compact cars
dominated by a local stronghold Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Motors
Corp.
Grimaldi said he is optimistic about the sales prospects for the new model. "We
believe we will win" in competition with Hyundai and Kia in the small-car
segment, he told reporters, calling the two South Korean rivals "good
competitors."
The launch of the Cruze comes as GM and its longtime Detroit rival, Chrysler LLC,
have been in talks for a possible merger and financial aid from the U.S.
government as they struggle amid the deepening global financial turmoil.
"We are in a very serious financial condition around the world," Grimaldi said.
"But, I believe we are going to navigate through the current difficult economic
conditions."
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