New Delhi, February 1, 2005: Thanks to the growing popularity of the Chevrolet and Opel brands, General Motors India sold more than twice as many cars in January 2005 as it did in the same month last year, while Chevrolet Tavera, a new-generation premium multi-utility vehicle (MUV) has sold over 10,000 cars in a little over seven months.

Selling 3022 cars in the first month of the year as against 1477 cars in January last year, the company registered a growth of 104.6% in monthly sales. Winner of Overdrive’s coveted "UV of the Year 2005" award, Chevrolet Tavera sold 1824 units in January to take its tally to 10,241 since its mid-2004 launch. The January sales included 762 units of Chevrolet Optra and 430 units of Opel Corsa.

Introduced in India in 2003, under the banner “For a Special Journey Called Life”, the Chevrolet brand was named "The Best Automotive Brand Of The Year 2004" by BS Motoring. Besides Tavera, two other Chevy products, Optra Luxury sedan and Forester SUV have between them cornered seven awards to date.

Upbeat about the company’s performance, Mr. P. Balendran, Vice President- Corporate Affairs General Motors India said, “To meet the growing demand for our cars, we are ramping up production at our Halol facility to provide world class vehicles made in India to the discerning Indian consumer. We are also working on several programmes to make 2005 an eventful year for the company.”

GM India is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Motors Corporation. Besides the Chevrolet Optra, GM India manufactures the Chevrolet Tavera, Opel Corsa, Opel Corsa Sail and Opel Swing at its facility in Halol, Gujarat. GM India also sells the imported Opel Vectra and Chevrolet Forester.