In the first sign that dealers are prepared to help bail out General Motors Corp.'s (GM) Opel and Vauxhall brands in Europe, a dealer association Wednesday said it had agreed in principle to acquire a minority stake in an entity that could be separated from GM.

Opel/Vauxhall dealer association Euroda in a statement said it planned to raise in the region of EUR400 million or more from a levy on car sales to fund the potential investment.

Under the proposal, dealers would contribute to the fund EUR150 from the sale of each vehicle for a period of three years. The Euroda association represents 4,000 dealers with about 120,000 employees.

GM Europe is nearly out of cash and GM Chief Operating Officer Frederick "Fritz" Henderson said last week the company was willing to sell a majority stake in Opel/Vauxhall as part of an effort to win EUR3.3 billion in aid from Germany and other European governments.

"Obviously, this Euroda fund could acquire a minority share in the new company only, but would at the same time give a clear signal to all parties involved," Euroda said.

The dealers said the new entity would have to be separate from GM, but the Detroit-based automaker should retain a minority stake "for practical reasons, for example with regard to economy of scale in purchasing and engineering."

Euroda said it expects to hold a final vote on setting up the fund at it's next general meeting in Vienna May 15.

"We have full confidence in our European colleagues and their ability to evaluate the actual situation in the best possible way, also based on their dedication to the brand," Euroda Chairman Jaap Timmer said.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a media interview published Wednesday said that before a decision on Opel can be made, the government will have to know the outcome of important decisions regarding parent GM.

The government needs to know what form of independence GM can give Opel and what will happen to Opel's patents, Merkel told daily newspaper Bild.

 
   Company Web site: www.gm.com 
 
   -By Christoph Rauwald, Dow Jones Newswires; +49 69 29 725 512; christoph.rauwald@dowjones.com