Swiss Classic World: Montage Suisse
MADE IN SWITZERLAND At Swiss Classic World on May 26 and 27 at the Allmend in Lucerne, an important chapter of Swiss automotive history will be on display in the "Montage Suisse" special show. In 1934, a certain Ed Riley of General Motors was looking for a location in Switzerland for an automobile assembly plant on [...]
In 1934, a certain Ed Riley of General Motors was looking for a site in Switzerland for an automobile assembly plant when he came across a determined Biel city leader. The city was not doing well. The last Swiss automobile plant, Martini, had been forced to close. City president Guido Müller showed the American guests a 30,000-square-meter plot of land, pushed through a proposal that Biel take over the financing of the plant's construction, and was thus able to relocate a lucrative industry.
A Buick was the first car to roll off the assembly line in Biel
The first Buick assembled in Biel rolled off the production line on February 5, 1936. The logo: a stylized silhouette of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau, emblazoned on the radiator grille. The components were delivered ready stamped or cast, for some brands even engines and transmissions. At that time, the assembly line measured 170 meters, and it took one worker two months to build a car. The project not only helped the people of Biel, but also boosted supplier companies.
Over 1000 people lost their jobs
The Second World War brought the first break and production, which resumed after the war, had to close in 1975 in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis, with over 1,000 people losing their jobs. General Motors Suisse still exists today, but only as a distribution structure.
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