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The aluminum bodies for the gullwing coupe will be built at Magna’s Steyr division, which was once known as Steyr-Daimler-Puch. Located in Graz, Austria, the branch has long been known to produce low-volume and specialty vehicles. Mercedes is no stranger to Magna-Steyr -- not only did it help to engineer and build the first examples of its 4MATIC all-wheel-drive system, but it also currently builds the beefy Geländewagen SUV.
Thanks to Magna’s purchase of Opel from General Motors, many companies are expressing reservations about handing over production contracts to a firm that may be a direct competitor. Daimler, however, is not one of them.
“Magna has stated and confirmed again and again that they would have two totally separate organizations,” said Dieter Zetsche, Daimler’s CEO. “If that is a smart step that Magna is taking, does it prevent us from continuing our good business relationship with Magna, the supplier? Clearly no -- so I have no problem from that perspective with their decision."