General Motors Co. (GM) hired consulting firm Alix Partners to speed up the turnaround of its troubled European Opel and Vauxhall brands, a person familiar with the situation told Dow Jones Newswires Friday.

The U.S. automaker isn't satisfied with the progress of the European restructuring, with the German plants in Kaiserslautern and Bochum facing particularly close scrutiny, the person said.

A spokesman for Opel said the company asked for "external help" to implement the restructuring plan. He noted that improving the profitability of fleet sales was in focus, along with streamlining costs. He declined to comment further.

In 2009, GM skipped the sale of Opel and Vauxhall to Canadian auto parts maker Magna International Inc. (MGA, MG.T) and decided to finance the wide-ranging turnaround program itself.

GM Europe posted a $559 million loss in the third quarter last year and $1.2 billion loss in the January-to-September period, making it the firm's only money-losing region.

GM Europe chief Nick Reilly told reporters earlier this month during the North American International Auto Show in Detroit that the division could reach break-even in 2011, excluding restructuring costs, if the sales improvement seen towards the end of last year continues.

According to previous statements, GM Europe is expected to be profitable again in 2012.

-By Nico Schmidt, Dow Jones Newswires; +49 69 29 725 114; nico.schmidt@dowjones.com
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