The European divisions of General Motors (GM) could collapse within weeks without European governments' help, GM's top executive has warned.
Chief operating officer Fritz Henderson said governments should step in immediately to ensure GM Europe does not run out of money by April or May.
It could help prevent some 300,000 jobs from being lost, Mr Henderson said.
He wants governments to put up 3.3bn euros ($4.2bn, £2.9bn) to finance the separation of Opel and Vauxhall.
Mr Henderson said during the Geneva motor show that Opel and Vauxhall should become a separate division that can then be opened up for investment.
He also urged Opel, Vauxhall and Saab employees "to make shared sacrifices" to save their jobs.
Reluctance
The news followed GM Europe's chief executive Carl-Peter Forster's arrival in Geneva on Monday, on an budget airline flight from Berlin where he had been in talks with the German government about state aid.
GM Europe's chief executive Carl-Peter Forster
GM's model line-up is receiving widespread praise
Following that meeting, German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck said he had yet to be convinced that GM Europe's Opel had a "sustainable future", a precondition for state aid.
The Swedish and UK governments have been similarly reluctant to offer direct assistance to save Saab and Vauxhall.
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