Mr Stahl replaces Ian Hucker who has taken the position of executive director sales for Opel Europe, and is now responsible for sales throughout Europe, excluding the UK, German and Russian markets.

Mr Stahl, who holds a degree in Business Administration, brings with him a wealth of automotive experience in operational and strategic functions.

Previous experience includes roles such as integration manager of Chrysler Financial overseeing the move to Mercedes-Benz Credit, as well as holding the positions of senior manager corporate strategy and senior manager business development at DaimlerChrysler in Stuttgart and Berlin respectively.

He also served as chief financial officer for the Swedish and Danish operations of Mitsubishi Motors Europe, and has also run his own business, K2P Consulting, which provided sales, marketing and financial services to GM/ Opel and other business clients.

“I am very much looking forward to leading the fleet team at Opel, at a time when we have an outstanding line-up of products for the fleet market, not least the new Astra which is receiving universal praise,” said Mr Stahl.

“We are in an excellent position in the European fleet market currently, and with the array of new products still to come this year and beyond, we are confident that we will be able to strengthen our fleet position still further. I am looking forward to meeting with our many fleet customers as soon as possible,” he added.