German automaker Opel has asked Chancellor Angela Merkel for government help in case its parent company, General Motors, goes bankrupt.
Opel said on Friday that it needed a state guarantee of more than one billion euros in loans in case cash from General Motors' headquarters in Detroit dries up.
The company has 25,700 employees.
After meeting Opel managers in Berlin on Monday, Ms Merkel said the finance and economy ministries and representatives of the four states where Opel has plants would decide by Christmas if such a guarantee would be provided.
About 750,000 people in Germany work in the vehicle sector. Ms Merkel on Monday described Opel as a "special case".
Ministers in Hesse, where Opel has its largest plant, on Monday approved a bill that would result in 500 million euros being made available in guarantees for firms in the sector.
Meanwhile, the White House has warned that car makers in the United States must make do with existing funds.
Earlier this year, Congress approved a $US25 billion loan guarantee programme to help General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. They have told members of Congress they need the same amount again.
