With the multibillion dollar bailout of Detroit's Big Three car makers rebuffed by US lawmakers, a long shadow has been cast across the European units of Ford and GM, as they look for money from Germany and Sweden in a bid to remain open for business.

The 14 billion US dollar package to aid General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler LLC collapsed on Thursday amid disputes over union wage cuts.

The breakdown left the fate of the US auto industry, and the three million jobs it touches there, in limbo.

Oliver Roth, a Stock broker at the German stock exchange in Frankfurt, said the decision was a disaster.

"The decision of the US Senate to reject the request for 40 billion dollars to support the automobile industry is a disaster."

GM and Chrysler have said they could be weeks from collapse.

Ford says it doesn't need federal help now, but its survival is far from certain.

That's causing uncertainty at those companies' European divisions.

But British-based Ford said the company was profitable in Europe and wouldn't need any outside funding for at least the next 12 months.

Still, Ford has said it intends to offload its Swedish-based Volvo unit, by either selling or spinning it off into a separate company.

Zurich, Switzerland-based GM Europe, which makes Opel, Vauxhall, and Saab and sells its Chevrolet brand in Europe, is considering appeals for monetary help from governments across the continent, but whether they will get enough to stay operational is decidedly uncertain for now.

GM said in a Friday statement that its talks with the German government for assistance were continuing.

Last month, GM Europe sought one billion euros , or 1.3 billion US dollars, in loan guarantees from the German government for Adam Opel, which sells most of its cars in Germany and is the country's third most popular brand behind Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman Thomas Steg said a decision could still be reached by Christmas on the loans.