Cool Supercars » Opel

Heavily Camouflaged Opel Astra Spotted

tonks — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 19:54:24 +0000

It looks like the new Opel Astra has finally come out to play and do a little bit of testing before the final product. It has obviously been camouflaged very well leaving us to use our imagination when it comes to the exterior design that has been used for it.

What we do know is that the current Astra is one that we like and we have been told by Opel that the new one will be even better. We won’t be able to get our hands on the new model until 2011 – which means that it still has a few changes to be made and we are sure to get our hands on more spy shots before then. We just have to be patient and keep on the lookout.

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Opel Insignia Struts Its Goods At British Motor Show

tonks — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 01:58:50 +0000

Earlier this year we were told that the Opel Insignia would be arriving at dealerships in October. The newlw designed car has captured the eyes of many consumers who hae already gotten a chance to see it up close – but now those attending the British Motor Show will get their look. The Insignia will be replacing the Vectra.

The all new Insignia is sleeker due to the fact that it is obvious the design was slightly taken from the GTC concept. The old V-bar has been taken out in favor of a wider grille, complimented by a pair of intake ducts and the new Vauxhall logo. “Smart” headlights feature daytime running lamps standard and there will be an option for LED lighting on higher-spec models.

Power is provided by a choice of three diesels or four gasoline-powered engines, with the former producing anywhere between 110 hp to 160 hp, and the latter putting out 115 hp from the standard four-cylinder or 260 hp from the range-topping V6. Power is channeled to either the front or all four wheels through a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic. A VXR model is likely to be revealed sometime next year.

The Insignia is 21 cm longer and five cm wider than the Vectra it replaces, and legroom shouldn’t be an issue since the Insignia gets an additional 35 mm tacked onto its wheelbase. Three models will be available, including the standard saloon (above), a hatchback and a wagon.

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Opel Insignia To Recognize Traffic Signs

tonks — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 15:19:40 +0000

The Opel Insignia is the first production car that will have the unique feature that uses a dual function camera that has traffic sign recognition. The new system was built by Hella and it uses a single screen mounted camera to feed the separate processors for lane departure warnings and road sign recognition.

However, premium automaker BMW may just beat Opel to the honor of being first to market with a system that can identify signs. BMW will debut its system “later this year,” said technology spokeswoman Katharina Bölsterl.

Opel’s camera system will be available on Insignias from spring 2009, said spokesman Simon Hucknall. The upper-medium Insignia, which replaces the Vectra, will be unveiled at the London auto show next month and will go on sale in the final quarter of the year.
Premium models including the Mercedes S class and Lexus LS460 already offer frontal camera and night vision systems, but none has traffic-sign recognition capability. Many models – from the lower-medium Citroen C4 and Honda CRV upwards – already feature lane-departure warning.

Opel’s front camera system was jointly developed by Vauxhall-Opel and Hella. The camera detects both lane markings and signs alongside the road, taking 30 pictures a second. Traffic sign recognition software identifies circular patterns and then looks for the numbers or symbols within them. If these match the stored images, the appropriate speed limit figure appears in the instrument display. “It will even prioritize a no-overtaking sign over speed-limit warning signs,” says Opel.

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Opel To Release New Logo With Release Of Insignia

tonks — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 20:19:48 +0000

Opel has decided to copy Vauxhall – it’s sister company – and will be revealing a brand new badge later on this year. The new badge will coincide with the release of the new Insignia sedan. It will feature the Opel nameplate and a lightning bolt and will be coated in polished metal.

It will attempt to signify Opel’s upmarket ascendancy in the European market. The gentleman at right holding the redesigned logo is Mark Adams, GM Europe’s of design, who says that new emblem, “is very much consistent with the overall design language and philosophy of our vehicles.” Expect to see the new logo affixed to the Insignia at the London Motor Show next month.

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Look At Interior Of Opel Insignia

tonks — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 19:59:22 +0000

Opel has released the first official pictures of the interior of the new Insignia. The front part of the new sedan looks similar to that of the Opel GTC concept – which is a great compliment and means that it is stylish and comfortable.

Simple, attractive gauges are joined by amber lighting and a nice blend of plastics, brightwork, and other trim to create a driver-focused cockpit meant to be as usable as it is attractive. One of the little elements that’s kind of cool is how the gauge lighting shifts from white to red when the car is put into sport mode.

We will be able to get our hands on more information and pictures of both the inside and outside of the Opel Insignia when it is revealed in London next month during the British International Motor Show.

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Opel Insignia Teaser Shot Released

tonks — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 14:03:22 +0000

Opel has released yet another teaser picture for the new Insignia. It has been a few months since we have heard or seen anything – but now Opel is putting it out there for discussion and hoping to get the interest of the people before its release later this year.

While this may only be a teaser picture and we may not see much of it at all it is enough to get us talking again. The Insignia will be replacing the Vectra or as we know it better – the Saturn Aura. It will become a sedan, five-door hatch, and a wagon and will be built on the platform of the FWD Epsilon II.

Opel has stated that it will also be given a few four and six cylinder engines and maybe even a hybrid drivetrain. The vehicle will be released later this year – but won’t be seen in the U.S. till 2010 under the guise of the Saturn Aura.

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Replacement For Opel Vectra Surfaces

tonks — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 14:19:20 +0000

This year hasn’t even ended and yet Opel is already making plans on what they will be showing at the Geneva Motor Show in March. The car is the new Epsilon II, which is a replacement for the Opel Vectra. The prototype that is running around was of course spotted and interior shots were taken.

The camo free prototype was nabbed while testing in Colorado where the photographer managed to get some shots. Judging from this mule it looks like the new Opel will have an interior almost identical to the GTC concept that was shown at Geneva this year. In addition to a whole new look, the Vectra is also likely to get a different name. The new sedan will probably be called the Insignia, although it’s likely to retain the Aura name when it shows up at Saturn dealers in 2009.

More information will most likely be reaching our ears sometimes soon and hopefully more photos of what the outside looks like and better pictures of the inside. Until than we are going to have to imagine what it will look like.

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Futuristic Opel Flextreme Concept

tonks — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 20:14:06 +0000

We always get excited when someones defies the rules and makes a vehicle that looks so unusual that you would think that it is something that you would see in a futuristic movie, but not in the real world. Well Opel has taken that step and created the amazing Flextreme Concept, which to no surprise is a hybrid.

The Opel Flextreme is really very flexible as the name tries to communicate. The Opel Flextreme shares some technology and a similar frame with the Chevy Volt, although the Euro version uses a diesel motor to charge the batteries. Range on battery power alone is expected to be in the neighborhood of 100km (62 miles). Combined range is an impressive 775km (480 miles). Once the lithium-ion batteries are sufficiently depleted, the diesel motor will kick in to top them up.

A completely unique feature of the Flextreme is the storage compartment designed to hold two Segway scooters. And don’t worry if your Segways need some more juice to make it from the lot to the shops: the Flextreme can charge them on the spot, directly from its electrical system. Drive is powered by the vehicle’s Lithium-ion batteries – but only until power’s been drained from them.

At this point, the diesel motor kicks in, both to continue conventional unaided driving and to restore power to the batteries via the on-board generator. Power can also be handily restored by ‘plugging-in’ the Flextreme to an electrical outlet.

The new concept car is powered by an Opel-engineered 1.3-litre turbo diesel motor rather than the Volt’s 1.0-litre turbocharged 3-cylinder petrol engine, and while the diesel motor is in most instances to be used for regenerative charging between 1,500 and 1,800 rpm, the engine can reach 3,200 rpm should the batteries be depleted enough to warrant sole operation of this conventional drivetrain.

Drive is powered by the vehicle’s Lithium-ion batteries, but only until power’s been drained from them. At this point, the diesel motor kicks in, both to continue conventional unaided driving and to restore power to the batteries via the on-board generator. Power can also be handily restored by ‘plugging-in’ the Flextreme to an electrical outlet.

Combining the compact form of a hatchback, while offering the stowage and cabin environment of a lifestyle MPV, the Flextreme is a stylish sight to behold, with concave and convex surfaces, elongated front headlamps and a convoluting, albeit slightly awkward, rear end.

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Opel May Close Down Plant

tonks — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 20:02:41 +0000

General Motors stated that it might have to close an Opel plant in Europe when it launches its next generation of Astra cars. “With respect to any individual plant ‘being at risk’, as stated in various media reports, it is highly speculative to draw that conclusion today,” GM Europe said in a statement. The Financial Times quoted Opel head Hans Demant as saying one of its main plants might have to go and that GM should have cut more jobs when it got rid of 12,000 workers in the region.

Opel is GM’s largest brand in Europe. Demant was quoted as saying the replacement for the Astra model, now built at four factories including Ellesmere Port in Britain and Bochum in Germany, may need fewer facilities, possibly leading to the closure of one of the sites. The GM statement said the current Astra was a market success, and the latest variant, the Astra Twin Top, was scheduled to go on sale this month.

“The company feels it is inappropriate to speculate on where the next generation Astra will be produced, a vehicle that will not go into production until the end of the decade,” it said, although it said GM had to keep improving productivity.

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Opel Speedster

tonks — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 16:56:47 +0000

In an era of look-alike designed vehicles, there’s no mistaking the 2002 Opel Speedster. First introduced at the 1999 Salon de l’Automobile in Geneva in concept car form, it was a bold visual contrast to the workaday sedans, and coupes sold by General Motors’ big European marque.

Impossibly low, with a rakish nose and bodacious muscular fenders, it was striking front to back, with a unique, vertically stacked dual exhaust. Just two years later, an amazingly brief interval in automotive terms, the Speedster is back, this time in roadworthy trim.

Surprisingly little has changed from the concept car’s visuals, a primary goal for Opel and its partner, British-based Lotus, which produces the Speedster alongside its own little Elise. Under the skin, there’ve been a number of modifications made to the original Opel prototype, which was little more than a re-skinned version of the Lotus roadster.

The wheelbase of the extruded aluminum chassis has been lengthened a bit, the track widened slightly. And GM has opted for big, 17-inch wheels and tires, instead of the 15-inchers found on the Elise.

A modified GM 2.2-liter in-line four has been substituted for the Rover-supplied powerplant used in the Elise. Basically the same engine used by Saturn, the lightweight aluminum puts out 147 horsepower, and delivers a moving 90 percent of its torque at just 1900 rpm. Now when you consider the rear-drive Speedster weighs in at just 870 kilograms (1914 pounds), you’ve got a formula for some serious acceleration. Opel rather conservatively promises a 0-100 kph time of 5.9 seconds.

There’s so much torque, in fact, one seldom needs to shift the short-throw five-speed manual gearbox. Just punch the pedal, and you’re flying. But with a car like this, straight-line acceleration is only a part of the picture. The Speedster’s center of gravity sits so low to the ground, it is fair to take Brand Manager John Hahn at his word when he calls the little two-seater “a motorcycle on four wheels.”

The Opel Speedster is not a car for day-to-day commuting. It is loud and rough and an absolute delight on open roads. Stuck in traffic, banging your way down the autobahn, you’d need half the workday to recover. It’s also not a car for extended travel, with a trunk little bigger than a milk crate. But for day trips and weekend runs down an open road, it is an absolute kick.

Priced at the equivalent of $30,000, the little roadster went on sale in Great Britain last November-where it is sold under the Vauxhall VX220 nameplate. The Speedster version is just rolling out across the rest of Europe. Sadly, there are no plans to bring the Speedster over to the States.

In current form, it wouldn’t meet tough U.S. crash requirements. But Opel officials admit they’re open to reconsider their decision, so a groundswell of demand wouldn’t hurt the case for an Americanized version.

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