Auto Parts

Showing posts with label Opel. Show all posts

GM and PSA Axe Plans for Mid-Size Models, Narrow Their Partnership

Even though it hasn't been that long since General Motors and PSA Peugeot-Citroen announced big plans for an elaborate partnership, the two companies have failed to come to an agreement on a number of projects.

After dropping plans to jointly develop a small car for Latin America and a dual-clutch gearbox earlier this year, we now learn that GM and PSA have also scrapped plans for a joint mid-size car program that would have seen models like the next-generation Opel/Vauxhall Insignia, Peugeot 508 and Citroen C5 sharing parts.

When it comes to vehicles that are abandoned or parked illegally, most municipalities will issue tickets with the hope that owners will pay up and conform to the law, but sometimes, more drastic measures are called for.

In Russia, for example, some cities have no problem taking matters into their own hands and settling the problem once and for all, giving owners a tough lesson.

In a surprise move, GM's troubled European unit Opel announced today its return to grassroots motor racing for the 2013 season with two new models, the Adam Cup for international rallies and the Astra GTC Cup for a circuit program focused on Germany.

"These new motorsports activities play an important role in the strategic re-alignment of the company; they are a fundamental element of our brand profile," stated Thomas Sedran, Opel’s Deputy CEO.

There won't be a battery-powered version of GM Europe's Adam premium mini after all, as Opel and its British counterpart Vauxhall have scrapped the program citing high costs, despite the fact that development had moved on to a working prototype.

The Adam EV would have shared its electric-powertrain with the upcoming Chevrolet Spark EV due to enter production next year, according to a report from Autonews Europe.

Opel and its UK subsidiary Vauxhall only just recently launched new model year versions of the Astra five-door hatchback and estate with some mild styling revisions, most of which were concentrated on the front end.

If these fresh spy shots are anything to go by, then the three-door Astra GTC may also be up for a light facelift.

More than a year after Opel presented the Insignia OPC Unlimited with an unrestricted top speed of 270km/h (168mph) to the rest of Europe, Vauxhall is now following in the footsteps of its sister company releasing a similar version of the UK market Insignia VXR.

Vauxhall's version is named the Insignia VXR SuperSport and it replaces the current Insignia VXR. Just the like Opel model, the VXR SuperSport does away with the speed limiter allowing the car to hit 170mph (274km/h), or 15mph (24km/h) more than its predecessor. Acceleration from 0-60mph (96km/h) remains the same at 5.6 seconds.

On Tuesday, we ran a story based on a report by Bloomberg News that Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has been talking to PSA Peugeot Citroen and Opel executives about the three carmakers merging into a single entity. Today, however, Marchionne refuted the report describing it to Automotive Europe as “bizarre”.

The Fiat-Chrysler CEO admitted that he had been talking with GM and PSA CEOs Dan Akerson and Philippe Varin, respectively, but he stressed that the discussions were misinterpreted by the report.

All mainstream European carmakers are, to a higher or lower degree, facing problems due to the debt crisis that’s storming the continent.

Ford has started closing down plants, Opel and Peugeot are burning cash each day for the past eight months while they try to figure out how to work on their partnership and, as for Fiat… well, thank God that Chrysler is profitable.

The sole survivor in this mess seems to be the VW Group that’s still very profitable, much to the annoyance of its rivals and especially Marchionne who accused Wolfsburg of not playing by the book. However, even the mighty VW has been forced to trim its estimates, as the crisis begins to knock on Germany’s door.

From the time GM linked its Opel and Buick brands, whenever the German company comes out with a new model, the question arises whether the Detroit automaker should bring it to North America.

Currently, of the six Buick vehicles sold in the States, three are based on Opel models: the Verano compact sedan (Astra Sedan), the Regal mid-size saloon (Insignia) and the Encore small crossover (Mokka).

This week, Opel and its British sibling Vauxhall lifted the wraps off a new model, the Cascada soft-top convertible born from Astra and Insignia underpinnings.

Here comes the latest model from Opel and its British counterpart Vauxhall, the all-new Cascada, a mid-size convertible with ample seating for four that was officially revealed today ahead of a European market launch in March of 2013.

The Cascada is the brand's fourth new model this year following the Ampera, Mokka small crossover and Adam premium city car, and its first convertible after the demise of the smaller Astra Twin Top.

With the Cascada, Opel and Vauxhall are moving away from the compact segment and entering the mid-size sector. At 4,697mm long and 1,840mm wide, the Cascada is not only significantly bigger than the Astra Twin Top, but it's actually 71mm longer than the Audi A5 Cabrio and 85mm longer than the BMW 3-Series Convertible.

The car uses a platform derived from Astra and Insignia underpinnings sporting a 71mm longer wheelbase and front and rear tracks that are 56mm and 70mm wider respectively than the Astra Twin Top.

The company says that despite being significantly larger, the Cascada’s body is 43 per cent stiffer torsionally and 10 per cent more resistant to bending forces than its last open-topped car.

The Cascada is the brand's fourth new model this year following the Ampera, Mokka small crossover and Adam premium city car, and its first convertible after the demise of the smaller Astra Twin Top.

The car uses a platform derived from Astra and Insignia underpinnings sporting a 71mm longer wheelbase and front and rear tracks that are 56mm and 70mm wider respectively than the Astra Twin Top.

The company says that despite being significantly larger, the Cascada’s body is 43 per cent stiffer torsionally and 10 per cent more resistant to bending forces than its last open-topped car.

With GM’s European Opel/Vauxhall brands and PSA Peugeot Citroen losing money as well as market share fast, the two groups are looking for ways to make the best out of the alliance they formed on February 29.

Under the initial agreement, GM paid US$423 million (€326 million) for a 7 percent stake in its French partner, which made it its second-largest shareholder. The Detroit carmaker had stated, however, that despite the massive gains for both companies, it might be forced to write down its investment.

Thanks to a series of enhancements, mainly to the engine and transmission, the new Corsa 1.3 CDTI is claiming the title of the most economical diesel model that Opel and its sister company Vauxhall have ever built.

The latest generation of the three-door Corsa 1.3 CDTI ecoFLEX Start/Stop returns a fuel economy of 3.3lt/100km or 85.6mpg UK / 71.3mpg US, with corresponding CO2 emissions of 88g/km. That's a 0.2lt/100km or 2.4mpg UK and a 6g/km improvement over the 2011 model.

Opel has been bleeding money for the past 12 years and analysts predict that it will post a total of US$1billion operating losses annually until 2021. General Motors wants to restructure the ailing carmaker and turn it around. This, however, involves not only collaborating with PSA Peugeot Citroen, but some serious cost cutting as well.

Industriegewerkschaft Metall, the Industrial Union of Metalworkers that is (thankfully…) more commonly known as simply IG Metall, is the most prominent union in Germany and has some really serious clout with both manufacturers and the government.

Irmscher, a tuner of all things Opel, is offering us our first look at the program it is preparing for the German automaker's newest arrival, the Mokka small crossover, which is sold in Britain as a Vauxhall and in North America, as the Buick Encore, starting from the first quarter of 2013.

The crossover's aesthetics can be upgraded with Irmscher's signature front grille that places the Opel logo in the center, protective metal bars under the doors, a larger roof spoiler (which is not pictured in these renderings), black or silver side stripes, and a quad tailpipe exhaust system.

Back in the mid-1980s, General Motors' Opel brand attempted to fight the hugely popular Volkswagen Golf GTI and its like in Europe's compact sport hatchback segment with a performance version of the sleek Kadett E called the GSi (sold as the Vauxhall Astra GTE Mk2 in Britain).

The Kadett GSi came equipped with a 2.0-liter naturally-aspirated four-cylinder producing 114hp (115PS) in the 8v OCH model and 148Hp (150PS) in the 16v DOCH (Double Overhead Camshaft) variant.

Auto Parts

GM and PSA Axe Plans for Mid-Size Models, Narrow Their Partnership

This is How They Deal with Abandoned and Illegally Parked Cars in Russia

Opel Returns to Motorsports with New Adam and Astra OPC Cup Racing Models [w/Video]

Opel Cancels Development of Electric Powered Adam City Car

Spy Shots: Opel Working on a Subtle Facelift for Astra GTC

Vauxhall Unleashes 170MPH Insignia VXR SuperSport, Slashes Price to Under £30K

Marchionne Refutes Bloomberg Report on Fiat, Peugeot and Opel Tie-up

Once More: Marchionne Wants to Merge with Peugeot and Opel, Outgun VW in Europe

GM CEO Likes the Opel Cascada, Says 'Why don't we bring it to the US'. What Do You Think? [w/Poll]

New Opel / Vauxhall Cascada is a Stylish Mid-Size Four-Seater Convertible

New Opel / Vauxhall Cascada is a Stylish Mid-Size Four-Seater Convertible

GM and PSA Peugeot Citroen Reportedly Considering European Merger

GM and PSA Peugeot Citroen Reportedly Considering European Merger

New Corsa 1.3 CDTI ecoFlex is the Most Fuel Efficient Opel / Vauxhall Diesel Ever at 3.3lt/100km

New Corsa 1.3 CDTI ecoFlex is the Most Fuel Efficient Opel / Vauxhall Diesel Ever at 3.3lt/100km

German Union Wants Opel to Rule Out Redundancies, Sign New Deal by October 26

German Union Wants Opel to Rule Out Redundancies, Sign New Deal by October 26

Irmscher Working on New Styling and Performance Packages for Opel Mokka

Irmscher Working on New Styling and Performance Packages for Opel Mokka

Blast from the Past: 1991 Opel Kadett GSi Meets 2012 Astra GTC OPC

Blog Archive

Popular Posts