2019 Opel Monza

[tristatez28lt1]

Autobild reports that it'll be built in Russelsheim (investment of 245 mil Euros)
SUV flagship of Opel
Use components from Buick SUVs
RWD and AWD
Interior quality rivaling Audi
Base price 30k Euros

 

[Rainer271]

For me "Monza" will ever be a Coupe.

 

[tristatez28lt1]

I loved that car as a kid. Back when Opel was still a force...

 

[Mr Robert]

+1 for Monza, such a great car, right up there with the Senator.

 

[Rainer271]

New owner PSA shuts down Opel Flagship SUV development

Project could return in a couple of years with a PSA platform.

Now that the deal between PSA and Opel is officially official, the two sides are discussing the future of the German brand and its British subsidiary Vauxhall. Engineers and marketing gurus are currently busy to prepare the Grandland X for its launch this autumn, while, meanwhile, work on the next generation PSA-based Corsa should be already underway.

However, the planned flagship SUV, positioned above the aforementioned Grandland X, is reportedly not going to happen, at least for now. AutoExpress says the “Insignia SUV,” often referred to as the Monza, faces an uncertain future, quoting “a well-placed source.”

Apparently, PSA doesn’t want to work on any models based on platforms from General Motors. Opel initial plans were to use the architecture of the second generation Insignia and adapt it for a large SUV. “The large SUV will be built in Russelsheim. It makes sense because if you have the Insignia there you also want the SUV there,” former Opel CEO Karl-Thomas Neumann announced at the 2016 Paris Motor Show.

Neumann is no longer in Opel, as he resigned from the company following the acquisition. His successor, Michael Lohscheller, will be forced to switch all current and future projects to PSA platforms. Given that, the flagship SUV is not gone forever, as it might return as a vehicle based on PSA’s EMP2 architecture.

Currently, top managers from Opel and the French automotive giant are working on a revised business plan for the German brand, as it aims “to generate a positive operational free cash flow by 2020 as well as an operating margin of two percent by 2020 and six percent by 2026.” No major immediate changes in day-to-day activities are said to have been made so far.

Source: AutoExpress

 

[SCOTT27]

Peugeot are working on a 6008 SUV which could actually be quite lucrative if you take into account how successful the 3008 is. So the Opel will use this as its new home. However with GM it would not have just been limited to one brand so that's their proposal for Buick,Cadillac and GMC up in the air.

 

[picsoubmw]

Their way to stop losing money is to mutualize purchasing and development for platform, engine etc with PSA.

I'm curious to see if Opel will offer mechanical 4WD system in the future since PSA have no platform suitable for this or if it will hybrid based only.

 

[tristatez28lt1]

In terms of production and manufacturing, Opel has to learn a lot from PSA. Their margins and production are much more advanced than Opels

 

[tristatez28lt1]

Buick Enspire Concept Gets Rendered As Opel’s Upcoming Flagship SUV

announcement made last year, it will hit the assembly lines in Russelsheim before the end of the decade and will probably be built on the EMP2 platform.


The architecture already underpins the Peugeot 3008, Citroen C5 Aircross and Opel/Vauxhall Grandland X. However, the German car brand’s new product will have a larger footprint, while also adding more premium materials inside and new technology.

Opel was sold last year by GM to the PSA Group, and it currently has no ties with the U.S. automaker. Still, AscarissDesign thought that the new Buick Enspire Concept would make for an interesting Opel SUV, as there was something “too Opel in its design”, so he imagined it with a new face.

The study also gets proper side mirrors and door handles, for a more production-ready look. And thanks to its sloping roofline and size, it’s billed as a (virtual challenge)r to the likes of the BMW X4and Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe. Quite a stretch for an Opel, which is not a premium brand, but after all it’s just a styling exercise and nothing more.

Buick’s Enspire show car, which will make its premiere at the China Auto Show next week, is powered by a couple of electric motors that put out 557PS (550hp / 410kW) and allow it to reach 100km/h (62mph) in just 4.0 seconds.

While the rendering does work as an Opel, the PSA underpinnings ensure that the production model will have nothing in common with the Buick, as the latter is still owned by GM and the do go on their separate ways. Still, aside from the extra-large wheels, it makes for an interesting take, doesn’t it?

 

[Deleted member 1071]

I reckon that the sustainability of the Opel brand can be likened to that of an ice cube in a blast furnace.

 

[M.N.D]

I reckon that the sustainability of the Opel brand can be likened to that of an ice cube in a blast furnace.

This is unfortunate and it makes me a bit sad to see Opel so unstable and lacking in vision. I've lived with many of its cars and have a soft spot for them (and the brand) even though they are not preferred by car enthusiasts (Kadett D, Vectra A, Omega A, Senator B).

I don't know how PSA will fit Opel into its portfolio. I would think of Peugeot as the mainstream brand, while Citroen is the funky and innovative, while Opel represent the "affordable German-engineered", and the DS is the premium alternative with a french touch, but in reality I don't know how to categorize these brands. Peugeot is becoming more premium with its current range (the new 508 and the new SUV range) while Citroen is increasing its SUV range it's becoming a french Jeep, and the current DS offerings are old (aside from the DS 7 SUV).

How will Opel fit in all of this? Can they find their own unique identity without becoming redundant?

 

[Deleted member 1071]

How will Opel fit in all of this? Can they find their own unique identity without becoming redundant?

A very good question with regard to an extremely difficult endeavor.

The Opel brand itself is suffering a malaise that is the consequence of a number of blunders, most of which dating back to the late 1980s'/1990s' under the GM umbrella. And perhaps some dating even further back, i.e. the disasterously poor, uncommitted marketing of the second-gen luxury "KAD" (Kapitän/Admiral/Diplomat) offerings (produced from 1969-->1977). Excellent cars that comfortably rivalled their European competitors (W108 M-B S series, BMW 2500/2800 sedans, FIAT 130, series I Jaguar XJ6) in terms of technology and quality. The brand never managed a rebound into the segment afterwards, the Senator/Monza successors unsuccessful versus their German rivals, now including an upwardly mobile Audi.
Thus, positioning Opel as a "premium" brand is destined to failure.

The bases in other segments are pretty much covered. Not only by PSA products, but by competing German, South Korean and Japanese manufacturers.

Opel was once a very proud brand in Germany, often competing with Volkswagen for the No. 1 spot in sales. My second car was a 1969 Rekord C Sprint coupe (kind of an "econo-Commodore A"), handed-down from my dad in 1975 after my first car, a 1967 VW 1200 Sparkäfer, suffered an engine seizure. That Rekord had very high mileage and an "on it's last legs" engine. Dad said: "The engine is a goner. But if you're willing to carry the cost of replacement-and all other costs-the car's yours' if you want it.". I took it, found a 1.9 L 106 PS il4 pulled from a low-mileage, accident-totalled Rekord D Sprint for 1000 DM and kept it for 1 1/2 years before selling it. It was simply too expensive to run.

Could Opel become an exclusively EV PSA brand ?

 

[bmwz4coupe]

I miss the god old days when Opel made classics as Monza, Manta, Kadett, Ascona, Rekord, Senator. All of these apealed to me. Opel models today are bought by people that have no interest in cars.