Photo: CarPix
Right after General Motors presented the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt in Detroit, Opel followed up with the Ampera-e. Even though it is technically similar to its American counterpart, the 2017 Opel Ampera-e is sharing most of its name with one of the biggest commercial disasters in Opel’s existence, the Ampera.
In its best year (2012), the first-gen Chevrolet Volt-based Opel and Vauxhall Ampera sold just 5,270 units across Europe. In 2015, the plug-in hybrid model struggled to move 300 units. Why did it not work out for the Ampera? From a technical point of view, it’s a nice car that runs as eco-friendly as possible in the city. Its only deficit, however, is the exaggerated price.
Thankfully, though, all that is about to change with the 2017 Opel Ampera-e. Slated to debut in the flesh at the 2017 Paris Motor Show, the Ampera-e is a pure electric effort that holds great promise for the German manufacturer’s EV ambitions. This is the first time a pre-production Opel Ampera-e has been spotted by the carparazzi out in the open and, from the looks of it, we’re in for a much prettier car than the Ampera.
Opel chief exec Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann promises that the Ampera-e will be “breaking down the barriers of high price and short driving range” and, for that matter, he’s not bluffing. Thanks to a 60 kWh lithium-ion battery located under the floor, the 2017 Opel Ampera-e promises more than 322 kilometers (200 miles) of range. The 200 horsepower (150 kW) and 360 Nm (266 lb-ft) electric powertrain, on the other hand, ensures that the sprint to 96 km/h (60 mph) takes less than 7 seconds. Pretty good specs if you ask me.
Pricing is still not confirmed at the time of writing, yet Opel is promising that the Ampera-e will be an affordable option to those who want to kick the habit of burning fossil fuel. If the 2017 Opel Ampera-e is priced competitively against the next-gen Nissan Leaf and upcoming Tesla Model 3, then the European half-brother of the Chevrolet Bolt has a chance at washing the sins of its too-expensive PHEV forerunner.
Thankfully, though, all that is about to change with the 2017 Opel Ampera-e. Slated to debut in the flesh at the 2017 Paris Motor Show, the Ampera-e is a pure electric effort that holds great promise for the German manufacturer’s EV ambitions. This is the first time a pre-production Opel Ampera-e has been spotted by the carparazzi out in the open and, from the looks of it, we’re in for a much prettier car than the Ampera.
Opel chief exec Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann promises that the Ampera-e will be “breaking down the barriers of high price and short driving range” and, for that matter, he’s not bluffing. Thanks to a 60 kWh lithium-ion battery located under the floor, the 2017 Opel Ampera-e promises more than 322 kilometers (200 miles) of range. The 200 horsepower (150 kW) and 360 Nm (266 lb-ft) electric powertrain, on the other hand, ensures that the sprint to 96 km/h (60 mph) takes less than 7 seconds. Pretty good specs if you ask me.
Pricing is still not confirmed at the time of writing, yet Opel is promising that the Ampera-e will be an affordable option to those who want to kick the habit of burning fossil fuel. If the 2017 Opel Ampera-e is priced competitively against the next-gen Nissan Leaf and upcoming Tesla Model 3, then the European half-brother of the Chevrolet Bolt has a chance at washing the sins of its too-expensive PHEV forerunner.
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