Hoping to revive some of that spark the Antara used to have when it was new, Opel is launching a crossover offensive soon. At its center is something called the Opel Grandland X, and the new name suggests a fresh start is what they are after.
MPV are good family cars, but enough is enough, says Opel. The Grandland X will replace the Zafira when it debuts in 2017. It will sit higher, deal with mounting curbs and look cool.
How cool? Just look at this rendering by Remco M. It's not necessarily a preview of the official design since nobody has seen it. But Opel's family face is a good match for the body of the crossover.
If some elements of the image look familiar, that's because it's based on the Peugeot 3008, because Opel partnered up with PSA a couple of years ago, giving it access to the EMP2 platform.
The Grandland X will be the bigger brother of the Crossland X, offering 7 seats instead of 5. So perhaps Remco should have based his rendering on the 5008 instead. But the two French models are so similar in design that few can tell them apart.
From the engineering standpoint, we know that this will be a family car first and a go-anywhere vehicle second. By that, we mean that it will be mainly sold with front-wheel drive. In fact, the Peugeot 3008 will only have front-driven versions available unit 2017 or later.
Most buyers will opt for the smaller of all the turbocharged engines, like the 1.5-liter turbo that's rumored to come from a Buick model or the 1.6-liter CDTI turbo diesel from the Astra K compact hatchback. Of course, Opel has larger engines as well, 2-liter ones. But due to the constraints on emissions and demand for ultra-frugal cars, we could see the bi-turbo 1.6-liter used instead.
“The name Opel Grandland X stands for an adventurous type always prepared to explore something new – in both an urban or rural environment. Our new crossover model looks fantastic and will help excite new customers for the Opel brand,” said Opel CMO Tina Müller.
How cool? Just look at this rendering by Remco M. It's not necessarily a preview of the official design since nobody has seen it. But Opel's family face is a good match for the body of the crossover.
If some elements of the image look familiar, that's because it's based on the Peugeot 3008, because Opel partnered up with PSA a couple of years ago, giving it access to the EMP2 platform.
The Grandland X will be the bigger brother of the Crossland X, offering 7 seats instead of 5. So perhaps Remco should have based his rendering on the 5008 instead. But the two French models are so similar in design that few can tell them apart.
From the engineering standpoint, we know that this will be a family car first and a go-anywhere vehicle second. By that, we mean that it will be mainly sold with front-wheel drive. In fact, the Peugeot 3008 will only have front-driven versions available unit 2017 or later.
Most buyers will opt for the smaller of all the turbocharged engines, like the 1.5-liter turbo that's rumored to come from a Buick model or the 1.6-liter CDTI turbo diesel from the Astra K compact hatchback. Of course, Opel has larger engines as well, 2-liter ones. But due to the constraints on emissions and demand for ultra-frugal cars, we could see the bi-turbo 1.6-liter used instead.
“The name Opel Grandland X stands for an adventurous type always prepared to explore something new – in both an urban or rural environment. Our new crossover model looks fantastic and will help excite new customers for the Opel brand,” said Opel CMO Tina Müller.