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2017 Opel Meriva Spyshots Show That the MPV Lost Its Reverse Opening Doors

Opel is giving up on the Meriva’s reverse opening rear doors for the third generation of the MPV.
Opel Meriva Spy Shots 15 photos
Photo: Stefan Baldauf/SB-Medien
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The upcoming Opel Meriva is expected to be launched late this year or in early 2017 as an MY 2017 car, so buyers interested in the vehicle’s unique FlexDoor configuration still have time to buy the current model.

The third generation of Opel’s subcompact MPV is expected to share its underpinnings with the future Peugeot 3008. The partnership between PSA Peugeot-Citroen and General Motors was signed in 2012 and they eventually ended up making three projects in collaboration.

One of these projects includes the production of a B-segment MPV at the General Motors factory in Zaragoza, Spain. The company makes its Opel Corsa there, among other models. Other projects of the General Motors - PSA Peugeot-Citroen partnership involve the production of a C-segment crossover utility vehicle at the PSA plant in Sochaux, France, along with the production of a B-segment light commercial vehicle at the PSA factory in Vigo, Spain.

Going back to the Meriva prototype, we notice an approach that has moved to a more crossover look. The prototype seems to have received a larger tailgate door. The car still features a large degree of camouflage, but the handles of the rear doors are unmistakably placed to a regular position, and the respective doors will open facing the back of the vehicle.

The upcoming Opel Meriva and its sister Peugeot-Citroen models will likely share engines, transmissions, and technology. We expect the two alliance partners to figure out a way to blend their diesel- and gasoline-engined powerplants in the most efficient offering possible.

Initially, the alliance between PSA Peugeot-Citroen and General Motors involved a much larger plan. The two companies were supposed to build a midsize sedan together, along with a new subcompact hatchback. The decision meant a common platform for the Opel Insignia and its Peugeot-Citroen equivalents, the 508 and C5. Furthermore, the partnership was supposed to bring together the successor of the Opel Corsa with the upcoming generations of the Peugeot 208 and Citroen C3. However, the plan did not pan out, and the two partners decided to restrain their collaboration.
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 Download: Press release confirming GM-PSA Collaboration on B-Segment MPV (PDF)

About the author: Sebastian Toma
Sebastian Toma profile photo

Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland.
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