Spyshots: 2012 Opel Zafira

Part of the recently announced €11 billion new product investment plan, the third generation Opel Zafira is getting ready to put on the good clothes for the 2010 Paris Auto Show this fall. Until then, it roams European roads testing its testing and behavior.

In such a stance the car has been spied by our photographers. Built on the same platform as the new Astra, the new MPV is rumored to import most of the Astra engines as well, with minor performance variations.

This means the Zafira will likely be offered with a wide choice of engines (the previous version comes with no less than 8 engines), including new 1.4- and 1.6l turbocharged petrol units and 1.3-, 1.7- and 2.0l turbocharged diesel powerplants, developing in between 95 and 160 horsepower. ecoFLEX versions will also get a spot under the hood.

Design wise, the new Zafira is nearly impossible to be distinguished from underneath all the heavy camo. Big changes are expected to be seen at the front and back, with the optical units to come with a new design.

If we are to trust a sketch released by Opel itself in April last year, the Zafira will have a more dynamic look, with pronounced side lines and the front grille borrowing the lines of the one on the new Astra and Insignia. The headlights will likely be drawn just like the ones on the Ampera.

More details about the powertrains of the MPV are likely to surface soon and we'll deliver them as they become available.