London 08: Opel/Vauxhaul Insignia Photos

[Pinnacle]

The interior is just unreal! Everything a gadget geek loves is there.

WOW

[bigbillsfan]

you know whats funny, the wheels and lower stance make the car. imagine this car up about an inch and a half and with 16 or 17 inch wheels. it would still be gorgeous but would lose a little of it's charisma. i wish GM would put more effort into the wheels and stance of their NA cars.

[JeffInDFW]

GM could purchase BMW's, pry off the badges and offer them for $15,000 on Saturn lots, and would sell exactly 17 of them. It has now been PROVEN that GM can put EXCELLENT products on Saturn lots and that is exactly where they will stay. On the lot. Do not waste ANY more great products on Saturn. Give them the POS cars they had back and sell them at $13,500.

This beauty could replace the out of date G6. Or, it would be an awsome styling direction for Buick! Don't wait and bring it to the US when it is out of date and no longer able to compete. Bring it NOW. I also agree with the above poster....GM needs to pay more attention to ride heights and wheel styling! VW's have a low look with really pretty wheels, and it makes the cars. Like he said, raise the car and put boring smaller wheels on it, and you lose the car....

[member12]

Didn't we all agree 3 years ago that it will take almost a decade of Saturn building great cars before they can establish itself as a direct VW competitor?

Now everyone wants to pull the plug because GM finally floods Saturn with great products and they don't outsell Toyota. Does VW outsell Toyota? NO..Neither does Acura, Volvo, or Saab.




LIKE IT OR NOT, Insignia is going to come to America as a Saturn Aura and to the UK as the Vauxhaul Insignia....like the current Aura, there will be very little changes to the German counterpart ...mostly grille and badge changes. If we are lucky, we may get some diesel options and the manual tranny from the German model.

Buick will be the first in America with the Epsilon II chassis with it's own Buick styling. If you've seen the spy pics, the car is the same size and similar interior as the Insignia. The Insignia shown and a redesigned Malibu will arrive on the Epsilon II chassis shortly after. GET OVER IT. The Epsilon I cars are selling reasonably well "as they are" and the LaCrosse isn't. That makes Buick the priority, and makes Saturn and Chevrolet backburner material.

Right now, Saturn is getting a two mode hybrid Vue, an updated hybrid and 4 cylinder Aura, has just recieved a tight handling Astra. They will be fine for a couple of years, when everyone here will be screaming and moaning that Saturn is getting an Epsilon II before Chevrolet.

Please stop all this mindless babble about killing off brands- especially brands that have historically been under funded. Pontiac, Buick, and Saturn...like Cadillac...are going to take a while to get where we want them. That's only after decades of great products and great marketing.

How can we expect GM management to have any patience when non of you here on GMI, including myself, seem to have that virtue?

[63GrandSport001]

Because they are getting paid to do so.

[FoMoCo Fan]

Originally Posted by blaksabb

Why? It is so easy to say these things. How much money does it cost to introduce a car? And for what reason? To replace an existing car, most likely. So, replace what? The Aura? The Malibu? Both are brand new! How much money would they have wasted to replace the Aura so soon?

And it still wouldn't sell. It would be a Saturn. No one buys a Saturn. Worst brand recognition in the US, imo. How do you stop Prius sales... slap a Saturn badge on it. Result: total anonymity.

So, replace the Malibu? Ridiculous. That is a stellar car and it sells very well (as well as any mid-size GM car in its 1st year w/ no incentives has any right to). I still get list price for every one w/ '09s just hitting the lot.

In fact, this Opel looks very much like a '08 Malibu. Some details are nicer, some uglier. Far uglier (Nike swoosh on the door, anyone?). The fact that it may be Epsilon II would be lost on anyone not in the automotive know (the buyers of mainstream mid-size CamCords, for instance).

Bottom line: bring it here in 3yrs. Or more accurately, bring EP II in 3 yrs w/ Chevy styling. Before that, the new Buick can introduce EP II to the U.S. and incorporate upscale features. The leaked Buick shots from last week looked waaaay too much like a Malibu. The only thing I'm jealous of w/ the Opel is the sweet looking stick. U.S. will never get that.

You can't be afraid to kill a hot product. With an even hotter product. Otherwise your competition will do it for you. This "three years later" thinking is what has killed GM. Give it a Chevy grille and bring it here at the Malibu ASAP! Kill Saturn.

[Rocket 88]

Originally Posted by member12

Didn't we all agree 3 years ago that it will take almost a decade of Saturn building great cars before they can establish itself as a direct VW competitor?

Now everyone wants to pull the plug because GM finally floods Saturn with great products and they don't outsell Toyota. Does VW outsell Toyota? NO..Neither does Acura, Volvo, or Saab.




Right now, Saturn is getting a two mode hybrid Vue, an updated hybrid and 4 cylinder Aura, has just recieved a tight handling Astra. They will be fine for a couple of years, when everyone here will be screaming and moaning that Saturn is getting an Epsilon II before Chevrolet.

Please stop all this mindless babble about killing off brands- especially brands that have historically been under funded. Pontiac, Buick, and Saturn...like Cadillac...are going to take a while to get where we want them. That's only after decades of great products and great marketing.

How can we expect GM management to have any patience when non of you here on GMI, including myself, seem to have that virtue?

Your so on the money! Every day its Kill Saturn... Everything is Saturn's fault... and so few facts to back it up.

IMO, Saturn is really doing a pretty decent job. They are outselling Buick with a tiny dealerships and with no haggle pricing. Yes, they have more products, but I'm pretty sure the Aura, Vue and Outlook alone outsell the Enclave, Lucerne and Lacross. I'm not saying kill Buick, I'm just saying what do these folks really expect from Saturn?

Yes, the Astra is a real sales disappointment, but there is no proof that it would suddenly start moving with a bowtie or dart on the hood. Some cars just don't catch on.

[EldoFan]

Originally Posted by mjd1001

From a lot of angles, looks very "BMW-ish"

Agreed.......at first I was like "WTF did they put pics of a 3-series on there??"

Hope europe takes to it well though

[rs02cavi]

OMG!! They should bring that here now. I would be on line to buy one. That car is sweet!!

[Fusion2.3H]

Originally Posted by mjd1001

From a lot of angles, looks very "BMW-ish"

hopefully the price tag looks like a Saturn. Are they going to position saturn as a euro-lux fighter? The dash looks almost too nice, to be the same price as a Saturn Aura, Accord, or Camry. It looks more like a BMW or MB, with some life added in.

[GM-Joe]

Aura is at 1.5 years, Malibu at .5 years and Insignia is at -.5. With that being said, I will guess that the 95 and Buick will be coming about a year, Aura 2 years behind Insignia, and Malibu 3 years after Insignia. The benefit of Chevy coming in 3 years after the introduction is that the Generals goal is to make Chevy the most reliable mid-sizer on the road, thus catapulting perception of their products and other GM products. Praising quality as a number one perception is what worked for Toyota and Honda, yet 25 years ago Datsun and Subaru were very popular yet they could not hold on to it. GM is looking long term and I am pleased that they're product introductions are panning out like this.

[Bradyk1]

Originally Posted by eaton53

On some cars there's a knob behind the shifter, on others there's a little cubby.
Wonder what that's for?

The knob on the left behind the shifter on some of the models is the control for the nav unit. Today manufacturers are using constrol knobs instead of touch screens...a safer way for user interface. As you look closer, the screen for the nav unit is a little bit taller but just as wide, when compared with the digital information center.

[FStephenMasek]

It looks nice, at least in photos, and it should also be offered in the USA ASAP.

[CrimsonTider]

I can envision lots of Camry/Accord/Altima buyers who really want a BMW give this a serious look.

[spidge]

Originally Posted by hondaguy

OMFG bring this to NA and it will be my next car

Maybe a diesel option?? if not I will be satisfied with the DI 3.6

Isn't there an AWD, turbocharged version on its way, to fight the Audi S4?