3 posts tagged “rüsselsheim”

The Opel Insignia’s shape has grown on me but it is almost too contemporary—suited to today’s trends, so how will it look come 2011? Still, it is miles better than the Daewoo Tosca that is sold in New Zealand with Holden badges. The Vectra C’s replacement should always have been the Insignia in this market, too—I am seeing the Tosca trounced by Camry, Mazda Atenza and Ford Mondeo.
   The first video is a bit dull but the second has interior and exterior shots, filmed against the London background.
   This car has won Car of the Year in Europe and the Gelben Engel from ADAC (the German Automobile Club). In other words, some people think it’s a world-beater, but I don’t believe it will head to the US. There are rumours it could come Down Under to supplant the awful Tosca.
   We do know it sells in China with Buick badges.
   What a shame it has come while GM is in such deep trouble—everyone is focusing on the troubles and not the car.

Opel has launched the estate version of its Insignia saloon at the Paris Salon. It’s a smart-looking vehicle and if Holden New Zealand wasn’t such a bunch of idiots treating consumers as shoppers at the Warehouse, we’d have it, too, and the company would be raking it in, instead of trying to convince us that the Daewoo Tosca is acceptable. Meanwhile, Ford is cleaning up with the Mondeo in this sector, as is Mazda with the Atenza or 6 in this mid-sized market.

The last time they made a car called the Chevrolet Cruze, it was a rebodied Suzuki Wagon R:

and, before Holden started selling Daewoo Kaloses, was considered the worst model in its range when it was rebadged with the Aussie lion on the grille.
   This time, it seems Chevrolet Cruze will be the export name for the Daewoo Lacetti replacement in Europe and the US. It doesn’t look very American at all—as usual, it looks Korean, which it is. The good news is that the platform is shared with the next Opel Astra and engineered in Rüsselsheim. The front grille is reminiscent of the Gentra, though the lights are more aggressive. The rear is similar to the Daewoo Tosca:

   Speaking of dodgy Daewoos, I saw, in the metal, the new Holden Barina—Daewoo Gentra X in its country of origin—and the transformation is not very pleasant. The grille does not have a centralized Holden lion badge: it’s placed higher within the grille. Here’s the original Korean model as on Autocade for reference:

 
   I imagine that New Zealand is not going to be far behind Australia, given that the news reports of the facelifted Barina only appeared in the Aussie press earlier this week. Admittedly, I thought I was looking at a Škoda Fabia at first glance, then I had the misfortune of seeing the rest of it. I just hope, for buyers’ sake, this car is safer than the old Kalos.