Opel GT Concept at Geneva
With the reveal of the Mokka SUV and the GT concept, Opel is taking the necessary steps to achieve its goal of introducing 27 new vehicles by 2018. The GT concept revealed at the Geneva International Motor Show will strike a familiar chord with those acquainted with the Opel brand. It reminiscent of the first GT that hit the market in 1968 after being introduced as the Opel Experimental GT in 1965.
Echoing GM’s 1973 Opel advertisement of providing ‘uncomplicated excitement’ Mark Adams, Vice President Design Europe, highlighted the importance of the GT’s simplistic design—internally and externally—in bringing the focus back to the thrill of the drive.
Though this concept is decidedly modern there are key nods to Opel’s past. The red rubber of the Motoclub 500 of the 1920’s is echoed in the distinctive red tires, the long bonnet, central dual exhausts and lack of boot lid are shared with the Opel Experimental GT and Opel’s sister brand vehicle the Vauxhaull XVR.
The GT concept has a 1.0 liter 3-cylinder turbocharged front mid-engine and rear-wheel drive, with a 6-speed sequential gearbox. It weighs less than 2,200 pounds, should accelerate from 0 to 62-mph in less than 8 seconds and achieve a top speed of 134-mph.
Re-inventing the GT of the 60’s and 70’s, while still retaining the essential aesthetic that would allow it to be accepted by modern car enthusiasts was not easy, but this beauty assures us that Opel’s attempts were not in vain. Will this vehicle reach production? The jury’s out on that one. Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann, CEO of the Opel group, GM Executive VP and President Europe shared in Geneva that they have not yet decided whether they would build this car and make it a production version of the Opel GT.
If we learned anything from this Geneva reveal it is that Opel has designs on a sports car in the hopefully near future. It took the first GT three years from presentation to production, let us hope that Opel does not keep us waiting that long this time around. Dr. Neumann also shared that the next reveal for Opel will be their electric vehicle the Opel Ampera E which was designed to solve the problems that hinder most from taking advantage of electric driving options: the cost and the driving range. Ladies and gentlemen, ‘Opel is back.’
