Opel Insignia Spied in Michigan by WCF Reader
By Thami Masemola
March 17, 2009 12:04 AM
Filed Under: German, Opel, Spy Photos
A WCF regular spotted this Opel Insignia sedan driving out of a suburban garage in Michigan while he was walking his dogs. According to the reader he was able to take these clear pictures and talk to the driver who also had a 2010 Cadillac CTS wagon in the vicinity.
The driver/ engineer was apparently not too cagey on the fact that the Insignia is being considered for the US but the high costs of reengineering cars of European origin to meet US regulations were quite prohibitive for parent General Motors at this point. Therefore he could not comment on whether it would really wear a Buick or Cadillac badge as it has been speculated.
Opel launched the Insignia in April 2008 after much spy activity. Seven months later it was voted European Car of the Year. The Insignia comes with FWD or AWD drive configuration depending on the model and is being offered with a range of seven engines in the European market. Among them are a 260hp (191kW) V6 and a 160hp (118kW) turbo diesel. Currently three bodies are being made; a four-door sedan, four-door hatchback and wagon.
Thanks for the great tip Uwe!
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Comments
Edited by user on March 17, 2009 at 1:39 AM
This is so typical for me of the whole 'my car's more expensive' 'mmy car's bigger' 'my car's got a bigger engine' attitude of you Yanks. You spend so little time considering foreign options you're just happy to be seduced by the whole idea that GM/Ford/Chrysler et al are holy and foreign stuff must by default be no good.
Edited by user on March 17, 2009 at 3:52 AM
nd SteveRB im not sure wht ur talking about...
Also, about your military comment - it rankles with me to sink to this level but I will to make a point. Just what do you think would happen if Russia, China and the Middle East retaliated to any major military offence the US launched? Nuclear holocaust, every single country dies. Not so good, yeah? (Scarily, that is still a possibility).
Returning to a more civilised and intelligent level, nobody really cares what the US thinks because of their military capabilities -- they listen to America because it is a superb economy for any and every industry to take advantage of; that's all.
I obviously happen to be Australian, and believe me, I care what the Europeans think. I care what they think considerably more than I care what US citizens think. So no, people do care what Europeans think. And please do not tell us to "shut up". I think a different site would welcome your comments, but I think I speak for a very large part of the members on this site when I say we do not. So please find somewhere else to post if you intend to post that level of international social commentary.
World Peace ftw! ;)
But the USA is starting to turn away from full-size, muscle/sports, and SUVs to smaller and lighter cars that are more fuel efficient. I also love the fact that the US manufacturers are claiming to make American "style" and "driving" seem more superior to the foreign makes, even though they use the engineering from them (or badge engineering in some cases).
With Honda announcing that they will build only one version of the next Accord for world markets (hopefully not smaller than the current Euro Accord/TSX, which I could live with it), I'm curious if the others will follow suit. Toyota has announced that there will be no replacement of the Avalon, but there will instead be a longer wheelbase version of the next Camry. It also seems that recently the "mid-size" cars offered in the US are crossing over into the "full-size" category, so it makes me wonder.
Back to the point of the Insignia. I like the interior, and impressed by the reviews. But I'm sorry, I just don't like the exterior styling. I have to laugh at those people who think that this car is beautiful, while the Accord and Camry (American) are bland or ugly. If GM is going to turn this into a Buick, I hope they give it major exterior enhancements.
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