Filed under: Concept Cars, Sports/GTs
Opel GT: More info
Remember that post on the upcoming Opel GT? More news has come down from our counterparts at Autoblog Spanish.
The Opel GT roadster is the European sister to the Pontiac Solstice and virtual clone of the Saturn Sky. The two-seater, rear-wheel drive car will be powered by a 2-liter, four-cylinder, ECOTEC turbo engine rated at 260 horsepower (Sound familiar?). Acceleration from zero to sixty takes less than six seconds. Eighteen-inch tires let the roadster maintain its grip with the road.
The Opel GT will debut at the Geneva Auto Show this March, going on sale in the spring in 2007.
[Source: GM Media]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
mj10990 12:55PM (2/02/2006)
Best looking of the Three, but I will still take a Miata any day over any of these three.
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Sleighboy 1:26PM (2/02/2006)
A Ecotec-powered two seater...did Opel do away with the Speedster?
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Ross 1:36PM (2/02/2006)
Talk about badge engineering! Hey, why not just dump the going-nowhere-fast Saturn brand and adopt the Opel nameplate on this side of the pond? Oh, what a tangled web GM has woven...
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sk 2:12PM (2/02/2006)
#1 its the same car as the Sky
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7of7 2:33PM (2/02/2006)
GM's badge engineering aside, the Miata is not even in the same leauge as this body style. The Miata is truly boring and anybody saying anything to the contrary is just engaging in blind propping.
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Fooman 4:20PM (2/02/2006)
Is it me or does the Opel GT need to have pop up lights? Then again I guess the vette didn't need them either.
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GEP 6:10PM (2/02/2006)
Hey #3, if you know what is going on with GM you would have already realized that they put Saturn in high regards and probably because it is going to take on the OPEL persona here in the US.
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ZoomZoomin' 7:33PM (2/02/2006)
The Vauxhall VX Lightning styling was used to redesign the Saturn Sky (which originally looked like an overly effeminate piece of crap for no good reason) and the Sky is now being used as the design direction for the Opel GT.
The Kappa/Solstice family tree is getting pretty gnarly. Fortunately, they all look pretty good. Assuming reliability is decent, GM should have a family of winners.
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Joel H 11:32PM (2/02/2006)
I don't think you can call this "badge engineering". I would figure that only applies to vehicles available in the same market and doubt the solstice or sky are available any where the Opel is.
Even if you must call it "badge engineering" this is the one time it's useful to a company and does more good than bad.
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pedantic 12:55AM (2/03/2006)
The Vauxhall VX220 is the same car as Opel Speedster. And the Opel GT looks like it's the same car as a Saturn Sky GXP (assuming GM comes out with a GXP version of the Sky too). The Sky does look much more like the Speedster/VX than the Solstice, so it's the more obvious choice to bring to Europe. Since GM doesn't have the Saturn brand in Europe, it makes sense to have Opel and Vauxhall rebrand the car for their markets. Too bad GM couldn't shave off a few hundred pounds to put it more inline weight wise with the Lotus built Speedster/VX.
This is much like how the Pontiac GTO is really a Holden Monaro.
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x23 4:51AM (2/03/2006)
"And the Opel GT looks like it's the same car as a Saturn Sky GXP (assuming GM comes out with a GXP version of the Sky too)."
i would guess Red Line.
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John Bryans Fontaine 11:29PM (2/04/2006)
Although the car pictured is not ugly, it bares little resemblance to the original Opel GT. This is probably because its a virtual copy of the Saturn Sky.
Ironically, the Pontiac Solstice has the closest resemblance to the original GT, especially with its round sides. The Solstice Coupe Concept is even closer to the first GT. I wonder, if the Solstice Coupe is produced, how many buyers might stick 'Opel GT' badges on it? Would that be any worse than GM sticking Opel GT on the upcoming Sky?
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Harry Murphy 11:28AM (2/06/2006)
This inter-continental badge engineering between Saturn and Opel is just beginning. Except all future badge sharing will be Opel to Saturn, not the other way round, a good thing in my judgement as Opel has a wide range of very desireable VW, Honda competitors. As These are Saturn's target market, I believe Opel products have the credibility to do the job. Sold through excellent Saturn retailers, they can't miss.
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Gordon Klug 10:37PM (3/24/2006)
I have 2 nice 1970 Opel GT's and would be tempted to buy a Sky and convert the badges and trim to be a 2007 Opel GT. One is not able to import a car that is not offered for sale in the US, are they?
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greenhornet 4:14PM (6/16/2006)
I can't wait to dump my m'96 miata, gen. 1 and fill it's space with my new SATURN SKY REDLINE 260 hp direct injection turbo. And yes the SKY is heavier than the miata, but did you ever drive the miata on a really bumpy road? whoa nelly, does that chassis ever flex and twist and rattle,,,not to mention try to keep it going straight.
as for the cretin who thinks the opel is the best looking of the three, you really hate American cars as the Opel and the Saturn are EXACT BODY TWINS. For all other doubters, watch while Saturn becomes GM's HOTTEST DIVISION.
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Jerome 5:40PM (2/18/2007)
If you're interested in the new Opel GT, be sure to check my blog, with news, road tests, pictures, videos and just about everything related to the 2007 Opel GT.
http://newopelgt.blogspot.com
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Peter 11:24PM (9/17/2008)
I know this track is old, but has anyone really seriously looked at what it would take to rebadge a Saturn in the US to "become" an Opel GT. I might be interested in trying to do that.