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112 Comments
- inactive, on 03/05/2009, -2/+35every european car that is a breakoff of an american concept is 10000000x better than the american ***** we get, why the ***** is that?
- waydee, on 03/05/2009, -0/+20Exactly, essentially the same as a diesel electric train.
- superdog87, on 03/05/2009, -2/+21If GM would release more cars (then trucks...) like this, they might stand a chance in surviving...
- swanny89, on 03/05/2009, -1/+20Because European cars have designers and American cars have design committees. All of our designs are run through countless focus groups to make sure no one is "put off" by a certain car design, instead of making a good-looking car that people will want to buy. Thats why we have so many "jelly bean" cars out there.
- MrScotchBoy, on 03/04/2009, -4/+21Dude, European cars are teh awesome!! Even their spin on American cars rock!
- Katana, on 03/04/2009, -2/+16So the car is electric drive only? using the gas engine as an electrical generator for the batteries?
The link implies that since the gas engine is out of the drivers control and not driving the wheels, the computers can keep it in the most efficient rpm/power bands. - mrgarci1, on 03/04/2009, -3/+15WANT!
- computershack, on 03/05/2009, -1/+9If you stopped accepting ***** cars, GM would release European quality ones in the US. Whilst they know that they can get away with any old bland ***** built with cheap materials using 20 year old mechanics, they'll keep making them and selling them to you.
- yessuz, on 03/05/2009, -3/+11and Europeans PWN Americans. Again.
- offrdbandit, on 03/05/2009, -0/+8You wanna know the density, eh?
- CoD4, on 03/05/2009, -1/+8it's cause we touch ourselves at night
- inactive, on 03/05/2009, -0/+7This thing looks like it could kill me if I upset it.
- funkedup, on 03/05/2009, -1/+8because when you put "European" in front of something, Americans eat it up.
- N00F, on 03/05/2009, -0/+7This is how a Hybrid should be done.
- computershack, on 03/05/2009, -0/+7They do, just not in the USA.
- xain, on 03/05/2009, -1/+8I thought the Volt was cool. Am I the only one?
- QsheiK, on 03/05/2009, -0/+6It looks like it's crying.
- Polycarp87, on 03/05/2009, -0/+6This is the Chevy Volt re-badged. The Volt was announced years ago and is coming to the US first, but since Chevy isn't an established brand in the rest of the world GM stuck an Opel badge on the front and added a few different trim pieces so they could sell it over there. It agree it is a good looking car but it is identical to what we're getting so no one needs to freak out.
- robbie32, on 03/05/2009, -0/+5No... no vroom. More like a whoooooshhh.
- waydee, on 03/05/2009, -0/+5Can't see any reason why not.
edit: well other than a ***** economy right now - CasualNinja, on 03/05/2009, -1/+6Vroom Vroom Party Starter!
- waydee, on 03/05/2009, -0/+5What funkedup said is true to an extent but aesthetics and design in general tend to be quite important factors in the European market, art and design is integral to the culture of many European nations and has had a long time to develop and be refined. This is not to say that good taste or attractive design comes naturally to Europeans, it's just that there has been a lot of examples of what works and what doesn't.
There's plenty of not so pretty European cars, it's not some magical land of impeccable universal good taste that somehow appeals to everyone. It's just that looks are taken seriously for the most part and achieving a distinctive and appealing aesthetic has been the pursuit of many European artists and designers for centuries. I know that could sound a little pretentious and arrogant but Europeans have, on the whole, proved themselves quite good at car styling over the years.
It seems to me that the general trend for American car styling since the 70s has moved towards more simple, utilitarian looks with some obvious exceptions.
Of course, it could be argued that it's all subjective anyway, what works in Europe might not work in the Americas or Asia. It's also quite obvious that the styling on this car borrows heavily from the European Civic which has proven to be quite well liked, Opel obviously saw that overall look as a safe source of ideas. - EllimistX, on 03/05/2009, -2/+6It was cool when it was a concept... The production model...not so much.
- computershack, on 03/05/2009, -1/+5It's because we're not prepared to accept shoddy build quality, cheap materials, crap bland design, low MPG or less than 70 BHP/litre whilst still expecting 200,000 miles out of an engine.
- waydee, on 03/05/2009, -0/+4Opel are likely a great asset for GM right now and one I suspect they'll cling on to but theres nothing stopping GM from selling Opel designed cars in the US, didn't work out so well with the Astra though.
The European and US markets are quite different which is why Opel are left alone to do their own thing. - CressCrowbits, on 03/05/2009, -1/+4Why are we Vauxhall in the UK? Opel is a much nicer name with a much nicer logo.
- BlackJackJester, on 03/05/2009, -1/+4and a top speed of 268,909 furlongs / fortnight! Awesome!
Unfortunately, some of the largest group of customers they have for this live in apartments in cities...where they can't charge. - inactive, on 03/05/2009, -1/+4Because Germany always produce good cars and just slapping a Opel badge over a Chevrolet one is not enough to satisfy the European market with all the decent competition out there.
- xain, on 03/05/2009, -1/+4It's actually L/100km.
- inactive, on 03/05/2009, -0/+3Will Vauxhull be making this model too?
- lukas88, on 03/05/2009, -4/+7It looks way over styled. Something that might look interesting in a magazine but would quickly grow old if you had to look at it every day.
- Jektal, on 03/05/2009, -0/+3Or you could just buy a Volt. Assuming they don't dumb-down the US version.
- deslock, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2Yep.
I frequently drive a Prius and I can tell you that when the engine is running the gas mileage is not a single mpg better than the non-hybrid. so the only benefit you get is when you are running 100% off of the battery, which is far too infrequent. Basically, only when you are at a complete stop. Which explains the fact that you only get better mileage when in city driving.
It's irksome to drive an expensive new technology car and know it is a pale imitation of what it could/should be. - rizzo2008, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2@bossy
I did and its the same car with slightly different front sheetmetal. Its a Chevy Volt with slightly different clothing - inactive, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2Yeah i guess with the economy maybe, but it would be a shame not to see it in he UK.
- someguy92, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2The concept is really nice, but I wonder how long the batteries will last before they need to be completely replaced. The 220 lithium-ion cells it uses can't be cheap.
- waydee, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2Well even if they're not built in the UK they'll just source them from plants on the continent in right hand drive form with a vauxhall badge stuck on instead of opel.
- ARTLUKM, on 03/05/2009, -1/+3Digg really needs to implement a mandatory IQ test with a minimum required level in order for new users to sign up. We don't need people like you around here.
- Jektal, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2Oh please, it's not like no home in America is wired for 240 (or at least 220). The issue is whether or not wherever you park your car is wired. The parking lot behind my apartment? Not so much.
- christhechris, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2Its also often quoted as litres per 100km
- brundlefly76, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2Its crying because it can only do 100 mph.
- stompk291, on 03/05/2009, -1/+3no, you stop accepting them, and then some genius uses your tax money to bail them out in a "bad market"
- inactive, on 03/05/2009, -0/+2Liters per kilometer? As in how many liters does it take to move this car 1 kilometer?
- esc27, on 03/05/2009, -1/+3Emo car? Seriously it looks like it is crying and the black makeup is running.
- Pfkninenines, on 03/06/2009, -0/+2You do realize Opel is owned by GM, right?
- briLo, on 03/05/2009, -0/+1This thing rips........reminds of Ford Performance Vehicles, sold only in Australia. It blows their American cars ut of the water!
http://www.fpv.com.au/index.aspx - wassim2k, on 03/05/2009, -0/+1Looks like it's got runny eye liner after crying for a while.
- inactive, on 03/06/2009, -0/+1nice username
- Polycarp87, on 03/06/2009, -0/+1You are right. I was under the impression that the whole house was 120V, but I learned that most of them have 240V for the dryer and water heaters. I wonder if some day we will be swiping our credit cards at high voltage outlet stations to charge our cars instead of at a gas pump?
- Maz96, on 03/05/2009, -1/+2''to replace the Audi A3 TDI that’s sitting on my driveway right now.'' Bragbragbrag...
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