GM’s Europe-based brands are plotting what could be a major reversal of fortunes. It’s all about new cars, extra models and an ever-closer alliance with Buick. 

The initial months and years after General Motors was made bankrupt were an especially tough time for Opel and Vauxhall. Major spending slowed dramatically and took a long while to restart, some strange product planning decisions were taken – the development of the Cascada, multiple new models for Chevrolet Europe – and a large number of good, talented people were allowed or encouraged to vacate positions in Rüsselsheim and Luton.

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Things change rapidly in this industry. Vauxhall is said to be profitable, Opel has had the same boss for some time instead of a rapid succession of CEOs but most importantly, Mary Barra seems genuinely interested in GM Europe. Where there were once threats which damaged the brands, now there is constructive, continuous support. Opel-Vauxhall is being allowed to behave like a German or Japanese firm, making plans for the medium and long term rather than having razor gangs slash everything they could find to make the next quarter’s financials appear less ghastly.

With the worst now seemingly behind it, Opel can fully concentrate on planning, engineering and working with other GM regional divisions to get the right vehicles into its product pipeline. These being the vehicles that will steadily guide Opel and Vauxhall into higher transaction prices and so, on to more solid financial ground.

The announcement earlier on 20 November by Opel’s CEO K-T Neumann and his boss Mary Barra concerned an additional model to sit at the top of the brand range. But what will this SUV be, and what also of other new cars due out by decade end?

The SUV in question will join the next Insignia as a large model and its natural rival will be the next VW Touareg. Opel and Vauxhall have longed envied two things about the Volkswagen brand: number one, its ability to charge people relatively high amounts compared to other mainstream brands, and number two, no mention ever of losses sustained (or equally, profits made) by its European operations. While some GM Europe vehicles are as good as or better than their VW equivalents (Insignia versus outgoing Passat, Zafira versus the ancient Touran) or do well in niches missed by VW (Meriva, Adam), this gets overlooked.

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GM, having stitched up or hacked off every money-bleeding limb of Opel and Vauxhall’s operations that it could find, does now seem to have the measure of its European division. The patient is over the worst, though it will take time to fully gather strength. As we know, Chevrolet is being wound up, the unloved Ampera will not be replaced, MPVs are to be succeeded by crossovers, underutilised plants are gaining new export programmes, and the big breakthrough: those in the Ren Cen, Rüsselsheim and Luton are all communicating far better and even doing a fair impression of acting as though they work for the same firm.

There is still a lot of work to do, especially when it comes to Opel and Vauxhall operating as a combined force. That 20 November press release was in fact two differently worded ones. Opel’s, as has come to be the norm, made not one mention of Vauxhall, while the UK brand had the same quotes from Barra and Neumann but with “Opel/Vauxhall” rather than just “Opel”.

There is perhaps some unintentional humour to be had in this quote: “General Motors and Opel/Vauxhall are closer than ever before. Opel/Vauxhall has General Motors’ full support, the additional investments are further proof of the excellent cooperation.” That came out of Luton, attributed to ‘Opel Group CEO Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann’. Versus this, from the Blitz symbol brand’s PR team: “General Motors and Opel are closer than ever before.” Perhaps if Vauxhall is able to push Ford of Britain off its throne as number one in passenger cars within the next 12-18 months, then Opel might acknowledge its partner brand more often?

Setting aside internal politics and instead turning to that announcement regarding a new co-flagship for both nameplates, the obvious question is what will this vehicle be? A major clue is where it will be built. Money is to go into Rüsselsheim for the manufacture of multiple new vehicles, each to be based on the forthcoming E2xx architecture. That means replacements for the Insignia sedan, hatchback, wagon and Country Tourer, each of which will have a lot of design elements from last year’s Monza concept. Originally due in 2016, key suppliers have more recently indicated that Opel has locked in the next Insignia for a ‘2018 model year’ launch. That means start of production in the final quarter of 2017.

E2xx is based on a front- and all-wheel drive matrix of modules. The additional SUV will inevitably share this architecture and could well be exported to North America as the replacement for the Buick Enclave. There are, however, conflicting reports that say the model for the US, Canada and Mexico will instead be made at Lansing Delta Township, Michigan.

Whatever the case may be, Opel will itself be providing another model for Buick in the form of the Cascada. This goes into North America from 2016 but should only last for three years. It’s a way of pushing up output at Gliwice as the car has not sold well in Europe and is therefore unlikely to be directly replaced. It might seem odd that the Cascada was ever given approval in the first place but it was relatively cheap to develop thanks to its combination of Astra and Insignia modules.

Not the current Astra but the new-generation model will also become a Buick. A reminder of what underpins it and when it’s due to appear: D2xx, and 2016. This will succeed China’s Excelle GT & XT as well as North America’s Verano. The next Astra will enter production in just under a year’s time in England and Poland. The five-door comes first, to be followed by the estate and then the saloon. Did I forget to mention the GTC? I did not. There won’t be a three-door body this time, which means Opel’s GTC and Vauxhall’s OPC high performance derivatives will instead be based on the hatchback and likely the estate too.

Not just a slow-selling body style but an entire model programme has also been axed: the project to replace the Antara. This SUV has never been a big seller, it’s now eight years old and the segment it started life in continues to change: most potential customers opt instead for alternatives such as the Qashqai. So, the Antara dies next year. It will be worth watching to see what GM Korea replaces it with at Bupyeong. With the end of Chevrolet production for Europe, that plant has lately been losing a fair amount of production volume.

Shifting preferences is also the reason for new thinking in Opel and Vauxhall’s MPV strategy. The older Zafira Classic is about to be discontinued as all of Bochum’s vehicle manufacturing activities will cease in a few weeks’ time. The newer Zafira Tourer will, however, continue to be made until it reaches its seventh year of production in 2018. This model is shifting plants early in 2015 but staying in Germany, moving from Bochum to Rüsselsheim. Its replacement will not have an Opel architecture; instead it will share PSA’s EMP2 with the next generation Peugeot 5008. 

With PSA taking control of C-crossovers for both itself and GM Europe, Opel is in turn developing the replacements for the Meriva and Citroën C3 Picasso. These will use General Motors’ Gamma 2 platform and be manufactured by GM España at Zaragoza/Figuerelas. PSA is to supply powertrains and the first model comes to market in late 2016.

Next year is going to be especially busy, starting with the arrival of the Corsa for Vauxhall in January (deliveries of the Opel commence next month), to be followed by the OPC and VXR derivatives, then the Adam Rocks to supplement the Rocks Air, Opel Karl, Vauxhall Viva, and finally the Astra five-door.

The Agila-replacing Karl and Viva will be five-door cars and designed to complement the Adam albeit at a lower starting price. The latter is, incidentally, also set to become a Buick but this won’t happen until the launch of the second generation model. Like the Karl and Viva, it will use Gamma 2. 

There are a few other missing pieces in the Opel/Vauxhall and Buick model co-sharing programme. The next Regal sedan for sale on the North American continent will be built at Opel’s main plant adjacent to its HQ. This will be on the same line as the future Insignia. Another likely alliance is the successor to the Zafira Tourer being based on the new Buick Envision. This crossover has recently arrived in China, its first market, and will be offered in the NAFTA region too, likely badged as the 2016 Anthem.

To summarise, here’s what Opel and Vauxhall’s line-up should look like in 2020:

*as per the current model, there won’t be a Vauxhall version