Holden to design small Opel 4WD

Geneva International Motor Show

The uneasy introduction of Opel in Australia may have just become a little more awkward. Holden is designing a car it could end up competing against.

Holden's design centre in Melbourne is routinely commissioned to style vehicles for other General Motors divisions around the world – including Opel. Customarily, they aren't sold in Australia.

But now it turns out that at least one vehicle they are working on could end up competing against Holden: a new small 4WD that it is designing for GM's German brand.

"In addition to the three core vehicles we will start with in Australia next year – the Corsa and Astra small cars and the Insignia mid-size car – we are also looking closely at a small SUV," said Frank Weber, vice president of Opel product planning.

When asked if Holden was designing the small 4WD for Opel, Weber said: "You know what? Holden is designing a car for us but I'm not going to tell you what it is."

Holden – via its links to the Korean styling studio once run by former Holden designers – had a role in the appearance of the previous two Captiva softroaders because of the popularity in Australia of these types of vehicles.

It is unclear if Holden will get a version of the new Opel softroader, but there is a chance both brands could clash head-on if Holden wants to continue selling the Korean-made Captiva 5 and Opel plans to eventually sell the successor to the same vehicle.

Despite some initial internal resistance, Opel is coming to Australia as its own brand from next year – competing against Holden instead of being rebadged and sold as Holdens, as they have done in the past.

"You know what? The market is more intelligent, and more global now, customers can tell when you've rebadged a car," Weber said. "You need to have a consistency of brand image and that's why it's important we go to Australia as Opel."

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