Opel Insignia OPC previews hot 2018 Commodore

Speculation continues about what the next hot Holden Commodore will actually be called, but we have a fair idea of what it will look like.

This computer rendering of the new hotshot Opel Insignia OPC adds to the clues seen recently in leaked photos of the upcoming Buick Regal SS and shows the visual differences between Buick and Opel (and likely Holden) will be pretty minimal, confined mainly to the lower mouldings in the front apron.

While there’s no confirmation yet on what Holden's range-topping imported Commodore will be labelled, 'Commodore VXR' seems a likely possibility – replacing the V8-engined SS in the current generation Commodore and positioned one tier above the new model's mainstream flagship, which is expected to be named 'Commodore SV6'.

While the latter has been confirmed to be powered by a 230kW/370Nm 3.6-litre V6 driving all four wheels, the OPC-tuned model you see here should raise the bar with either a turbocharged V6 or four-cylinder engine delivering about 300kW.

Either way, that would make it more powerful than the current Insignia VXR's 239kW 2.8-litre turbo V6 and put in the same ballpark as the 304kW 6.2-litre LS3 V8 that powers the current Commodore SS.

The fully-imported next-gen Holden Commodore is now in production at Opel plants in Germany and will go on sale in Australia in February 2018, despite GM's sale of Opel to the French PSA group.