Opel GT X Experimental concept previews a bright new future
Now under Peugeot's ownership, Opel is ready to stand out from the crowd.
It's only a teaser for now, but what you're looking at is the beginning of Opel's new lease on life.
Opel put out a teaser for its upcoming GT X Experimental concept, which will be revealed in full later this year. There's no discussion of powertrains or anything like that -- this one is all about design, and it's some good lookin' design. What you see here will be applied to future Opels over the next several years, the first clean-sheet design since Peugeot bought Opel from GM last year.
The crux of Opel's new design language lives front and center. All future Opel vehicles will carry what it calls the "Opel Compass," which is a pair of visual axes (one vertical, one horizontal) that meet at the badge on the grille.
The whole front end is what Opel calls a "Vizor," modeled after a motorcycle helmet and containing the headlights, running lights and the cameras and sensors needed for driver assistance systems. Expect that running light design to keep showing up on various Opel models in the future, as well. Opel calls that part the "Blitz." It's got a name for everything.
While there isn't any powertrain talk just yet -- it is a concept, after all -- the teaser video below gives a hint that it might be electric, since there appears to be a battery meter displayed around the 37-second mark. The grille also doesn't appear to have many air inlets, signaling that it could use electric propulsion, too.
This is the second brilliant Opel concept we've seen in the last two years. At the 2016 Geneva Motor Show, Opel unveiled the GT Concept. This sharp little sports coupe rocked a 1.0-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine, and combined with its sub-2,200-pound curb weight, it could have been a proper handler if it ever came to fruition. Let's hope this bad boy resurfaces in the future, now that Opel has some new parents.