Opel will launch 27 new models in the next few years as it seeks to capitalise on recent improvements in its sales figures. Opel has been consistently losing money for a decade now, but owner General Motors has committed to a multi-billion-Euro investment plan to spur Opel back into the black.
Opel wants to expand its market share in Europe from a current figure of 5.8 per cent to a more robust 8 per cent, taking the second placed European car maker spot (behind Volkswagen) away from PSA Peugeot Citroen in the process.
Opel hopes that a new raft of high-tech options (such as its OnStar connectivity suite) will help to finally convince buyers to take it seriously as a premium or at least semi-premium brand. Crucial to that will be a raft of new models, many of them SUVs. Although the new model assault will kick off this autumn with the new Corsa hatchback, Opel plans a major expansion of its 4x4 range. Currently it only offers the Mokka and Insignia Country Tourer, but that range will expand fast as the next generation of Meriva and Zafira are expected to take on a more SUV-style aesthetic and there will be competitors for the Nissan Qashqai and Hyundai Santa Fe as well.
All of this is expected to come to full fruition by 2022.
Anything else?
Opel CEO Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann said "In the past months Opel's management team has worked hard on advancing our growth plan, DRIVE!2022. The catalogue of strategic targets presented here today is the result of our efforts. We have already made the preparations for implementing the plan step by step. We have the full backing of our parent company General Motors."