Opel and Vauxhall are going “purely electric in record time” as the company has reiterated they’ll go EV-only in Europe by 2028. Before that happens, the company will offer an electrified version of every model they make by 2024. They already have a good start thanks to vehicles such as the Astra plug-in hybrid, Grandland plug-in hybrid, Corsa-e, Mokka-e, Rocks-e, and an assortment of electric vans.
Their EV lineup will grow in the future as
the companies confirmed the Crossland and Insignia successors will be electric.
They’ll be joined by a “new interpretation” of the Manta in the middle of this
decade. Opel hinted at the model with last year’s Manta-e concept and CEO Uwe
Hochgeschurtz said it will be a “highly emotional car” that features
“first-class acceleration” as well as “pure driving pleasure.” He added the
model will be a “fascinating, astoundingly spacious new interpretation” of the
classic.
Opel didn’t say much about the upcoming
EVs, but they’ll offer a best-in-class fast-charging capability of 32 km per minute. We can also expect ranges of between 311 and 500
and 800 km. Speaking of batteries, Stellantis, Mercedes and Total/Saft have
joined forces for the Automotive Cells Company, which is slated to develop and
produce high-performance batteries. Production is slated for 2025 and the
Kaiserslautern giga factory will have an industrial capacity of up to 32 GWh.
Interestingly, Opel noted their electric
vehicle push began with the Ampera and continued with the Ampera-e. They were
essentially rebadged versions of the Chevrolet Volt and Bolt as General Motors
owned Opel at the time.
