Opel has held its TechDay at its engineering center
in Rüsselsheim, Germany where the company revealed a handful of details about
its future product lineup.
Since Opel and Vauxhall are now part of Groupe PSA,
most future models will be underpinned by the Common Modular Platform (CMP) and
the Efficient Modular Platform (EMP2). The platforms are highly flexible and
Opel noted they can be used to underpin everything from coupes and convertibles
to crossovers. Opel went on to say the next-generation Corsa will debut next
year and ride on the CMP platform.
Speaking of the Corsa, Opel said the model will be
built in Zaragoza, Spain and be offered as an electric vehicle. It will be one
of four electrified models the company will launch by 2020. While Opel has
plans to electricity all future models, it will also play an important role in
the development of a new generation of four-cylinder petrol engines for Groupe
PSA. The automaker said the new engine family will be “optimized for operation
in combination with electric motors and will be used in the drivetrain of
hybrid systems.”
The engines will debut in 2022 and they will be used
by all Groupe PSA brands including Citroën, DS Automobiles, Opel, Peugeot and
Vauxhall. The engines will also be offered in a wide variety of markets
including China, Europe and North America.
Opel wasn’t ready to talk specifics but said the
engines will have “state-of-the-art technologies such as direct-injection,
turbocharging and variable valve control.” The new four-cylinder petrol engine
is currently under development and it will eventually replace PSA’s 1.6-liter
PureTech unit.
Opel’s vice president of design, Mark Adams, also
used the event to announce the company will introduce a new concept later this
year. Car Magazine reports Adans said the concept will show an “expression of
truly what we want our brand to be.”
