2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially - Jalopnik Comments

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

bygeorge — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 01:14:52 EDT

@suzq044: Yeah, but what looks great on the Viper (because it is functional) just looks dumb ass here- it doesn't delineate the wheel, it doesn't accentuate the fender, it doesn't break up the side mass, it doesn't even pretend to be a side vent (and if so, for what, located in the door like it is?)

I wish SOMEONE ownd this idea so they could sue out of existence anyone who effs it up as badly as this...

bygeorge

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

suzq044 — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 19:34:51 EDT

Someone tell me that Dodge has that viper side-slit shape trademarked? ... First thing i said when i saw the side was "viper inspired"

suzq044

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

FuzzyPlushroom — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 15:28:20 EDT

@UDMan: Yeah, except that instead of a hideous nose like the Sebring's, it has a hideous arse.

I dunno which is worse - but the Saturn's still much better to drive.

Though I'd take a Malibu over it, since that's actually reliable (see also: Ion -> Cobalt).

FuzzyPlushroom

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

nosirrahg — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 13:44:13 EDT

How long has the G6 been around? Started as a 2005 model? Not that it looks out of date necessarily, but if it'll be 2011 before the new one rolls out that seems like a LONG time without any significant changes.

nosirrahg

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

gracilism — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 13:18:36 EDT

looks good to me. Its a continued step foward for GM. How quickly we forget how bad it was if this isn't considered an improvement.

gracilism

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

voodoojoo — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 12:46:25 EDT

@mzs: @yagobal: Much as car designers have sharpened up the blobby lines of the 90s, when even the boxy Volvos looked soft, they don't have the same presence of the cars folks would roll in on an everyday basis without hardly a thought. Old Renault 4s have acres more style than this, even though everything behind the front door is kind of off. What bugs me most is that when they do try to hearken back, the designers make too big a deal of it, and good style becomes a niche, much like how I figure the G8 will do here.

voodoojoo

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

om Bronx de Mowgli — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 12:20:52 EDT

why does the gallery have "links" and labels reading 2009 buick Insignia? a little slippage or typo?

om Bronx de Mowgli

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

beercheck — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 12:19:13 EDT

Somewhere, there's a designer saying "No, dumbasses, I wrote 'Insignia' there because that's where you were supposed to place the badge!"

beercheck

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

mzs — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 12:14:24 EDT

@voodoojoo: The upcoming A4 looks in that spot just like my Volvo 850 did. I always thought Volvo made such a long hood for safety reasons, but yeah I always liked the long hoods myself too.

But all the space under the hood was fantastic in the Volvo. I was able to change the timing belt inside the engine bay. A first for a FWD for me.

mzs

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

UDMan — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 12:03:24 EDT

This is OK for GM Styling. They just seem to be copying designs from other car makers anyway. The Current Aura just bugged me for some reason, and I think I just found out why. The Current Aura:

Now the Previous version of the Chrysler Sebring:

UDMan

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

layabout — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 12:00:14 EDT

[www.autosbikes.com] The new Mondeo will kill it in sales stakes,& as normal it will be a better drive.You can change the name of the Vectra but it will always be a crappy car.

layabout

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

StunGod — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:52:21 EDT

I like it a lot. It's got nice lines, the crease/character line thing works well and gives the car a little visual interest. Without it, it would be a good-looking Camry.

I think the grill is pretty sharp, too. I'd be tempted to get an Opel grill for the Saturn version - the Opel logo is about the coolest one GM has, and it looks great in this application.

StunGod

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

DannyBN — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:47:52 EDT

@Elhigh: Other than the windshield and general proportions, I don't think this indicates what the next Malibu will look like at all. Amazingly for GM, we've had four different vehicles on the current platform that have had little resemblance to each other.

DannyBN

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

yagobal — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:45:07 EDT

@voodoojoo:

Because in a front wheel drive car, like this one, the engine sits in front of the front wheels, to maximize traction.

On the Camaro, with it's rear wheel drive architecture, the engine sits behind the front wheels, there's no front overhang, and the doors need to be further back.

yagobal

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

gotsmart — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:37:37 EDT

It's a nice-looking car. Attractive lines and very nice lighting design. I'd like to see a little more crisp lines and character in the face, though... it's looking a little ho-hum generic up front.

gotsmart

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

voodoojoo — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:31:03 EDT

@mzs: I don't know, the switch from the last to current generation Audi a4, for instance, slid the engine farther back and got more room there, supposedly improving handling ad giving the car more handsome proportions. Leaving more space in that chunk of the fenders seems to be good all-round.

voodoojoo

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Elhigh — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:07:51 EDT

It's a handsome car. If it presages the next-gen Aura and Malibu, is this a bad thing? I think not.

BMW not looking quite so exclusive? Jag less of an automotive trendsetter? Screw that. Rarified automobiles come with risks; you pays your money and takes your chances. If it turns out you bought an automotive albatross, well, screw you - you let your money do your thinking for you, and the builders that think they can demand that money finalize the decision.

The bread-and-butter buyers, the folks who get the Malibu because that's what they can afford, they're the ones that really need to be pleased by the builders. We shop where we can but choose what makes our bucks go farthest. If we wind up selecting a model that's a few pay grades below a BMW but every bit as nice, well, that just proves that eventually the bread-and-butter builders can add some jam, and reward our middle-class efforts with some top-drawer rewards.

Elhigh

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Drew draws fire from Ben Wojd...wodjyj...woldj...Ben. — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:06:39 EDT

I still don't understand why it would take them two years to rebadge this as the Aura. I don't care about product life cycles, bring us the best damn thing you have right now GM. Just swap out the freaking badge.

Don't fuck it up please, Mr. Maximum.

Drew draws fire from Ben Wojd...wodjyj...woldj...Ben.

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

NovaloadMissesPolar — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:03:06 EDT

@Isetta: Me too. When are they going to bring those back? Couldn't mistke those for anything else. Also had a friend who had an Opel Manta.

NovaloadMissesPolar

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Elhigh — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 11:02:01 EDT

@POLAЯ PAPAL EDITION: Holy crap I had just managed to forget that DAMN YOU POLAR.

Elhigh

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

bmoredlj — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:55:43 EDT

Sweet looking ride. Out-looks the Malibu and the future Taurus both. Don't change a thing for the Saturn version. That includes the interior quality, bean-countin' bastards.

bmoredlj

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

mzs — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:46:31 EDT

@Preferredcustomer: You said it way better than I could. The first thing I thought when I saw it was, "What a shame an Opel looks better than a BMW these days." That side is fantastic, and and THEN you see the crease, and you think, "Wow even better." At least I do.

@voodoojoo: Cars don't tend to have any space there anymore since the engines are transversely opposed.

mzs

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

cazin678 — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:37:57 EDT

wow- what a sweet-looking car.... Amazing that this is the same company that is pimping up Buicks for us...

cazin678

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

John_W_KCMO — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:30:29 EDT

@AshPipe78:
"Would it be considered ironic to completely debadge an Insignia?"

The car would probably disappear into a wormhole.

John_W_KCMO

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

TampaRon — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:20:20 EDT

Its a great looking car and I do hope they bring this over as the new Buick. I for one really like the new Enclave.

TampaRon

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Mustang lovin' non-redneck...not that there's anything wrong with that. — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:15:54 EDT

Very nice proving once again that all the good designers are in Europe.

Mustang lovin' non-redneck...not that there's anything wrong with that.

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

voodoojoo — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:13:26 EDT

How come midsize cars don't leave any space between the front most door hinge and the back of the front wheel? That Camaro had acres there, it makes cars look significantly better proportioned, but carmakers these days refuse to move around the wheelbase an inch or two and leave us with these bland attempts at style. I'm going to go grumble for a while now.

voodoojoo

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

TurboBrick — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:06:25 EDT

I can't wait for Top Gear to review this, Clarkson was so thrilled with the original Vectra.

TurboBrick

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Isetta — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:29:27 EDT

Wow, I still remember the Opel Kadett.
[mclellansautomotive.com]

Isetta

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Doggie Daddy runs on gin — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:28:45 EDT

I think it's quite handsome myself. Nice lines, like the sloping roofline. Not overly chromed either.

Doggie Daddy runs on gin

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

POLAЯMISSESEVEЯYBODY — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:20:33 EDT

If they have a bare bones, no option model,
they should call it the Robert Opel Edition...

POLAЯMISSESEVEЯYBODY

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Preferredcustomer — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:15:37 EDT

Why is the gallery tagged "2009 Buick Insignia?"

I like the character line on the side. Very distinctive, and much better than, e.g., Chris Bangles attempts to come up with new ways to put character lines on cars (which I am convinced involves several magnums of champagne, a blindfold, a putty knife, and a clay model of the car).

Preferredcustomer

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Nayrlladnar — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:09:36 EDT

I like it, however, wtf is up with the Nissan GT-R/Subaru WRX STi side crease? Is this the new fender vent?

Nayrlladnar

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

UDMan — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:07:19 EDT

As I said once before, GM will just add a chrome fender vent, just because. Only this time, it will be on the front end of the door crease, so not only will it be non functional, it will also be....... ahhh, I have nothin'

UDMan

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Elhigh — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:02:38 EDT

As long as the emblem remains the circled lightning bolt, nothing else is wrong in the world.

Well, the Aveo is still a bucket of FUBAR, but otherwise everything's okay.

Elhigh

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

yellofury * * * * * — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 08:59:06 EDT

Oh and if this replaces the Aura this would be another hit for GM and help move Saturn away from the "plastic door"
into more of the 'Merican VW fold

yellofury * * * * *

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

The Name's Ash78, Housewares — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 08:59:06 EDT

Would it be considered ironic to completely debadge an Insignia?

The Name's Ash78, Housewares

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

OldeEnglishD misses Polar — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 08:58:41 EDT

I think some 19 year old eating a sandwich and talking on the phone ran into the side of this thing. Did you see the big dent/crease running down the side?

OldeEnglishD misses Polar

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

yellofury * * * * * — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 08:57:03 EDT

Opal= precious stone
Opel= named after founder Adam Opel

yellofury * * * * *

2009 Opel Insignia Revealed, Officially

Bee1 — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 08:54:30 EDT

Sha-Zaam is all I can think of right now about the front grille.

Bee1