A new name, a new car, a new ambition. With their breathtaking design and leading technology, the new Opel Insignia notch and hatchback make their world premiere at the 2008 British International Motor Show, signaling the brand’s aim to rejuvenate the traditional mid-size segment.

“The new Opel Insignia is engineered to energize both the segment and its customer’s lifestyle, offering a powerful combination of bold design, driving dynamics and high utility value at an affordable price,” says Alain Visser, Chief Marketing Officer at GM Europe.

The Insignia’s elegant styling can be summed up as sculptural artistry meets German precision – a mantra that will be chanted in Opel models moving forward. With the Insignia, Opel successfully has brought the sporty coupé design to the mid-size sedan class without making any concessions in interior space. The Insignia offers three centimeters more knee room than the Vectra. The car also proves to be particularly efficient aerodynamically with a spectacular Cd of 0.27 which positively influences the economic, dynamic and acoustic qualities of the car. Both body variants have identical 4.830 mm length and share the same wheelbase of 2,737 mm.

The new car will hit dealerships in Germany before the end of the year and other markets as of January 2009 with a line-up of seven engines. All meet Euro 5 emissions standards and come with six-speed transmissions, either manual or automatic. The four gasoline engines range from a four-cylinder 115 hp unit to a V6 with 260 hp. The three new direct-injection turbo-diesels exclusively developed for the Insignia feature displacement of 2.0 liters. They offer outputs spanning from 110 to 160 hp and excellent torque values ranging from 260 to 350 Nm. All combinations compare competitively in CO2 emissions. An ecoFLEX variant with remarkably low fuel consumption and CO2 emission levels will be added in the near future.

With its superb suspension, all-new ergonomic seats and numerous storage compartments, Opel’s new top model is designed to make long journeys comfortable and enjoyable.

The new Insignia also is the stage on which Opel highlights many leading technological innovations. The new Opel Eye camera system can both read and memorize road signs as well as alert drivers when they unintentionally veer off the road. The Hot Shot heated washer fluid takes some of the hassle out of winter driving. The further enhanced Adaptive Forward Lighting (AFL) also significantly increases driving safety.

Featuring an all new chassis architecture, the Insignia is offered from the start with front-wheel and all-wheel drive. The sophisticated Adaptive 4X4 system’s proactive, instantaneous torque distribution not only ensures driving stability while providing optimal traction and dynamic handling performance.

In the all-wheel drive Insignia, the FlexRide mechatronic chassis system with its Adaptive Stability Technology helps the car continually adjust to prevailing driving conditions and, in addition, allows the drivers to select settings to match their mood. FlexRide is also available in the front-wheel drive version.

The Insignia hatchback offers an impressive luggage compartment volume of 500 to 1,465 liters, and includes a ski-hatch opening in the rear seat-back for load-through storage. This model is particularly important for markets such as the U.K. and France, where hatchbacks traditionally enjoy a high market share of the mid-size class segment. In comparison, in 2007, 86 percent of all Vectras sold in the U.K. were the hatchback version. In France, Vectra hatchbacks accounted last year for 85 percent of Vectra sales. Throughout Europe, Opel expects sales to be divided equally between each model.

The Insignia was designed and engineered at General Motors Europe’s site in Rüsselsheim, where it will also be built. The Rüsselsheim plant is one of the most advanced in the world. Because engineers and designers worked as a team from the start, the Insignia highlights the brand’s strong commitment to quality in execution. Together, the Insignia showcases Opel’s passion for quality in design, engineering and manufacturing.