Official Thread: Vauxhall Insignia VXR/Opel Insignia OPC

[mikeyb]

Here’s the best evidence yet of the forthcoming Vauxhall Insignia VXR. The disguise around the snout of this prototype covers a GTC concept style nose that will front the red-hot Insignia VXR when we finally see it in 2009.
This model is badged as an Opel Insignia V6 – and on the Continent it will wear the OPC tag. And that V6 badge is significant, as the VXR model will use that model’s four-wheel drive system and mechanical package.
Insignia VXR: a turbocharged 2.8-litre V6

The ‘boggo’ Insignia 2.8 V6 turbo develops the same 256bhp as today’s Vectra VXR, so the new VXR will be tweaked up to produce nearer 300bhp, we hear.
Won’t that cause some trouble with the front rubber, steering and chassis manners? Not in the Insignia. Unlike today’s hot Vectra, the newcomer will boast four-wheel drive to tame all that twist.
The new Insignia VXR gets its Swedish cousin’s torque-splitting electronic rear differential to juggle drive between the wheels with the best traction.

When will we see the new Insignia VXR?

Bank on a 2009 unveiling. GM is showing the Insignia estate at the Paris 2008 show, so we expect the VXR to surface at the Geneva show in March or Frankfurt in September 2009. Showroom sales are slated for late in the year.
This prototype is far from the finished beast. The wheels look to us like 18s and the bonnet profiling, wheelarches and other details are boggo Insignia; even that rear lip spoiler comes on the regular 2.8 V6 turbo.
So what about the GTC inspiration?

Check out our previous stories on the GTC concept to see which direction GM is pursuing with the VXR Insignia. Vauxhall and its chums over at Opel are hardly shy about their VXR/OPC models, so expect a flurry of spoilers and in-yer-face attitude on the hottest Insignia.
Will the performance match the posing? Insiders claim the early prototypes are already beating the 8min 35sec set by a standard Astra VXR at the Nurburgring.
Anoraks will enjoy that detail; for mere mortals, rest assured – the Insignia VXR will be brutally fast.
But we can’t help feeling that the low CO2 versions of the Insignia will be more significant in this zeitgeist…

 

[mikeyb]

Saturn Aura VXR or Redline?

 

[boostdog]

why GM doesn't bring this engine to the states is beyond me!

 

[OhSchnapps]

Gooohhgeous. don't like the bra on the front though.

 

[mikeyb]

Gooohhgeous. don't like the bra on the front though.

Its in Camoflage.

 

[mikeyb]

This is an early mule for Vauxhall's Sport Tourer version of the Insignia VXR, snapped testing at the Nurburgring. The prototype's body might look fairly mundane, but under the skin is a four-wheel drive chassis mated to a twin-turbo V6 that'll produce over 300bhp.
Is it really the Vauxhall Insignia VXR?

No, the car in our pictures is actually an OPC (Opel Performance Centre) Insignia – but that's just the name for VXR on the Continent. You can see the OPC badge on the wing, but the other giveways are the Brembo brake callipers and drilled discs.
The rest of this prototype is fairly standard though (bar the twin pipes at the back), but the full-fat OPC/VXR cars will have a split chrome bar across the upper grille and a rectangular lower intake. There will also be two upright and chrome-trimmed intakes inspired by the GTC Concept, and two further, smaller vents. They're not on this prototype, but we've seen hatch versions of the VXR running at the 'Ring with the intakes taped over, suggesting they're purely cosmetic.
And what about this engine?

The Insignia VXR will use a 2.8-litre V6 with twin turbos helping to produce around 320bhp. The old Vectra VXR had 251bhp, but it was all channelled through the front wheels – the new Insignia VXR has a four-wheel drive system with an electronic rear differential, plus Vauxhall's FlexRide system that has three settings for the damping, steering and four-wheel drive system. It'll even (wait for it) switch the dials from white to red backlighting in Sport mode...
We'll see the Insignia VXR unveiled in the next few months, but don't expect the Sport Tourer version to appear until early 2010, priced from around 32,000.

 

[mikeyb]

I wonder if Buick will sell a version of this here.

 

[Kymerik]

Answer....no LOL

do you see this too?

Chrysler Pacifica meet Audi Allroad...

 

[coolmazda5]

Yeah, I see a lot of an Audi-ish style in there, and that is a good thing (naughty)

 

[mikeyb]

Well it is German.

 

[Rogue]

looks like they're using the RX-8 R3 wheels too

 

[mikeyb]

Spy Shots:Vauxhall Insignia VXR/Opel Insignia OPC

 

[mikeyb]

Fancy an Audi S4 on the cheap? Vauxhall and its Continental cousins at Opel are hoping this new Insignia VXR will offer ballistic performance for (relatively) bargain prices. How quick? We're talking 0-60mph in around 5.8 seconds for just over 30,000.

It's not long until we see the finished Insignia VXR – the first pictures are due out in April 2009 – and we've already scooped other bodystyles, including the go faster VXR estate. All three go on sale in June 2009.

So how fast is the new Insignia VXR?

Vauxhall has taken the regular Elite's 2.8-litre V6 and turned up the wick of the single – not twin, as previously reported – turbo to crank out 320bhp. The turbo uses twin-scroll technology to boost output.

All that thrust is sent to the road through a four-wheel drive system that's tweaked to cope with the additional twist and deliver a sportier drive.

Who's going to buy the VXR in these troubled times?

Good question. The timing might be tricky for Vauxhall – selling a high CO2, rip-rorting lairy family car in the middle of a recession is hardly ideal. But the marketing types are confident they will find a select bunch of buyers who desire a Vauxhall Passat R36 or Audi S4 for a bargain price.

The VXR will be positioned at the top of the Insignia family tree; all three bodystyles are likely to cost more than 30,000, stretching to around 32k for the wagon.

 

[mikeyb]

 

[meGrimlock]

the mean average age of the buick customer probably doesnt mean it'll be coming here as a buick, but GM badgineers could easily turn it into a saab (if saab survives the carpocalypse)

 

[mikeyb]

the mean average age of the buick customer probably doesnt mean it'll be coming here as a buick, but GM badgineers could easily turn it into a saab (if saab survives the carpocalypse)

Saab already has a version of this car. The 9-3 XWD but it does not make 300hp but 280hp.

 

[mikeyb]

Uncovered Insignia VXR

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

the front end of the estate kinda looks like a merc . . .

 

[mikeyb]

Opel Insignia OPC with Brembo brakes spy shots

 

[mikeyb]

I read some where that this car might replace the Pontiac G6.