GM reveals Insignia interior
June 4, 2008 by George Skentzos
General Motors has released the very first official interior photos of the new Opel Insignia, or to be more specific – the UK spec Vauxhall badged version.
In Australia, it was presumed the new Insignia would reclaim the Vectra namesake however Holden is persistent it will instead pursue the Epica.
The sporty wrap-around interior could not be more removed from the typical conservative cabin normally associated with the Vectra.
“We wanted to create interior environments for all our future vehicles that are warm, inviting and sporty. The Insignia is the first evidence of this philosophy.” says John Puskar, Executive Director of Interior Design at GM Europe.
The deceptively familiar cluster design (read: VE Commodore) illuminates white under normal driving conditions, however switches to a vibrant red in sport mode.
Along with the new interior, GM has also released a few more images of the Insignia in a very handsome black finish.
Tags: Opel Insignia
When will Holden finally ditch that piece of sh!t epica and bring back the vectra?
they’ve certainly gone for it haven’t they! looks pretty good but not all will like i guess
i prefer the cream leather with the wood dash myself.But caradvice can you put up a epica interior next to a insignia one?
Fancy interior, that’s for sure. I’m not so sure on the number of buttons though.
Wouldn’t mind betting that the next epica converges with the insignia. at least underneath.
Very nice!
They’re pursuing the Daewoo Epica over this??? Shame Holden, shame.
Good looking car, just hope Holden have the balls to get rid of crappy Epica and replace it with a quality product in the Insignia.
i don’t see why holden would have to “replace” the epica with this. This is clearly a more upmarket car, i don’t see why they can’t have the epica as the entry level sedan and this as the more upmarket one. Same as how they sell the viva and astra side by side.
As Trackdaze said however, the next epica will be built on the exact same mechanicals as this car, so its only a matter of time till we get this in one form or another in australia
also lets not forget, wheels magazine rated the epica as a better car then the current model toyota camry so its not as if the epica as bad as alot of people like to make out. It’s certainly not a great car, but its probably a good enough car all the same, the sorts of people who are attracted to that price segment of car will probably be happy enough with it, infact i know someone who is very happy with his epica, even though i personally don’t like it
not the best pictures,
I’d have to see it in the flesh to really decide.
im just not a fan of separating the dials and adding dimension to them.
Mazda does the same, and i dont really like it.
i find them harder to read and summarise whats going on with the vehicle.
the red back ground isnt that easy on the eyes either, but mainly the stick-y out-y dials that never do it for me
Looks very nice, however I think by the time, also “if”, it reaches Australia, the central navigation screen will be gone … which for me is half of the appeal of the look of this interior….
I have only seen 4-5 Epica’s on the road so far!!! its been out for ages and probably nearing the end of its life cycle i should think… same with Chrysler Sebrings…. Surely GM would realize that Vectra name is a lot more popular than Epica!!!!!
Great German Engineering great looking car in terms of the exterior and in terior, in my opinion it looks better than the mondeo, especially in the exterior department great proportions and styling excelent lines. Does the luxury mondeo have a large colour screen? I can even see fornt sensors. This is in the mid-size department just like the mondeo im sure this will get a 5 star safety rating just like the opel corsa.
Looks great to me . Don’t you blokes have a home to go to?
I kind of forgot Holden even sold the epica.
Ford gives Australian fans the brilliant mondeo, and Holden supports get a daewoo
don’t see many of those ford supporters buying the mondeo…
I’m seeing more and more Mondeos around. There’s still a supply problem from Europe I think.
My word, what a bad decision Holden have made to continue the Epic balls called the Epica! It was crap from the start and now the figures are speaking for themselves. I’m now not sure what market space this car is targeted at. Certainly not the Mondeo, The sales figures for the last 3 months make for some good reading:-
March/April/May
Epica 319/139/43 (Yes 43, 85 Hummers were sold in MAY!)
Mondeo 365/329/565
(Sources VFACTS)
Holden originally claimed, the mid market Vectra didn’t sell, so in comes the Epica. But even when the Vectra was available it sold over 700 a month. I’d say the Mondeo is actually killing the Epica, Holden need to reply with an equal quality product.
The latest sales figures show Epica sold a massive 43 units. Mondeo sold 600. Does Holden need any more convincing?
Holden CEO Mark Reuss is reportedly in Europe ATM so I would say he would be having more than just a look at this car because he admits Moron Mooneys decision to switch to Daewoos instead of Opels was one of the worst in the companies history.
He believes that given the popularity of cars like the Golf here in Oz shows that most Australians are prepared to pay an extra premium for a quality car.
Mooney wanted to make savings with the Daewoos however if he kept the Opels they would have sold more which would have meant bigger orders. more imports which would have lowered the cost per unit and added to the bottom line
Whereas with the Daewoos; dealers awere/are being forced to reduce the price inorder to move stock which is cutting into the savings that Mooney thought they would make.
Mondeo is still way better than this, GM Holden Daewoo wrongly selling Viva, Barina and horrible Epica etc, still leaves a bad taste in my mouth, I can not believe there are people out there buying this rebadged junk… maybe based on advertising only..
GM won’t sell Opels here, they have invested too much money into Daewoo.. and if they did it will flop because it’s not cheap n nasty like bargain Daewoo platforms..
If we do get it here, I think it will be called whatever Vauxhall call it in the UK. I also think that people in Australia will be willing to pay a premium for a quality vehicle.
I remember when the Epica was first released, I saw maybe 2 a week. Now, I haven’t seen any at all.
Ford GT40, first you say holden is wrong to be selling the daewoos instead of the opels, but then you say that if they did sell the opels they would flop anyway because they’re not the daewoos? Make up your mind dude!
And how do you know the mondeo is better then this? no one has even driven an insignia yet! lol badge bias much????
The only epicas Ive see on the road are dealer vehicles – I think that says it all…. me thinks they will be the Camiras of the new millenium, well either them or Viva’s or both… btw love the look of the insignia interior, but wholey crap batman enuff buttons already….
Great looking car
Nice car but I believe this is not for Australia. Ford has the Mondeo and I believe Holden should look at the rebirth of the Torana. It’s clear the mid size cars ar the way to go. As the Mondeo has a 2 litre turbo diesel I believe a resurrected Torana with a similar package would be good for the Australian market.
The TT-36 Torana is a goer as its also going to become the new Pontiac G6.. expected release date 2012.
However; I doubt that it will be called the Torana its more likely that Holden will continue the Commodore name instead and make it a more compact mid sized car – similar to that of the Torana concept car
Until then the Insignia will make a ideal replacement for the Epica
One difference between the Epica and Camira Duckula.. I believe the Camira won COTY
your right wheelnut, the camira was actually a good car when it was new, it just aged terribly thanks mainly to diabolical rust issues.
As for the commodore being made a more compact car in the future, well at this stage holden is planning on doing a full update on the current VE archetecture in 2012 which will see commodore, built off its current full sized platform, all the way through untill atleast 2018. So if holden decide to bring in a smaller car underneath it, it definetly won’t be commodore as the commodore WILL still be around in its current size in 2012 and onwards.
This has all been confirmed by holden, it’s not just idle speculation. The commodore is holden’s export baby, so to change its size, and therefore its intended market, in australia will mean they will have to do the same for its exports, and where is the business sense in exporting a medium sized sedan when GM already has the vectra/insignia?
Richo you are confusing yourself, hmmmmm Holden’s Daewoo saga, at the moment GM have inferior model rivals especially against Ford, Mazda, Honda, Mitsubitshi,, etc. The Mondeo won 2007 Australia’s best car awards and came 2nd in WORLD car of the year awards, if the insigma comes close to Mondeo’s rating next year or 2010 then it will recieve praise, but for me thats way bluddy late if GM decide to replace a ailing Daewoo model here in OZ.
Epica is having a slow death, Holden will have to produce more controversial ads with slogan “Epica goes better” hahahahaha YEAH !!!!! well NOT in my life time.
Just because Holden are continuing to sell the Epica, I wouldn’t rule out the Insignia being sold next to the Epica (like the Viva and Astra). I guess it depends on where you live, but I’ve seen quite a few Epicas on the road.
What a gorgeous car. The Germans sure know how to design a car thats for sure.
I hope Epica sales continue to slump from already poor sales figures compared to the Mondeo. That should teach Holden a lesson that people arent dumb after all.
Shame to Holden for even calling themselves Australian with all the crap they are currently selling [excluding the commodore].
Hopefully they will wake up and bring the Opel Corsa and the Insigmia down under and the new Astra which is due out next year I think.
I think most people will be downsizing cars in the future and these cars would be fantastic. I wouldn’t touch their current small/medium car range with a 10 foot pole!
Sure it looks nice, but then a black Epica with large wheels and the cameras pointed in a certain direction looks quite nice too. The last photo I saw of the Insignia was of a white one in action, and I really don’t think it’s a pretty car. It looks big and dopey and very Camryish.
Epica….Load of junk. Seen the newest Holden ad were they go through the fleet of cars. Notice there is only one shot of the Epicrap. It lasts 1 second & has it driving behind trees. Yep, Holden really love the Epicrap so much they are only prepared to show it in the ad for a second & then it is obscured behind trees…..
To Holden, you really need to find a business case to get the new Insignia here. Whether you market it alongside the Caprice, Statesman & Calais V as Holden excutive fleet or whatever. But you need to turn around the cheap & nasty tag you have developed for yourself. You need the Astra & Insignia selling together.
Well, I guess you can’t really blame Holden for experimenting with the Epica. The Vectra sold very slowly so they took a punt with the Epica. Of course, with 43 sales in a month, I wouldn’t say that was very successful. I doubt the Vectra was that abysmal.
at the monet ford can only get around 650 mondeos a month so they are selling well.Sae a Xr5 mondeo next a SS v yesterday.Guess which i prefered
o Says:
Sae a Xr5 mondeo next a SS v yesterday.Guess which i prefered
A Mazda 6?
Mazda doesn’t have to use the “supply problem” spin to explain their sales either, despite the fact they sell nearly double the inventory of all Mondeos.
Very nice interior! Come Holden GM! BRING IT HERE!
GAME OVER EPICA! THE INSIGNIA IS HERE! TO TAKE YOUR PLACE!
A large improvement on the out going Vectra in Europe and the UK. If Holden were to bring the car i think they should stick with the Insigna name rather then bring it back as a Vectra. The Vectra was boring to look at and lifeless to drive. Realase it with a new name and give it a fresh start in life.
I thinks it’s a great interior and a nice stylish exterior to go with it. The Mondeo/Vectra(Insignia) fight continues. GM have always been on the back foot on this competition, I really believe if the pricing and customer care are competitive this will push the mondeo off the winners podium.
The old Vectra was not well received in Australia and was considered too expensive by many, Holden had their hands tied so you sadly ended up with the Crapica to the complete failure of Holden. If the Austalian wants this car then you’ll have to pay the going rate which means it will be only a few thousand less then the Commie. It’s a better car though.
I for one cannot wait the see what the 4wd version will be like its just what I need to tow the boat. Roll on Autumn
^No Name are you the person that owns a Vectra?
i`ll buy the insignia but only with the OPEL badge on it
Sure Euro cars like the new Insignia are very nice and classy etc, but I owned a Vectra at one stage and I had so many problems with it. My Mum still has an Opel sourced Barina and the check engine light continually comes on, it stalls while being driven, all on a car with less than 50,000 kms. My current car is a Daewoo Lacetti (same car as the Holden Viva) and it’s fantastic. I haven’t had 1 problem with it. My sister has a Hyundai Getz, again problem free. Everyone is quick to bag the Epica, but I wouldn’t put it past me that it is more reliable than these flashy, yet problem prone eurotrash cars.