Opel has announced it will have a network of 17 dedicated showrooms when the brand officially launches in September.
The European General Motors brand says most of the dealerships are being specially built for the launch and that only two of them also own a franchise for sister brand Holden.
The Opel showrooms will include every Australian state capital city.
“Our [franchise] partners include some of the nation’s most successful and well regarded dealers,” said Opel Australia boss Bill Mott. “Their significant investment in unique, stand-alone Opel facilities is a testament to the potential they ascribe to the brand in Australia.”
Opel’s vehicle range will initially comprise the Corsa city car (above), Astra hatchback and Insignia medium car. The line-up will be bolstered with variants of the Astra such as the GTC three-door and is expected to be joined by the Astra OPC hot-hatch and Mokka baby SUV.
Pricing and specifications won’t be announced for the Opel models until early August but the brand is expected to pitch itself as a semi-premium brand like Volkswagen, with the Corsa, Astra and Insignia carrying some form of premium over their Holden equivalents – the Barina, Cruze and forthcoming Malibu respectively.
The Astra was a popular car in Australia under the Holden badge and is predicted by Opel to be easily its volume model in the new range.
Opel has said it is targeting about 15,000 sales a year in Australia by 2015.
The dealer groups who will have both Holden and Opel showrooms are AP Eager’s and Alto.
Opel’s Australian dealer network:
• Opel Brisbane, Corner Ann Street and Commercial Road, Fortitude Valley, Qld.
• Motorline Opel, M1 Motorway, Daisy Hill, QLD, a Motorline Group Company
• Gold Coast Opel, 333 Southport Nerang Road, Ashmore, Qld, an AP Eager’s Company
• Sydney City Auto, Princes Highway, Rockdale, an Australian Automotive Group Company
• Alto Opel, Pacific Highway, Artarmon, NSW. A member of the Alto Group
• Tynan Opel, 519 Prices Highway, Kirrawee, NSW
• Opel of Parramatta, Church Street, Parramatta, NSW, a NGP Group Company
• Rolfe Opel, Melrose Drive, Phillip, ACT, Rolfe Motor Corporation [No 1] Pty Ltd
• South Yarra Opel, Corner Williams Road & High Street, Prahran, Vic. The John Blair Group
• Rex Gorell Opel, Fyans Street, Geelong, Vic. Part of the Rex Gorell Family Group
• Eastside Opel, 309 Whitehorse Road, Nunawading, Vic. The Jefferson Automotive Group
• Metro Opel, Mount Alexander Road, Moonee Ponds, Vic
• Berwick Opel, 2 High Street, Berwick. Vic. Clydevale Australia Pty Ltd
• Adelaide Opel, Corner Hindley Street and West Terrace, Adelaide, SA. An Adelaide Motors Group Company.
• Burswood Opel, 10 Asquith Street, Burswood, WA. A Peters Investment Group Company
• Barbagallo Opel, Scarborough Beach Road, Osborne Park, WA
• Performance Opel, Argyle Street, Hobart, Tasmania. Part of the Performance Automobiles Group.