2017 Opel Ampera spied in Europe:: Holden Ampera to follow in Australia?

The absence of any plan for right-hand-drive production means that local buyers will miss out on the new Chevrolet Volt that was revealed in January last year, but these new photos of a version bound for Europe - where models for the UK would be built in right-hand drive - might be the first hint of a different approach: a Holden-badged Opel Ampera.

The first-generation Chevrolet Volt was sold in Australia through the Holden range, wearing largely identical styling to its American counterpart. In Europe, however, the Volt - known there as the Ampera - benefited from unique bumpers at both ends that better suited the Opel styling language of the time.

With Holden already confirmed to be taking at least one-third of its future models from the Opel range, the Ampera could be on the cards as a rival to ultra-green offerings like the Toyota Prius hybrid and Nissan Leaf EV, among others.

That’s a space that Holden vacated when it dropped the Volt early last year, and while it has yet to confirm plans for a return, other players - like Hyundai’s new Ioniq hybrid and plug-in hybrid models - are moving to fill the gap.

The Ampera would be the obvious play for Holden parent General Motors to re-enter the green space in Australia, and right-hand-drive production for the UK market means that at least one part of the business case is already secure.

Above: the US-market Chevrolet Volt

As with the previous Ampera, we can expect the new model to wear unique Opel- and Vauxhall-specific bumpers at both ends, designed to suit the local lines and - by extension - to sit neatly alongside the new-generation Holden Astra and the next-generation Opel Insignia-based Holden Commodore.

As for its mechanical package, expect the Ampera to be driven by the same plug-in hybrid system featured in the new Chevrolet Volt, which means a 75kW 1.5-litre petrol engine paired to a 45kW electric drive unit.

Learn more about the Volt at the links below.

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