Holden to look at Vauxhall Viva city car

General Motors’ British arm has released a teaser image of the Viva, which will join the Adam and Corsa city cars in Vauxhall’s line-up in mid-2015.

The company says the five-door Viva will be available in four- and five-seat configurations, and will offer “an extremely attractive price point … be very well specified and come in a range of trims and equipment levels”.

Vauxhall says the new model will pay homage to the original Viva of the 1960s and 1970s, sharing its “clean lines, durability and practicality”.

Holden product communications national manager Kate Lonsdale told CarAdvice the local division would look at the Viva and assess its suitability for our market, but said it had no announcements to make about the new model at this stage.

The Viva is designed to compete at the very bottom of the market against the likes of the Mitsubishi Mirage and Nissan Micra – occupying a similar space to the existing Holden Barina Spark.

The Barina Spark will be more than five years old and nearing the end of its life when the Viva launches overseas – making the Vauxhall-sourced hatchback a potential successor for Holden’s ageing entry model.

Holden Barina Spark sales are down 25 per cent this year, tallying 960 to the end of August.

Holden had limited success with the Daewoo Lacetti-based Viva. The South Korean small car was sold in Australia between 2005 and 2009 before being replaced by the current Cruze.